Temple Tuesday: Who Is Henry?

This May 19, 1938 image was shot between takes of “Just Around the Corner,” one of Shirley’s less than stellar childhood movies. Here she is reading her lesson under the supervision of her teacher, Frances Klamt in her dressing room trailer. On the right is a reporter from Better Homes & Gardens, Gladys Denny Shultz. Want to see what she’s reading?



Melissa, aka “The Colonel,” couldn’t resist this photo, so she had it sent to me for scanning with the hope that my scan could bring out the detail of Shirley’s lesson that day. It sure did! Melissa immediately sent me what she could make out:

before me. I whipped around the first…and made for the bridge with the…..race horse.
When I reached home, I had….with my shot. I dared not sh…house or tell where I got it, and I g…..the same day.
But after all, that six-pounder….deal of sense into my skull. It was…..thing I ever stole, and it gave me…..the great folly of wanting more….can enjoy.
In my student of men I often think…is a man with a cannon ball and ….I know it by the way he walks.”
-HENRY

Helpers
1. What lesson did the boy Henry learn from his experience in….Find the sentence that….
2. What is meant by…man a cannon ball
3. Did you ever

I’m bored just reading this excerpt! Shirley is wearing the outfit from the Playroom scene of the movie, when a bunch of snotty little rich kids shoo her out of their fancy-schmancy playroom at the Riverview. The joke’s on them; she ends up with rich little Milton AND gets her dad a multi-million dollar construction deal!



Take that, you snooty little pipsqueaks!



See more Shirley photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Details and Deletions

In the 1938 Shirley Temple movie “Just Around the Corner,” her character (Penny Hale) holds a benefit to help save Uncle Sam. The “Programme” lists an opening number by Lottie and Letty (Barbara and Gloria Brewster):



The Brewster Twins also had a bit part in Shirley’s “Little Miss Broadway”. They were born Naomi and Ruth Stevenson in Tucson in 1918 and were under contract to Fox from the late 1930’s to the early 1940’s, making nine films. They were known as the “Most Beautiful Twins in America.” No arguments here! Back to Shirley…

Rehearsal sheet music from “Just Around the Corner” was auctioned off in 2015 and included the songs “London Bridge is Falling Down” and “I Feel Like the Blossoms in the Spring.” This sheet music was written when the movie was still being called “Lucky Penny.”



Neither of the songs made it into the final cut of the movie. It is believed that “Blossoms” was the song that Penny and her gang were to sing at the benefit. This recently acquired image shows what I believe to be the “Penny and her Gang” musical number, which does not show up in the finished film. Something tells me that this number of Shirley singing with the neighborhood toughs may not have been all that spectacular. If only the footage still survived!



The rest of the “Programme” continues as advertised, with a rousing tap number by Bill Robinson and friends, “Brass Buttons and Epaulettes.”



According to an early script, “London Bridge” was being played by the snobby little children in the Riverview’s swanky playroom on the piano. Bennie Bartlett (who played Shirley’s new friend Milton) takes over at the piano and plays a swing version of the classic tune, with Shirley doing the big apple dance to it. It was at this point that Mr. Waters (Franklin Pangborn) was supposed to walk in and catch this disruption in the normally staid playroom. In reality, Bartlett was a bit of a child prodigy himself. At age four he played trumpet, directed and sang with his own dance orchestra, and was featured on the radio. He appeared in a 1935 RKO musical, “Millions in the Air” playing the piano. The next year he appeared in a short for Paramount, performing a composition he had written at the age of nine. I always wondered why his musical talents were not paired with Shirley’s. It would appear that the original intention was to do just that. Below, Milton’s black eye is revealed to his disapproving mother (Cora Witherspoon) and his approving Uncle Sam (Claude Gillingwater).



The cast of the film concerned Mrs. Temple, which she felt consisted of too many has-beens. For the first time, she went directly to Darryl Zanuck to express her concerns about the movie and the overall typecasting of Shirley. She wanted to see some changes in the types of roles that Shirley would play so that audiences wouldn't get sick of her. Zanuck disagreed; he felt that the more stars stayed the same, the more audiences would come to see them. At the point they tired of that star, it was basically time for Zanuck to release a new one for the public to enjoy. Oops. Not a good answer for Mrs. Temple, who could see that Zanuck would have been quite fine to let Shirley get pushed aside if another personality came along to replace her. The next move Mrs. Temple made caused a permanent rift between her and Zanuck: she went over his head to plead her case to his boss, Joseph M. Schenck. Unfortunately for the Temples, Schenck sided with Zanuck. Oops again.



Farrell was one of the "has-beens” that Mrs. Temple was referring to. Even though he had the largest supporting role, he was billed below Shirley and Joan Davis in the film credits. Director Irving Cummings went to Palm Springs to fetch Farrell out of retirement, promising a come-back. Instead, he only made two more films: 1939’s “Tail-Spin” (once again billed below Joan Davis!) and 1941’s “The Deadly Game.” Farrell is shown above with Rock Hudson in Palm Springs, circa 1955.

GOOF DEPARTMENT: When Penny first enters the basement apartment where her father (Farrell) has been demoted to, the door says “HOUSE ELECTRICIAN”:



A little later in the movie, after her father and his girlfriend break-up (temporarily of course!), it says “MR. HALE”:



Phew. That’s a lot of info!

See more Shirley Temple photos at my main website.

Comments and more Wax

A little over a week ago, all of the "old" comments on my blog disappeared and only those on Google+ could leave one of their own. I started getting private emails about the situation and immediately looked into it. After about a week of internet searching, I learned what buttons needed to be clicked through blogger to restore the old comments. What a pain in the #$%. It was through this issue that I learned google/blogger sucks when it comes to finding a place to email or call with questions. Back to my regularly scheduled programming, and apologies for the frustration any of you might have experienced. Trust me…I felt your pain!

Back at the Movieland Wax Museum, we join the "Gone with the Wind" diorama. Clark Gable as Rhett Butler is front and center, with Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) in the background.



The Vivien Leigh statue is somewhat of a miss for me; for some reason, she really seems to be a difficult likeness to capture.



Even though she wanted to be alone, Greta Garbo was paired up at the museum with frequent costar and paramour, John Gilbert:



It took two photos for our January 1972 photographer to capture the entire "Wizard of Oz" diorama:



Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion is all alone.



OK readers; let's leave those comments and show that my hard work was not in vain!

See more Daveland Movieland Wax Museum photos at my main website.

The Wizard of Oz enters the Third Dimension

When I read that "The Wizard of Oz" was being converted to 3D, I will admit I was skeptical. I'm not a fan of messing with films and changing what was originally shown to the public. I had also read all of the complaints and nasty comments made ahead of time (by those who hadn't seen this new version of "Oz," I might add), but still wanted to give it a chance. It's my very favorite movie of all time, and the few times that it has been re-released to theaters, I have made sure I was there to see it on the big screen. Last night, I attended an IMAX screening and not only was I pleasantly surprised, I was blown away. It is hard to comprehend without seeing it in person, but this (almost) 75-year old film looks as if it were shot just the other day. The rotoscoping that was done to achieve the 3D look is virtually flawless. From the moment the titles appear in their original sepia-toned glory, you can tell this is going to be a treat.



My first "wow" was being able to see the lettering on the incubator at the Gale Farm. The restoration that was done from the original negatives brings out a clarity that I had never witnessed before. There are only a few times that this clarity slightly detracts from the experience (being able to see the wig caps of some of the Munchkins is an example that comes to mind), but not enough to truly spoil the movie.



It is hard to believe that the movie's signature song, "Over The Rainbow" was almost deleted before the film's release. It is such a touching rendition of true emotion; it is no wonder that Judy Garland became a sensation after the public saw it. Her natural performance, completely free of artifice, holds the movie together. Without her, the movie would lose its anchor.



My one disappointment in the new version was the soundtrack, and I have a feeling this was partially the fault of the theater. The bass could have really used a boost, especially in the tornado sequence and the fire-bomb appearances of the Wicked Witch. I am guessing that the theater I saw it at did not want to cause any spillover to their other movies being shown in the multi-plex, as my home theater system exhibited a lot more action from the subwoofer in these very same segments of the movie.



In the clarity and 3D of the new version, the tornado sequence still manages to pack a wallop. The fright of navigating the wind and swirling objects becomes palpable.



And just when you think it couldn't get any better, Dorothy lands in Oz and enters the glorious world of Technicolor.



Because the original negatives for the Technicolor portions still exist, there is an even larger boost of detail that is discernible to the eye. It was interesting to hear the audience react to the film in the theater, too. The Lollipop Guild got huge laughs for their comedic song.



The Witch will always remain one of my favorite parts of the film; Margaret Hamilton scares the crap out of viewers, and I am sure she is partially responsible for the film's new PG rating!



When the ruby slippers are first shown, they literally jump off of the screen when Judy first models them.



The Emerald City sparkles as well, with the green lights illuminating the holes that were cut into the matte painting created for the background. The 3D effect even gives depth to the fantastic art deco influenced backgrounds.



The 3D effect is best towards the end when the gang is stuck inside the Witch's Castle. You can truly feel the size of the place as they race through the labyrinth of the Witch's Lair.



And there are the unsung heroes/heroines of the film who don't get quite as much recognition, such as Toto, played by Terry, the Cairn Terrier.



And Frank Morgan, who plays a plethora of roles in the movie, each one of them with perfect comic timing and tenderness.



I guarantee you'll hate for this movie to end; it truly transports you through the new technology which actually seems so natural. Never at any time did I feel that the movie had crossed the line into being gimmicky.



See more "Wizard of Oz" photos on my Judy Garland web page.