Boys Town (1938)

Regisseur:

Norman Taurog

Drehbuchautoren:

John Meehan (screenplay) and
Dore Schary (screenplay) ...

Premierendatum:

9. September 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Biographie | Drama

Werbezeile:

The life story of a boy who was "born to be hung"!

Plot:

Against all odds Father Flanagan starts "Boys' Town" after hearing a convict's story. Whitey Marsh comes there...

Plot Keywords:

Irish American | Prayer | Nun | Boxing Match | Boxing

Filmpreise:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 3 nominations

Nutzerkommentare:

Tribute To A Remarkable Man & Place

Besetzung

Spencer Tracy	...	Father Flanagan
Mickey Rooney	...	Whitey Marsh
Henry Hull	...	Dave Morris
Leslie Fenton	...	Dan Farrow
Gene Reynolds	...	Tony Ponessa
Edward Norris	...	Joe Marsh
Addison Richards	...	The Judge
Minor Watson	...	The Bishop
Jonathan Hale	...	John Hargraves
Bobs Watson	...	Pee Wee
Martin Spellman	...	Skinny
Mickey Rentschler	...	Tommy Anderson
Frankie Thomas	...	Freddie Fuller
Jimmy Butler	...	Paul Ferguson
Sidney Miller	...	Mo Kahn

Alternativ:

Jugend am Abgrund (Österreich) [de]
Teufelskerle (Bundesrepublik Deutschland) [de]

Länge:

96 Min | 93 Min (DVD version)

Produktionsland:

USA

Sprache:

Englisch

Farbe:

Schwarzweiss

Seitenverhältnis:

1.37 : 1

Tonverfahren:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Altersfreigabe:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Canada:G (video rating) | USA:Approved (PCA #4528) | Finland:S | Australia:G

Drehorte:

Boys Town, Nebraska, USA

Firma:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Dies und das:

The day after Spencer Tracy won the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in this film, an MGM publicist released a statement--without consulting Tracy first--that the actor would donate his Oscar to the real Boys Town in Nebraska. Tracy agreed to make the donation if the Academy would send him a replacement Oscar. When the replacement arrived, the engraving on the award read: "Best Actor - Dick Tracy."

Pannen:

Abfolgefehler: In the march to the tavern, Tony is to the left in all but two shots when he is to the right.

Dialogzitate:

Tony Ponessa: If you're a Catholic or a Protestant, you can go right on being one.
Whitey Marsh: Well, I'm nothin'.
Tony Ponessa: Then, you can go right on being nothin', and nobody cares.

Bezüge zu anderen Titeln:

Verweis/Anspielung/Erwähnung in Hell's Kitchen (1939)

Tribute To A Remarkable Man & Place

Father Flanagan courageously fights against all odds to see his dream of BOYS TOWN become a reality.

Pulsing with real life, here is a family film which not only entertains but informs - bringing back to our attention one of the most vibrant personalities of the 20th Century, Father Edward Flanagan. Excellent production values - with outdoor filming that actually appears to have taken place on location at the authentic Boys Town - help tremendously with the viewer's enjoyment.

Earning his second Oscar in two years, Spencer Tracy is magnificent as the good Father. He gives us a hero of patience & grace, one who values prayer & faith, but one who is also quite ready to land a few powerful punches for a good cause. Tracy's own private life was anything but tranquil, which only makes his performance here all the more impressive.

Admirably cast as a nasty little punk, young Mickey Rooney breezes through an important role which would help propel him into becoming Hollywood's top star within a couple of years. Like a junior version of Tracy himself, the two are wonderful together, striking several dramatic sparks off their characters' personalities. While Tracy plays his role with quiet humor & dignity, Rooney hams it up magnificently.

Henry Hull offers good support as Tracy's pawnbroker friend who nervously gets to worry about all of Boys Town's financial woes. Little Bobs Watson as Pee Wee, the Town's youngest resident, is cute without being too cloying.

*************************

After an education in Rome, Irish-born Edward Joseph Flanagan (1886-1948) came to America in 1904. Ordained a priest in 1912, Father Flanagan was sent to Omaha, Nebraska, where he established the Workingmen's Hotel for derelict men in 1914.

Soon, however, his great calling and the purpose for his life's ministry became clear - the work with abandoned & abused boys. In 1917 Father Flanagan opened the Home for Homeless Boys in a large old house. Outgrowing their facilities, in 1921 Father Flanagan moved his young charges to a farm site 10 miles from Omaha, capable of housing hundreds of youths. Quickly becoming more of a living community than just a school, the boys voted in 1926 to rename the place Boys Town.

Eventually covering some 1300 acres of farmland, dormitories, workshops, classrooms & playing fields, Boys Town incorporated itself as a sovereign township in 1936. Largely governed by the young men themselves, the institution is open to boys of all religions, colors & creeds and strives to provide healing for all manner of emotional & physical abuses.

Girls were first brought into the program in 1979.