Harrison's Reports (1945)

22 HARRISON'S REPORTS February 10, 1945 "Leave it to Blondie" with Arthur Lake and Penny Singleton (Columbia, Feb. 22; time, 73 min.) The followers of the "Blondie" pictures should find much enjoyment in this latest of the series, which is the first one produced in about two years; it will serve as a good supporting feature wherever something light is needed to round out a double bill. The story follows the usual pattern employed in the series, with Arthur Lake, as "Dagwood," finding himself in numerous predicaments as the result of a misunderstanding, but this time the comedy situations and the dialogue are a good deal funnier than that of the previous pictures. Even the musical accompaniment plays a very effective part in provoking laughter. It holds one's interest well, for there is something happening all the time. The popularity of the "Blondie" radio program should mean something at the box-office: — Finding themselves with a $100 surplus after balancing their budget, Arthur Lake and Penny Singleton decide to contribute the amount to a charity fund. Each, however, unwittingly draws a $100 check for this purpose, giving the checks to different committees. Neither one has the courage to renege on the contribution, and both become concerned over the realization that one of the checks will "bounce." Meanwhile Larry Sims, their young son, finds an old song, "That Blue-Eyed Sweetheart of Mine," written by Lake's uncle twenty years previously, and, to help his parents out of their financial muddle, he enters the tunc in a song contest sponsored by Eula Morgan, a wealthy dowager, hoping it will win the first prize of $250. Unaware that Larry had put his name on the song as the composer, Lake is astonished when informed that he was one of the three finalists in the contest. Penny, blue-eyed herself, believes that Lake had written the song for her. Jonathan Hale, Lake's employer, seeking to sell some of his property to Miss Morgan, instructs Lake to change the title of the song from "Blue-Eyed" to "Black-Eyed," and to flatter her with attention as he sings it in the finals. Marjorie Weaver, a black-eyed brunette, is assigned to teach Lake how to sing. Penny, listening in on the rehearsal and overhearing the change in title, misunderstands and locks Lake out of the house. Lake spends a miserable night during which he catches a severe cold. His voice reduced to a whisper, Lake arranges for a special recording to be played behind the curtain while he goes through the motions of singing. Every one at the finals is impressed until the needle on the record sticks, exposing the hoax. Lake, helpless, confesses to Miss Morgan that he did not write the song and that he had an ulterior motive in flattering her. Impressed by his honesty, she buys Hale's property and arranges for Lake to receive a handsome bonus. Connie Lee wrote the screen play, Burt Kelly produced it, and Abby Berlin directed it. The cast includes Chick Chandler, Maude Eburne and others. "Sergeant Mike" with Larry Parks and Jeanne Bates (Columbia, K[ov. 9; time, 60 min.) Produced on a very modest budget, this is a minor war melodrama, best suited for the juvenile trade in neighborhood and small-town theatres. Adults will find it to be but mildly interesting. The story, which deals with the training of war dogs and their exploits in battle, offers little originality but it has enough action of the type to satisfy youngsters. A considerable number of stock shots have been incorporated into the footage. The principal characters are pleasant, but there is nothing outstanding about their actions. The romantic interest is mild and unimportant: — Ordered to report to the K-9 Corps, Larry Parks is assigned to train Sergeant Mike, a huge German shepherd. A letter from eight-year-old Larry Joe Olsen, the dog's former owner, inquiring about his pet, brings Parks to Baltimore where he visits the boy and reassures him of the dog's welfare. Parks also meets Jeanne Bates, the boy's widowed mother, whose husband had been killed in action. A mutual friendship develops and Parks promises Larry that he will make a hero out of Sergeant Mike. Their training completed, Parks and the dog board a transport bound for a Jap-held Pacific island. Leading a patrol, Parks and the dog head for the island's interior with orders to contact the enemy. The men grope their way through the jungle cautiously, and the alertness of the war dogs enable them to wipe out two Japanese machine gun nests. Eventually, the men find themselves cut off by superior Jap forces. Parks dispatches Mike with a message to headquarters for reinforcements, which arrive in time to destroy the Japanese. Upon their return to the United States, Parks and Sergeant Mike are decorated for bravery while Larry and his mother look on with admiration. Robert Lee Johnson wrote the screen play, Jack Fier produced it, and Henry Levin directed it. The cast includes Jim Bannon and others. "The Chicago Kid" with Donald Barry, Otto Kruger and Lynne Roberts (Republic, no release date set; time, 68 min.) A fair gangster-type program melodrama. The plot, revolving around a conscientious young man who turns to a life of crime to avenge his father's death in prison, is routine; but it has enough exciting situations to give satisfaction to audiences that enjoy pictures of this type. The black market activities of the criminals give the story a timely angle. The performances are reasonably good, with Donald Barry, as the young man seeking vengeance, playing his part in a style that is reminiscent of the gangster roles played by James Cagney. The fact that the gangsters, including the hero, eventually pay for their crimes lessens the demoralizing effects of their acts : — Embittered when he learns that his father had died in prison on the eve of his release, Donald Barry, who had always felt that his father's conviction was a frame-up, determines to even matters with Otto Kruger, wealthy head of the auditing firm that had employed his father; Kruger "s testimony had convicted him for embezzlement. Barry deliberately arranges to meet Kruger, bis daughter, Lynne Roberts, and his son, Henry Daniels and, concealing his identity, wins their unsuspecting friendship and secures employment in Kruger 's firm. Enabled to obtain confidential information on governmentfrozen commodities stored in warehouses, Barry teams up with Tom Powers, a racketeer, and arranges for a series of warehouse robberies, storing the loot in a warehouse of their own for black market distribution. Despite his love for Lynne, Barry determines to frame her father in connection with the robberies. One day, however,