''The Rose Bowl Story'' is a 1952 American
romance film
Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their journey ...
directed by
William Beaudine
William Washington Beaudine (January 15, 1892 – March 18, 1970) was an American film actor and director. He was one of Hollywood's most prolific directors, turning out films in remarkable numbers and in a wide variety of genres.
Life and car ...
and starring
Marshall Thompson
James Marshall Thompson (November 27, 1925 – May 18, 1992) was an American film and television actor.
Early years
Thompson was born in Peoria, Illinois. He and his parents, Dr. and Mrs. Laurence B. Thompson, moved to California when he was a ...
,
Vera Miles
Vera June Miles ( née Ralston, born August 23, 1929) is an American retired actress who worked closely with Alfred Hitchcock, most notably as Lila Crane in the classic 1960 film '' Psycho'', reprising the role in the 1983 sequel '' Psycho II ...
and
Richard Rober
Richard Rober (born Richard Steven Rauber; May 14, 1906 – May 26, 1952) was an American stage and film actor. From the mid-1930s to the mid-1940s he featured in numerous theatre productions, including being part of the original cast of ''Born ...
, featuring a young
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood ( Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress who began her career in film as a child and successfully transitioned to young adult roles.
Wood started acting at age four and was given a co-starring r ...
. The film was made in
Cinecolor
Cinecolor was an early subtractive color-model two-color motion picture process that was based upon the Prizma system of the 1910s and 1920s and the Multicolor system of the late 1920s and the 1930s. It was developed by William T. Crispinel and ...
. It follows the relationship between a
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
player and his girlfriend.
Plot
Qualifying to play in the illustrious
Rose Bowl football game on
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Wh ...
, a Midwestern college's quarterback, Steve Davis, is not as happy as he should be because playing football does not excite him, but his teammate Bronc Buttram is thrilled. Their coach, Jim Hadley, is equally pleased because his ill wife has gone to warmer
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...
for her health, so he will now be able to spend more time with her.
Steve perks up in
Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district.
Its ...
while meeting the Rose Bowl's committee and particularly the tournament's queen, Denny Burke, a beauty in a fur coat. Steve believes she is wealthy as well as beautiful and manages to get her telephone number. He cannot get through, however, because Denny's younger sister Sally is always tying up the phone.
Finding her house, Steve learns she is a middle-class girl whose dad, "Iron Mike" Burke, once played in a Rose Bowl game himself. Denny takes exception to Steve's disappointment that she is not rich and to his blasé attitude toward the Rose Bowl, a tradition her family loves. The self-involved Steve develops a guilty conscience.
Agreeing to spend
New Year's Eve
In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve, also known as Old Year's Day or Saint Sylvester's Day in many countries, is the evening or the entire day of the last day of the year, on 31 December. The last day of the year is commonly referred to ...
with her family, Steve stands up Denny because he is at the hospital, where Coach Hadley's wife has taken a turn for the worse. He gets busy signals phoning because Sally's hogging it again. Next morning, Bronc explains to Denny and she is relieved. At the game, the coach announces his wife's going to be all right. Steve leads the team to victory, unselfishly letting Bronc score the winning touchdown. He and Denny are in love and plan to marry.
Cast
*
Marshall Thompson
James Marshall Thompson (November 27, 1925 – May 18, 1992) was an American film and television actor.
Early years
Thompson was born in Peoria, Illinois. He and his parents, Dr. and Mrs. Laurence B. Thompson, moved to California when he was a ...
as Steve Davis
*
Vera Miles
Vera June Miles ( née Ralston, born August 23, 1929) is an American retired actress who worked closely with Alfred Hitchcock, most notably as Lila Crane in the classic 1960 film '' Psycho'', reprising the role in the 1983 sequel '' Psycho II ...
as Denny Burke
*
Richard Rober
Richard Rober (born Richard Steven Rauber; May 14, 1906 – May 26, 1952) was an American stage and film actor. From the mid-1930s to the mid-1940s he featured in numerous theatre productions, including being part of the original cast of ''Born ...
as Coach James Hadley
*
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood ( Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress who began her career in film as a child and successfully transitioned to young adult roles.
Wood started acting at age four and was given a co-starring r ...
as Sally Burke
*
Keith Larsen
Keith Larsen (born Keith Larsen Burt, June 17, 1924 – December 13, 2006) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer who starred in three short-lived television series between 1955 and 1961.
Background
Larsen was born in Salt ...
as Bronc Buttram
*
Tom Harmon
Thomas Dudley Harmon (September 28, 1919 – March 15, 1990), known as Tom Harmon, as well as by the nickname "Old 98", was an American football player, military pilot, actor, and sports broadcaster.
Harmon grew up in Gary, Indiana, and playe ...
as Himself
*
Ann Doran
Ann Lee Doran (July 28, 1911 – September 19, 2000) was an American character actress, possibly best known as the mother of Jim Stark ( James Dean) in ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955). She was an early member of the Screen Actors Guild and ser ...
as Mrs. Addie Burke
* James Dobson as Allie Bassler
*
Jim Backus
James Gilmore Backus (February 25, 1913 – July 3, 1989) was an American actor. Among his most famous roles were Thurston Howell III on the 1960s sitcom '' Gilligan's Island,'' the father of James Dean's character in ''Rebel Without a Cause ...
as Michael 'Iron Mike' Burke
*
Clarence Kolb
Clarence William Kolb (July 31, 1874 – November 25, 1964) was an American vaudeville performer and actor known for his comedy routines that featured a Dutch dialect.
Biography
Kolb started out as one half of a vaudeville comedy team, Kol ...
as 'Gramps' Burke
*
Barbara Woodell
Barbara Woodell (May 25, 1910 – January 16, 1997) was an American film and television actress, born in Lewistown, Illinois.
Selected filmography
* '' Lady, Let's Dance'' (1944)
* ''The Mysterious Mr. Valentine'' (1946)
* ''Carnegie Hall'' (1 ...
as Mrs. Mary Hadley
*
Bill Welsh
Bill Welsh (April 25, 1911 – February 27, 2000) was a radio and television announcer.
Early years
Welsh born in Greeley, Colorado, the son of Mr. and Mrs. W.H. Welsh. He attended the Colorado State College of Education.
Career
Welsh's car ...
as Himself
References
Bibliography
* Marshall, Wendy L. ''William Beaudine: From Silents to Television''. Scarecrow Press, 2005.
* Umphlett, Wiley Lee. ''The Movies Go to College: Hollywood and the World of the College-life Film''. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1984.
External links
*
1952 films
1952 romantic comedy films
American football films
American romantic comedy films
Cinecolor films
1950s English-language films
Films directed by William Beaudine
Films produced by Walter Mirisch
Films set in universities and colleges
Monogram Pictures films
Films set around New Year
1950s American films
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