Baby Take a Bow
Encyclopedia
Baby Take a Bow is a 1934 American
comedy drama film directed by Harry Lachman
. The screenplay by Philip Klein and Edward E. Paramore Jr. is based on the play Square Crooks by James P. Judge. Temple plays the child of an ex-con (Dunn) trying to better life for himself and his family. The film was a commercial success and is critically regarded as pleasant and sentimental. A musical number features Dunn and Temple.
, Eddie Ellison marries his fiancée Kay, and eventually the two have a daughter they name Shirley. Eddie helps his friend and former convict Larry Scott, who is engaged to Shirley's dance instructor Jane, get a job as a chauffeur for his employer, factory owner Stuart Carson.
Trigger Stone, who also served time in Sing Sing, steals Mrs. Carson's pearl necklace and asks Eddie and Larry to sell it for him, but they refuse. Private investigator Welch, the man responsible for Eddie's conviction, tells the head of the National Insurance Company he suspects the chauffeurs are guilty of the robbery and informs Mr. Carson home about their prison records, prompting him to fire them.
Trying to escape from the police, Trigger gives the pearl necklace to Shirley, who believes it is a belated birthday present. As part of a game, she hides it in her father's pocket, and when he finds it while Welch is searching the apartment, he conceals it in the carpet sweeper, but unbeknownst to him the neighbor's maid Anna borrows it and empties it before returning it. Kay returns home, and when she hears the story they try to open the sweeper. Welch returns and opens it himself, only to find it empty.
After Welch leaves, Eddie, Larry, Kay and Jane search the apartment building for the necklace. When Trigger threatens Eddie with a gun, Eddie subdues him and ties him up, then goes for the police. During his absence, Shirley discovers the necklace in the garbage can downstairs. She brings it to Eddie but instead finds Trigger, who convinces her to let him free. He takes her hostage and climbs to the roof, where he shoots Eddie. Although injured, Eddie manages to capture Trigger. Shirley takes the necklace from Trigger's pocket, and detective Flannigan tells her she will be eligible for the $5,000 reward.
. The working titles for the remake were Always Honest and Going Straight. Both The Hollywood Reporter
and Variety
reported the film was banned in Germany, although no reason was given by the German censors.
The song "On Account-a I Love You" was written by Sam H. Stept
and Bud Green
, and sung by Temple and Dunn.
Based on the success of Little Miss Marker
and Stand Up and Cheer!
, Temple's Fox salary was raised to $1250 per week, and her mother's salary as coach and hairdresser was raised to $150 per week. The film's title was taken from a song Temple had sung in Stand Up and Cheer!
. Temple and Dunn would work together in other films with Temple always taking top credit.
Channel 4
called the film a "slender but cute tale" that is "slow for the most part, but a scene on a rooftop where the real baddie uses the tot as a human shield should amuse."
TV Guide
rated the film two out of four stars and commented, "Forget the plot and enjoy the child star in one of her most entertaining roles."
Cinema of the United States
The cinema of the United States, also known as Hollywood, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world since the early 20th century. Its history is sometimes separated into four main periods: the silent film era, classical Hollywood cinema, New Hollywood, and the contemporary period...
comedy drama film directed by Harry Lachman
Harry Lachman
Harry B. Lachman was an American artist, set designer, and film director.Born La Salle, Illinois, Lachman was educated at the University of Michigan before becoming a magazine and book illustrator, contributing 4 colour illustrations to the 1907 work John Smith, Gentleman Adventurer by Charles...
. The screenplay by Philip Klein and Edward E. Paramore Jr. is based on the play Square Crooks by James P. Judge. Temple plays the child of an ex-con (Dunn) trying to better life for himself and his family. The film was a commercial success and is critically regarded as pleasant and sentimental. A musical number features Dunn and Temple.
Plot
After serving time in Sing SingSing Sing
Sing Sing Correctional Facility is a maximum security prison operated by the New York State Department of Correctional Services in the town of Ossining, New York...
, Eddie Ellison marries his fiancée Kay, and eventually the two have a daughter they name Shirley. Eddie helps his friend and former convict Larry Scott, who is engaged to Shirley's dance instructor Jane, get a job as a chauffeur for his employer, factory owner Stuart Carson.
Trigger Stone, who also served time in Sing Sing, steals Mrs. Carson's pearl necklace and asks Eddie and Larry to sell it for him, but they refuse. Private investigator Welch, the man responsible for Eddie's conviction, tells the head of the National Insurance Company he suspects the chauffeurs are guilty of the robbery and informs Mr. Carson home about their prison records, prompting him to fire them.
Trying to escape from the police, Trigger gives the pearl necklace to Shirley, who believes it is a belated birthday present. As part of a game, she hides it in her father's pocket, and when he finds it while Welch is searching the apartment, he conceals it in the carpet sweeper, but unbeknownst to him the neighbor's maid Anna borrows it and empties it before returning it. Kay returns home, and when she hears the story they try to open the sweeper. Welch returns and opens it himself, only to find it empty.
After Welch leaves, Eddie, Larry, Kay and Jane search the apartment building for the necklace. When Trigger threatens Eddie with a gun, Eddie subdues him and ties him up, then goes for the police. During his absence, Shirley discovers the necklace in the garbage can downstairs. She brings it to Eddie but instead finds Trigger, who convinces her to let him free. He takes her hostage and climbs to the roof, where he shoots Eddie. Although injured, Eddie manages to capture Trigger. Shirley takes the necklace from Trigger's pocket, and detective Flannigan tells her she will be eligible for the $5,000 reward.
Production
James P. Judge's play Square Crooks was filmed under that title in 1928 by Lewis SeilerLewis Seiler
Lewis Seiler was an American film director. He directed 88 films between 1923 and 1958.He was born in New York, New York, and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:* A Bankrupt Honeymoon...
. The working titles for the remake were Always Honest and Going Straight. Both The Hollywood Reporter
The Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
and Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
reported the film was banned in Germany, although no reason was given by the German censors.
The song "On Account-a I Love You" was written by Sam H. Stept
Sam H. Stept
Samuel Howard Stept was an American songwriter who wrote for Broadway, Hollywood and the big bands. He became known simply as Sam Stept or Sam H. Stept — he almost never used his full middle name.-Family:Born in Odessa, Russia, Stept came to the U.S. at the age of three and grew up in...
and Bud Green
Bud Green
Bud Green was an Austrian-born songwriter. Bud Green grew up in Harlem at 108th & Madison Ave. at the turn of the century, the eldest of seven. He dropped out of elementary school to sell newspapers and help the family...
, and sung by Temple and Dunn.
Based on the success of Little Miss Marker
Little Miss Marker
Little Miss Marker is a 1934 American drama film directed by Alexander Hall. The screenplay was written by William R. Lipman, Sam Hellman, and Gladys Hellman after a short story by Damon Runyon. The film stars Shirley Temple, Adolphe Menjou, and Dorothy Dell in a story about a little girl held...
and Stand Up and Cheer!
Stand Up and Cheer!
Stand Up and Cheer! is a 1934 American musical film directed by Hamilton MacFadden. The screenplay by Lew Brown and Ralph Spence was based upon a story idea by Will Rogers and Philip Klein. The film is about efforts undertaken during the Great Depression to boost the morale of the country...
, Temple's Fox salary was raised to $1250 per week, and her mother's salary as coach and hairdresser was raised to $150 per week. The film's title was taken from a song Temple had sung in Stand Up and Cheer!
Stand Up and Cheer!
Stand Up and Cheer! is a 1934 American musical film directed by Hamilton MacFadden. The screenplay by Lew Brown and Ralph Spence was based upon a story idea by Will Rogers and Philip Klein. The film is about efforts undertaken during the Great Depression to boost the morale of the country...
. Temple and Dunn would work together in other films with Temple always taking top credit.
Cast
- Shirley TempleShirley TempleShirley Temple Black , born Shirley Jane Temple, is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, autobiographer, and former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia...
as Shirley Ellison - James DunnJames Dunn (actor)James Howard Dunn was an American film actor.-Biography:Born in New York City of Irish descent, Dunn was the son of a Wall Street stockbroker who, according to Dunn, "either had a million or nothing." He joined his father in his business for three years...
as Eddie Ellison - Claire TrevorClaire TrevorClaire Trevor was an Academy Award-winning American actress. She was nicknamed the "Queen of Film Noir" because of her many appearances in "bad girl” roles in film noir and other black-and-white thrillers...
as Kay Ellison - Alan DinehartAlan DinehartAlan Mason Dinehart was an American Broadway actor, director, writer, stage manager and later, a Character actor and supporting player featured in at least 88 films between 1931 and 1944...
as Welch - Ray Walker as Larry Scott
- Dorothy Libaire as Jane Scott
- Ralf HaroldeRalf HaroldeRalf Harolde was an American character actor. Between 1920 and 1963, he appeared in 99 films, including Jimmy the Gent, Night Nurse, Baby Take a Bow, A Tale of Two Cities, Our Relations, and Murder, My Sweet.Harolde was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and died in Santa Monica,...
as Trigger Stone - James FlavinJames FlavinJames William Flavin, Jr. was an American character actor whose career lasted nearly half a century.-Life and career:...
as Det. Flannigan - Richard TuckerRichard Tucker (actor)Richard Tucker was an American actor. He appeared in 266 films between 1911 and 1940.He was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was the first official member of the Screen Actors Guild and a founding member of SAG's Board of Directors...
as Stuart Carson - Olive TellOlive TellOlive Tell was a stage and screen actress from New York City.She graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1915....
as Mrs. Carson
Critical reception
Temple biographer Anne Edwards thought the film "pleasant, sentimental" and that it "had very little other than Shirley to recommend it at the box office."Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
called the film a "slender but cute tale" that is "slow for the most part, but a scene on a rooftop where the real baddie uses the tot as a human shield should amuse."
TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
rated the film two out of four stars and commented, "Forget the plot and enjoy the child star in one of her most entertaining roles."