''That Brennan Girl'', also known as ''Tough Girl'', is a 1946

melodrama film A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

produced and directed by

Alfred Santell Alfred Allen Santell (1895–1981), was an American film director and film producer. Santell directed over 60 films, beginning in 1917, most of which were two-reel comedy short subjects for Hal Roach and other productions companies. Taking up f ...

and starring James Dunn,

Mona Freeman Monica Elizabeth "Mona" Freeman (June 9, 1926 – May 23, 2014) was an American actress and painter. Early years Freeman was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and grew up in Pelham, New York. A lumberman's daughter, she was a model while in hig ...

, William Marshall, and

June Duprez June Ada Rose Duprez (14 May 1918 – 30 October 1984) was an English film actress. Early life The daughter of American comedian Fred Duprez and Australian Florence Isabelle Matthews, she was born in Teddington, Middlesex, England, during ...

. The story concerns a young woman raised in an unwholesome environment who joins a confidence racket run by one of her mother's friends. She agrees to marry the victim of one of her scams, becomes a war widow, and is left to raise a baby, but abandons it each evening to go out dancing. After the child suffers an accident in her absence, she is charged with child neglect and loses custody. She mends her ways by devotedly caring for an abandoned infant and meets up again with the con man, who has also reformed after a prison stint, and together they build a new life. The film was the last work of director Santell and the last leading role for actor Dunn. In 2018 a re-mastered and restored print by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

The Film Foundation The Film Foundation is a US-based non-profit organization dedicated to film preservation and the exhibition of restored and classic cinema. It was founded by director Martin Scorsese and several other leading filmmakers in 1990. The foundation ra ...

, and

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

was screened at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

as part of the museum's program of showcasing 30 restored films from the library of

Republic Pictures Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City an ...

, curated by Scorsese.

Plot

Mother's Day Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in the ...

1946, a woman known as Ziggy Brennan looks back on her life. Eight years earlier, her vain and corrupt mother Natalie asks Ziggy to pretend they are sisters. Together they trick men out of money. Ziggy takes a liking to a con artist, Denny Reagan, and steals a sailor's watch that Denny admires. The watch's inscription, showing it is a gift from the boy's mother, gives Denny a guilty conscience, so Ziggy returns it to Mart Neilson, the sailor. He asks her on a date, which leads to marriage. Two days later Neilson is shipped off to war. He is killed in action while Ziggy is pregnant with their child. Ziggy is warned by Natalie after the birth of baby Martha that she is not fit for motherhood. Denny is now doing time in a penitentiary, so he is no help either. Ziggy likes to go out dancing every night, leaving Martha with an irresponsible young babysitter. While the babysitter sneaks out to be with her boyfriend, Martha tumbles out of her crib and is nearly strangled by the bedsheets. A landlady's testimony results in the baby being sent to a juvenile ward. Ziggy is given a suspended sentence for child neglect, but is forbidden from having contact with her child. Denny's mother tracks down Ziggy and encourages her to pray for salvation. By the time Denny leaves prison, he is a reformed man. He tracks down Ziggy and finds that she has taken in an abandoned infant found in a local church and is caring for it, having named him Denny. Together they appeal to the court for a second chance, then leave together with both children, united as a family.

Cast

* James Dunn as Denny Reagan *

as Ziggy Brennan * William Marshall as CPO Martin J. 'Mart' Neilson *

as Natalie Brennan *

Frank Jenks Frank Jenks (November 4, 1902 – May 13, 1962) was an acid-voiced American supporting actor of stage and films. Biography Early years Jenks was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and his mother gave him a trombone when he was 9 years old. By his ...

as Joe the cabbie *

Dorothy Vaughan Dorothy Jean Johnson Vaughan (September 20, 1910 – November 10, 2008) was an American mathematician and human computer who worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), and NASA, at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Vir ...

as Mrs. Reagan, Denny's mother *

Charles Arnt Charles E. Arnt (August 20, 1906 – August 6, 1990) was an American film actor from 1933 to 1962. Arnt appeared as a character actor in more than 200 films. Arnt was born in Michigan City, Indiana, the son of a banker. He graduated fr ...

as Fred, Natalie's second husband *

Rosalind Ivan Rosalind Ivan (27 November 1880 – 6 April 1959) was an English stage and film character actress. Ivan appeared in fourteen American films from 1944 to 1954. Rosalind Muriel Pringle was the daughter of Stamford and Annie Pringle, who marrie ...

as Mrs. Merryman, the landlady *

Fay Helm Fay Helm (April 9, 1909 – September 27, 2003) was an American film actress. Born in Bakersfield, California, she appeared in about 65 films between 1936 and 1946. She is perhaps better known for films like A Child is Born (1939), Phantom La ...

as Helen, Ziggy's neighbor * Bill Kennedy as Arthur, Helen's husband *

Connie Leon Connie Leon (1881 in Cheshire, England – 10 May 1955 in Los Angeles, California) was an English singer, dancer and film actress. Career Between 1896 and 1909, Connie Leon was popular in provincial theatre as a singer, dancer and comedian, includi ...

as Miss Jane *

Edythe Elliott Edythe Elliott (born Edythe Fletcher; July 14, 1886 – April 9, 1978) was an American character actress active primarily during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Biography Edythe Elliott was born in San Francisco, California where her parents were ...

as Miss Unity *

Sarah Padden Sarah Ann Padden (16 October 1881 – 4 December 1967) was an English-born American theatre and film character actress. She performed on stage in the early 20th century. Her best-known single-act performance was in ''The Clod'', a stage pro ...

as Mrs. Graves, the nice landlady * Jean Stevens as Dottie, Natalie's friend *

Lucien Littlefield Lucien Littlefield (August 16, 1895 – June 4, 1960) was an American actor who achieved a long career from silent films to the television era. He was noted for his versatility, playing a wide range of roles and already portraying old men befor ...

as the florist *

Marion Martin Marion Suplee (born June 7, 1909 – August 13, 1985) known professionally as Marion Martin was an American film and stage actress. Biography Martin was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of a Bethlehem Steel executive. She became ...

as Marion, Natalie's girlfriend

Production

Development

The screenplay by

Doris Anderson Doris Hilda Anderson, (November 10, 1921 – March 2, 2007) was a Canadian author, journalist and women's rights activist. She is best known as the editor of the women's magazine ''Chatelaine'', mixing traditional content (recipes, décor) w ...

was based on a story by

Adela Rogers St. Johns Adela Nora Rogers St. Johns (May 20, 1894 – August 10, 1988) was an American journalist, novelist, and screenwriter. She wrote a number of screenplays for silent movies but is best remembered for her groundbreaking exploits as "The World's Grea ...

. The script underwent several rewrites on the orders of Joseph I. Breen, director of the

Production Code Administration The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the Major film studios#Present, five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Pic ...

Casting

The ''

Times Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily Co ...

'' noted that James Dunn and June Duprez were both cast against type. Dunn, who had won an

Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given in honor of an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a supporting role while worki ...

for his performance as an alcoholic father in '' A Tree Grows in Brooklyn'' (1945), here played "a daring, but sentimental young gangster". Duprez, typically viewed by film producers as "an Oriental princess type", was cast as "a hardboiled and rowdy mother". Mona Freeman was cast in the lead role of Ziggy after an extensive talent search. In December 1945, director Alfred Santell returned from a New York trip during which he tested dozens of actresses; he was said to be looking for "some girl who looked like

Lana Turner Lana Turner ( ; born Julia Jean Turner; February 8, 1921June 29, 1995) was an American actress. Over the course of her nearly 50-year career, she achieved fame as both a pin-up model and a film actress, as well as for her highly publicized per ...

Gene Tierney Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920 – November 6, 1991) was an American film and stage actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, she became established as a leading lady. Tierney was best known for her portrayal of the title character in the ...

and could act like

Sylvia Sidney Sylvia Sidney (born Sophia Kosow; August 8, 1910 – July 1, 1999) was an American stage, screen and film actress whose career spanned over 70 years. She rose to prominence in dozens of leading roles in the 1930s. She was nominated for the Aca ...

". Freeman, aged 21, was ultimately signed, having played mostly juvenile parts in her short film career. Martha as a 3-year-old was played by Colette Granlund from

Mendocino County Mendocino County (; ''Mendocino'', Spanish language, Spanish for "of Antonio de Mendoza, Mendoza) is a County (United States), county located on the North Coast (California), North Coast of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United Sta ...

. She was spotted by a talent scout while visiting San Francisco's

Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park, located in San Francisco, California, United States, is a large urban park consisting of of public grounds. It is administered by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department, which began in 1871 to oversee the development ...

with her parents.

Filming

Production took place between late April and early June 1946. Much of the shooting took place on location in the streets and harbor of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. The actors blended in with passersby and were filmed in street scenes by a

hidden camera A hidden camera or spy camera is a camera used to photograph or record subjects, often people, without their knowledge. The camera may be considered "hidden" because it is not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another obje ...

enclosed in a truck trailing slowly behind them, and in sidewalk close-ups by a camera hidden in a baby carriage. Unable to find a suitable house in San Francisco, the film crew used a stately Old California home 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 ...

for the scene in which the racketeers carry out an expensive sofa into their truck. Dunn's mother died in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

during the filming, with Dunn at her side.

Release

The film was released on December 23, 1946. In 1951, the film was re-edited and re-released under the title ''Tough Girl''.

Critical reception

Critics generally praised the acting and direction but decried the plot and script, characterizing it as a "seamy-side melodrama" and "a run-of-the-mill problem melodrama". The ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' wrote: "Jimmy Dunn does as well as anyone could, considering the plot and the script, and Mona Freeman is appealing, but the whole business is leaden and definitely second class fare". The ''

St. Louis Globe Democrat The ''St. Louis Globe-Democrat'' was originally a daily print newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1852 until 1986. When the trademark registration on the name expired, it was then used as an unrelated free historically themed paper. Orig ...

'' found it difficult to make sense of the story and its message. Ziggy starts out earning audience sympathy for her difficult upbringing, but loses it by accepting her mother's advice that "the path of easy virtue is the easy way". Denny is at the same time a

racketeer Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercive, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. Originally and ...

and "a likeable Irishman who is ever so good to his mother". After Ziggy suffers for her hedonistic lifestyle and Denny serves time in prison, their reunion seems to convey that "their romance should be both logical and appealing". The ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the All ...

'' called Dunn's performance "restrained and believable … t this role doesn't give him a chance to show the stuff he did in ''A Tree Grows in Brooklyn''". Similarly, ''

The San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst, and flagship of the Hearst Corporat ...

'' commended Dunn for being "more than adequate in an inadequate role". Freeman's performance received harsher scrutiny in light of the extremes of personality she was required to play. ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'' wrote:

Miss Freeman looks lovely, innocent, and very young, at all times. This is remarkable when you consider that she has to impersonate a thief, a devoted young mother, a brazen mantrap, an industrious housewife, a shoplifter, a war widow, a bar butterfly, a confidence woman and a specimen of fine womanhood, and all within 95 minutes. The only way Republic could get this role played right would be to have
Katharine Cornell Katharine Cornell (February 16, 1893June 9, 1974) was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born in Berlin to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York. Dubbed "The First Lady of the Theatre" by critic A ...
,
Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...
,
June Havoc June Havoc (born Ellen Evangeline Hovick; November 8, 1912 – March 28, 2010) was a Canadian American actress, dancer, stage director and memoirist. Havoc was a child vaudeville performer under the tutelage of her mother Rose Thompson Hovick, ...
and
Ina Claire Ina Claire (born Ina Fagan; October 15, 1893February 21, 1985) was an American stage and film actress. Early years Ina Fagan was born October 15, 1893 in Washington, D.C. After the death of her father, Claire began doing imitations of fellow bo ...
do it in relays. Even then we wouldn't like it.

The ''

Fort Worth Star-Telegram The ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'' is an American daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and Tarrant County, the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. It is owned by The McClatchy Company. History In May 1905, Amon G. Carter acc ...

'' wrote: "Miss Freeman should get A-plus for her sincere attempt to play a bad girl. Fine features, a sensitive face and a touch of gentleness about her makes it doubtful casting. A tougher brat would have filled the role better". The ''

'' panned Freeman's acting as "immature". At the same time, it gave kudos to the performances of actresses

, Dorothy Vaughn, and

, calling the latter's portrayal of the landlady "excellent". The ''

Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph The ''Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph'' was an evening daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1927 to 1960. Part of the Hearst newspaper chain, it competed with ''The Pittsburgh Press'' and the ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'' until bein ...

'' also singled out actresses who played minor characters – including the babysitter (

Shirley Mills Shirley Olivia Mills (April 8, 1926 – March 31, 2010) was an American actress. She played the roles of the youngest daughter in ''The Grapes of Wrath'' and the title character in '' Child Bride''. In the latter, she is shown nude in a nude sw ...

in an uncredited role), two lonely women, and an assortment of neighbors – for praise. Santell's direction received positive mention in several reviews. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' called the film "reminiscent of the late '20s in direction (by Old-Timer Alfred Santell) and 'feel'". The ''

'' complimented Santell's "minor directorial flourishes", adding, "As a matter of fact, his contribution alone puts the picture into the general category of worth seeing". ''

The Minneapolis Star The ''Star Tribune'' is the largest newspaper in Minnesota. It originated as the ''Minneapolis Tribune'' in 1867 and the competing ''Minneapolis Daily Star'' in 1920. During the 1930s and 1940s, Minneapolis's competing newspapers were consolida ...

'' called

George Antheil George Johann Carl Antheil (; July 8, 1900 – February 12, 1959) was an American avant-garde composer, pianist, author, and inventor whose modernist musical compositions explored the modern sounds – musical, industrial, and mechanical – of t ...

's score "outstanding".

Restoration

A re-mastered, restored print of ''That Brennan Girl'' by

, and

was screened at the

(MoMA) in February 2018. The screening was the first in a two-part series titled ''Martin Scorsese Presents Republic Rediscovered: New Restorations from Paramount Pictures'', which showcased 30 restored films from the library of

. The restoration was released on the

Apple TV app The Apple TV app (also known as Apple TV, TV, and the TV app) is a line of media player software programs developed by Apple Inc. for viewing television shows and films delivered by Apple to consumer electronic devices. It can stream content fr ...

the following year. The MoMA website calls the film " accountably overlooked" and a "resonant, formally inventive film". According to ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'', the work displays a host of Santell's creative directorial touches, such as "scenes played in silhouette, in pantomime as the camera watches through a window, on two or three levels of a staircase in a couple of scenes reminiscent of ''

The Magnificent Ambersons ''The Magnificent Ambersons'' is a 1918 novel by Booth Tarkington, the second in his ''Growth'' trilogy after ''The Turmoil'' (1915) and before ''The Midlander'' (1923, retitled ''National Avenue'' in 1927). It won the Pulitzer Prize for fict ...

''". This report concluded that the film demonstrated "the kind of creativity that once flourished at Republic".

References

External links

* * * * {{Alfred Santell 1946 films Melodrama films American black-and-white films American drama films 1940s English-language films Films directed by Alfred Santell Films scored by George Antheil Republic Pictures films 1946 drama films 1940s American films