Baby Take a Bow (1934)

Eddie Ellison is an ex-con who spent time in Sing-Sing prison. Kay marries him as soon as he serves his time. Five years later, Eddie and his ex-convict buddy Larry, have both gone straight... See full summary »

Director:

Harry Lachman

Writers:

Philip Klein (screen play), Edward E. Paramore Jr. (screen play),

Stars:

Shirley Temple, James Dunn, Claire Trevor

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Shirley Temple	...	Shirley
James Dunn	...	Eddie Ellison
Claire Trevor	...	Kay Ellison
Alan Dinehart	...	Welch
Ray Walker	...	Larry Scott
Dorothy Libaire	...	Jane
Ralf Harolde	...	Trigger Stone
James Flavin	...	Flannigan
Richard Tucker	...	Mr. Carson
Olive Tell	...	Mrs. Carson

Storyline

Eddie Ellison is an ex-con who spent time in Sing-Sing prison. Kay marries him as soon as he serves his time. Five years later, Eddie and his ex-convict buddy Larry, have both gone straight, and Eddie and Kay have a beautiful little girl named Shirley. However, Welch has kept a close eye on them for years. He believes in "once a criminal, always a criminal." Then, when Eddie's employer's wife's pearls go missing, it comes out that Eddie and Larry both spent time in prison, and they're fired. Welch suspects that Eddie and Larry have something to do with the theft of the pearls. Will Welch prove that Eddie and Larry had something to do with the theft, or will the truth prevail?

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Plot Keywords:

criminal | ex convict | father daughter relationship | bowing | robbery | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for a frightening scene

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 June 1934 (USA)

Also Known As:

Always Honest

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie takes its title from the song "Baby, Take a Bow," which James Dunn and Shirley Temple sang in their earlier movie, Stand Up and Cheer!.

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Quotes

Kay 'Funny Face' Ellison: Sleeping sickness, get up.
Eddie Ellison: What time is it?
Kay 'Funny Face' Ellison: What time do you want? It's time for you to get out of that bed.
Eddie Ellison: I wasn't sleeping, I was thinking.
Kay 'Funny Face' Ellison: Get up! Your breakfast will be spoiled!
[She hits him]
Eddie Ellison: Ow! Hey, what are you doing?

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Connections

Featured in Biography: Shirley Temple: The Biggest Little Star (1996)

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Soundtracks

"Rock-A-Bye Baby"
(1886) (uncredited)
Music by Effie I. Canning
Sung by James Dunn

User Reviews

Decent, But Not The Normal Temple Fare

If this is not considered one of Shirley Temple's more popular movies, it's easy to understand why.

First, she isn't the main attraction. James Dunn and Claire Trevor are the stars. This was Temple's first feature film but she was the third, fourth or even fifth person in here, screen time-wise. The powers-that-be must have seen the bright future she had, though, and made two more films with her in the same year (1934), beginning with "Bright Eyes," and she never looked back, becoming a huge box-office attraction on her own. This particular film featured a lot more drama and crime element and that was no longer to be, too, as light-hearted singing and dancing was the ticket...not this sort of fare.

"This sort of fare" meant a climactic scene in which Shirley is kidnapped, carried to a rooftop kicking and screaming for help while her father is pursuing and her mother is frantically looking on, screaming herself. Hey, that's not a "Shirley Temple film" as we know it.

That doesn't mean this movie is all dark or doesn't offer some typically-cute Temple moments: it does. There is a great song-and-dance number with Dunn, who was good singer in his own right, and a solo earlier in the film. However, the rest is drama about Dunn and his pal trying to go straight after a prison sentence and a few guys who don't want to see that or believe it. Overall, it's a fairly interesting movie, although very dated in spots, but it's not the kind of thing Temple fans are accustomed to seeing....so be forewarned, if you haven't seen this.