Little Miss Marker (1934)

Sadly Over-hyped

Pretty Good

Crappy film

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Copyright 31 May 1934 by Paramount Productions, Inc. New York opening at the Paramount, 18 May 1934. Sydney opening at the Prince Edward (on a double bill with the W. C. Fields comedy The Old- Fashioned Way), 13 October 1934 (ran 3 weeks). 9 reels. 80 minutes. U.K. release title: GIRL IN PAWN.SYNOPSIS: Man leaves his daughter as a deposit with a bookmaker. NOTES: Academy Award to Shirley Temple, best juvenile performer of 1934. Re-made as Sorrowful Jones (1949): 40 Pounds of trouble (1963); and again as Little Miss Marker (1980).COMMENT: Despite the fact that the title role is enacted by the one and only Shirley Temple, "Little Miss Marker" is actually a Dorothy Dell vehicle. Shirley gets to sing only one song ("Laugh, You Son- of-a-Gun") — and that in tandem with Miss Dell who also has two solos ("Black Sheep Blues" and "Low-Down Lullaby"). The musical program is rounded out by Lynne Overman and chorus rendering "East Side, West Side, Sidewalks of New York" and "The Bowery". Miss Dell is a very able actress — and a most accomplished singer — but you are excused if you don't recognize her. She had previously starred in "Wharf Angel" and after this film made "Shoot the Works". Before the latter film was released, she was killed in a car accident.Unfortunately, despite the skill of Miss Dell and the obvious charm of Miss Temple, this first version of "Little Miss Marker" doesn't really stand up to any of its re-makes. The fault can be proportioned equally among the scriptwriters, the director, and the rest of the players. Too much dialogue, too slow a pace, too little dramatic tension (despite a few promises and hints now and then).As a result, the film lacks punch, sharpness, contrast. The characters are all too wishy-washy. We are never led to believe for one moment that Menjou is as mean as he says he is, or that Bickford (for all his customary blustering) as tough. In fact, most of the players seem miscast as Runyonesque types. Warren Hymer and John Kelly overact atrociously. However, the movie is reasonably attractive to look at, even if its lighting, costuming and staging are somewhat bland.

Shirley's dad doesn't have the money to bet on a horse race so he puts up his daughter as collateral! Furthermore, nobody finds this particularly alarming. Shirley takes being abandoned by her father and living with seedy strangers pretty casually. It's supposed to be a charming comedy based on a Damon Runyan story, but the plot is not only boring but rather disturbing, and it's hardly worth a chuckle. Fortunately for both Menjou and Bickford, they would survive this and go on to make some fine films. Sadly, Dell, who plays the love interest of both Menjou and Bickford, died in an auto accident only a week after the film was released at age 19.

Despite only two songs, it's another entertaining Shirley Temple film. The story is familiar; it's been done several other times, once under the name "Sorrowful Jones," with Bob Hope. This movie is a bit different from that one, so you could own both and have two different slants on the famous Damon Runyon story.This version has a lot more comedy from the supporting players, since Temple is cute but she' isn't going to be the main source of humor as Hope was in his films. In here, all the bookies and gangsters provide the humor. The leading male, played by Adolph Menjou, is a sourpuss but still likable. The leading adult female, Dorothy Dell, was a bit tough-looking, I thought, for this role.Temple doesn't play as sweet a role as she did in most of her films, but she still has her tender moments. Nobody can produce a sentimental scene as quickly as Shirley could. In all, a nice film and enjoyable from start to finish.Note: This was the best colorized version I have seen of Temple's films. Perhaps that was because MGM did this, not Fox, which did the others. It advertises "stereo" but I didn't hear any.

This movie is a gem. Shirley Temple dropped into a den of Damon Runyon characters played by terrific actors. Adolphe Menjue's "heart of a bookie" is melted by Shirley. Menjue made over 100 films, and this was one of his best. The rest of the cast is great. You'll enjoy seeing this movie with your mother and your grand kids.