The Man Who Had All the Luck

The play takes on a fantastical, parable-like architecture in its plot construction and character development as it follows Beeves into three and a half of the luckiest years of his life.

David Beeves is a young Midwestern automobile mechanic, who discovers he is blessed with what appears to be almost supernatural good fortune that allows him to overcome every seemingly insurmountable obstacle that crosses his path, while those around him fall in defeat.

David Beeves works as a self-taught auto mechanic in a barn that doubles as a repair station, where the entire first act takes place.

The scene unfolds as David tells J.B., a local shop owner, that he plans to confront his girlfriend Hester’s father about their intention to marry.

After receiving conflicting advice on how to mediate the situation from J.B., Hester, his father Pat, and Shory (a disabled veteran who manages the feed and grain store adjacent to the barn), a rich farm owner named Dan Dibble brings his Marmon over for repair after a competing mechanic informs him that the engine will have to be taken apart.

Only moments later, Dan Dibble returns with Hester, admitting in a stunned confession that he accidentally hit and killed her father with the front of his vehicle.

David, feeling an ambivalent combination of sympathy for Hester, elation now that his obstacles have been removed, and a skeptical notion that what just happened was unreal, stays in the barn to work on the Marmon.

Pat is later revealed to have received a telegram from Augie Belfast, a talent scout for the Detroit Tigers, notifying the family that he will be watching the game tonight specifically for Amos.

After they return from the game, the crowd awaits Belfast’s arrival and the verdict on whether Amos has the skill to be drafted into the major league at the Beeves’ residence.

Spirits are high within the group initially, but as time passes without any sign of Belfast, Beeves starts to doubt the value of man’s hard work and determination.

Resentful and humiliated, Amos vows never to play baseball again, blames his father for his misfortunes, and discloses his envious feelings toward David’s fulfillment in life.

Both decide to hold off on telling him; Gus fears that his psychological and emotional stability might come into jeopardy, and Hester believes that such a loss would eventually make him happy in the long run.

The play's failure nearly derailed Miller's career, and it remained one of his least-known works until 1990, when the Bristol Old Vic staged The Man Who Had All The Luck with Iain Glen in the lead role.