| Reform School | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Leo C. Popkin |
| Written by | Joseph O'Donnell Hazel Barnes Jamieson |
| Screenplay by | Zella Young |
| Produced by | Harry M. Popkin |
| Starring | Louise Beavers Reginald Fenderson Monte Hawley |
| Cinematography | William Hyer |
| Edited by | Bart Rauw |
| Music by | Lou Frohman |
| Distributed by | Million Dollar Productions, Inc. |
| Release date |
|
| Running time | 82 mins |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Reform School is a 1939 Million Dollar Productions American film produced by Harry M. Popkin, directed by Leo C. Popkin, written by Joseph O'Donnell and Hazel Jamieson and starring Louise Beavers.
In 1944, the film was rereleased as Prison Bait.
Plot
Beavers plays Mother Barton, a probation officer of a large city who believes in a plan for an "honor system" at a reform school. When the previous superintendent of the school is ousted, she becomes superintendent and must address a brutal guard, the previous superintendent's henchmen and students at the school.
The film marked the debut of the Harlem Tuff Kids, a group that included Eugene Jackson, DeForrest Covan, Eddie Lynn and Bob Simmons. The group also appeared in the 1942 film Take My Life.
In 2022, a print restored by the Academy Film Archive premiered on the Turner Classic Movies television channel.
Cast
- Louise Beavers as Mother Barton
- Reginald Fenderson as Freddie Gordon
- Monte Hawley as head guard Jackson
- Maceo Sheffield as Superintendent Stone
- Robert Webb
- Paul White (actor)
- Harlem Tuff Kids
References
- ^ Dodson, Nell (6 May 1939). "Million Dollar Pictures Scores Dramatic Hit With "Reform School"". Afro-American. p. 11. ProQuest 531249052. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- Grant, Barry Keith (December 1, 2012). Film Genre Reader IV. University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292745742 – via Google Books.
- ""Reform School" Brings Out Great Beavers' Talent". Atlanta Daily World. 17 Apr 1939. p. 2. ProQuest 490588296. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
- ^ "Reform School at Apollo: Louise Beavers to Appear With Gripping "Dead End" Drama". New York Amsterdam News. 17 June 1939. p. 17. ProQuest 226146855. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
- Gates (Jr.), Henry Louis; Higginbotham, Evelyn Brooks (November 25, 2009). Harlem Renaissance Lives from the African American National Biography. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195387957 – via Google Books.
- Harry, Levette (17 Apr 1939). "Louise Beavers "Tops" In "Reform School" Feature: Interpretation Is Best In Her Career". Atlanta Daily World. p. 2. ProQuest 490590358. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
External links
- Reform School at IMDb
- Reform School at the TCM Movie Database
- Reform School at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
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