Dora's Dunking Doughnuts (1933)

Director:

Harry Edwards

Writers:

Ernest Pagano (story) &
Ewart Adamson (story) ...
(more)

Release Date:

1 September 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Comedy | Music

Plot:

A schoolteacher helps his friend Dora by getting his students to help him to make a radio commercial.

Plot Keywords:

Schoolteacher | School | Coffee | Bakery | Microphone

Cast

Shirley Temple	...	Shirley
Andy Clyde	...	Andy
Ethel Sykes	...	Dora
Bud Jamison	...	Radio Station Manager
Florence Gill	...	Singer on Radio Program
The Meglin Kiddies	...	Students (as Meglin Kiddies Band)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Fern Emmett	...	Woman at Radio Station (uncredited)
Billy Engle	...	Radio Announcer (uncredited)
Si Jenks	...	Well-wisher (uncredited)
Sidney Miller	...	Meglin Kid Dancer (uncredited)

Directed by
Harry Edwards		(as Harry J. Edwards)

Writing credits
Ernest Pagano		(story) &
Ewart Adamson		(story)
Ernest Pagano		(dialogue) &
Ewart Adamson		(dialogue)

Cinematography by
Dwight Warren

Sound Department
Joseph I. Kane	....	sound (as Joe Kane)

Production Companies

• Educational Films Corporation of America

Distributors

• Fox Film Corporation (1933) (USA) (theatrical)
• A-1 Video (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Mill Creek Entertainment (2011) (USA) (DVD)
• Passport Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

20 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Educational Films Corporation of America

Quotes:

Andy:Dora, you'd make a fine wife for some man.
Dora:You think so?
Andy:Oh, sure you would. Did you ever think of, ah, getting married?
Dora:Oh, yes, but the right man's never asked me.

Delightful musical comedy short

A previous IMDB reviewer has said that "Dora's Dunking Doughnuts" is about a boy who's afraid of dogs. That reviewer is thinking of a different movie, called "Pardon My Pups". Both are short comedies which feature Shirley Temple before her stardom. Both of these films have been released on video as part of a compendium of Shirley Temple shorts, which explains why the reviewer has got them switched. "Dora's Dunking Doughnuts" is often packaged as a Shirley Temple film; she's prominently featured in a supporting role, but she is certainly not the central character here.

"Dora's Dunking Doughnuts" was made at Al Christie's low-budget Educational studio, which (despite its name) specialised in short comedies. (Educational started out making educational films, then producer Christie discovered that slapstick was more profitable.) The star of this film is silent-film comedian Andy Clyde, cast here as a bashful schoolmaster and speaking his dialogue in a soft Perthshire accent. Andy is sweet on Dora, who runs a small roadside diner which isn't getting much custom. But her food is good, especially her doughnuts: if only she could afford to advertise, and attract more customers!

Andy maintains order (just barely) over a classroom of students, ranging widely in age. They're all good kids, but very mischievous. Little Shirley is the prize pupil. Andy organises his students into an orchestra and chorus, then he uses his savings to buy some air time on the local radio station. This is quite realistic: in the golden age of radio, many shows were "on sustaining", meaning that the performers had no sponsor and they paid for their own air time.

We see some very unrealistic yet amusing shenanigans at the radio station, including a performance by a matronly singer (Florence Gill) who clucks her song as if she were a chicken. Andy leads his schoolkids in a rendition of an advertising jingle, "Dora's Dunking Doughnuts", which is actually quite enjoyable. But of course a few things go wrong during the live broadcast...

Special attention should be paid to Bud Jamison, unfortunately misspelt in the credits of this film as 'Jamieson'. Bud Jamison was the greatest straight man in the history of film comedy! He worked with most of the greatest comedians in the first 50 years of American films, including Chaplin, Keaton, WC Fields and the Three Stooges. In the Stooges classic 'Disorder in the Court', Jamison is the defence attorney who hands Curly a revolver while speaking the immortal line "Never fear, it's not loaded." Bud Jamison gave sterling service in many of the greatest comedies of the 1920s through '40s (and in a lot of obscure comedies too), yet he remains utterly unknown to old-movie fans ... probably because Jamison specialised in making other comedians seem funnier than they were. Here in "Dora's Dunking Doughnuts", Jamison is quite funny as the put-upon manager of the small-time radio station.

I'll rate this nice comedy-musical short 10 out of 10. You'll probably watch it to see Shirley Temple, and Andy Clyde is excellent in the lead role. (Ethel Sykes is quite good too, as the titular Dora.) But please rewind it and watch it again, this time concentrating on Bud Jamison's expert comedy timing.