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This Is My Affair (1937) movie poster

Timeline

This Is My Affair (1937) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Release, runtime and language
1937 · 100 mins · English
Directed by
William A. Seiter
Starring
John Carradine, Paul McVey, Lon Chaney Jr., Paul Hurst, Sig Ruman, Joseph Crehan

A tale that rattled the nation down to its highest offices, President McKinley commissions Lt. Richard L. Perry to go undercover. Perry’s mission is to pinpoint a tightly coordinated group of Mid‑Western bank robbers centered in Saint Paul, Minnesota, whose audacious heists have captured the country's attention.

On this page (5)
  1. 1 Events in order (12)
  2. 2 Timeline questions answered
  3. 3 Movie threads
  4. 4 Movies like This Is My Affair
  5. 5 Every angle

12 events in order · contains spoilers

This Is My Affair Timeline: Events in Chronological Order

Every key event of This Is My Affair (1937) in order, scene by scene, with when and where it takes place. Use it to untangle flashbacks, time jumps and parallel storylines, to refresh your memory before the sequel or to find the exact scene you are thinking of.

  1. President McKinley's Dilemma

    In 1901, President William McKinley faces pressure from various figures, including Bank Examiner Henry Maxwell, to take action against a notorious gang of bank robbers. He secretly sends Lieutenant Richard Perry undercover, disguised as Joe Patrick, to gather intel without notifying other authorities.

    When
    1901
  2. Richard Perry's Infiltration

    Richard Perry, under the alias Joe Patrick, begins mingling with the gang members, establishing a relationship with Lil Duryea. He visits her at the casino in Saint Paul, Minnesota, while secretly investigating Batiste and his criminal activities.

    Where
    Saint Paul, Minnesota
  3. Romantic Development and Suspicions

    Joe develops a romantic connection with Lil Duryea, but attempts to keep his cover by brushing her off when Batiste and Jock Ramsay are around. Lil is torn between her feelings and her loyalty to her stepbrother, Batiste.

  4. Invitation to Join the Gang

    Batiste, suspecting Joe might be involved in the bank robberies, invites him to join the gang. Meanwhile, Lil tries to persuade Joe to run away with her, prompting him to consider resigning from his mission.

  5. Joe Decides and Breakup

    Joe initially agrees to leave his undercover role and plans to run away with Lil. He writes a resignation letter to President McKinley but hesitates, unaware of the full mastermind behind the robberies. Lil is heartbroken and ends their relationship.

  6. The Robbery and Aftermath

    Joe alerts President McKinley about an upcoming gang robbery, hoping to catch the criminals. During the confrontation, Batiste is killed and Jock Ramsay is wounded while resisting arrest, escalating the investigation.

  7. Jail Revelations

    While in prison, Joe manages to persuade Jock Ramsay to reveal that the bank examiner, Henry Maxwell, is the true mastermind behind the robberies. However, McKinley is shot before he can receive Joe's letter exposing the conspiracy.

    Where
    Prison
  8. False Confession and Sentencing

    Joe confesses everything in a letter to Lil, including the identity of the mastermind. Despite his confession, McKinley's assassination leads to disbelief, and Joe and Jock are sentenced to death for their alleged crimes.

  9. Lil's Vigil and Confrontation

    Lil visits Joe in prison, and he pleads with her to seek justice by informing Admiral Dewey about the conspiracy. She initially refuses but becomes determined to uncover the truth after McKinley's death.

  10. Seeking Justice from Roosevelt

    Lil and Dewey approach President Theodore Roosevelt, who is skeptical until a secret message from McKinley is revealed, confirming Maxwell's guilt. Roosevelt then takes action based on this new evidence.

  11. Clearing Joe’s Name

    Roosevelt acts upon the evidence, before Joe's execution, and confirms Maxwell’s involvement in the criminal conspiracy. This leads to Joe’s exoneration and he is finally freed from false charges.

  12. Reunion and Justice

    After the truth is uncovered, Joe and Lil are reunited. The story concludes with justice served and the criminal conspiracy exposed, restoring their relationship and honor.

Last updated: August 19, 2025 at 05:15

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Timeline questions answered

This Is My Affair Timeline Explained: Your Questions Answered

When does it happen, and why in that order? The questions people ask about the chronology of This Is My Affair (1937): time jumps, flashbacks, cause and effect between scenes and the correct order of events, each answered with spoilers.

Q1

Why did Joe Patrick decide to stay on his undercover mission after agreeing to run away with Lil?

Joe initially agreed to resign and run away with Lil, but he changed his mind when he learned the full extent of the criminal operation and discovered the identity of the true mastermind behind the robberies. The realization that the conspiracy went deeper than he initially thought made him feel he couldn't walk away without completing his mission to expose the ringleader.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the film, Joe writes a resignation letter to McKinley but hesitates to send it, showing his internal struggle between duty and personal desire.

  • joe patrick
  • undercover mission
  • lil duryea
  • resignation
  • bank robbers
Q2

Who is the real mastermind behind the bank robberies?

Bank Examiner Henry Maxwell is the true mastermind behind the coordinated bank robberies. He was secretly orchestrating the crimes while using his position as a bank examiner to sabotage the authorities' efforts to catch the gang, making it appear that law enforcement was incompetent.

Foreshadowing: President McKinley faces pressure from Bank Examiner Henry Maxwell to take action against the robbers, which is an unusual role for a bank examiner to play in the investigation.

  • henry maxwell
  • bank examiner
  • mastermind
  • criminal conspiracy
  • saint paul
Q3

How did McKinley's assassination lead to Joe's death sentence?

Joe sent a letter to President McKinley exposing the Bank Examiner as the true mastermind, but before McKinley could receive and act on this evidence, he was assassinated. This created chaos and disbelief in the government, leading authorities to reject Joe's claims as fabrications. Without the President's backing, Joe and Jock were sentenced to death for their alleged crimes.

Foreshadowing: Joe's letter containing the crucial evidence was in transit when McKinley was shot, preventing the President from verifying the information beforehand.

  • mckinley assassination
  • death sentence
  • joe perry
  • letter evidence
  • wrongful conviction
Q4

What secret message from McKinley convinced Roosevelt to take action?

McKinley left a secret instruction in a letter bearing a special symbol that only trusted officials could interpret. This concealed message confirmed the truth about the Bank Examiner's conspiracy and Maxwell's guilt. When Roosevelt saw this evidence, he was convinced that Joe's story was legitimate and moved to exonerate him before the execution could be carried out.

  • theodore roosevelt
  • secret message
  • mckinley letter
  • special symbol
  • maxwell guilt
Q5

Why was Lil able to get Admiral Dewey and President Roosevelt to believe Joe's story?

Lil initially refused to help but became determined to clear Joe's name after McKinley's death and overcome her guilt over her stepbrother's death. She went to Admiral Dewey, who vouched for her credibility. Together with Dewey, she approached Roosevelt. The turning point came when they revealed the secret message from McKinley bearing the special symbol, which verified that Joe had been working under direct presidential orders and that his claims about the Bank Examiner were true.

  • lil duryea
  • admiral dewey
  • theodore roosevelt
  • credibility
  • secret evidence
Q6

What happened to Batiste and the gang after the robbery?

During the confrontation with police that followed Joe's tip-off about the upcoming robbery, Batiste Duryea was killed while resisting arrest. Jock Ramsay was wounded during the same confrontation. This event effectively dismantled the gang's leadership, though the criminal operations continued under the direction of the true mastermind, Bank Examiner Maxwell.

  • batiste duryea
  • jock ramsay
  • police confrontation
  • gang leader
  • robbery
Q7

How did Joe get Jock Ramsay to reveal the mastermind's identity while in prison?

While incarcerated, Joe worked to gain Jock Ramsay's trust over time. Eventually, Jock revealed that the Bank Examiner Henry Maxwell was the true ringleader behind the criminal organization. This information was crucial because it provided the evidence Joe needed to prove his innocence and expose the real conspiracy.

  • jock ramsay
  • prison
  • bank examiner
  • confession
  • mastermind identity
Q8

Why was President Roosevelt initially skeptical of Lil's claims about the conspiracy?

Roosevelt was skeptical because Joe's story seemed implausible, claiming a bank examiner was running a criminal conspiracy while also being the one pressuring the President to act against crime. Additionally, without living witnesses or concrete evidence to corroborate the allegation, and with the country in turmoil after McKinley's assassination, Roosevelt had little reason to believe an unverified claim from a convicted man and a casino singer.

  • theodore roosevelt
  • skepticism
  • evidence
  • conspiracy theory
  • lil duryea
Q9

Why were Joe and Jock sentenced to death despite being innocent?

Joe and Jock were sentenced to death because the authorities believed they were the leaders of the criminal gang. Joe's confession that he was a Navy officer working undercover was seen as a desperate lie to escape punishment. With President McKinley dead before he could verify Joe's claims, there was no one in authority to vouch for Joe's story. The timing of McKinley's assassination created a power vacuum that made it easy for the justice system to dismiss Joe's claims as fabrication.

  • wrongful conviction
  • death sentence
  • evidence
  • mckinley death
  • cover up
Q10

How was the Bank Examiner able to orchestrate the robberies without being suspected?

The Bank Examiner used his official position to sabotage the investigation into the robberies while simultaneously pressuring the President to take action. This created a perfect cover, he could steer investigation efforts away from himself while appearing to be a concerned official trying to catch the criminals. His inside knowledge of the banking system and law enforcement strategies allowed him to coordinate the robberies and stay ahead of authorities.

  • bank examiner
  • corruption
  • inside job
  • conspiracy
  • law enforcement
Q11

Why did Lil feel guilty about Batiste's death?

Lil felt torn between her growing love for Joe and her loyalty to her stepbrother Batiste, who ran the criminal organization. She had encouraged Joe to abandon his mission and run away with her, and she suspected Joe might be a law enforcement officer. When Batiste was killed during the police confrontation, Lil carried guilt for her role in the events and for not warning her stepbrother about the police raid that Joe had tipped off.

Foreshadowing: Lil tries to persuade Joe to escape and run away with her, showing her conflicting loyalties between her stepbrother and her romantic feelings.

  • lil duryea
  • batiste
  • guilt
  • stepbrother
  • loyalty conflict
Q12

Why did Joe initially choose to abandon his mission for Lil?

Joe fell in love with Lil Duryea while undercover at her stepbrother Batiste's casino. The stress of maintaining his false identity while developing genuine feelings for her created a powerful emotional conflict. When Lil pleaded with him to escape and start a new life together, Joe chose love over duty, at least temporarily, and began writing a resignation letter to President McKinley.

  • joe patrick
  • lil duryea
  • love
  • undercover
  • resignation

Movie threads

More Movies Like This Is My Affair, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes This Is My Affair tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Undercover Agent Thrillers like This Is My Affair

Spies and agents living a dangerous double life where one misstep means death. For viewers who enjoyed the high-stakes tension of 'This Is My Affair'. These movies focus on the dangerous lives of undercover operatives, blending crime drama with political intrigue and the psychological toll of living a double life.

  • suspenseful
  • anxious
  • high-stakes
  • gripping
  • procedural
  • double life
  • Tone: tense, anxious, high-stakes
  • Pacing: steady, methodical build
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative follows a protagonist who assumes a false identity to infiltrate a hostile organization. The story is built on escalating tension as the agent gets deeper into their cover, facing tests of loyalty, close calls with discovery, and the emotional conflict of deceiving those around them, often culminating in a race against time to complete their mission or escape.

Why they belong together: These films are grouped by their core premise of deep-cover espionage, which creates a specific, sustained tension. They share a focus on procedural details of the mission, the psychology of the protagonist, and the high-stakes consequences of failure, resulting in a consistently gripping and anxious viewing experience.

Romantic Crime Dramas with High Stakes like This Is My Affair

Love stories that blossom in the shadow of danger, betrayal, and impossible choices. If you liked the romantic sacrifice in 'This Is My Affair', this thread features movies where love and crime collide. These dramas weave together passionate relationships with high-stakes danger, creating emotionally charged stories of loyalty and sacrifice.

  • romantic
  • tense
  • dramatic
  • sacrifice
  • high-stakes
  • forbidden love
  • Tone: tense, romantic, dramatic
  • Pacing: steady, character-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: A romance develops between characters on opposite sides of a conflict or entangled in a dangerous plot. Their relationship is tested by secrets, external threats, and moral dilemmas. The narrative often involves a significant sacrifice—sometimes of the relationship itself—for the greater good or to ensure the other's safety, leading to a bittersweet or hard-won happy ending.

Why they belong together: This thread groups films that successfully blend the emotional engagement of a romance with the tension of a thriller. The shared element is a love story that is not just a subplot but is central to the stakes and the protagonist's motivations, creating a unique blend of emotional weight and suspense.

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Movies Like This Is My Affair

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Every angle

This Is My Affair (1937) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about This Is My Affair in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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