The Jones Family

film series A film series or movie series (also referred to as a film franchise or movie franchise) is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series. This article explains what film series are ...

is seventeen

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

second feature A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double featur ...

family comedies produced between 1936 and 1940. Somewhat similar to the mildly comic tone of

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

's '' Andy Hardy'' and

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

'' Blondie'' films, the Joneses started as the Evanses, before the focus shifted and the formula was set.

Jed Prouty Jed Prouty (born Clarence Gordon Prouty; April 6, 1879 – May 10, 1956) was an American film actor. Biography Born as Clarence Gordon Prouty in Boston, Massachusetts, Prouty was a vaudeville performer before becoming a film actor. Mostly app ...

played Mr. Jones,

Spring Byington Spring Dell Byington (October 17, 1886 – September 7, 1971) was an American actress. Her career included a seven-year run on radio and television as the star of '' December Bride''. She was a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player who appeared in ...

portrayed Mrs. Jones, veteran actress

Florence Roberts Florence Roberts (March 16, 1861/1864 – June 6, 1940(photo included) was an American actress of the stage and in motion pictures. Stock company actress Born in New York City, she began acting onstage there. Her career began at the Brooklyn ...

was Grandma, Kenneth Howell was Jack,

George Ernest George Ernest (born George Ruud Hjorth; November 20, 1921 – June 25, 2009) was an American actor and Office of Strategic Services (OSS) combat photographer/cameraman during World War II. He appeared in more than 60 films between 1930 a ...

was Roger, June Carlson was Lucy and Billy Mahan was Bobby in every film, with one exception: Prouty did not appear in the final entry. Bonnie was played by

June Lang June Lang (born Winifred June Vlasek, May 5, 1917 – May 16, 2005) was an American film actress. Early life Born Winifred June Vlasek in Minneapolis, Minnesota, she was the daughter of Edith and Clarence Vlasek, After the family moved to Los An ...

in the initial ''Every Saturday Night'', Shirley Deane in ten films and Joan Valerie in the second-to-last one. The directors were Malcolm St. Clair, Herbert I. Leeds,

James Tinling James Tinling (May 8, 1889 in Seattle – May 14, 1967 in Los Angeles) was an American film director. He worked during the silent period as a prop boy and stuntman, and directed primarily for 20th Century Fox in the 1930s and 1940s. He has bee ...

and

Frank R. Strayer Frank Raymond Strayer (September 21, 1891 – February 3, 1964) was an actor, film writer, director and producer. He was active from the mid-1920s until the early 1950s. He directed a series of 14 '' Blondie!'' (1938) movies as well. Biography ...

. Gags and the story line for ''The Jones Family in Hollywood'' and ''Quick Millions'' were written by Buster Keaton, briefly moonlighting from MGM for his friend St. Clair. Republic Pictures launched their own competing film series of mild family comedies, the

Higgins Family The Higgins Family films was Republic Pictures' response to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's popular Andy Hardy series, as well as 20th Century Fox's Jones Family series. Nine films were released between 1938 and 1941. In the first seven movies, James Gleaso ...

. It was the subject of nine movies from 1939 through 1941, most featuring actor

James Gleason James Austin Gleason (May 23, 1882 – April 12, 1959) was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter born in New York City. Gleason often portrayed "tough-talking, world-weary guys with a secret heart-of-gold." Life and career Gleason w ...

, his real-life wife Lucile Gleason and their son Russell.

Filmography

* '' Every Saturday Night'' (1936) * '' Educating Father'' (1936) * ''

Back to Nature Back to nature or return to nature is a philosophy or style of living which emphasises closeness to nature, rather than artifice and civilisation. In this, the rustic customs and pastoralism of country life are preferred to urban fashion and so ...

'' (1936) * '' Off to the Races'' (1937) * ''

Big Business Big business involves large-scale corporate-controlled financial or business activities. As a term, it describes activities that run from "huge transactions" to the more general "doing big things". In corporate jargon, the concept is commonly ...

'' (1937) * '' Hot Water'' (working title "Too Much Limelight") (1937) * ''

Borrowing Trouble ''Borrowing Trouble'' is a 1937 American comedy film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane and Spring Byington.Drew p.180 It is part of the Jones Family series of films and is also known by the alternative title o ...

'' (1937) * ''

Love on a Budget ''Love on a Budget'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Herbert I. Leeds and starring Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane and Spring Byington. It was part of Twentieth Century Fox's Jones Family series of films. The Jones' eldest daughter Bonnie ...

'' (1938) * ''

A Trip to Paris ''A Trip to Paris'' is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair (filmmaker), Malcolm St. Clair and starring Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane and Spring Byington.Drew p.180 It was part of the Jones Family series of films. In the film, the ...

'' (1938) * '' Safety in Numbers'' (1938) * '' Down on the Farm'' (1938) * ''

Everybody's Baby ''Everybody's Baby'' is a 1939 American comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and starring Jed Prouty, Shirley Deane and Spring Byington. It was part of Twentieth Century Fox's Jones Family series of films.Drew p.180 The film's art direction ...

'' (1939) * ''

The Jones Family in Hollywood ''The Jones Family in Hollywood'' is a 1939 American comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and written by Harold Tarshis. The film stars Jed Prouty, Spring Byington, Kenneth Howell, George Ernest, June Carlson and Florence Roberts. It was ...

'' (1939) * '' Quick Millions'' (1939) * ''

Too Busy to Work Too Busy to Work may refer to: * ''Too Busy to Work'' (1932 film), an American drama film * ''Too Busy to Work'' (1939 film), an American comedy film {{disambiguation ...

'' (1939) * '' Young as You Feel'' (1940) * ''

On Their Own ''On Their Own'' is a 1940 American comedy film directed by Otto Brower and written by Harold Buchman and Val Burton. This last of 17 Jones Family films stars Spring Byington, Kenneth Howell, George Ernest, June Carlson, Florence Roberts, and ...

'' (1940)

References

American film series Comedy film characters {{comedy-film-stub