Daughters Courageous (1939)

Nan Masters, a single mother living with her four marriageable daughters, plans to marry Sam Sloane, businessman. Out of the blue her 1st husband Jim returns after deserting the family 20 ... See full summary »

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Dorothy Bennett (play), Julius J. Epstein,

Stars:

John Garfield, Claude Rains, Jeffrey Lynn

Cast

Complete credited cast:
John Garfield	...	Gabriel Lopez
Claude Rains	...	Jim Masters
Jeffrey Lynn	...	John S. 'Johnny' Heming
Fay Bainter	...	Nancy 'Nan' Masters
Donald Crisp	...	Samuel 'Sam' Sloane
May Robson	...	Penny, the Housekeeper
Frank McHugh	...	George
Dick Foran	...	Eddie Moore
Priscilla Lane	...	Buff Masters
Rosemary Lane	...	Tinka Masters
Lola Lane	...	Linda Masters
Gale Page	...	Cora Masters
George Humbert	...	Manuel Lopez
Berton Churchill	...	Judge Henry Hornsby

Storyline

Nan Masters, a single mother living with her four marriageable daughters, plans to marry Sam Sloane, businessman. Out of the blue her 1st husband Jim returns after deserting the family 20 years earlier. The worldly wanderer Jim gets a cool family reception at first but his warm personality gradually wins the affections of his four daughters. In fact, youngest daughter Buff, who has her eye on a maverick of her own in Gabriel Lopez, is pleased when Jim grants his stamp of approval on her relationship. Buff plans to elope with Gabriel on her mother's wedding day, but 'unpredictable' is Gabriel's middle name.

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Plot Keywords:

wedding | sister sister relationship | sequel | dance | judge | 

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Taglines:

It's Another 'Four Daughters' Hit! And they're gayer than ever, sweeter than ever, better than ever before!

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 July 1939 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Family Affair

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., First National Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The play "Fly Away Home" (on which this film was based) opened in New York on 15 January 1935.

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Goofs

After Buff tells Gabriel she came and will be going home from the nightclub with Johnny, Gabriel leaves and leaves his accordion with the coat-check girl. However, before sunrise the next morning he and Buff are on his father's boat. He is playing his accordion and she is singing.

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Connections

Version of Always in My Heart (1942)

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Soundtracks

"My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean"
(uncredited)
Traditional
Heard on the radio

User Reviews

Not one of the Ten Worst movies ever, but ...

This extraneous aside from the Four Daughters series is said to have been made by popular demand, and to have defied the rule that sequels or spin-offs are never up to par. I don't know about the first part of that, but I strongly disagree with the latter conclusion.

The Four Daughters/Wives/Mothers series ranged from "not-too-bad" to "really-quite-bad" (4 to 2 on the IMDb scale). This entry was far below the abysmal standard set by the others. They should have left Garfield dead instead of resurrecting and renaming him. He was the worst feature of the previous films and perfected his obnoxious character in this one. Rains was as close as anyone (except cook/housekeeper Robson) got to being a sympathetic character in Daughters Courageous, and he barely rises above detestable. Even his noble gesture at the end doesn't salvage his role or the film.