Miss Polly
Miss Polly is a 1941 American comedy film directed by Fred Guiol and written by Eugene Conrad and Edward E. Seabrook. The film stars ZaSu Pitts, Slim Summerville, Kathleen Howard, Brenda Forbes, Elyse Knox, and Richard Clayton. The film was released on November 14, 1941, by United Artists.[1][2]
| Miss Polly | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Fred Guiol John E. Burch (assistant) |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Screenplay by | Eugene Conrad Edward E. Seabrook |
| Starring | ZaSu Pitts Slim Summerville Kathleen Howard Brenda Forbes Elyse Knox Richard Clayton |
| Music by | Edward Ward |
| Cinematography | Robert Pittack |
| Edited by | Richard C. Currier |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date |
|
Running time | 45 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
In the very old-fashioned small town of Midfield, there hasn't been a marriage in the town in over two years and the young people are slowly leaving the town. The main reason for this is Mrs. Minerva Snodgrass, the strict and assertive leader of the town's Purity League, who created numerous restrictions in the town in order to keep the girls and boys apart. Mrs. Snodgrass' next-door neighbor is Miss Panadora Polly, a friendly and tolerant old maid, who lives together with her handyman (and catastrophic hobby inventor) Slim Wilkins and her housekeeper and companion Patsy.
Miss Polly tries to shelter the young romance between Minerva's daughter Barbara and her boyfriend, Eddie. However, Eddie is frustrated that Barbara is still under the influence of her mother and doesn't want to leave her, so Eddie wants to leave the town on his own. In order to make Barbara more courageous in her love to Eddie, Miss Polly looks for a mysterious liquor in her cellar that once made her shy sister marry a man. Miss Polly tries the drink and it indeed works, she starts to flirt with the young grocery boy Elmer and buys the sexiest and most expensive dress in town.
In her new dress, Miss Polly visits the town meeting held by the Mayor and Mrs. Snodgrass, who wants to establish new rules and has most of the townfolk under her control. But Miss Polly, courageous under the influence of the romance liquor, starts to disagree and wants to give more freedom to the young people in town. Polly remembers the elderly and middle-aged meeting members of the "sins" they did during their youth and slowly brings them on her side. Minerva Snodgrass states that she was always morally right during her life in town, but Miss Polly remembers that Minerva had an affair with a marine during a vacation in 1911. Mrs. Snodgrass collapses and since there is no water around, Slim and Patsy give her the romantic liquor to drink to come to herself. Not only does Mrs. Snodgrass now agree to the marriage between Barbara and Eddie, she also gets a crush on Slim and chases after him.
Cast
- ZaSu Pitts as Miss Pandora Polly
- Slim Summerville as Slim Wilkins
- Kathleen Howard as Mrs. Minerva Snodgrass
- Brenda Forbes as Patsy
- Elyse Knox as Barbara Snodgrass
- Richard Clayton as Eddie
- Dink Trout as Old Postman Wilbur Boggs
- William Newell as New Postman Hubert
- Ferris Taylor as Mayor Walsh
- Mickey Daniels as Elmer, the Grocery Boy
- Fern Emmett as Mrs. Frisbee
- Sarah Edwards as Angie Turner
- Virginia Sale as Orsina Wiggins
- Walter Baldwin as Lem Wiggins
- Vera Lewis as Elvira Pennywinkle
- Jim Farley as Jim Pennywinkle (uncredited)
- George Pembroke as Town Constable
- Syd Saylor as Drug Store Owner
References
- "Miss Polly (1941) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
- "Miss Polly (1941)". The New York Times.
External links
- Miss Polly at IMDb