Dorothy is a Teacher

 

Primary schoolteacher Jane Richards (Dorothy Dandridge) starts her first job at a rural school and becomes interested in C.T. Young (Philip Hepburn), a youngster with a history of underachievement in the school - now in 4th grade, C.T. has been left back in every grade. Determined to find something that will interest this child, Jane begins to find ways to draw him out. Our film this week is Bright Road (1953).

A gentle story that tells the story of the growing relationship between a young boy and his teacher, this is an effective film that features many outstanding performances.  First and foremost is Dorothy Dandridge in her first major role as the schoolteacher who won't give up on this neglected child. So many films about teachers and students portray adversarial relationship. This one does not. Ms. Dandridge plays a teacher who wants to understand her students' needs, not just teach at them. Ms. Dandridge had worked for years with her sister, Vivian as part of The Dandridge Sisters, a singing trio (the other member was Etta Jones). She worked again with Vivian here - Vivian worked as a hairdresser for the cast, then filled in as Miss Nelson, one of the other teachers (AFI catalog).

 

Also remarkable is Philip Hepburn as the youngster who seems unable to learn. C.T. is never rude, but he does feel that the classroom is a distraction from the world, and that adults don't really help him all that much - he is more interested in his bees (a source of income for him and his family), in caterpillars, and in his younger siblings. It's a sad commentary that none of his prior teachers realized that the child was hungry - it's clear that the teachers know that C.T.'s father is a part-time laborer, but only Miss Richards puts this together. What does make this film different from other films about educators is that C.T. comes from a loving family. They may be poor, but his parents and siblings are caring people, who all love one another.  This was Mr. Hepburn's only film - he made two more appearances on television, then left the business. 

Barbara Ann Sanders (later Barbara Randolph) also had a short film. She's lovely as Tanya Hamilton, C.T.'s best friend.  She would later go on to a successful career as a singer, working with a number of singing groups. She'd later appear in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), her final film appearance. She died in 2002 at the age of 60.

Harry Belafonte (Mr. Williams) in his first film role, has a relatively small part in the film - he's excellent in his few scenes. He brings authority to the principal, a caring man who is intrigued by the intensity of his new teacher.  Mr. Belafonte even gets to sing a bit in the film. Later in his career, he would become a film producer - his HarBel Productions did Odds Against Tomorrow (1959), in which he also starred.

Other performances worth mentioning are Maidie Norman as Tanya's mother. She has only one scene (with Ms. Dandridge); it's a touching and sad moment that is beautifully done by Ms. Norman.  Robert Horton (Dr. Mitchell) plays a dedicated doctor who is called to aid a sick child.  He's very good in the part. It's also interesting that he is the only white actor in the film, nor is it called out that his practice is dedicated to a Black community.

The director of the film, Gerald Mayer, was the nephew of Louis B. Mayer, and spent most of his career in B films. He would eventually work successfully in television (TCM article).

The New York Times review by Bosley Crowther was lukewarm - he enjoyed the story, such as it was, but had expected more social commentary. We found this a warm and enjoyable film, that tells the story of a struggling community well.  We'll leave you with a trailer:

Little Girl Lost

Five-year old Carolyn Crawford (Gwendolyn Laster) loves flowers. On her way to school one morning, she wanders into a field in search of some blossoms, and plunges into The Well (1951). Her mother, Martha (Maidie Norman) becomes concerned when Carolyn does not return home from school; she calls the local sheriff Ben Kellog (Richard Rober), who begins searching for the child. Some local people saw little Carolyn talking to a stranger, Claude Packard (Harry Morgan), and are convinced the man kidnapped her. Adding to the problem - Carolyn is African-American, Claude is white.

This film was part of the Noir City DC at AFI Silver. Our presentation featured an introduction by film historian Foster Hirsch.

Dr. Hirsch acknowledged that The Well is not really a film noir, though it has noir moments (A recent Facebook video by Eddie Muller also discusses the film's noir potential). Rather, The Well is two films in a brief 86 minutes. The first section focuses on how gossip and here-say in the small town results in an upsurge in racism and race riot, as the  citizens of the town - white and black - become incensed at what they see as injustices surrounding  little Carolyn's disappearance. The fury is so intense that Sam Packard (Barry Kelly), one of the chief instigators of the riot (it's his nephew who has been arrested) forgets why all the trouble started in the first place!  The second section of the film shows us the the town reuniting as they race the clock to rescue Carolyn before her fall is fatal.

This is clearly a B film, using actors most of us only see in supporting roles.  Maidie Norman, who spent her career playing maids, finally gets a role she can sink her teeth into as the distraught mother who only wants to find her little girl. Ms. Norman was born in Georgia but raised in Ohio (Profiles of Ohio Women, 1803-2003 by Jacqueline Jones Royster). She received a Master's Degree in drama from Columbia University in 1937; that same year, she married her first husband (they were together until his death). In 1946, she started performing on radio; the following year, she made her first film The Peanut Man (a film about George Washington Carver). It was difficult to find roles that truly used her talents - more often than not, she played domestics. However, she refused to speak in what she called "old-slavery time talk" (Jet Magazine obituary).  She went to television to find more challenging roles; she also became an instructor in drama at UCLA, where she introduced a course on Black Theatre history.  She died in 1998, at the age of 85, of lung cancer.

Harry Morgan, is - as always, excellent as the suspected kidnapper.  Claude is in town for a few hours, and attempts to visit his uncle. He's a kind man; he sees the child staring at some violets in a flower shop window, and buys them for her. That simple act of kindness opens up a maelstrom of trouble for him. Mr. Morgan began his career on Broadway (using his birth name, Harry Bratsburg); between 1937 and 1941, he appeared in 8 plays. In 1933, he appeared in a small role in The Kennel Murder Case; his screen career really started in 1942 in To the Shores of Tripoli (using the name Henry Morgan; he'd later be listed as Henry "Harry" Morgan. Around 1962, he was billed as Harry). Always a supporting player, he played a variety of "types" - good guy and villain alike. Radio and television, however, moved him into more prominent roles, such as Bill Gannon in Dragnet. But, the best was yet to come - after playing a psychotic general in M*A*S*H, he was offered the role of Colonel Sherman T. Potter, the new commander of the 4077th. He eventually was awarded an Emmy for the part. He married twice (the second marriage was after the death of his wife Ellen - they were together for 45 years). He died in 2011 at the age of 96.

The story was loosely based on the story of Kathy Ficus, a three-year old who fell into a pipe in an abandoned oil field (AFI catalog).The film received two Oscar nominations,  for screenplay and editing. This is not a great film, by any means, but (as Foster Hirsch said in his introduction), it's an important film.  If you can find a copy, we heartily recommend a viewing.  We'll leave you with a trailer: