Stowaway (1936)

A young girl lost in Shanghai is taken in by an American playboy and his girlfriend.

Director:

William A. Seiter

Writers:

William M. Conselman (screen play) (as William Counselman), Arthur Sheekman (screen play)

Stars:

Shirley Temple, Robert Young, Alice Faye

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shirley Temple	...	Ching-Ching aka Barbara Stewart
Robert Young	...	Tommy Randall
Alice Faye	...	Susan Parker
Eugene Pallette	...	The Colonel
Helen Westley	...	Mrs. Hope
Arthur Treacher	...	Atkins
Allan Lane	...	Richard Hope
J. Edward Bromberg	...	Judge J.D. Booth
Astrid Allwyn	...	Kay Swift
Robert Greig	...	Captain
Jayne Regan	...	Dora Day
Julius Tannen	...	First Mate Jenkins
Willie Fung	...	Chang
Philip Ahn	...	Sun Lo
Paul McVey	...	Second Mate

Storyline

Ching-Ching gets lost in Shanghai and is befriended by American playboy Tommy Randall. She falls asleep in his car which winds up on a ship headed for America. Susan Parker, also on the ship, marries Randall to give Chin-Ching a family.

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Plot Keywords:

girl | melodrama | 

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Genres:

Musical | Adventure | Family

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Mandarin

Release Date:

25 December 1936 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ching Ching

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

New York dateline, November 17, 1938: Composers Galore Say Tune in "Stowaway" was Pirated [Headline]. Plagiarism suits and claims plagued 20th Century-Fox this week, with all parts of the world represented, apparently, in the allegations that the Mack Gordon-Harry Revel tune "Good Night, My Love," which was used in the 1936 Shirley Temple picture "Stowaway" had been pirated wholly or in part. In Argentina, a musical trial was held in a Buenos Aires theater with the audience, admitted on free passes, acting as a jury. Two reels of the picture were exhibited and the song of the claimant, Juan Calabria, and the Gordon-Revel piece were played. The audience found for the plaintiff. Twentieth Century-Fox's legal department, taking the position that the audience-jury was "packed," is moving for a dismissal. Charles McCord, a New York tune smith, is suing for $60,000 damages from 20th Century-Fox, alleging that Gordon and Revel lifted music from a song he wrote as the basis for "Good Night, My Love." Claims have also been received from Europe also. So maybe it isn't surprising that Edwin P. Kilroe, copyright expert of the company's legal staff, said yesterday that he was waiting to hear from the heirs of Verdi and Brahams. Gordon and Revel were to arrive in New York this week from the coast.

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Goofs

It appears as though Alice Faye after finishing a game of shuffleboard with her fiancé, Mr. Hope, changed from wearing a pair of shorts to a sun-dress of sorts. In one scene she is seen leaving the ship's shuffleboard area in shorts and then entering an interior cabin in the sun-dress. After playing shuffleboard, Alice Faye buttons on a wrap-around skirt.

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Quotes

Susan Parker: Richard! This is a surprise!
Richard Hope: It's a surprise for me, too.
Susan Parker: Oh, uh, Richard, this is Mr. Randall, and this is Miss Ching-Ching Stewart. I never thought I'd see you here.
Richard Hope: Evidently not.
Susan Parker: Weren't you surprised to see him here?
Mrs. Hope: Hardly. I sent for him.
Susan Parker: Marvelous. I love surprises, and I hardly ever get them.
Mrs. Hope: Susan, I think your friends will excuse you.
Susan Parker: Oh, Tommy, I must be going. You'll look after Ching-Ching, won't you?
Tommy Randall: She'll be perfectly fine.
[...]

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Connections

Featured in 20th Century-Fox: The First 50 Years (1997)

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Soundtracks

That's What I Want for Christmas
(1935) (uncredited)
Music by Gerald Marks
Lyrics by Irving Caesar
Copyright 1935 by Irving Caesar, Inc.
Sung by Shirley Temple

User Reviews

Thank you Moondog-8!

As I watched this film, I was shocked how the amazingly talented Shirley Temple APPEARED to be speaking Chinese. I assumed she was actually speaking nonsense. I was thrilled, however, by Moondog-8's review as they said that she really WAS speaking reasonably good Mandarin Chinese!! What a talented kid!! Ching-Ching is the orphaned child of missionaries in China. She mostly wanders the street like a ray of sunshine. She happens upon a playboy bachelor (Robert Young) and he's naturally taken by her. Later, when she accidentally stows away on the same ship as Young, he befriends her and even wants to adopt her. But, he needs to find a wife FAST, as they won't let a bachelor adopt a kid. So, he asks a very nice lady (Alice Faye) and the rest is for you to see for yourself.

This film is unusual in that it's pure sentimentality and schmaltz...yet it manages to work. This is because of the combined talents of Shirley, Robert Young and Alice Faye--who were all at the top of their game. Plus, the writing is good...provided you can dismiss some nagging questions you'll naturally face. So, try not to think HOW an orphan living in impoverished China can have permed curls, clean clothes and look well-fed! Just ignore all this and take in the fun--and the film does manage to be quite fun.

By the way, in the credits, Faye's fiancé is credited as Allan Lane. Later, he gained fame as cowboy star 'Rocky' Lane.