''The Borrowers'' is a ''

Hallmark Hall of Fame ''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City-based greeting card company. The longest-running prime-time series in t ...

'' TV special first broadcast in 1973 on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

. The movie script was adapted from the 1952 Carnegie Medal-winning first novel of author Mary Norton's ''Borrowers'' series: ''

The Borrowers ''The Borrowers'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author Mary Norton, published by Dent in 1952. It features a family of tiny people who live secretly in the walls and floors of an English house and "borrow" from the big people in ...

''. The film stars

Eddie Albert Edward Albert Heimberger (April 22, 1906 – May 26, 2005) was an American actor and activist. He was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor; the first nomination came in 1954 for his performance in ''Roman Holiday'', ...

Tammy Grimes Tammy Lee Grimes (January 30, 1934 – October 30, 2016) was an American film and stage actress. Grimes won two Tony Awards in her career, the first for originating the role of Molly Tobin in the musical '' The Unsinkable Molly Brown'' and the ...

and

Judith Anderson Dame Frances Margaret Anderson, (10 February 18973 January 1992), known professionally as Judith Anderson, was an Australian actress who had a successful career in stage, film and television. A pre-eminent stage actress in her era, she won two ...

. It was directed by Walter C. Miller. In 1974, the special was awarded an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming and was nominated for Outstanding Children's Special (producers Duane Bogie, Walt deFaria and Warren Lockhart), Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (performer Judith Anderson), Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (performer Juul Haalmeyer) and Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (director Walter C. Miller). The special tells the story of the Clock Family, tiny people who live under the floorboards in a Victorian-era English house. This movie is presently in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...

Plot

The Clock Family are "borrowers," tiny people who live in the houses of regular sized "human beans" (a borrower mispronunciation of "human beings"). They survive by borrowing all they need from big people and try to keep their existence secret. The main characters are a teenage borrower girl named Arriety Clock and her parents, Pod and Homily. During a borrowing expedition with her father and contrary to borrower nature, Arriety befriends the eight-year-old son of the house's human family; she slowly develops a friendship with him. In a 19th-century English manor, the bedridden matriarch spends her time continually fortified with wine. She is attended by a strict housekeeper and an ancient groundskeeper. They are unaware of a few-centimeters-tall family of "borrowers" who have set up residence under the mansion's floorboards. The miniature family survive on various items which the father manages to lift during unseen expeditions aboveboard. The matriarch, Sophy, is actually aware of Pod, but, aware of her alcoholism, decides he is a delusion. All seems well until Sophy is required to temporarily house an eight-year-old boy in her mansion. The boy happens to spot Mr Clock during a raid on a dollhouse, and he begins a series of events (including releasing a

ferret The ferret (''Mustela furo'') is a small, Domestication, domesticated species belonging to the family Mustelidae. The ferret is most likely a domesticated form of the wild European polecat (''Mustela putorius''), evidenced by their Hybrid (biol ...

under the floor to catch the tiny inhabitants) which cause the borrowers to flee into the countryside. However, they are eventually saved by a friendship which develops between the borrowers' daughter, Arrietty, and the boy, who becomes the family's champion.

Cast

as Pod Clock *

as Homily Clock *

Dame Judith Anderson Dame Frances Margaret Anderson, (10 February 18973 January 1992), known professionally as Judith Anderson, was an Australian actress who had a successful career in stage, film and television. A pre-eminent stage actress in her era, she won two ...

as Great Aunt Sophy * Karen Pearson as Arriety Clock * Dennis Larson as The Boy *

Beatrice Straight Beatrice Whitney Straight (August 2, 1914 – April 7, 2001) was an American theatre, film and television actress and a member of the prominent Whitney family. She was an Academy Award and Tony Award winner as well as an Emmy Award nominee. ...

as Mrs. Crampfurl *

Barnard Hughes Bernard Aloysius Kiernan Hughes (July 16, 1915 – July 11, 2006), known professionally as Barnard Hughes, was an American actor of television, theater and film. Hughes became famous for a variety of roles; his most notable roles came after mid ...

as Mr. Crampfurl

Awards and reception

Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

* 1974 Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (Won) * 1974 Outstanding Children's Special (producers Duane Bogie, Walt deFaria and Warren Lockhart) (Nominated) * 1974 Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (performer Judith Anderson) (Nominated) * 1974 Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (costume designer Juul Haalmeyer) (Nominated) * 1974 Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children's Programming (director Walter C. Miller) (Nominated) Reviewers generally found the movie a good message for its intended audience of young viewers, but a mediocre watch for adult tastes. One wrote: "(The) teleplay follows a delightful path as the Clock family wriggles free of trouble, and the values that Pod he Clock family patriarchrepresents — as compared to the fearfulness and small-mindedness of the story’s normal-sized grown-ups — comprise a lovely message for young viewers." Another wrote: "Eddie Albert plays his father character a little too broadly for my tastes. Overall, I wasn’t too impressed with either the script or the acting. It’s watchable, but could have been a lot better."

Filming locations

* Toad Hall,

Whitby, Ontario Whitby is a town in Durham Region. Whitby is located in Southern Ontario east of Ajax and west of Oshawa, on the north shore of Lake Ontario and is home to the headquarters of Durham Region. It had a population of 138,501 at the 2021 census. It ...

References

External links