Curly Top

Plot synopsis:
Young Elizabeth Blair (Shirley Temple) lives at the Lakeside Orphanage, a dreary, regimented place supervised by two decent but dour women. Her older sister Mary (Rochelle Hudson) works in the kitchen, laundry, and dormitory. Elizabeth is a sweet child but her high spirits often lead her into trouble with the superintendent.
When the trustees descend on the orphanage for a tour of inspection, Elizabeth is caught playfully mimicking the head trustee and is threatened with being sent to a public institution. Young, rich, handsome trustee Edward Morgan (John Boles) intervenes. He takes a liking to Elizabeth and, in a private interview with the child, learns that most of her life has been spent obsequiously expressing her gratitude for every mouthful that has fallen her way. He adopts her but, not wanting to curb Elizabeth's spirit by making her feel slavishly obligated to him for every kindness, he tells her a fictitious "Hiram Jones" is her benefactor and he is simply acting on Jones's behalf as his lawyer. He nicknames her "Curly Top." Meanwhile, he has met and fallen in love with Elizabeth's sister Mary but will not admit it.
Elizabeth and Mary leave the orphanage and take up residence in Morgan's luxurious Southampton beach house. His kindly aunt, Genevieve Graham (Esther Dale), and his very proper butler Reynolds (Arthur Treacher) are charmed by the two. Elizabeth has everything a child could want including a pony cart and silk pajamas.
Mary secretly loves Morgan but, believing he has no romantic interest in her, she accepts an offer of marriage from young navy pilot Jimmie Rogers (Maurice Murphy). Morgan is taken aback but offers his congratulations. Hours later, Mary ends the engagement when she realizes she doesn't truly love Jimmie. Morgan then declares his love, reveals he is the fictitious "Hiram Jones", and plans marriage and a long honeymoon in Europe with Mary.

Tags: romantic

Review:
This is another solid Shirley Temple film with some wonderful, sweet scenes and lines you certainly wouldn't hear in movies today.
Thus, much of the film features nothing but good, likable people.That list is headed by pretty Rochelle Hudson as "Mary Blair" and charming singer/good guy John Boles as "Edward Morgan" and, finally, good old Arthur Treacher as the butler (what else?!), "Reynolds.".To be fair, I didn't think the songs were that super, except for Shirley's "Animal Crackers In My Soup," which is a great song.
If I recall, at least half the songs in this film were by the adults (two by Boles and one by Rochelle) and, frankly, I'd rather hear little Miss Temple.
Shirley was cute, but if you are a woman, and honest, you will admit to yourself that while you are enjoying Shirley as the little orphan charmer, that it is John Boles and Rochelle Hudson who keep your interest perked in this film.
John Boles was drop dead gorgeous, probably THE best looking leading man EVER to come out of Hollywood.
CURLY TOP (Fox, 1935), directed by Irving Cummings, stars popular child star Shirley Temple and her most distinctive features of all, the curls of her hair seen flashing on camera during the opening credits before her smiling face fills up the screen.
This is followed by the faces and listed names of her co-stars John Boles and Rochelle Hudson who are equally matched in the story that revolves around Temple's character.
Reportedly an unofficial remake to the Jane Webster story "Daddy Long Legs" most recently filmed in 1931 with Janet Gaynor and Warner Baxter, this version remains one of the most beloved movies in Temple's early career.In an fade-in reminiscent to a Charles Dickens novel that opens during a cold, dark, rainy night at the Lakeside Orphanage where a group of little girls are seen marching upstairs in perfect order, escorted by the stern Mrs. Higgins (Rafaela Ottiano) and the very nice Henrietta Denham (Jane Darwell).
Other members of the orphanage are the Blair sisters, Mary (Rochelle Hudson) and Elizabeth (Shirley Temple), whose parents, stage performers, were killed in an automobile accident.
Aside from acquiring a pony named Spunky and a duck as her pets, Elizabeth, better known as "Curly," entertains the orphans by singing the songs written by Mary.
Her entertainment is witnessed by the visiting members of the board of trustees headed by Mr. Wyckoff (Etienne Girardot), and Edward Morgan (John Boles), a bachelor heir to millions whose fortune may be the means of financial support for the orphanage.
Morgan fulfills his act of human kindness by having the girls (pony and duck, too) stay with him for the summer at his beach house, accompanied by his Aunt Genevieve (Esther Dale), Reynolds (Arthur Treacher), the butler, and a chef (Billy Gilbert), giving them every happiness money can buy.
While Elizabeth is having the time of her life, ranging from water skiing with "Uncle Edward" and entertaining guests by doing a hula dance at the beach, Mary, who has attracted the attention of Jimmy Rogers (Maurice Murphy), a young pilot, becomes disillusioned when she overhears the reason why she and "Curly" were actually taken in by Morgan in the first place.A light-hearted story with doses of fine tunes thrown in, compliments of composers Ted Koehler, Edward Heyman, Irving Caesar and Ray Henderson, including "Animal Crackers in My Soup" (sung by Shirley Temple); "It's All So New to Me" (sung by John Boles as he envisions wall paintings of Curly coming to life); "The Simple Things in Life" (sung by Rochelle Hudson); "When I Grow Up" (sung by Temple enacting the part of a little girl, young adult and grandmother in a wheelchair); and "Curly Top" (sung by Boles, danced by Temple on top of piano).
Boles and Hudson each provide solos to best advantage while "Animal Crackers in My Soup" became as synonymous to Temple's "On the Good Ship Lollipop."Although Hudson never appeared opposite Temple again, John Boles would enact the role as her father in THE LITTLEST REBEL (Fox, 1935).
Formerly presented on many local TV channels since the 1960s on its Shirley Temple festivals, by which many stations eliminated the opening ten minutes, having the movie begin instead in the morning where Mrs. Denham (Jane Darwell) is seen raising the window shades and finding Curly's horse sleeping on the bed next to her.
Available in both VHS and DVD in black and white or "colorized" formats, the most complete copy for CURLY TOP (77 minutes) happens to be from its 1988 VHS copy distributed by Playhouse Video that even goes as far as including the exit music to the title song in blank screen following the closing casting credits.CURLY TOP may not be reality, but it sure serves its purpose as a happy kind of movie for everyone and anyone to enjoy, thanks to those who've made it all possible, the staff, supporting players, and most of all, "Curly Top" herself.
A spunky little orphan, who brings happiness into the rather bleak institution where she lives, shakes her CURLY TOP and wins the heart of a young bachelor millionaire.
Her beautiful older sister doesn't do so badly, either...Shirley Temple is in her prime in this delightful family film.
Replete with talent & abundant charm, Little Miss Temple is a constant joy to watch & a source of never-failing amusement.Up against a champion scene stealer, the romantic leads in Shirley's films never got a great deal of attention and it is no different here.
Although both are attractive and more than competent, John Boles & Rochelle Hudson are the latest duo to sacrifice themselves on Temple's altar.
Each are even given pleasant songs to sing, but the viewer squirms impatiently, wishing the story to return to The Real Star.Shirley always found much stiffer competition from the wonderful character actors who populated her films.
Movie mavens will recognize the great Billy Gilbert as Boles' comic cook.Shirley gets to sing `When I Grow Up' & her classic `Animal Crackers.'.
Not only did I love the strange alternate universe she existed in where little orphan girls can triumph over any tragedy, and sing and dance all the while, but I easily recognized the young actress's remarkable talent and charisma.
In "Curly Top" she plays Elizabeth Blair, a sweetly precocious orphan who, along with her older sister Mary, is adopted by a kind-hearted wealthy businessman.
The musical numbers are absolutely classic, and include the famous "Animal Crackers In My Soup" in which she leads her fellow orphans in a dining room singalong.
Then there's the ultra-adorable song n' dance (and jump-rope) number "When I Grow Up", where we get to see little Shirley dress up in various costumes that include a wedding gown and an old lady getup, gray hair and all.
John Boles is extremely charming as the handsome bachelor Edward Morgan, although his piano-accompanied operatic singing can seem a little tedious, especially to younger viewers.
Treacher is better known for his role in the later Shirley Temple film, The Little Princess, in which he plays the cruel schoolmaster's flamboyant brother, Mr Birdy.
Just an all-round charming musical film that shows little Shirley at her best.
She sparkles, sings and dances, and has some amusing moments no one can resist, as in "Oh my goodness!" when she gives us a quizzical look.The story opens at the orphanage with Elizabeth Blair (Shirley Temple) as an orphan along with her older sister Mary (Rochelle Hudson).
The cute youngster comes to the attention of a visiting wealthy beneficiary of the orphanage, Edward Morgan (John Boles), who can't seem to put her out of his mind after meeting her and eventually he arranges to adopt her but she's not to be parted from her older sister, Mary, so both are accepted.Lovely Mary is so appreciative of their good fortune that Edward becomes captivated by her charms also, and soon love grows between them but unspoken.
Enter young Jimmie (Maurice Murphy) who's intent on getting engaged to Mary and succeeds, but how will it end?Arthur Treacher is amusing with his formal butler ways and adds to the fun, particularly the kitchen scene.I think that after "The Little Princess" this one is my next favorite of all Shirley's movies.
That's quite unusual because since that time, and this is a quintessential Shirley Temple film, very fun with a wonderful cast all around.This was the first remake Shirley did of a Mary Pickford film (Daddy Long Legs).
(Shirley) and her young adult sister Mary (Rochelle Hudson) are orphans adopted by wealthy orphanage trustee Edward Morgan (John Boles).
Arthur Treacher has some wonderful scenes as the butler, completely outdoing himself when he disgustedly grabs Shirley's duck by the neck!Rochelle Hudson, as the older sister, gets to sing "The Simple Things in Life" (and does it well), but her characterization is somewhat weak in places.
His Aunt Genevieve (excellently played by Esther Dale) tells him she thinks (actually, knows) he's very fond of her, and suspects that Jimmy will propose to Mary before the summer ends.
But despite Shirley simply being like she always was, John Boles really adds to the film immensely, my second favorite, and the actual reason I watch this film.
He is GORGEOUS and despite being at least 38 when he did the film, looks exactly the right age to be Shirley's father and Rochelle Hudson's love interest (at 19, she looks older).
Shirley Temple is at the top of her adorable moppet game in Curly Top as she becomes the catalyst that gets her and her older sister Rochelle Hudson out of an orphanage and married to a rich man.
She even stayed on at the orphanage to cook and clean after she became an adult.Prince Charming who looks a lot like John Boles is captivated by Shirley when she sings one of the songs most identified with her Animal Crackers In My Soup.
Boles brings them to his dream house with aunt Esther Dale, butler Arthur Treacher, and cook Billy Gilbert.
Sounds like a dream house to me.All that's missing in this Cinderella story is a coach that turns back into a pumpkin.Even at my age I have to admit to being charmed by Shirley and her singing and dancing and all around sunny disposition.
"Curly Top" is an enjoyable film--as are most of Shirley Temple's films.
And, while I do recommend it, the film cannot be counted among her very best even if it did feature one of her most famous songs, "Animal Crackers".The film begins with Shirley living in a stuffy orphanage.
Her precocious ways are NOT appreciated by the head mistress, but the chairman of the board of directors, Edward Morgan (John Boles,) is instantly captivated with her charms (as was most of America at the time!).
As for Shirley, she wants to be adopted but declines, as she doesn't want to be separated from her sister (Rochelle Hudson) who works doing menial work at the orphanage.
Simply put her saying "Oh my goodness" all the time eventually wore thin--though she was still, without question, quite adorable.Overall, I did like the film--even with the way they used Shirley's character.
But, the film (even apart from Shirley), had too much singing (Hudson's number was very weak and Boles' voice was too thin by today's standards), the plot was thin and made little sense as well as the idea of a man taking that much interest in Shirley did, by today's standards, seem a bit creepy.
But, as I said, it was good overall due to Shirley's charm.*This film is a re-working of the old novel "Daddy Long Legs" (which was also a play and Mary Pickford vehicle).
The title alone lets you know that it is a charming film, albeit from the 1930s.Little Shirley sings one of her signature songs in the film.
It is "Animal Crackers in my Soup."  She sings it near a table at the orphanage.
Her screen name is Mary (played by Rochelle Hudson).I'm so glad that's what happens..
in curly top, she plays the part of a poor little orphan who charms all who meet her, (of course, isn't that what she does in all her movies?) including "handsome" edward morgan.
all the people who are present during the LONG songs seem to think that singing the same thing over and over makes for a good song.
(come to think of it, they pretty much SAY the same over and over too) all in all, this movie seems to display Shirley temple's cuteness other than really HAVE a plot..
This was only my second Shirley Temple film and therefore I don't have much to compare it with, but I have to say it was pretty good and it's very obvious why little Shirley was such a hit with audiences way back in the 1930's.
Full of sweetness, charm, charisma, and sometimes even a hint of darling incorrigibility, Miss Temple gets to shine brightly in this picture.Shirley stars as Elizabeth Blair (later dubbed "Curly"), a little girl residing at an orphanage with her much older sister Mary (Rochelle Hudson).
It's an awfully tough place to live in, as Shirley gets into all sorts of trouble for doing things like allowing her little pony to sleep in her bed and daring to sing her popular song "Animal Crackers In My Soup" during mealtime with all her friends in the lunchroom.
Enter the rich trustee of the orphanage, Edward Morgan (John Boles; I've always wondered what happened to him after FRANKENSTEIN), who instantly takes a special interest in little Elizabeth and then can't stop thinking about her; alone in his living room he plays the piano and sings (yucch) as he sees the little girl's cherubic face in the wall paintings he gazes at.
In their new ritzy environment, both sisters are very adoring of the handsome Edward, and Mary begins to fall in love with him.
But there is another man who is also longing for Mary's hand, so it's up to Curly Top to try and bring Edward and Mary together.I can't let this review go by without mentioning at this point that it occasionally struck me as a little peculiar that Mr. Morgan seemed more interested in little Elizabeth than he was in her older sister.
This is, after all, a Shirley Temple showcase and she gets to sing another song, "When I Grow Up," during a sequence where she stages a benefit show for all her less fortunate friends back at the orphanage, and changes costumes and dances.
Watching her sing and dance her way into our hearts, it's clear that she was a highly talented performer who could completely carry a film.
CURLY TOP is indebted to SHIRLEY TEMPLE for whatever charm it has as a vehicle for the talented tot--and she gets to strut her stuff often enough to keep an audience happy.
It's the kind of Temple film where you start getting restless when the spotlight goes to the romantic leads (John Boles and Rochelle Hudson), bland and poorly scripted as the leads usually are in a Temple film.
But with the spotlight on Temple--as when Shirley does her tap dancing atop a white piano or sings "Animal Crackers in my Soup" with cheerful confidence and a bit of mugging at an orphanage, you can see why she was America's box-office sweetheart during a four-year period.Clearly ranks among the best early Temple vehicles with all of her charisma and dimpled charm on full display.
So it was a real pleasure to find the film available on a DVD - even if that DVD was somewhat less than perfect and seems to have been duped from a worn if serviceable projection print which has an ugly jump in the middle of Shirley's delightful song, "Animal Crackers".The movie also has rather modest production values, but Rochelle Hudson also has a song and she looks absolutely terrific!
The only Shirley Temple(S.T.) film I can think of where Shirley has a sister(Rochelle Hudson as Mary) interacting with her.
John Boles, an easy-going trustee, who held the purse strings of the orphanage, had to bail Shirley out of trouble by offering to adopt her and her sister Mary.
Shirley's lengthy rendition of "Animal Crackers in my Soup", sung during supper at the orphanage, is much the best remembered.
Later, Arthur Treacher, as the very tall, thin, amusing butler, and Billy Gilbert, the chubby cook, sing their version of this song.
Rochelle Hudson(Mary)sings "The Simple Things in Life".
Near the end, John Boles sings "Curly Top" to Shirley, primarily.
But in the closing frames, she changes it to "Oh, my word", which was Treacher's standard exclamation.John Boles was also the lead male in the S.T. film "The Littlest Rebel".
If a heavyset old lady (Marie Dressler), an aging vamp (Mae West) and an adorable little girl (Shirley) could dominate the box office of Hollywood during different years of the 30's, all could be right in the world.Temple is a lovable orphaned tot whose older sister (Rochelle Hudson) has professed never to be separated from her.
When one of the orphanages' trustees (John Boles) takes an interest in Temple, he becomes her secret benefactor, a la "Daddy Long Legs".
It's obvious that one of the situations she cures is bringing together Hudson and Boles.In the supporting cast are such dependable character actors as Esther Dale (as Boles' aunt), Arthur Treacher (as, what else?, their butler), Rafaela Ottiano (as the initially chilly but ultimately kind orphanage manager), Jane Darwell (as her chipper assistant), and Etienne Girardot (as the overly staid head trustee).
Temple, Boles and Hudson all sing, but it is Temple's "Animal Crackers in My Soup" that will become the hit.
Like "Kids are People Too" years later, you never know just what she's going to say or do.It seems that much of the character of Little Orphan Annie in the musical "Annie", was taken from this, especially Temple's repetition of "Oh, My Goodness".