Frankie Darro Movies
The son of circus performers, the diminutive Frankie Darro began appearing in films as a juvenile player in 1924; he co-starred with western star Tom Tyler in several silent oaters at FBO in the mid-1920s, and was cast in leading roles in Little Mickey Grogan (1927) and The Circus Kid (1928). During the 1930s, Darro showed up in innumerable bit and supporting roles, often playing juvenile delinquents; he carried over this particular characterization into his voiceover stint as Lampwick in the 1940 animated Disney feature Pinocchio. He was given star billing at such minor-league studios as Ambassador and Monogram, co-starring with black comedian Mantan Moreland at the latter studio in an enjoyable series of action programmers, often cast as a jockey because of his stature. In the late 1940s, Darro was a frequent stunt double for such pint-sized actors as Leo Gorcey. Frankie Darro was compelled to accept bit roles into the 1960s; he was also featured in several Red Skelton Shows of the period, often dressed as an old woman for a peculiar comic effect. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1929
Rejected as husband material by a snobbish rancher (Ethlyne Clair), cowboy Tom O'Brien (Tom Tyler) nevertheless comes to the girl's rescue when she is besieged by villainous brothers Bill and Bull Driscoll (Lew Meehan and Harry Woods). The ranch, it appears, is situated on a rich marble deposit that the brothers covet for themselves. Tyler, of course, proves himself worthy of the girl's trust by apprehending the brothers, doing so after a well-mounted climactic chase. A latecomer in the silent Western sweepstakes, Chicago-born Tyler made a strapping hero, and FBO guaranteed his success by surrounding him with genre specialists such as writer Oliver Drake, titler Helen Gregg, and cinematographer Nick Musuraca. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Tyler, Frankie Darro, (more)
- 1923
When she is deserted by her husband, the Stranger (Anna Q. Nilsson) leaves her baby on a doorstep with half a dollar bill pinned to his chest, and a note saying that one day she will return for the child with the other half as identification. The baby is found by Captain McTeague (William T. Carleton) and his one-legged chef, Noodles (Raymond Hatton). The two men awkwardly but lovingly raise the child (who, as a boy, is played by Frank Darro). When one of the captain's mates, Martin Webber (George MacQuarrie), makes fun of little Bill, McTeague fires him. It turns out that Webber is the boy's father, so he kidnaps him in retaliation and uses the law to keep him. Ultimately Webber is killed in a fight and the Stranger returns for the boy. She and McTeague wind up raising him together. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna Q. Nilsson, George MacQuarrie, (more)
- 1958
Fired by wealthy rancher Gil Borden (Stuart Whitman), shiftless Ed McKay (Murray Hamilton) decides to get even by pulling off a cruel practical joke. McKay goads Judd Calhoun (Peter Whitney), a gentle giant with mind of a child, to place burr under the saddle of Borden's horse. Unfortunately, it is Borden's wife Nora (Jean Allison) who is thrown from the horse and crippled for life--and it is innocent bystander Paladin, who'd helped Nora onto the horse, who is accused of causing the tragedy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1937
The popular B-flick team of Frankie Darro and Kane Richmond star in the slick quickie Headline Crasher. Little Frankie and Big Kane play a pair of roving journalists who investigate a politician (Richard Tucker) up for re-election. When it seems as though the politico is being set up for a fall by yellow journalists, Darro and Richmond try to get to the truth of the matter. The original story for Headline Crasher is credited to Peter B. Kyne, creator of the "Broncho Billy" western stories. The film has all the pace of a cowboy opus, which is helpful in patching up the plot holes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Kane Richmond, (more)
- 1948
Republic's heartwarming Heart of Virginia has the homey charm of a 1930s "regional" picture. In one of his rare late-1940s leading roles, Frankie Darro plays a reckless jockey who'll stop at nothing to win. His fierce competitiveness results in the death of another rider. With the help of understanding Janet Martin, the daughter of his former boss, Darro redeems himself. The film benefits from its location footage and thrill-packed racing sequences. Originally released at 60 minutes, Heart of Virginia is generally available in the slightly abridged TV version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Janet Martin, Robert Lowery, (more)
- 1926
Hearts and Spangles stars Wanda Hawley, formerly the "baby vamp" of the pre-1920s, as a gorgeous circus bareback rider. College boy Steve Carris (Robert Gordon) falls in love with circus equestrienne Peg Palmer (Wanda Hawley), but his wealthy parents disapprove. So, Steve chucks wealth and prestige and joins the circus, where he becomes "King of the Clowns" (and never mind that he couldn't raise a chuckle to save his life). The hero eventually rescues Peg from evil ringmaster Rex Barclay (George Cheseboro), who is so mean that he uses a whip on the poor girl whenever her performance isn't up to par. Diminutive Frankie Darro, a real-life child acrobat, steals the show. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Cheseboro, Charles Force, (more)
- 1927
Prizefighter Danny Martin (Danny O'Shea) wants to marry pretty Charlotte Hamilton (Mary Brian), but her wealthy father John (John Steppling) refuses to consider such a match. Things begin to go badly for Danny in the boxing ring, forcing him to hang up his gloves and assume the management of a health farm. When the out-of-shape John Hamilton shows up at the farm for a bit of therapeutic exercise, Charlotte arranges for her father to sign an agreement to keep up his therapy for a period of 60 days. While Hamilton huffs and puffs away in the gymnasium, Charlotte and Danny run off to get married. By the time Hamilton finds out he's been hoodwinked, he's in such excellent health that he immediately gives the marriage his unqualified blessing. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mary Brian, Danny O'Shea, (more)
- 1925
Leon Kent (Walter McGrail) is a ne'er-do-well who throws wild parties. His wife eventually tires of him. She finds sympathy with Ross Brewster, a banker (David Torrence), which angers Kent. After an argument, Kent walks out with the couple's little boy. A couple of decades later, Brewster's daughter, Judy (Patsy Ruth Miller), comes home with her sweetheart, Elliot Owen (Antonio Moreno). Brewster senses that Owen is no good, and lets Judy know it. Judy reveals that she has already married him. Owen then confesses that he is the son of Mrs. Kent, which gives Brewster the opportunity to assert that he's just like his father. Owen is already in trouble and facing a jail term, and Brewster tells him that the only way to make good is to commit suicide. When Owen finds out that Judy is pregnant, he feels unworthy enough to actually leap off a cliff. The jump doesn't kill him, however, and after he heals, he proves his worth. Brewster finally welcomes him as his son-in-law. This unrealistic drama was based on the Saturday Evening Post story by May Edington. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Antonio Moreno, Patsy Ruth Miller, (more)
- 1953
Originally intended as a 3D film, this standard-issue Bob Hope musical comedy was released "flat." The 50-year-old Hope plays over-aged chorus boy Stanley Snodgrass, whose attempts to get ahead in the early 20th-century theatre world always come acropper. His luck suddenly changes when he's promoted to the leading-man role in a show headlined by Irene Bailey (Arlene Dahl). What Stanley doesn't know is that he's been set up as a decoy to bring the murderous Jack the Slasher (Robert Strauss) out in the open. It seems that Jack is obsessed with Irene, and has a nasty habit of cutting all of her male co-stars into ribbons. Meanwhile, Stanley lays waste to the show by performing all of his big numbers incorrectly, but his faithful gal Daisy Crockett (Rosemary Clooney) loves him all the same. Tony Martin also appears as Irene's boyfriend, while Millard Mitchell makes his final film appearance as Stanley's stepfather (and never mind that he and Hope were the same age!) A brief clip from Here Come the Girls showed up in, of all places, the 1953 sci-fier Conquest of Space. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bob Hope, Tony Martin, (more)
- 1946
High School Hero is all about a high school hero (what else?), played by Monogram musical star Freddy Stewart. A student at Whitney High, Freddy agonizes when the Big Football Game approaches with the school's principal rival, who have emerged victorious in all previous gridiron clashes. Director Arthur Dreifuss makes things easy for the audience by dressing the "good" football players in white and the "bad" ones in black, which is perhaps the film's comic highlight. To amplify the budget, the film is rife with "product placement" advertising plugs, a practice that would reach its nirvana in 1949's Love Happy (and would be revived, with a vengeance, in the 1980s). In addition to Freddy Stewart's perennial leading lady June Preisser, High School Hero costars Noel Neill, later to achieve TV fame as Lois Lane on Superman. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Curly Joe DeRita, (more)
- 1949
Hold That Baby! was the 14th entry in Monogram's money-spinning "Bowery Boys" series. Ever in search of spare change, the Bowery Boys, headed by Slip Mahoney (Leo Gorcey) go into the laundromat business. While unfolding some linen, Sach (Huntz Hall) comes across a seemingly abandoned baby. The infant turns out to be their heir to a huge fortune. Hoping to return the baby to its mother (Anabel Shaw), who has been wrongfully committed to a mental institution, Slip, Sach and the boys must contend with the child's avaricious aunts (Florence Auer and Ida Moore) and a bunch of gangsters. The best scene finds Slip posing as a Viennese psychiatrist; almost as good is a vignette involving Sach and a hospital supply room. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, (more)
- 1929
New York-born Tom Tyler, one of the late silent era's more realistic screen cowboys., exposes a counterfeit ring run by his ranch foreman (Albert J. Smith) in this average oater that also includes a thrilling transfer from horse to automobile. Tyler was good-looking and stalwart, and although his western stardom never reached the heights of, say, a John Wayne or even a Gene Autry (Tyler was certainly more acceptable than Autry!), Tom Tyler continued to star in above-average oaters in the sound era until a crippling bone disease forced his retirement.
. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Tyler, Frankie Darro, (more)
Irish Luck was one of a handful of Monogram actioners starring Frankie Darro as a crimesolving bellboy. The son of plainclothes detective, Buzzy O'Brien (Darro) is naturally suspicious of some sinister activities transpiring at the hotel where he works. When a murder occurs, Buzzy offers his assistance to flustered flatfoot Lanahan (Dick Purcell)-and, surprise of surprises, he solves the case. Mantan Moreland is a riot as a timorous bellhop who keeps stumbling upon dead bodies. Irish Luck was reworked in 1944 as The Adventures of Kitty O'Day. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Dick Purcell, (more)
- 1927
Although Virginia Valli is given top billing in this drama about World War I, Orville Caldwell has the biggest role, and the performance of nine-year-old Frankie Darro eclipses them both. Caldwell plays Brant Dennison, a roustabout inhabitant of the Kentucky hills. Although he is a hard drinker who has little use for education, he allows his kid brother, Tad (Darro), to go to school. Margaret Dix, the schoolteacher (Valli), has a positive influence on both of them. When the United States enters the Great War, Brant turns yellow when he sees how badly Jeb Marks (Frank McGlynn Jr.) has been shot up. He tries to avoid enlisting, but Tad has been taught patriotism by Margaret, and he helps rout out his reluctant older brother. Brant distinguishes himself overseas and returns a hero. The whole town waits anxiously for him to come home, but he steps off the train disgustingly intoxicated and proceeds to return to his drinking buddies. Only through Tad does Brant decide to straighten up and change his ways. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virginia Valli, Frankie Darro, (more)
- 1924
The Palmer School of Photoplay Writing decided to try its hand at film production, and this drama was its first release. John Trevor (Lloyd Hughes) is shocked when he discovers that his mother (Myrtle Stedman) has been running a gambling den to put him through college. His sweetheart, Mary Heath (Lucille Ricksen), has a brother, Dave (Bruce Gordon), who is accidentally killed during a brawl at Mrs. Trevor's establishment. To atone for this, John takes Dave's position at the Heath farm. Ignoring the taunts of Bob Heath, Dave's overworked and resentful brother (George Hackathorne), John braves the abuses he receives at the farm. When John and his mother save Dave's twin children (Fay MacKenzie and Frankie Darro) during a blinding snowstorm, both mother and son redeem themselves in the eyes of the Heaths. After that, there is nothing standing in the way of John's romance with Mary. ~ Janiss Garza, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Claire McDowell, Lucille Ricksen, (more)
- 1942
The Dead End Kids take on a sinister gang of Japanese terrorists in this 12-chapter followup to the 1940 Universal serial Junior G-Men. When Eddie Holden (Gene Reynolds), the inventor brother of street-gang leader Billy Holden (Billy Halop), is kidnapped by minions of the Black Dragon society, Billy refuses to go to the police for help. Instead, he and his pals-Bolts Larson (Huntz Hall), Stick Munsey (Gabe Dell) and Greaseball Plunkett (Bernard Punsly)-decide to take on the villains themselves. Over the course of twelve weeks, the kids are pitted against the worst kinds of villains and pluguglies, but by the final chapter our heroes have thwarted the Black Dragons' plans to sabotage the American defense program. Despite the serial's title, however, the "Junior G-Men" hardly spend any time at all in the air. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Billy Halop, Gene Reynolds, (more)
- 1946
Freddy Stewart and June Preisser, Monogram's answer to Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan, star in Junior Prom. The plot concerns a high-school election, with a snotty rich kid literally buying his way to the class presidency. The backers of hero Freddy Stewart garner votes by using music, specifically big-band numbers and dancing specialties. Guest stars include bandleaders Abe Lyman and Eddie Heywood, Harry "The Hipster" Gibson and the Airliners. Junior Prom represented one of producer Sam Katzman's final Monogram efforts before moving his base of operations to Columbia. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Freddie Stewart, June Preisser, (more)
- 1938
Rising star Rita Hayworth puts in a little box-office duty in the Columbia "B" Juvenile Court. The star of the proceedings is Paul Kelly as crusading public defender Gary Franklin, who hopes to establish a Police Athletic League to give street kids a new chance in life. His toughest charge is Stubby (Frankie Darro), a born leader with potential for either the White House or the Electric Chair. Once he's won over Stubby, Franklin is able to get the rest of the neighborhood kids to attend his new athletic outfit. The far- reaching influence of Franklin's pet project is proven when a group of young punks change their minds about committing a robbery. As Franklin's girl friend Marcia Kelly, Rita Hayworth has virtually nothing to do but stand around and look pretty. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul Kelly, Rita Hayworth, (more)
- 1926
This first film version of Andre Picard's stage success Kiki stars Norma Talmadge in the title role. A saucy Parisian dancer, Kiki begins keeping time with theatrical manager Victor Renal (Ronald Colman). Her rival for Renal's affections is icy "legitimate" actress Paulette (Gertrude Astor), but Kiki is willing to go to any lengths to claim her man. In the original play, Renal and Paulette were married, making Kiki the interloper, but this was altered so that producer Joseph M. Schenck could cast his star (and then-wife) Norma Talmadge in a more sympathetic light. Kiki was remade in 1931, with Mary Pickford incongruously cast as the oo-la-la heroine. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Norma Talmadge, Ronald Colman, (more)
- 1940
Monogram's Laughing at Danger finds page-boy Frankie Kelly (Frankie Darro) trying to solve a murder at a fancy beauty salon. It so happens that the establishment is used for blackmail purposes by a gang of crooks who eavesdrop on their gossiping clientele by means of hidden microphones. When the cops prove unable to find out who killed the owner of the salon, Kelly takes over, assistant by timid but resourceful janitor Jefferson (Mantan Moreland). The film's romantic angle is handled by opera star George Houston as a police lieutenant and perennial starlet Joy Hodges as a cosmetician. Darro and Moreland work together so well that it's a shame the film's script doesn't come up to their performances. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Joy Hodges, (more)
At first concentrating exclusively on westerns and serials, up-and-coming Mascot Pictures began branching out in the early 1930s with such lavish star vehicles as Laughing at Life. Victor McLaglen is in his element as a devil-may-care globetrotting adventurer named McHale. After risking his neck in WWI, the restless McHale heads to Mexico for more action. Before the film is half over, our hero is overseeing a South American revolution, and in this capacity comes face-to-face with his long-estranged son -- who, like his dad, is a thrillseeker travelling under an assumed name. The star-studded cast includes William "Stage" Boyd, Regis Toomey, Frankie Darro, Henry B. Walthall, Noah Beery Jr., J. Farrell McDonald and Lois Wilson -- many appearing in one scene each, indicating that the ever-economical Mascot studios hired these talented thespians by the day rather than the week. Also showing up uncredited is ace stuntman Yakima Canutt, doubling for Victor McLaglen in the more strenuous action scenes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Victor McLaglen, Conchita Montenegro, (more)
In this collegiate drama, a team of college oarsmen promise their gals that they will win the big race. Unfortunately, it looks as if their victory will go to another team after their strongest rower is drafted. The sly, enterprising lads end up replacing him with a truck driver on the sly. Songs include "Look What You've Done to Me", "Sweet 16", and "Let's Do a Little Dreaming". ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Frankie Darro, Marcia Mae Jones, (more)
- 1927
Strapping Tom Tyler starred as a rancher coming to the aid of some European refugees in this unusual silent western from grind-house company FBO. His nation of Roxenburg having fallen to usurpers, young kid Alexis (the utterly American Frankie Darro) hightails it to Arizona where he hides out at the Potter ranch. Jealous neighbor Cynthia Storme (female wrestler Ruby Blaine), infatuated with the king's protector Tom Potter (Tyler), betrays the young king because of Potter's friendship with lovely Janet Holbrooke (Dorothy Dunbar). It all ends well, naturally, with the villains (including the avaricious Cynthia) getting their comeuppance. Hollywood westerns flirted several times with Ruritanian themes likes this, most notably in My Pal the King (1932) starring Tom Mix and Mickey Rooney. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tom Tyler, Dorothy Dunbar, (more)
- 1931
This western serial features the famous trained German Shepherd Rin-Tin-Tin. Rinty gets involved in an Indian uprising caused by a mysterious criminal known as the "Wolf Man" and a father and son who are under attack by outlaws trying to steal their gold mine. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- 1935
This follow-up to RKO Radio's near-perfect adaptation of Little Women was produced by small but enterprising Mascot Pictures (the forerunner to Republic). Erin O'Brien-Moore and Ralph Morgan star as Jo March and Professor Bhaer, the characters played by Katharine Hepburn and Paul Lukas in Little Women. Now married, Jo and the Professor decide to establish a school for wayward boys, hoping to guide the kids towards the proper paths in life. The supporting cast includes what "B"-film historian Don Miller described as "just about every child player in Hollywood" ranging from cherubic Dickie Moore as Demi to tough-guy Frankie Darro as Dan (future director Richard Quine can also be spotted amongst the boys). Louisa May Alcott devotees have always felt that Little Men is inferior to Little Women; the same, alas, can be said about the two novels' respective film versions, though Mascot's Little Men comes to life whenever satanic-visaged Gustaf Von Seyfertitz, cast as a vindictive reformatory supervisor, oils his way onto the screen. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ralph Morgan, Junior Durkin, (more)
