Business tycoon James J. "J. J." MacGlennon is found guilty of corruption and sentenced to prison, along with his son Jonathan, who testified against him but feels he is also guilty because they are related. Jonathan, an intellectual socialist, disapproves of his father's business methods, which he believes indicate that J. J. has criminal proclivities. He and J. J. bicker all the way to prison, while J. J.'s business is taken over by his greedy vice-president, Percy Webb. Although Jonathan's cellmate is surly convicted killer Frank Lucacelli, Jonathan insists that they get along, and when Frank tries to strike him, Jonathan calmly knocks the killer out and continues his exhortation about man's need for humanity. As MacGlennon Enterprises' stock drops, and Webb forms a partnership with crooked lawyer Frederick Driscoll, J. J. instructs his still-employed secretary, Elinor Cantwell, to continue to buy stock on his behalf so that Webb will never gain control of the company. J. J. goes .