The American Ambassador of homespun humor makes his way to DVD in this delightful set from Fox which collect Rogers’ final four films. I know I never met a DVD that I didn’t like.
Will Rogers was an American icon in the 1930s. He was a jack of all trades, he wrote books, newspapers articles, appeared in films, radio, and was a political commentator (“I’m not a member of any organized political party. I’m a Democrat!”) and philanthropist. His tragic death in an airplane accident in 1935 brought his career to an abrupt end and shocked the entire nation and world. When he died in 1935 he and Shirley Temple were the biggest box office stars of the time. Rogers had not always been on the top and was a high school dropout and had his beginnings as a trick roper with the Ziegfeld Follies.
Life Begins at 40 (1935) Kenesaw H. Clark (Will Rogers) runs the local paper whose slogan is “All the truth $1.00 a year entitles you to.” Lee Austin (Richard Cromwell) returns to town from a prison stint. Lee was accused of stealing a large some of money from Colonel Abercrombie’s (George Barbier) bank, but Lee maintains that he was set up for the crime. Clark gives Lee a job at his paper and the Colonel demands immediate payment for Clark’s loan and effectively takes over the paper. Clark goes out on his own and starts his own paper with Lee, Chris (Sterling Holloway), and his neighbor Ida Harris (Jane Darwell). Clark starts to run the town lay about T. Watterson Meriwether (Slim Summerville) against the Colonel in the school board election. As the election approaches, Clarke thinks that he can clear Lee’s name so that Lee can marry the pretty school teacher Adele Anderson (Rochelle Hudson).
Doubting Thomas (1935) Thomas Brown (Will Rogers) is off to a sausage convention and when he returns he finds that his wife Paula (Billy Burke) has caught the acting bug. Seems that one of the original actresses’ husband has dropped dead and Paula has take the part (Thomas comes to think that the dead husband is the one that’s better off). The pompous Mrs. Pampinelli (Alison Skipworth) is directing the play and the backstage props are by Mr. Spindler (Sterling Holloway). The play is horrible but there’s a famous director, Von Blitzen (John Qualen), in the audience and he stops by to look at the screen tests a traveling salesman has made. Our stage players just know that they’ll be discovered and head to Hollywood, but things don’t go as they imagine.
In Old Kentucky (1935) The Shattucks and the Martingales have been feuding for years. Ezra Martindale (Charles Sellon) is a crazy old coot that carries around a shotgun with an eye out for Shattucks. Both feuding parties own stables, but the Shattucks (Charles Richman and Louise Henry) are the richer clan and have multiple horses whereas the Martingales only have one horse – Greyboy. Steve Tapley (Will Rogers) is the Shattucks horse trainer but he helps out the Martingales. In fact, he’s taken in Ezra who has a warrant out for being a public nuisance, waving about his shotgun.
Will Rogers and Jane Darwell on the porch in Life Begins at 40
Mr. Shattuck is bringing over Dr. Andrews (Russell Hardie) and Tapley has to hide Ezra from the Shattucks and the Doctor with the help of his servant Wash Jackson (Bill Robinson, who has ample opportunity to do some hoofin’). To make a long story short, Steve is fired from the Shattucks and changes sides to help the Martingales beat the Shattucks’ horse Emperor in the big race. When Greyboy is injured this gives Dr. Andrews the opportunity to tend him and fall in love with Nancy Martingale (Dorothy Wilson). However, will Greyboy be recovered enough to win the big race?
Steamboat Round the Bend (1935) Doc John Pearly (Will Rogers) is selling snake oil on a riverboat but is traveling to meet his nephew Duke (John McGuire) and they’re going to go into the steamboat business together. He’s so sure of Duke’s piloting skills that he wagers the riverboat he’s going to take possession of that they’ll win the big riverboat race with Captain Eli (Irving S. Cobb). When Duke finally does show up he’s with his “swamp girl” girlfriend Fleety Belle (Anne Shirley) and has murdered a man. He wants to go on the run but Uncle John convinces him to turn himself in to Sheriff Jeffers (Eugene Pallette – you’ll never forget that voice).
There was a witness to the crime that would prove that Duke killed the man in self defense, but the witness, The New Moses (Berton Churchill, of Ford’s Stagecoach), has already traveled away on the river. Duke needs to raise $500 to get Duke a better lawyer and he hatches a scheme with Sheriff Jeffers to make Pearly’s riverboat a traveling wax museum along with the help of Jonah (Stepin Fetchit) and his drunk engineer (Francis Ford). Doc decides to go to Baton Rouge to see the governor, but finds the river is blocked for the big riverboat race. To get to Baton Rouge and the governor Doc has to win the big race to save Duke, but he’s low on firewood. Why yes, Jack Pennick does appear since it wouldn’t be a Ford picture without him.
Will Rogers may not have the following today of Marilyn Monroe or James Dean, but he was another entertainer that was taken from us too soon. He was an American Icon and the country mourned his passing. He was also one of the most highly paid performers of the time (only Shirley Temple came close). His death in a flying accident shocked the nation. When he died he had completed two pictures that had yet to be released to theatres. Steamboat Round the Bend was the last picture that Rogers shot, but In Old Kentucky was the last picture of Rogers to make it to theatres.
Steamboat Round the Bend!
Rogers had a gentle, folksy humor that is all his own. Our modern eyes might not appreciate his delivery, with our comedic visions of Jim Carrey speaking out of his arse, but to the 1930s audiences he was the king of comedy and was never mean-spirited. Rogers was also one of the first performers to improvise lines.
Believe it or not, but before Rogers it was something that was not done to deviate from the script given to an actor. This new off the cuff acting method of acting drove some actors crazy who were used to getting their cues from the script that Rogers ignored. These movies are a time capsule from the time that Will Rogers were king and if you’re in the mood to appreciate that then you’ll love them. I thought they were all excellent.
All the films in this set are presented in fullscreen as they were originally show in 1935. The four films have some nice special features, but as you pick up the box at your local DVD mart you won’t see them. Fox decided not to put any indication of what the special features are on the outside of the box, they’re on the back of the individual cases. However, you have to open the box to see that. I hope that Fox changes that in further box sets. There is some static features across the movies. All of them contain a 4 minute restoration comparison that shows a 2006 film transfer and a split screen with the digital restoration on the other side. All of them also contain the trailer for Steamboat Round the Bend. Doubting Thomas contains the most special features.
It contains a commentary by film historian Anthony Slide and the 2002 90 minute A&E Bio Will Rogers: An American Original. The other feature is a 6 minute Fox Movietone news segment about the Will Rogers Memorial Fund. This is somewhat interesting because it is the raw footage from the segment and has not been edited to the final product yet. There is also a 44 second Fox Movietone New segment that has some footage of a dedication of a stage to Will Rogers’ memory.
The disasterous play from Doubting Thomas
Life Begins at 40 contains another commentary by Slide. In Old Kentucky contains a commentary by Slide, a 40 second Fox Movietone News segment of studio executives visiting the Will Rogers Memorial Hospital, and a 45 second Fox Movietone News segment that show Wiley Post and Rogers taking off for their trip to the Arctic Circle that would result in their deaths. Steamboat Round the Bend contains a commentary by John Ford author Scott Eyman.
Though this set is labeled Volume 1 but really contains the last 4 films by Will Rogers. If more volumes follow I assume that we’ll be going backwards through Rogers’ Fox films. I found them a delightful change of pace in comparison to the comedies of today. Will Rogers fans will definitely want to pick up this set (as well as fans of John Ford to see the last film in which Rogers and Ford worked together).
Will Rogers Collection, Vol. 1 is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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