Bobby Larson Movies
- 1950
Singing cowboy Rex Allen continued currying favor with audiences and exhibitors alike with Redwood Forest Trail. The story gets under way when Allen decides to help out a heavily mortgaged boy's camp. A nasty lumber baron wants to dismantle the camp so he can cut down all the trees. Believing that the underprivileged camp kids are somehow responsible for her father's death, mortgage-holder Julie Wescott (Jeff Donnell) intends to sell to the lumber interests. Allen not only proves who really killed Julie's father, but also routs the villains -- and still has time to sing three songs. Rex Allen's semicomical sidekick is played by Carl Switzer, the former Alfalfa of Our Gang fame. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rex Allen, Jeff Donnell, (more)
- 1947
This 20th entry in Columbia's long-running "Blondie" series finds poor Dagwood Bumstead (Arthur Lake) in financial trouble once again. Unable to obtain a raise from boss Radcliffe (Jerome Cowan), Dagwood begins "playing the ponies" at the race track, which gets him in trouble with the Law-not to mention his long-suffering wife Blondie (Penny Singleton). But salvation is at hand in the form of bank president Samuel Breckinridge (Grant Mitchell), who expresses a lot of gratitude when Dagwood saves Mrs. Breckinridge (Mary Young), likewise a horse player, from being arrested in a bookie-joint raid. The "regular" cast of the "Blondie" series remains the same as before, with the exception of Bobby Larson, who for this entry only replaces Danny Mummert as Alvin Fuddle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, (more)
- 1946
In this heartwarming children's movie, an adorable child finds a darling donkey and decides to make it his pet, but in order to keep it, he must first housebreak the beast. Even so, the family is not pleased with his pet. Meanwhile, his brother, a recent Army vet, endeavors to make it as a commercial photographer. He gets his break when he snaps a wonderful shot of his brother and the burro and wins a major contest. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anita Louise, Michael Duane, (more)
- 1946
True Confession was one of the unfunniest of the "screwball" comedies of the 1930s, and its musical remake, Cross My Heart, isn't much of an improvement. Betty Hutton steps into the old Carole Lombard role as Peggy, a compulsive liar who'll do anything to help her attorney fiance Oliver Clarke (Sonny Tufts) get ahead. When it looks as though an unsolved murder case will be Clarke's ticket to success, Peggy, sticking her tongue in her cheek (as she always does when she's about to tell a whopper), glibly confesses to the killing. Peggy's plan is to allow her boyfriend to prove her innocence, thereby cementing his reputation as a man of integrity-but things don't go quite as planned. The subsequent trial is enlivened by the antics of looney Russian actor Peter (Michael Chekhov), who may or may not be the actual murderer. Betty Hutton's song numbers are just about as mediocre as the rest of the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Betty Hutton, Sonny Tufts, (more)
- 1946
Daisy, the Bumstead's mischievous mutt, makes the family a little extra cash when she wins a contest to become a model for the Navy. From there she becomes the favorite calendar gal. All the attention to the dog, makes Dagwood feel that his position as master of the house is jeopardized. Meanwhile all the attention catches the greedy eyes of gangsters who abduct Daisy. Fortunately, everything works out for the best. This was one of many entries in the comic-strip based series of domestic comedies. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, (more)
- 1946
Blondie's Lucky Day, indeed! Not only must Blondie Bumstead (Penny Singleton) put on a brave face when her husband Dagwood (Arthur Lake) is fired for the umpteenth time by Mr. Dithers (Jonathan Hale), but she must also tolerate the attentions paid to Dagwood by pretty WAC Mary Jane McDermott (Angelyn Orr). A whizz in business matters, Mary Jane sets up Dag in his own business, which replenishes the Bumstead coffers but which drives Blondie into a jealous frenzy. The film's highlight occurs early on, when Dagwood assumes Dithers' responsiblities for a single day--and makes a proper mess of things within five minutes. Blondie's Lucky Day was the 17th entry in the long-running film series based on the comic strip by Chic Young. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Penny Singleton, Arthur Lake, (more)
- 1945
Just when it didn't seem possible that Columbia had any room left for another B-picture series, along came The Adventures of Rusty. The title character is a German police dog, trained to be a vicious killer. Lonlely little Danny Mitchell (Ted Donaldson) believes that there's still some kindness left in Rusty, and tries to retrain the dog. In a parallel development, Danny's new stepmother (Margaret Lindsay) attempts to befriend the sullen youngster. The part of Rusty is played by Ace the Wonder Dog, who made the rounds of the B-picture mills throughout the late 1940s. The Adventures of Rusty proved popular enough to warrant several sequels. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ted Donaldson, Margaret Lindsay, (more)
- 1944
In this adventure the young lively daughter of wealthy Virginia parents bridles under the stern tutelage of her new English nanny who insists she forego her tomboy ways and act like a perfectly lady. This nanny runs the household with an iron hand and the little girl is terribly unhappy until she finds a lost German shepherd. While following the wanderer, the girl tumbles into a well. The dog gets help. The girl names him "Wolf" and is delighted to have a new best friend. Naturally, the nanny is terribly upset because the dog is terribly disruptive. One day, the nanny finds out that Wolf is an AWOL Army dog and sees that he is returned. Brokenhearted, the girl runs away to Washington, DC to have a private audience with the secretary of war. Tearfully she tells how her parents neglect her and how lonely she is without wolf. The secretary is moved but explains that Wolf has a more patriotic role to play. The girl understands and returns home filled with pride for Wolf. Things get better at home when her relieved parents fire the hated nanny and start spending more time with her. As an added bonus, the secretary sends the girl a brand new puppy that looks just like wolf. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sharyn Moffett, Jill Esmond, (more)
- 1944
The Unwritten Code is an offbeat, better-than-average Columbia wartime "B" picture. Though Ann Savage and Tom Neal are top-billed, the central character is supporting-actor Roland Varno. He plays a Nazi spy who sneaks into the U.S., hoping to release hundreds of German prisoners. He fails, but not until plenty of bullets have been spent. The most interesting aspect of The Unwritten Code is the casting of Savage and Neal as the "good" characters: in 1945, these two cult favorites would play the decidedly unsavory protagonists of the film noir classic Detour. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ann Savage, Tom Neal, (more)
- 1943
A superior Hopalong Cassidy Western, The Leather Burners benefits from a good script by Joe Pagano. In trouble with a gang of cattle rustlers who have murdered his neighbor, former Bar 20 ranch hand Johnny Travers (Jay Kirby) sends for old friends Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) and California Carlson (Andy Clyde). Hopalong Cassidy immediately suspects mine company president Dan Slack (Victor Jory) to be behind the rustlings and decides to go undercover. As it turns out, the Slack mine is not what it appears to be and there is a traitor among the ranchers. But who? With the assistance of Sharon Longstreet (Shelley Spencer) and her young brother Bobby (Bobby Larson), who have discovered Hopalong Cassidy's real mission, the secret of the mine is revealed and peace is restored to the area. ~ Hans J. Wollstein, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William "Hopalong" Boyd, Andy Clyde, (more)
- 1943
An amoral gambler tries to beat a murder rap by adopting an orphaned newsboy in this drama. He takes in the lad to show the court that he is really a "sweetheart" and would never think of killing someone. Unfortunately, it looks as if the ruse will fail and so he takes the boy and leaves town. He is far out in the country and there meets a highly-principled young woman who helps him think about people other than himself. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rick Vallin, Bobby Larson, (more)
- 1943
The Iron Major is the saga of WW1 hero-cum-football coach Frank Cavanaugh, played with his usual no-nonsense professionalism by Pat O'Brien. Leaving home and hearth behind to serve his country in the Great War, Cavanaugh goes on to lead the Dartmouth, Boston College and Fordham football teams to victory. His credo throughout is "Love of God?Love of Country?Love of Family"-inspiriational words indeed in war-torn 1943. Based on the memoirs of Cavanaugh's wife Florence (played in the film by Ruth Warrick), The Iron Major suffers from repetition and overkill. But, as Humphrey Bogart once said in an unrelated interview, "Pat O'Brien was good? Pat was always good." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pat O'Brien, Ruth Warrick, (more)
In this drama, a rural family, displaced by the dust-bowl and the foreclosure of their family farm, moves to the city in search of financial security during the 1940s. The change is difficult for the impoverished clan, but it is most difficult for their son who gets picked on by the local gangs. The son tries to donate his dog Hobo to the military, but the dog is rejected. Hobo later proves himself a patriot by bringing in a gang of Nazi saboteurs and by saving his master's friend from dying in a fire. After this, the boy begins to adjust to city life. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barton MacLane, Bobby Larson, (more)
- 1943
In this drama, set during WW II, a teacher at a military school is derided by his students because he has not joined the military. The man is deeply disturbed by their ridicule and disrespect and so pleads with the draft-board to reconsider his "essential" status and allow him to join. He is allowed to enlist, but still, because he has a punctured ear-drum, is not allowed to join. Unable to face his students, the teacher gets a job at a shipyard, then deceives his students into believing that he is at war by having a buddy at boot camp forward their letters to him. Soon ugly rumors begin to circulate amongst the suspicious students. One is that their teacher went AWOL. The other is that he is really a Nazi spy. The students' actions threaten to destroy the teacher's new romance with a female welder. In the end everything comes out hunky-dory when the teacher proves himself a courageous hero during a shipyard fire. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edgar Buchanan, Jess Barker, (more)
- 1942
This musical -- a concoction of comedy, songs, dancing, and war-time patriotism mixed together with a spy spoof plot -- opens with Tommy Dorsey and his band swinging through "Hawaiian War Chant" while Eleanor Powell taps away. Powell, it turns out, is Tallulah Winters, the band's official tap dancer, and she and the orchestra are taking an ocean liner to Puerto Rico for their next gig. Also on board are some enemy agents, anxious to secretly and safely transport their stolen plans, which include a prototype magnetic mine that can make play a big role in the war. Utilizing a plot device from a novel by Merton K. Kibble (played by Red Skelton), the enemy agents pretend to be working for the U.S. government and enlist Winters to help them with their plans. A series of misunderstandings and confusions ensue, including a baggage mix-up that leaves Kibble unwittingly in possession of the mine. Eventually Winters discovers that she has been duped and works to set all things right. Ship Ahoy takes advantage of the talents of its musical stars -- including Frank Sinatra and Jo Stafford -- to offer a nice spread of musical numbers, including "Last Call for Love," "I'll Take Tallulah," "Poor You," and "On Moonlight Bay." ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eleanor Powell, Red Skelton, (more)
- 1942
A remake of Return of Jimmy Valentine (1936), Republic Pictures' Affairs of Jimmy Valentine is a sequel of sorts to the oft-filmed O. Henry story Alias Jimmy Valentine. In the original tale, an incognito safecracker blew his cover by rescuing a little girl from a safe, prompting a detective who'd planned to arrest the criminal to let him off scot free. Affairs of Jimmy Valentine is set some twenty years later: A radio station decides to improve ratings by launching a nationwide search for reformed cracksman Jimmy Valentine. The search leads to a small town--and a mysterious murder. Roman Bohnen plays the kindly old editor of the small town's newspaper, who may or may not be Guess Who. Acted and directed with a slick professionalism that belies its small budget, Affairs of Jimmy Valentine has been released to TV in an abridged version titled Unforgotten Crime. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1942
In this western, three Texas Rangers decide to do their part to save the world and join the Army, but before they can, they are sent to Alaska to destroy a secret Nazi operation involving a submarine refueling station. The outpost is located behind an impenetrable tangle of barbed wire. The rangers get a little help, and discover a traitor. Then to get through the wire, they start a cattle stampede and save the day. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charles Starrett, Russell Hayden, (more)
- 1942
This might be a film about junk mail...but it isn't. Wallace Beery and Marjorie Main are teamed again for this rambunctious western comedy. Beery plays a horse thief who romances saloon owner Main. His goal is to marry the lady and take over her lucrative mail route. He accidentally becomes a hero; she completes the reformation. Jackass Mail made money, but it just wasn't the same as the classic Wallace Beery/Marie Dressler combo of the 1930s. Great title, though. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wallace Beery, Marjorie Main, (more)
- 1941
Rosalind Russell stars as a no-nonsense judge who dabbles in sculpting in her spare time. Walter Pidgeon costars as a reporter assigned to discredit Rosalind after she rules against his boss (Edward Arnold) in a divorce case. Pidgeon plans to frame the judge in a compromising situation, then blackmail her into reducing the alimony. He succeeds in humiliating Rosalind, but regrets his actions when he realizes he's fallen in love with her. All ends happily in this glossy derivative of MGM's earlier Libelled Lady (36). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rosalind Russell, Walter Pidgeon, (more)
Robert Montgomery plays saxophone-playing boxer Joe Pendleton, who insists upon piloting his own plane, much to the consternation of his manager Max Corkle (James Gleason). Just before a championship bout, Joe's plane crashes. When he revives, he finds he has been whisked away to Heaven by the overanxious Messenger #7013. Checking with the man in charge, one Mr. Jordan (Claude Rains), Pendleton discovers that he isn't scheduled to die for another 50 years. Joe heads back to earth, only to learn to his chagrin that his body has been cremated. Mr. Jordan is obliged to find Joe a new body; the "candidate" is a business mogul named Farnsworth, who is in the process of being murdered in his bath by his wife (Rita Johnson) and her lover (John Emery). Joe takes over Farnsworth's body, astonishing the murderers by emerging from the bathroom, very much alive (while Joe still looks like Joe to himself and the audience, he looks like Farnsworth to everyone else). Still desirous of winning the upcoming championship, Joe begins to whip Farnsworth's body into shape, even hiring Max Corkle to manage him. It takes some doing, but Joe convinces Max that he is indeed Joe and not Farnsworth (their scenes together are priceless, far better seen than described). Meanwhile, Joe has fallen in love with Bette Logan (Evelyn Keyes), a woman whose father had been ruined by the real Farnsworth. For her sake, he pays back millions of dollars that the crooked Farnsworth had finagled out of his investors. This prompts Mrs. Farnsworth and her lover to kill "Farnsworth" again, and once more Joe Pendleton is without a body. How Mr. Jordan arranges for Joe to win the championship, expose the murderers and walk off arm and arm with Bette is a bit too complex to detail here. Here Comes Mr. Jordan is one of the most consistently clever romantic comedies of the 1940s, and richly deserving of the Oscars won by screenwriters Sidney Buchman, Seton I. Miller and Harry Segall. A sequel, Down to Earth, was filmed in 1947, with Roland Culver as Mr. Jordan; and in 1978, the original Jordan was remade by Warren Beatty as Heaven Can Wait. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Montgomery, Evelyn Keyes, (more)
- 1941
Universal's "Baby Sandy" series officially ended with Sandy Gets Her Man, but the infant star still had one picture left on her contract, so that's why Bachelor Daddy was born. Edward Everett Horton, Donald Woods, and Raymond Walburn carry the burden of the plot as the Smith Brothers, Joseph, Edward and George. Confirmed bachelors, the Smiths are forced to play nursemaid when a baby is accidentally abandoned at their doorstep. The laughs arise from the brothers' bumbling efforts at parenthood, culminating in a slapsticky finale wherein the runaway Baby Sandy takes charge of a hand-operated elevator. Ironically, one of the minor players in Bachelor Daddy is teenager Juanita Quigley, who once enjoyed brief stardom at Universal as "Baby Jane". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Baby Sandy, Edward Everett Horton, (more)
- 1940
Like the other entries Columbia's "Five Little Peppers" series, The Five Little Peppers at Home is based on characters created by Margaret Sidney. Edith Fellows stars as Polly, the oldest child of the Pepper clan, while her four siblings are portrayed by Dorothy Ann Seers (as Phronsie), Ronald Sinclair (Jasper), Charles Peck (Joey) and Davey (Bobby Larson). This time around, Polly and the kids try to figure out a way to save their mother (Dorothy Peterson) from bankruptcy, with the help of crusty-but-lovable Mr. King (Clarence Kolb). After a slow-moving hour or so, the film picks up tremendously in the final reel when the kids are trapped in a copper mine cave-in, sparking a tension-filled rescue effect. A bit too syrupy sweet for modern tastes, Five Little Peppers at Home is redeemed by the cynical performance of Rex Evans as a sneering butler. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edith Fellows, Dorothy Ann Seese, (more)
- 1940
Having struck pay dirt with its Blondie films, Columbia Pictures launched another "domestic" film series, based on Margaret Sidney's "Five Little Peppers" stories. The third and last entry in the series was The Five Little Peppers in Trouble, neither the best nor worst of this negligible project. Once more, Dorothy Peterson plays the widowed Mrs. Pepper, while her five precocious and resourceful offspring are portrayed by Edith Fellows, Dorothy Ann Seese, Charles Beck, Tommy Bond (best remembered as "Butch" in the Our Gang comedies) and Bobby Larson (replacing Jimmy Leake, who appeared in the first Pepper outing in 1939). Unable to watch over her kids and go to work at the same time, Mrs. Pepper bundles the little Peppers off to boarding school. The Five Little Peppers in Trouble is describable only as "cute"; you take it from there. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edith Fellows, Dorothy Ann Seese, (more)
The second entry in RKO Radio's "Dr. Christian" series, Courageous Dr. Christian was like the first inspired by the popular radio weekly. In this one, kindly general practioner Dr. Christian (Jean Hersholt) tends to the needs of a group of indigents, living in squalor in the town's shanty district. The local "landed gentry" is indifferent to the plight of the squatters, until an outbreak of spinal meningitis threatens the entire community. On a lighter note, Dr. Christian spends a good portion of his screen time fending off the romantic overtures of wealthy dowager Mrs. Stewart (Vera Lewis). Like the others in the "Christian" series, Courageous Dr. Christian is currently available from a wide variety of public-domain video sources. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Hersholt, Dorothy Lovett, (more)
