The Wilmington morning star., 1940-08-20
In Hollywood
BY PAUL HARRISON
NEA Service Staff Correspond

NEA Service Sta1f correspondent
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS B-l.
of the Plot Division, skunk into
the office today and handed ovel
his badge. He said there's a limi1
to the establishment and senti
mental pain that any man C a +
stand, and that he had reached il
while ferreting out the plot Of Gene
Towne and Graham Bakers Lit
tie Men,"
You mean Louisa May Alcott's
little Men," l corrected gently,
Mr.. Towne and Mr.. Baker are
merely producing the picture.
Why, even the name of their com
pany, The-Play' s-the-Thing Pro-
auctions, indicates the respect
with which they are approaching
the classics they film"
No." said Agent B-1, hollowly,
Il still mean Towne and Bakers
Little Men, Here's the report"
Taking a page, I began to read:
Major Burdle George Bancroft)
a genial confidence man, works q
thriving racket"
"Hey!" I exclaimed. This i.
the wrong plot. You've been to the
wrong studio, or something
There's no Major Burdle in Little
Men,"
There is in Towne and Bak.
er's!" snortted ex-B-1. "Gwan,
read the rest"
MEDICINE SHOW
MOVIES
This is how it went: Major Bur
die George Bancroft, a genial
confidence man, works a thriving
racket by advertising "A steel en-.
craving of the Father of His Coun.
try for only ST." and sends suckers
a 2-cent stamp bearing Washing
toms picture. AS he is opening his
money-filled mail one morning, a
old stor-mate, Willie the Fox (Jack
Oakie) enters with a bundle in his
arms. In the bundle is a baby
Little Dan, orphan of another pa
who on his death bed entrusted the
child to Willie the Fox and Majol
Burdle. Realizing that they mus
lead better, cleaner lives for the
sake of the child, the pair decide
to start a travelling medicine show
The scene changes to IL year:
later. Little Dan (Jimmy Lydon.
is the concertina player for thu
troupe, which goes around selling
a fake liquor cure. Authorize.
suddenly pounce on the guardians
with an order that Dan be sent tt
school, and suggesting a nearby
one, called Plumfield.
"Ah-ha!" I said. This sounds
familiar. Maybe everything's 60
ing to be all right after all. Or
chards, berry-picking, little gar
dehs, sugar cookies-remember?'
"Yeah?" sneered ex-B-1. Don
trust 'em. They just put in Plum
field so they could get a lot o
publicity out of Elsie. The Oompf
Cow. you know-she plays Butter
cup"
OUTCLASSED
CLASSIC
Well, Plumfield's in the l
anyway. So are 10 (Kay Fran
cis) and Professor Bear (Charle,
Esmond), Tomboy Nan (Ann Gil
lis) and some of the other children
But it seems there's a $4,000 mort
gage on the school, and kindl,
Professor Bear is persuaded t
hand over $4,000 he has saved o.
the swindlers' promise to inves
it. They promptly disappear.
AS time passes, m of the schoe
boys becomes suspicious and ae
cuses Dan of having a thief for
father. Dan beat the stuffing GU
OF him. The boy almost dies tn
story gets into the papers Maio
Burdle sees the story and j
stricken with remorse. Willie tn
Fox, wanted by the police for a
Insurance swindle, nobly sacrifice
himself-lets Burdle deliver h I
to the police and collect the $500
reward. Finale: Plumfieid i
saved.
"But-but how could they-Wh
did they do it," muttered Won
correspondent.
because, replied ex.R.,
"Towne and Baker decided tina.
classic though it may be, Louis
Alcott's Little Men has no stor,
So they combined it with an OF
radio script they once wrote fc
Nv. G. Fields"