Tom Sawyer (1930 film)

Last updated

Tom Sawyer
TomSawyer1930.jpg
Original poster
Directed by John Cromwell
Written by Grover Jones
William Slavens McNutt
Sam Mintz
Based on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
1876 novel
by Mark Twain
Produced by Louis D. Lighton
Starring Jackie Coogan
Junior Durkin
Mitzi Green
Cinematography Charles Lang
Edited by Alyson Shaffer
Music by Ralph Rainger
Production
company
Paramount Pictures
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release date
  • January 18, 1930 (1930-01-18)
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Tom Sawyer is a 1930 American pre-Code comedy-drama film directed by John Cromwell and starring Jackie Coogan. The screenplay by Grover Jones, William Slavens McNutt, and Sam Mintz is based on the 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.

Contents

The film was the third screen adaptation of the Twain novel, following silent versions released in 1907 and 1917. [1] The picture was made on location at the Paramount Ranch in Agoura, California.

A sequel, Huckleberry Finn , directed by Norman Taurog and featuring most of the Tom Sawyer cast, was released the following year. [1]

Plot

After arguing with his sweetheart, Becky Thatcher, Tom Sawyer seeks solace from his friend Huck Finn, who tells him about a mysterious cure for warts that requires them to visit the local cemetery at midnight. While there they witness a murder committed by Injun Joe, who convinces Muff Potter, who also was there but in an inebriated state, that he is guilty of the crime. Tom and Huck promise each other they will not divulge what they have seen.

When Tom is caught lying about stealing his half-brother Sid's crabapples, his Aunt Polly punishes him by making him whitewash the fence on a Saturday morning. The boy leads his friends to believe he is enjoying the task, and before long they are giving him their treasures in exchange for the privilege of joining in the fun.

Together with Huck and Joe Harper, Tom runs away from home to become a pirate. The three set off on a raft to Jacksons Island in the Mississippi River, where they remain for three days. Upon returning home, Tom discovers it was thought the three had drowned, and the boys attend their own funeral service at the church.

At Muff Potter's trial, Tom admits the truth about the murder, but Injun Joe manages to escape. While attending the school picnic near a cavern, Tom and Becky decide to explore it and get lost. As they try to find their way out, they stumble upon Injun Joe and a chest of gold. While angrily pursuing the two children, he falls into a crevasse and is killed. Huck finds Tom and Becky and leads them to safety, together with the treasure.

Cast

Critical reception

Mordaunt Hall of The New York Times said of the film, "It is an extraordinarily faithful conception of the book, and while there are of necessity certain omissions and other parts that receive but scant attention, the main incidents are included in a detailed fashion. It is wonderfully interesting to see Mark Twain's characters come to the talking screen, for if there are minor discrepancies, they are unimportant . . . Jackie Coogan's Tom Sawyer is excellent . . . In fact, the whole cast is unusually competent. Mr. Cromwell's direction is imaginative and restrained. The result is that this picture is one of the few that can be seen with appreciation and enjoyment, even immediately after reading the book over again." [2]

However, this version was eventually superseded only eight years later by David O. Selznick's 1938 Technicolor remake of the novel, which, true to Selznick's legendary fastidiousness, boasted not only better performances but a far more cinematic style than the fixed-camera early talkie look of the original. The cave sequence in the 1938 version is noted for being one of the most terrifying sequences in a family motion picture, with Becky Thatcher (Ann Gillis) toppling over into hysteria after the death of Injun Joe (Victor Jory). [3]

Sequels

Coogan and Durkin reprised their roles as Tom and Huck in Huckleberry Finn and the box office success of the two pictures led Paramount Pictures to announce Tom Sawyer, Detective and Tom Sawyer Abroad would be the next films in the series. But in April 1931, Variety reported both projects were being postponed for a year because the studio was concerned about having too many children's films in the marketplace. Tom Sawyer Abroad was never produced, but Paramount did film Tom Sawyer, Detective in 1938 with Billy Cook as Tom and Donald O'Connor as Huck.

Related Research Articles

<i>Tom and Huck</i> 1995 American film

Tom and Huck is a 1995 American adventure comedy-drama film based on Mark Twain's 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and starring Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Brad Renfro, Mike McShane, Eric Schweig, and Amy Wright. The film was directed by Peter Hewitt and produced/co-written by Stephen Sommers. The movie was released in North America on December 22, 1995.

<i>Tom Sawyer</i> (2000 film) 2000 American film

Tom Sawyer is a 2000 American animated musical comedy film directed by Paul Sabella and Phil Mendez. Released direct-to-video on April 4, 2000, the film was produced by MGM Animation. It is an adaptation of Mark Twain's 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, with a cast of anthropomorphic animals instead of humans. Most of the characters' voices are generally performed by country music singers.

<i>Huckleberry Finn and His Friends</i> 1979 television series

Huckleberry Finn and His Friends is a 1979 television series documenting the exploits of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer, based on the novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) by American writer Mark Twain. The series consists of 26 episodes and was a Canadian/West German international co-production.

<i>Tom Sawyer</i> (1973 film) 1973 film directed by Don Taylor

Tom Sawyer is the 1973 American musical film adaptation of the Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and was directed by Don Taylor. The film was produced by Reader's Digest in collaboration with Arthur P. Jacobs, and its screenplay and songs were written by both Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman.

<i>The Adventures of Tom Sawyer</i> (1980 TV series) 1980 Japanese anime television series

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a Japanese anime television series produced by Nippon Animation and directed by Hiroshi Saito, which premiered on January 6, 1980, and ended its run on December 28 the same year. It is based on the 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain.

<i>The Adventures of Tom Sawyer</i> (musical) Musical by Don Schlitz

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a musical comedy based on the 1876 novel by Mark Twain conceived and written by Ken Ludwig, with music and lyrics by Don Schlitz. The musical is the story of a fourteen-year-old boy growing up in the heartland of America. This Broadway musical version of Mark Twain's novel is set in 1840 in St. Petersburg, Missouri, a bustling town on the banks of the Mississippi River. In the course of the story, Tom matches wits with his stern Aunt Polly, falls in love with the beautiful, feisty Becky Thatcher, and goes on the adventure of his life with Becky and Huckleberry Finn. Along the way he meets a terrifying villain named Injun Joe, Tom's bratty half-brother Sid, and all the other boys and girls in the village.

<i>Tom Sawyer</i> (1917 film) 1917 comedy-drama film directed by William Desmond Taylor

Tom Sawyer is a 1917 American silent comedy-drama/adventure film starring Jack Pickford, Robert Gordon, and Clara Horton; it is based on Mark Twain's 1876 novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Directed by William Desmond Taylor, the film was released by Paramount Pictures.

<i>The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn</i> Television series

The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an American live-action and animated fantasy television series that originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1968, through February 23, 1969. Produced by Hanna-Barbera and based on the classic Mark Twain characters, the program starred its three live-action heroes, Huck Finn, Becky Thatcher, and Tom Sawyer, navigating weekly adventures within an animated world as they attempted to outrun a vengeful "Injun Joe". After the show's original run, the series continued to air in reruns as part of The Banana Splits and Friends Show syndication package.

<i>The Adventures of Tom Sawyer</i> (1938 film) 1938 American film directed by Norman Taurog

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is a 1938 American drama film produced by David O. Selznick and directed by Norman Taurog who had previously directed Huckleberry Finn (1931) with Jackie Coogan and Junior Durkin. The film starred Tommy Kelly in the title role, with Jackie Moran and Ann Gillis. The screenplay by John V. A. Weaver was based on the classic 1876 novel of the same name by Mark Twain. The movie was the first film version of the novel to be made in color.

<i>Huckleberry Finn</i> (1931 film) 1931 film

Huckleberry Finn is a 1931 American pre-Code adventure comedy film directed by Norman Taurog, and written by Grover Jones and William Slavens McNutt, based on Mark Twain's 1884 novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It stars Jackie Coogan as Tom Sawyer, Mitzi Green as Becky Thatcher, Junior Durkin as Huckleberry Finn, and Jackie Searl as Sid Sawyer.

<i>Huckleberry Finn</i> (1920 film) 1920 film by William Desmond Taylor

Huckleberry Finn is a surviving American silent dramatic rural film from 1920, based on Mark Twain's 1884 classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It was produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed through Paramount Pictures. William Desmond Taylor directed Huckleberry Finn, as he had the 1917 film version of Tom Sawyer, using a scenario written by Julia Crawford Ivers, who also had been the writer for Tom Sawyer.

<i>Huck and Tom</i> 1918 film by William Desmond Taylor

Huck and Tom is a surviving American comedy-drama film directed by William Desmond Taylor and released in 1918. The scenario by Julia Crawford Ivers is derived from Mark Twain's novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884). Robert Gordon and Jack Pickford reprise the title roles from the 1917 version of Tom Sawyer, a successful adaptation that was also directed by Taylor.

<i>Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn</i> 2014 American film

Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn is a 2014 American comedy-drama/adventure film directed by Jo Kastner and starring Joel Courtney as Tom Sawyer, Jake T. Austin as Huckleberry Finn, Katherine McNamara as Becky Thatcher, Noah Munck as Ben Rogers, and with Val Kilmer as Mark Twain. It is based on Mark Twain's novels The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884). The film was released by VMI Worldwide.

<i>The Adventures of Tom Sawyer</i> 1876 novel by Mark Twain

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is an 1876 novel by Mark Twain about a boy, Tom Sawyer, growing up along the Mississippi River. It is set in the 1840s in the town of St. Petersburg, which is based on Hannibal, Missouri, where Twain lived as a boy. In the novel, Sawyer has several adventures, often with his friend Huckleberry Finn. Originally a commercial failure, the book ended up being the best-selling of Twain's works during his lifetime. Though overshadowed by its 1884 sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the book is considered by many to be a masterpiece of American literature. It is alleged by Mark Twain to be one of the first novels to be written on a typewriter.

Tom Sawyer is a fictional character created by Mark Twain.

<i>Tom Sawyer</i> (album) 1976 studio album by Bing Crosby

Tom Sawyer is a 3-LP box set containing a reading by Bing Crosby of an abridged version of Mark Twain’s classic story The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. It was recorded for Argo Records (UK) on September 3 and 5, 1975 at Argo Studios, 115 Fulham Road, London.

<i>Band of Robbers</i> 2015 American film

Band of Robbers is a 2015 American crime comedy film written and directed by brothers Aaron and Adam Nee, based on Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It stars Kyle Gallner as Huck Finn and Adam Nee as Tom Sawyer. Matthew Gray Gubler, Melissa Benoist, Daniel Edward Mora, Eric Christian Olsen, Hannibal Buress, and Stephen Lang also star.

"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is a 1955 CBS TV film adaptation of Mark Twain's 1884 novel of the same name, starring Charles Taylor in the title role. It was directed by Herbert B. Swope Jr. It aired on September 1, 1955 as the Season 2 premiere of the anthology program Climax!.

<i>Tom Sawyer</i> (1956 musical) 1956 American film

Tom Sawyer was a one-hour musical by Frank Luther, originally created for the television series The U.S. Steel Hour. It was broadcast live on CBS November 21, 1956, and marked the first time the anthology series had presented a musical. Luther said the show evolved from his re-reading of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer a few years earlier: "(W)henever an incident or character gave me an idea for a song, I'd write the music and words," Luther told an interviewer in 1957. "By the time I'd reached the end of the book, I found I had written 32 songs. The cast included John Sharpe as Tom Sawyer, Jimmy Boyd as Huckleberry Finn, Bennye Gatteys as Becky Thatcher, Rose Bampton as Aunt Polly, Matt Mattox as Injun Joe and Clarence Cooper as Jim the Narrator. A cast album was released on Decca Records shortly after the broadcast, featuring several songs omitted from the original show. The show's sets and backgrounds were designed by Thomas Hart Benton. At the time of the broadcast, Sharpe was performing in the Broadway cast of The Most Happy Fella. Luther was commissioned to follow up the show with a musical adaptation of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, also starring Boyd, which was broadcast on The U.S. Steel Hour November 22, 1957. There does not appear to be any existing film or kinescope of either broadcast. There is a recording of the original broadcast audio in the New York Public Library's Toscanini Legacy Collection of Sound Recordings.

References

  1. 1 2 Tom Sawyer at etext.virginia.edu
  2. ↑ New York Times review
  3. ↑ "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938)". Tcm.com. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.