''Room for One More'' is a 1952 American
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
comedy-drama film 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 is ...
, produced by
Henry Blanke
Henry Blanke (December 30, 1901 – May 28, 1981) was a German-born film producer who also worked as an assistant director, supervisor, writer, and production manager. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for '' The Nun’s Sto ...
, and starring
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
and
Betsy Drake. The screenplay, written by
Jack Rose and
Melville Shavelson
Melville Shavelson (April 1, 1917 – August 8, 2007) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. He was President of the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAw) from 1969 to 1971, 1979 to 1981, and 1985 to 1987.
Biog ...
, was based on the 1950 autobiography of the same name by Anna Perrott Rose.
Plot
Anna Rose visits an orphanage and decides to foster a child. Jane, a very unhappy 13-year-old, moves in with Anna, her engineer husband, George "Poppy" Rose, and their three children (Trot, Tim, and Teenie) for two weeks. Resentful at first, Jane eventually forms a bond with the Roses. When Jane's two-week visit comes to an end, it is Poppy who decides to let her stay.
Anna decides to foster another child over the summer. The child is Jimmy-John, a 12-year-old who walks with leg braces. Jimmy-John initially has trouble fitting in with the Roses. He refuses to speak, punches Trot in the face, and smashes Tim's new bicycle out of frustration for his inability to ride with the other kids. It is later discovered that Jimmy-John can barely read and must be tutored by Anna. The Roses consider taking Jimmy-John back to the orphanage due to his behavior. However, the children vote to keep him. By the end of the summer, Jane and Jimmy-John become full members of the family.
Jimmy-John becomes interested in joining the Boy Scouts after going to a meeting held by Tim’s troop. After joining Tim’s troop, Jimmy-John is eager to improve his reading skills so that he could read the scout handbook. Being a Boy Scout proves to be rewarding for Jimmy-John, as it ends up bettering his self-esteem.
On the night of a grade school New Year's Eve dance, it is discovered that the mother of Jane’s date, Ben Roberts, has forbidden him from taking her. Jane winds up going with Tim despite a four-year age gap. Poppy goes to Ben’s house and brings him to the dance with his father's blessing. However, Jane decides to dance with Poppy instead of Ben.
After a lot of hard work, Jimmy-John earns the coveted
Eagle Scout
Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...
rank at a Court of Honor. During his acceptance speech, Jimmy-John informs the scouts in the audience that he had a head start by picking his parents.
Cast
*
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one o ...
as George Rose
*
Betsy Drake as Anna Perrott Rose
*
Lurene Tuttle
Lurene Tuttle (August 29, 1907 – May 28, 1986) was an American actress and acting coach, who made the transition from vaudeville to radio, and later films and television. Her most enduring impact was as one of network radio's more versatile a ...
as Miss Kenyon
*
Randy Stuart
Randy Stuart (born Elizabeth Shaubell; October 12, 1924 – July 20, 1996), was an American actress in film and television.
Early years
Stuart's parents, John and Gladys Shaubell, were itinerant musicians in the American South and the Midd ...
as Gladys Foreman
*
John Ridgely
John Ridgely (born John Huntington Rea, September 6, 1909 – January 18, 1968) was an American film character actor with over 175 film credits.
Early years
Ridgely was born in Chicago, Illinois,Katz, Ephraim (1979). ''The Film Encyclopedia: T ...
as Harry Foreman
*
Irving Bacon
Irving Bacon (born Irving Von Peters; September 6, 1893 – February 5, 1965) was an American character actor who appeared in almost 500 films.
Early years
Bacon was the son of entertainers Millar Bacon and Myrtle Vane. He was born in St. Jo ...
as Mayor Michael J. Kane
*
Mary Treen
Mary Treen (born Mary Louise Summers, March 27, 1907 – July 20, 1989) was an American film and television actress. A minor actress for much of her career, she managed to secure a plain, unassuming niche for herself in the Hollywood of the 1 ...
as Mrs. Roberts (as Mary Lou Treen)
* Iris Mann as Jane Miller
*
George Winslow as Teenie
* Clifford Tatum Jr. as Jimmy John Wilson
* Gay Gordon as Trot
* Malcolm Cassell as Tim
* Larry Olsen as Benji Roberts
Television series
A decade later,
Andrew Duggan
Andrew Duggan (December 28, 1923 – May 15, 1988) was an American character actor. His work includes 185 screen credits between 1949 and 1987 for roles in both film and television, as well a number more on stage.
Background
Duggan was born in ...
and
Peggy McCay
Margaret Ann "Peggy" McCay (November 3, 1927 – October 7, 2018) was an American actress whose career began in 1949, and includes theatre, television, soap operas, and feature films. McCay may be best known for originating the roles of Vanessa ...
starred in a TV
sitcom
A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...
series version of the film also titled ''
Room for One More''.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Room For One More (Film)
1952 films
American black-and-white films
1952 comedy-drama films
Warner Bros. films
Films directed by Norman Taurog
Films scored by Max Steiner
American comedy-drama films
Films based on non-fiction books
Films about adoption
1950s English-language films
1950s American films
Films about the Boy Scouts of America