When a Feller Needs a Friend

Pouting blond Jackie Cooper (as Edward "Eddie" Randall) longs to play ball with other boys, but is slowed down by a leg brace and some overprotective parents. Called "Limpy" (also the title of the original William Johnston book), young Cooper is looking forward to a visit by boy cousin Andy Shuford (as Frederick). Unfortunately, cousin Shuford, called "Froggie" due to his uncanny frog imitation, turns out to be a bully. But, Cooper finds a companion in elderly uncle Charles "Chic" Sale (as Jonas Tucker), who also has a "hitch in his git-along." Mr. Sale refuses to pamper Cooper, encouraging him to go fishing, and fight with bullies.

Parents Ralph Graves and Dorothy Peterson (as Tom and Margaret Randall) are hopeful a German surgeon will cure crippled Cooper's limp. The good doctor's prognosis actually lifts the film a notch, giving viewers an alternative to what must have been the most desired and expected conclusion. You can detect both intended and unintended World War II symbolism in Cooper's condition and the doctor's nationality. Of course, this may be reading too much into "When a Fellow Needs a Friend" (by half). While entertaining, the comically fun story and cast are doused by obnoxious, heavy-handed direction, especially of Cooper.

***** When a Fellow Needs a Friend (4/30/32) Harry Pollard ~ Jackie Cooper, Charles 'Chic' Sale, Ralph Graves, Andy Shuford

Gee whiz, who doesn't like Jackie Cooper? A lot of people, to judge by his reviews. Personally, I always liked him, admired him even, especially when I was a kid in the '50s, and the airwaves were saturated with Shirley Temple. Jackie was the only boy actor with anywhere near Shirley's charisma, and he was still on TV as an adult in such classic shows as "The People's Choice" and, later, "Hennessy." To my mind, he was almost always effectively cast. Take "When a Fellow Needs a Friend," for instance. Jackie, or Limpy, as he's called here (he wears a brace on one leg, and, no, the point of the movie is not to effect a miracle cure), is no saint. He allows himself to be bullied by his cousin, Froggie, and he betrays his uncle Jonas, played by the inimitable Chic Sales. But he learns a valuable lesson about love and friendship, and, at film's end, he's reunited with his uncle and he's even friends with Froggie. It's a small film, with a homely moral, and just the sort of story Depression era audiences reveled in. He may not have been the most polished actor, but he was always a natural. Let's face it, he was swell.

While young Jackie Cooper received top billing and was a huge star at the time this film was made, the real star was 'Chic' Sale--an actor who was far younger than he appeared in films. Sale made a mark for himself playing lovable but very cantankerous old men--though he was only 47 when this film debuted (and he looked at least 70).

The film begins with Cooper wistfully watching the other kids in the neighborhood playing baseball. He wears a leg brace and is often left out--plus his mother is incredibly over-protective of him and won't let him do much. Her husband, Cooper's step-dad, isn't any better and both treat the boy like he's an invalid. In sharp contrast is Uncle Jonas--who insists that the boy needs to be treated like any other kid--and he should play, get dirty and take his knocks like any one his age. It's obvious that the old man is right but it's made more difficult by Cooper being a total wimp (and a bit of a coward) and his family's insistence he can't do anything. More difficulty arrives in the form of Cooper's new step-brother, Froggy (no relation to the one from the Little Rascals), as Froggy is a bully and a sneak--sort of like Eddie Haskell from "Leave it to Beaver". How all this plays out is something you'll need to see for yourself--I don't want to spoil the film.

Overall, the film is quite enjoyable but I could see someone not liking it because the characters are a bit broad and the story a bit old fashioned. It's the sort of old schmaltzy film that old film buffs will enjoy but those who don't particularly care about older films will quickly dismiss.

I thought I would enjoy this film more having been involved with a crippled child in my family, but there were too many negative aspects in this film. Jackie Cooper was simply cloying as he alternated between his two basic moods: deliriously happy and miserably unhappy and sobbing. I found it difficult to understand how his father, Ralph Graves, could take his newly adopted son fishing while leaving a pleading Cooper at home. Coddling should have its limits even in the movies. Uncle Charles 'Chic' Sale had the right idea about building up the boy's self-image, but I disliked the way he did it, by insisting on fisticuffs to defend himself from his bully of a brother. Still, Sale was the only one in the film I liked.

The New York Times review mentioned that when the film opened at the Capitol Theater in New York, the stage show included Edmond Lowe, Victor McLaglen, George Burns, Gracie Allen and Cab Calloway and his Cotton Club Orchestra. Now that would have been something to see!

Eddie Randall (Jackie Cooper) wears a leg brace and can't play with the other boys. His overprotective parents hope to send him to a German doctor. His cousin Froggy comes to live with them. Froggy is mean to him, but his parents don't believe him. The elderly Uncle Jonas Tucker is his best friend.

This has child star Jackie Cooper and forty-something vaudevillian actor Charles 'Chic' Sale who was famous in the 30's for a character who build outhouses. In this movie, he's doing another one of his specialty which is to play someone much older. As for the story, I can buy the parents not believing Eddie, but I can't see them ignoring Uncle Jonas. They're rather frustrating. I do like Sale although Jackie Cooper's child star acting can be way too much. The ending turns into something very wild. I don't know how it was taken back in the day. I certainly know what a modern audience would think about it.