''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' is a 1938 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

produced by David O. Selznick and directed by

Norman Taurog Norman Rae Taurog (February 23, 1899 – April 7, 1981) was an American film director and screenwriter. From 1920 to 1968, Taurog directed 180 films. At the age of 32, he received the Academy Award for Best Director for '' Skippy'' (1931). He i ...

who had previously directed ''Huckleberry Finn'' (1931) with Jackie Coogan and

Junior Durkin Trent "Junior" Durkin (July 2, 1915 – May 4, 1935) was an American stage and film actor. Career Trent Bernard Durkin was born in New York City in 1915. He began his acting career in theater as a child. Durkin first appeared in films in 1930, p ...

. The film starred

Tommy Kelly Tommy Terrell Kelly (born December 27, 1980) is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Mississippi State and was signed by the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agen ...

in the title role, with

Jackie Moran Jackie Moran (January 26, 1923 – September 20, 1990) was an American movie actor who, between 1936 and 1946, appeared in over thirty films, primarily in teenage roles. Early life and Hollywood career A native of Mattoon, Illinois, Jo ...

and

Ann Gillis Alma Mabel Conner (February 12, 1927 – January 31, 2018), known professionally as Ann Gillis, was an American actress, best known for her film roles as a child actress. She performed the voice of Faline in the 1942 Disney animated film ' ...

. The screenplay by John V. A. Weaver was based on the classic 1876 novel of the same name by

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

. The movie was the first film version of the novel to be made in color.

Plot

The

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studi ...

release includes most of the sequences familiar to readers of the book, including the fence-whitewashing episode; a wild

raft A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is usually of basic design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Rafts are usually kept afloat by using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels ...

ride down the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

; Tom and

Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...

's attendance at their own

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

, after the boys, who were enjoying an adventure on a remote island, are presumed dead; the murder trial of local drunkard Muff Potter; and Tom and Becky Thatcher's flight through a cave as they try to escape

Injun Joe Mark Twain's series of books featuring the fictional characters Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn include: #''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) #''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884) #''Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894) #'' Tom Sawyer, Detective'' ...

, who is revealed to be the real killer.

Cast

Tom Sawyer Thomas Sawyer () is the titular character of the Mark Twain novel ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876). He appears in three other novels by Twain: ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884), ''Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894), and ''Tom Sawyer, Dete ...

Becky Thatcher Mark Twain's series of books featuring the fictional characters Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn include: #'' The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) #''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884) #''Tom Sawyer Abroad'' (1894) #'' Tom Sawyer, Detective ...

May Robson Mary Jeanette Robison (19 April 1858 – 20 October 1942), known professionally as May Robson, was an Australian-born American-based actress whose career spanned 58 years, starting in 1883 when she was 25. A major stage actress of the late 19t ...

as Aunt Polly *

Walter Brennan Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances in '' Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky'' (1938), and '' The Westerner ...

as Muff Potter *

Victor Jory Victor Jory (November 23, 1902 – February 12, 1982) was a Canadian-American actor of stage, film, and television. He initially played romantic leads, but later was mostly cast in villainous or sinister roles, such as Oberon in ''A Midsummer N ...

as Injun Joe * David Holt as Sid Sawyer *

Victor Kilian Victor Arthur Kilian (March 6, 1891 – March 11, 1979) was an American actor who was blacklisted by the Hollywood movie studio bosses in the 1950s. Early life, career, and homicide Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, Victor Kilian began his ca ...

as Sheriff * Nana Bryant as Mrs. Thatcher *

Olin Howland Olin Ross Howland (February 10, 1886 – September 20, 1959) was an American film and theatre actor. Life and career Howland was born in Denver, Colorado, to Joby A. Howland, one of the youngest enlisted participants in the Civil War, an ...

as Mr. Dobbins, school teacher *

Donald Meek Thomas Donald Meek (14 July 1878 – 18 November 1946) was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903. Meek is perhaps best known for his roles in the films '' You Can't T ...

as Sunday School Superintendent * Charles Richman as Judge Thatcher * Margaret Hamilton as Mrs. Harper *

Marcia Mae Jones Marcia Mae Jones (August 1, 1924 – September 2, 2007) was an American film and television actress whose prolific career spanned 57 years. Early years Jones was the youngest of four children born to actress Freda Jones. All three of her ...

as Mary Sawyer * Mickey Rentschler as Joe Harper *

Cora Sue Collins Cora Susan Collins (born April 19, 1927) is an American former child actress who appeared in numerous films during the Golden Years of Hollywood. Early life and career Cora Susan Collins was born on April 19, 1927, in Beckley, West Virginia. ...

as Amy Lawrence *

Philip Hurlic Philip Raymond Hurlic (December 20, 1927 – July 7, 2014) was an American child actor. Biography Hurlic appeared in a number of films in the 1930s and early 1940s. Hurlic's income from his film work was used to support his East Los Angeles famil ...

as Little Jim * Frank McGlynn Sr. as Minister (uncredited) *

Roland Drew Roland Drew (born Walter Goss; August 4, 1900 – March 17, 1988) was an American actor. Biography Born in 1900 in New York City, Drew made his first film in 1926 and continued to work until the 1940s. Noted primarily as Dolores del Río' ...

as Dr. Robinson (uncredited) *

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 ...

as Widow Douglas (uncredited)

Production notes

''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' was the fourth film adaptation of the Twain novel, following versions released in 1907, 1917, and 1930, and this is the first filmed in

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

H. C. Potter Henry Codman Potter (sometimes II or Jr.; November 13, 1904 – August 31, 1977) was an American theatrical producer and director as well as movie director. Biography H.C. Potter was born in New York City, the grandson of the Right Rev. Henry C ...

originally was signed to direct but was fired and replaced by Taurog after

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of ...

declined the assignment. Cukor directed some scenes, but received no on-screen credit for his contributions. Tommy Kelly, a

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

fireman A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions also ...

's son, was selected for the title role through a national campaign waged by producer David O. Selznick, who later would conduct a similar search for an actress to portray

Scarlett O'Hara Katie Scarlett O'Hara Hamilton Kennedy Butler is a fictional character and the protagonist in Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind'' and in the 1939 film of the same name, where she is portrayed by Vivien Leigh. She also is the m ...

in ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind may also refer to: Music * ''Gone with the Wind'' ...

''. According to a 1937 memo he sent to story editor Katharine Brown, he originally hoped to cast an orphan as Tom, feeling such a stunt would receive "tremendous attention and arouse such a warm public feeling that it would add enormously to the gross of the picture." Kelly failed to achieve the star status of fellow child actor

Freddie Bartholomew Frederick Cecil Bartholomew (March 28, 1924 – January 23, 1992), known for his acting work as Freddie Bartholomew, was an English-American child actor. One of the most famous child actors of all time, he became very popular in 1930s Hollywoo ...

, and after an inconsequential career he retired and later became a school teacher. After reading the comment cards completed by an audience at a

sneak preview A film screening is the displaying of a motion picture or film, generally referring to a special showing as part of a film's production and release cycle. To show the film to best advantage, special screenings may take place in plush, low seat-cou ...

of the film, Selznick sent director Taurog a memo expressing concern about the climactic scene in the cave, which many viewers had described as "too horrible for children." He advised Taurog "this worried me, because we certainly want the picture to be for a family audience," and as a result he was cutting a close-up of Becky, in which her hysteria was "perhaps a shade too much that of a very ill woman, rather than that of a little girl," "with regrets." On the strength of the designs for the cave sequence executed by

William Cameron Menzies William Cameron Menzies (July 29, 1896 – March 5, 1957) was an American film production designer (a job title he invented) and art director as well as a film director and producer during a career spanning five decades. He began his career ...

, Selznick hired him for ''Gone with the Wind''. Some exterior scenes were filmed at

Big Bear Lake Big Bear Lake is a reservoir in the San Bernardino Mountains, in San Bernardino County, California, United States. It is a snow and rain fed lake, having no other means of tributaries or mechanical replenishment. At a surface elevation of , it ...

, Lake Malibu,

Paramount Ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. The fir ...

Agoura, California Agoura () is an unincorporated community of Los Angeles County, which is located southeast of the city of Agoura Hills, California, adjacent to the city of Calabasas in Los Angeles County. Agoura was the historical name of the area, before much ...

, and

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...

's Encino

movie ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. The fir ...

. Other scenes were filmed on recycled sets left over from '' A Star is Born'' (1937), such as the Blodgett family home interior (kitchen, living room, & bedroom), and a silhouette of a wolf howling at the moon. Mississippi River long shots from ''Tom Sawyer'' would later be reused in MGM's 1951 musical ''

Show Boat ''Show Boat'' is a musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the performers, stagehands and dock worke ...

''.

Reception

B. R. Crisler of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote that Tommy Kelly was "a miracle of casting" and called the film "one of the better pictures of the year" on the strength of the source material alone, but also criticized the film for including scenes of "cheap and obvious" slapstick involving such things as tomatoes and cake icing. Crisler told producer David O. Selznick to "get busy on 'Gone with the Wind', will you, before WE begin throwing tomatoes." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote that Selznick had "pulled no financial punches" in mounting the production and that while the film was generally faithful to the book, an "excellent job" had been done on the new dialogue written for the screen. '' Film Daily'' called it "a triumph for all concerned."

John Mosher John Mosher (1928–1998) was an American jazz bassist, classical bassist and composer who worked, recorded and toured with a wide range of primarily West Coast artists from the 1950s through the mid-1990s. Early years A native of Sioux City, I ...

of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' praised Kelly and Gillis as "altogether very much the Twain children" and called Weaver's screenplay "excellent". ''

Time Out London ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition becam ...

'' called the film "extraordinarily handsome to look at, with exquisite Technicolor camerawork by Wong Howe and some imaginative designs . . . thas its longueurs, but it does capture the sense of a lazy Mississippi summer and much of the spirit of the book, with Jory making a superbly villainous Injun Joe." ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' described it as "a lively production featuring a quick pace, a chilling climax, and a surprising amount of wit."''TV Guide'' review
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Award nominations

It received a nomination for an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

for Best Art Direction, and the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

Mussolini Cup for Best Film.

Financial performance

The film lost $302,000 at the box office.David Thomson, ''Showman: The Life of David O. Selznick'', Abacus, 1993 p 268

Sequel

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 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 (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

released a version of Twain's ''

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' or as it is known in more recent editions, ''The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'', is a novel by American author Mark Twain, which was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United St ...

'' with a different cast the following year, replacing Jackie Moran with

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adventures Of Tom Sawyer (1938 Film), The 1938 films 1930s color films American drama films 1938 drama films 1930s English-language films Films based on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Selznick International Pictures films United Artists films Films scored by Max Steiner Films directed by Norman Taurog Films directed by George Cukor Films directed by William A. Wellman Films about orphans Films produced by David O. Selznick Films set in the 19th century Films shot in Big Bear Lake, California Films shot in Los Angeles 1930s American films