''A Yank at Eton'' is an American

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film directed by

Norman Taurog Norman Rae Taurog (February 23, 1899 – April 7, 1981) was an American film director and screenwriter. From 1920 to 1968, Taurog directed 180 films. At the age of 32, he received the Academy Award for Best Director for ''Skippy (film), Skippy' ...

for

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

and starring

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Ninnian Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nearly nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last survivi ...

, Ian Hunter, and

Peter Lawford Peter Sydney Ernest Lawford (né Aylen; 7 September 1923 – 24 December 1984) was an English-American actor.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', 26 December 1984. He was a member of the "Rat Pack" and the brother-in-law of US president Jo ...

. Released in 1942, it is a kind of junior thematic sequel to MGM's British-made film ''

A Yank at Oxford ''A Yank at Oxford'' is a 1938 comedy-drama film directed by Jack Conway and starring Robert Taylor, Lionel Barrymore, Maureen O'Sullivan, Vivien Leigh and Edmund Gwenn. The screenplay was written by John Monk Saunders and Leon Gordon. ...

'' (1938).

Edmund Gwenn Edmund Gwenn (born Edmund John Kellaway; 26 September 1877 – 6 September 1959) was an English actor. On film, he is best remembered for his role as Kris Kringle in the Christmas film ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947), for which he won t ...

, who played a school official in the earlier film, has a similar role in this one. ''A Yank at Eton'' was filmed entirely in the United States.

Plot summary

Timothy Dennis is a cocky American youth who has to move to Britain, where he is sent to attend the elite

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

. Ronnie Kenvil is an arrogant upperclassman who makes Timothy's life particularly difficult. Timothy suffers through the problems of the misunderstandings arising from differences between the two countries' cultures, customs and language. At first these differences cause him confusion and anger, particularly against the traditional practices of fagging and physical

hazing Hazing (American English), initiation, beasting (British English), bastardisation (Australian English), ragging (South Asian English) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in a group that humiliates, ...

inflicted at Eton on the lower boys by the uppers. He finds the Etonian manners and behavior snobbish and stuffy. Eventually young Timothy settles in, stops being rebellious, and comes to realize that, beneath the different habits and views, "Yanks" and "Limeys" have basic values in common and can get along when they have to. At one point he is unjustly accused of sneaking out of his dormitory, stealing a car, and wrecking it on his way home from a night at a tavern, but in the end he proves that Ronnie instead was the culprit.

Cast

as Timothy Dennis *

as Headmaster Justin * Ian Hunter as Roger Carlton *

Freddie Bartholomew Frederick Cecil Bartholomew (March 28, 1924 – January 23, 1992), known for his acting work as Freddie Bartholomew, was an English-American child actor who was very popular in 1930s Hollywood films. His most famous starring roles are in '' Cap ...

as Peter Carlton * Marta Linden as Winifred Dennis Carlton *

Juanita Quigley Juanita Quigley (24 June 1931 – 29 October 2017) was an American child actress in motion pictures of the 1930s and 1940s. She had a sister, Rita Quigley, who was also a child actress. Career Juanita Quigley was billed as "Baby Jane" in severa ...

as Jane "The Runt" Dennis *

Alan Mowbray Alan Mowbray MM (born Alfred Ernest Allen; 18 August 1896 – 25 March 1969) was an English stage and film actor who found success in Hollywood. Early life Mowbray was born in London, England. He served with distinction in the British Army ...

as Mr. Duncan *

as Ronnie Kenvil *

Raymond Severn Raymond Chesterton Shaw Severn (June 19, 1930 – November 3, 1994) was an American cricketer and child screen actor. He had seven siblings who were all child actors: Venetia Severn, Clifford Severn, Yvonne Severn, Ernest Severn, Christopher Seve ...

as Isaac "Inky" Weeld * Lyndon Brook as Student (uncredited) *

Harry Cording Hector William "Harry" Cording (26 April 1891 – 1 September 1954) was an English-American actor. He is perhaps best remembered for his roles in the films '' The Black Cat'' (1934) and ''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' (1938). Life and career ...

as Bartender (uncredited) * Terry Kilburn as Hilspeth (uncredited)

Production notes

The propaganda intent, as U.S. troops poured into the U.K. to join

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1942, was evidently to show that Americans and Britons could set aside their superficial differences and pull together in the war effort. This film contained Lawford's first significant Hollywood role. The film has the Eton boating song as its theme tune (played at a faster tempo than usual), though no boating is shown in the film.

Reception

According to MGM records, it earned $1,542,000 in the US and Canada and $1,135,000 elsewhere, giving the studio a profit of $1,101,000.."101 Pix Gross in Millions"
''Variety''. 6 January 1943. p. 58

References

External links

* * * 1942 films 1942 comedy-drama films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1940s English-language films Eton College Films directed by Norman Taurog Films scored by Bronisław Kaper British comedy-drama films British black-and-white films Films set in boarding schools 1940s British films English-language comedy-drama films {{1940s-comedy-drama-film-stub