Operator 13

Operator 13 is a 1934 American pre-Code romance film directed by Richard Boleslawski and starring Marion Davies, Gary Cooper, and Jean Parker.

Based on stories written by Robert W. Chambers, the film is about a Union spy who impersonates a black maid in the early days of the Civil War, but complications arise when she falls in love with a Confederate officer.

[3] The film features the Four Mills Brothers and Davies performing musical numbers and the supporting cast includes Ted Healy, Douglas Dumbrille as Jeb Stuart, Sidney Toler as Allan Pinkerton, Fuzzy Knight, and an uncredited Sterling Holloway as a wounded Union soldier.

Pinkerton decides to use Gail to trap Gailliard, and as part of the plan, she jeers at a parade of Union soldiers and is thought to be a heroine in the Southern newspapers.

The New York Times reviewer found it "scarcely credible in most of its action", but "In its own peculiar fashion it is entertaining and besides the capable work of Miss Davies there are splendid performances by Jean Parker and Gary Cooper.

The title is referenced in the 1941 film noir I Wake Up Screaming when Victor Mature's character accuses another of being a “regular Operator 13”.