The Exhibitor (Nov 1941-May 1942)

March 25, 1942 THE EXHIBITOR Cast: Guy Kibbee, Jed Prouty, Dorothy Moore, Charles Lind, Kenneth Howell, Regina Wallace, Frances Carson, Arthur Ayelsworth, Paul White, Phillip Hurlic, Walter S. Baldwin, Jr., Lee Phelps. Di¬ rected by Christy Cabbane. Story: When Charles Lind’s father is killed, Guy Kibbee urges him to give up the idea of breeding horses, and get an education. However, the boy makes a deal for the best horse with Jed Prouty, who has bought his father’s farm, and pays part of the price. When Kenneth Howell, house guest of Prouty’s wife, Regina Wallace, mistreats the horse, Lind tries to take the beast, and is arrested. Kibbee arranges for his release, and the boy rides in the big race against Howell, winning the prize. With the money, he tries to buy back the farm, but is refused by socially conscious Miss Wallace. By opening a pig farm next to the place, Kibbee forces the sale, and the boy, hav¬ ing his farm and horses back, turns his attention to Prouty’s daughter, Dorothy Moore. X-Ray: Typical Scattergood plot on which hangs the kindliness of Scattergood, this follows the plan set down for the series. Kibbee is his usual self in the name part, and the rest of the cast does an adequate job. This should be suitable with the family trade and the duallers. Ad Lines: “Back Again . . . The Lov¬ able Scattergood Baires ... In His Finest Role”; “Scattergood Baines Is Back . . . And What A Time You’ll Have”; “Am¬ erica’s No. 1 Air Philosopher Returns In A Drama Of Love and Understanding.” The Tuttles Of Tahiti Co^DMY Estimate: Lightweight program needs plenty of attention. Cast: Charles Laughton, Jon Hall, Peggy Drake, Victor Francen, Gene Reynolds, Florence Bates, Curt Bois, Adeline de Walt Reynolds, Mala, Leonard Sues, Jody Gil¬ bert, Tommy Cook, Jack Carr, Jimmy Ames, Ernie Adams, Jim Spencer, Alma Ross, Teddy Infuhr. Directed by Charles Vidor. Story: The Tuttles, a whole brood of them, sons, daughters, in-laws, etc. live happily on Tahiti, descendants of a New England family who settled there a few generations back. No. 1 Tuttle is Charles Laughton, aged but vigorous, with his mother, Adeline de Walt Reynolds, the matriarch. Although they are the best fishermen in Tahiti, the Tuttles are an ir¬ responsible lot, never have money for gas, and constantly borrow from doctor Victor Francen, who likes them. Son Jon Hall comes back after three years in the states, with a fighting cock. They bet all their money, furniture, etc., on it in a match with that of Florence Bates. She wins Four Tuttles go off to fish to earn money, are thought lost in a storm, but return pulling an abandoned freighter, for which they get 400,000 francs, which they squand¬ er, and even tho Hall marries Peggy Drake, daughter of Bates, the latter opposes the marriage. Curt Bois, shrewd Tahiti businessman, wants to take the Tut¬ tle possessions when a mortgage he holds is overdue, and just when all seems lost, Laughton finds the money to pay for it. The Tuttles are again happy, with the pur¬ chase of another fighting cock their new accomplishment. X-Ray: Based on “No More Gas,” story by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, writers of “Mutiny on the Bounty”, this is lightweight, strung out to fill 91 minutes, and it will have to struggle for returns. Laughton has to carry the load, and it seems too much. While the picture comes under the head of escapist enter¬ tainment, it seems light for even th/at. Selling angles obviously are the Tahiti background, the comedy motif, happy-golucky attitude of the Tuttles, and the ro¬ mance between Hall and Drake. There is some native music. One storm scene at sea isn’t very convincing. Ad Lines: “Eat . . . Drink . . . and Be Merry. . . . That’s What the Tuttles Of Tahiti Thought”; “See Charles Laughton As the Most Lovable Tuttle Of Them All In An Enchanting Saga Of the World’s Most Glamorous Isle”; “You’ll Laugh . . . You’ll Be Thrilled”; “Drive Your Cares Away . . . Come To Tahiti With the Lov¬ able Tuttles”. REPUBLIC Heart Of the Rio Grande (144) Musical Western 70m. Estimate: Typical Autry has “Deep In the Heart of Texas” song to help selling. Cast: Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Fay McKenzie, Edith Fellows, Pierre Watkin, Joe Strauch, Jr., William Haade, Sarah Padden, Jean Porter, the Jimmy Wakley Trio. Directed by William Morgan. Story: Gene Autry and side-kick, Smiley Burnette, take over operation of a ranch owned by a retired sea captain’s widow, Sarah Padden, to run as a dude ranch. To the ranch comes a group of school girls, chaperoned by teacher Fay Mc¬ Kenzie, and including a wealthy spoiled brat, Edith Fellows. Finally, however, Autry wins Fellows over, and she under¬ stands the true spirit of the west. Mean¬ while, however, her father, a busy tycoon, thinks she is getting bad treatment, comes out to take her back, but he, too, learns what it is to a real good neighbor and father. X-Ray: The biggest selling idea here, besides Autry, is “Deep In the Heart of Texas,” hit song. It is played several times, and should be emphasized in the sales campaign. Otherwise, this is a leisurely moving Autry, with not much action, little menace, but lots of singing Numbers include: “Deep In the Heart of Texas,” “Dusk On the Painted Desert,” “Rancho Pillow,” “I’ll Wait For You,” “Rocky Canyon,” “A Rumble Seat For Two,” “Cimarron,” “Rainbow In the Night,” “Oh, Woe Is Me.” Burnette carries the comedy aided by Joe Strauch, Jr. Ad Lines: “The Hit Song of the Year, ‘Deep In the Heart Of Texas,’ In a Swell Gene Autry Western”; “Hear the No. 1 Song Of the Year . . . ‘Deep In the Heart of Texas’ ”; “Gene Sings His Way to Happi¬ ness With ‘Deep In the Heart of Texas’.” Stagecoach Express Western (175) 55m. Estimate: Okay western. Cast: Don Barry, Lynn Merrick, A1 St. John, Robert Kent, Emmett Lynn, Guy Kingsford, Ethan Laidlaw. Directed by George Sherman. Story: Setting is in the lawless Pan¬ handle western district during 19th cen¬ tury. Don Barry, with A1 St. John, goes to work for the Southwest Stage Lines, operated by Lynn Merrick, faced with bankruptcy because of a wave of stage¬ coach holdups plotted by her general manager, Emmett Lynn, and carried out by the ruthless gang of Guy Kingsford. Barry, with St. John and a young miner, Robert Kent, succeeds in breaking up the holdups, but learns of Lynn’s determined bid to supersede the Southwest lines with his own company, aided by authority vested in him as the district’s new com¬ missioner, to which he was appointed while Barry was out of town. Barry, learning that Lynn has been secretly buy¬ ing stagecoaches, gives this information to Lynn Merrick, who still trusts her gen¬ eral manager. It is decided that she, Barry, Lynn and Kent, together with St. John, shall go by stage to the town where Barry claims Lynn has stored the new coaches. Lynn pretends to favor the plan, but plans to precede the party on horse¬ back, arranging for an ambush. Barry, however, forces him to ride the stage¬ coach, and Lynn blurts out the truth as the stage nears the spot where Kingsford’s men are waiting to open fire. X-Ray: Suspense and some humor are the keynotes here. Story isn’t original, but the cast seems to make the most of it. Ad Lines: “Action On the Range”; “Thrills and Excitement In the Texas Bad¬ lands”; “Don Barry Fights Lawlessness Single-handed.” v i i t> /i i c\ Comedy with Music Yokel Boy (115) 67m. Estimate: Okay Hollywood satire with music for family trade. Cast: Albert Dekker, Joan Davis, Eddie Foy, Jr., Alan Mowbray, Roscoe Kams, Mikhail Rasumny, Lynne Carver, Marc Lawrence, Tom Dugan, Pierre Watkin, James C. Morton, Marilyn Hare. Directed by Joseph Santley. Story: Alan Mowbray, movie producer, thinks his press agent, Roscoe Karns, has something when the latter suggests they hire hick Eddie Foy, Jr., who holds the world record for attending the movies, as their “idea man.” Foy arrives in Holly¬ wood in a blaze of Karns-created glory, and is assigned the task of casting a crime epic based on the life of a notorious gang¬ ster, Albert Dekker. Foy starts knocking the film moguls for loops when he sug¬ gests that they get Dekker himself to play the lead role, and picks Mowbray’s beauti¬ ful but dumb niece, Lynne Carver, for the female role. Dekker is persuaded by his sister, Joan Davis, who is trying to re¬ form him, to accept the studio’s offer. He arrives in the film capital with gunmen henchmen Tom Dugan and Marc Law¬ rence, and proceeds to take over. Mow¬ bray goes slightly crazy as Dekker keeps rejecting scripts, while director Rasumny is thoroughly intimidated. Dekker takes Carver’s role away from her, and gives it to Davis. To get the lead back, Carver makes a play for Foy. However, by this time, Davis is very much in love with the farm lad movie champ. Work on the pic¬ ture again stops while the girls battle it out for his affections, with Davis winning out. Mounting production costs worry Mowbray, but the final blow comes when gunmen Dugan and Lawrence rob a bank while scenes for the picture are being filmed in the building. The bankers sue Mowbray for damages, and production is suspended for lack of funds. By now, Dekker is thoroughly convinced of his acting ability, and, is unwilling to permit his screen career to end, so he sees that the gunmen are captured. He convinces Davis he has reformed, and she puts up enough money to finish the epic. Davis and Foy marry, after the film is finished, and return east with Dekker. Estimate: Based on the play, this is a pleasant slapstick satire of movie making and Hollywood. There are numerous shots of movie studios, picture making, and Hollywood, itself. The assembled cast of funsters, although light on marquee strength, are capable, and laughs are fre¬ quently loud and long. It’s a great albeit harmless rib on movie making. Exploita¬ tion possibilities are good. Musical num¬ bers are “It’s Me Again” and “Jim,” both delivered by Davis in comedy vein. Ad Lines: “A Yokel Boy Invades Holly¬ wood, and Stands It on It’s Ear!”; “See Servisection 5 975