Night of January 16th

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First hardback edition (1968)

Night of January 16 is a play written by Ayn Rand, inspired by the death of the "Match King", Ivar Kreuger. First published in 1934, it takes place entirely in a court room and is centered on a murder trial. It was a hit of the 1935-36 Broadway season. The play deals with issues of a man's ability to regard oneself as important and exist in a society where moral decay is ever prevalent. It also deals with issues of love, loyalty and betrayal.

One particularly interesting feature of the play is that members of the audience are picked to take on the role of jury members each night. Depending on whether the "Jury" finds the defendant of the case, as in the play, "guilty" or "not guilty" - the play would have different endings. Another unique feature of the play is that it does not state what the true events were on the night of January 16th, forcing the actors performing the show to decide how much of their character's testimony is actually true. Since several witnesses contradict each other, it is almost certain that some of them are lying.

This play was Ayn Rand's first play and one of Rand's only successful plays in her lifetime. It can be noted that she hated the title Night of January 16th and preferred her original title Woman on Trial. But, after the play became a hit she could not change it because the play had become too famous.

Plot

Bjorn Faulkner has swindled millions of dollars from investors, by investing cash he didn't have in order to control the gold trade. In the wake of a crash, he is facing bankruptcy despite the injection of money by Mr. John Graham Whitfield, a prominent banker whose daughter, Nancy Lee Faulkner, married Faulkner shortly after the loan.

On the night of January 16th, Karen Andre, Bjorn Faulkner's mistress of ten years, are in the penthouse at the top of the Faulkner Building In New York when Faulkner falls to his death. The purpose of the play is to decide if it may have been a suicide - or murder.

Karen Andre is placed on trial on charges of having murdered Faulkner. She is being prosecuted by Mr. Flint and defended by Mr. Stevens.

Within the three acts of the play, the two lawyers call upon a number of witnesses, including doctors, security of the Faulkner building, private investigators, the coroner, and a notorious gangster, where each of their testimony build to contradictory stories.

Characters

Main characters

• Bjorn Faulkner — Bjorn is of Swedish heritage and was considered to be the main controller of the gold industry of the world. At the beginning of the play, it is known that he had reached this position by swindling investors and employing questionable financial practices. He was married to Nancy Lee Faulkner at the time of his death. Dead at the start of the play, Bjorn is never seen during the show.
• Karen Andre — Defendant. Karen Andre has been Bjorn Faulkner's secretary and mistress for the last ten years, since she was hired at age 18. She is the Ayn Rand heroine of the story, independent and dismissive of societal norms. She is an atheist.
• Mr. Stevens — Defense counsel for Karen Andre. He seems to admire the ideals which Bjorn and Karen espouse in their lives.
• Mr. Flint — Prosecution. He stands for more traditional values and desires Karen to be convicted as much because she represents an affront to the status quo as because of her guilt.

Witness for the prosecution

• Dr. Thomas Dirkland — Medical examiner for the county. He delivers testimony on the condition of the body at the time of the fall, he also writes the report. The important report.
• John Joseph Mutchins — A meek, elderly, and timid man. He is the night watchman of the Faulkner building. He is one of the witnesses who sees Bjorn and Karen on the night of January 16th. He likes cake of the chocolate variety.
• Homer Herbert Van Fleet — A private detective who was hired by Nancy Lee Faulkner and has been trailing Bjorn since the day after the marriage of Bjorn and Nancy. His main testimony is of the events of January 16th, which he was also a witness to. Not terribly bright, for which he tries to compensate by keeping meticulous notes on his observations which he frequently refers to. He also has an element of cocky. lol.
• Magda Svenson — Swedish with a very thick accent. Very religious and severe. She was Bjorn Faulkner's nursemaid when he was a child and currently serves as housekeeper. Her testimony covers the period between Karen Andre's initial employment and the night of January 16th. She highly disapproves of the loose sexual morality of Karen, but still loves Bjorn as if he were her own child.
• Detective Elmer Sweeney — Private investigator and the first policeman to arrive on the scene. He is the one who finds the suicide note. He comes off as being a bit of a bumpkin in his testimony of the 16th and is somewhat naive.
• Nancy Lee Faulkner — Widow of Bjorn Faulkner and daughter of John Graham Whitfield. She met Bjorn at a society event and decided that she had to have him. Her testimony covers their courtship and marriage, portraying both as idyllic.
• John Graham Whitfield — Father-in-law of Bjorn Faulkner. He is the president of Whitfield National Bank. He purports himself as the kind of person who never loses his temper, but proves himself a liar several times in the course of both times he is called to the stand. In his first appearance on the stand, he testifies mainly on the financial matters of Bjorn.

Witnesses for the Defense

• Sigurd Jungquist — Swedish with a faint accent. He was hired as Bjorn Faulkner's bookkeeper, and was promoted to secretary after Karen was fired. He admires Bjorn highly and would do anything to help him. His testimony regards events between Karen's firing and the night of January 16th and related financial matters. He blows up after being called a liar by D.A. Flint.
• Lawrence "Guts" Regan — A gangster who is in love with Karen Andre. His testimony covers the time from when he met Karen to the day before the trial. He tells the story of after he and Bjorn left Andre's penthouse. He accuses John Graham Whitfield of killing Faulkner.
• Karen Andre — In this testimony, she accuses Nancy Lee as having been elevated to the high state of matrimony by purchase.
• John Graham Whitfield — His second appearance has him answering questions raised by defense testimony.

Criticism

In its first original run, the play had been criticized for removing the illusion of theatre. Thereafter the play became famous for its use of a jury drawn from the audience and criticism fell.