'Neath Brooklyn Bridge

For a film that has survived 60 years, I wonder why I haven't enjoyed the East Side Boys before. Anyway, I got a DVD with four of their adventures. In this episode, the boys are moving furniture near the tenements by Manhattan's area near the Brooklyn Bridge. They get into a bit of trouble when they spot a beautiful but distracted young woman named Sylvia. Her stepfather wants her and him to leave their tenement apartment but she won't leave her paralyzed grandfather behind. Her stepfather is in some shady dealings. The East Side Boys sure can be tempted into joining the crime scene but choose to make an honest living in tough times. The film was on the end of the Great Depression and Second World War. Despite the predictability, the cast especially Leo Gorcy do a terrific job in making it entertaining.

'NEATH BROOKLYN BRIDGE (Monogram Pictures, 1942), directed by Wallace Fox, stars The East Side Kids (Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan, Huntz Hall, "Sunshine" Sammy Morrison, Stanley Clements and Bobby Stone) in their eleventh installment to one of the studio's most popular series. Though Gabriel Dell's name is listed among the gang members, he's actually a rival character playing a different role from one movie to the next, which started with his debut segment for MR. WISE GUY (1942). A near improvement over the previous episodes mainly because it doesn't focus on the Gorcey's arrogant character through long stretches that often causes friction between him and his friends. With one of the many landmarks of New York City being the Brooklyn Bridge, aside from its opening shot and the boys sitting on the pier admiring the bridge from afar, that's where the mention of the Brooklyn Bridge begins and ends, leading to the gang in another venture of trouble, rumbling and some comedy.

The story begins with Muggs (Leo Gorcey), Danny Lyons (Bobby Jordan), Scruno ("Sunshine" Sammy Morrison), Pee-Wee (David Gorcey), Stash (Stanley Clements) and Skinny (Bobby Stone) helping Glimpy (Huntz Hall) and his mother (Patsy Moran) move to a new apartment. Muggs is approached by Skid (Gabriel Dell), a big shot working for McCaffy (Marc Lawrence), manager of the Bridge Cafe, to make some easy money by doing a job for him. With Muggs' attempt to stay honest, which makes Danny's brother, police officer Phil Lyons (Dave O'Brien) happy, situations occur to change all that. Morley (Bud Osborne) enters McCaffy's office and gun-points McCaffy to give him the money owed him for a job. Placing McCaffy, Skid and Sniffy (Jack Raymond) in the office closet, Morley takes the money from the safe and escapes through the window. He returns home ordering his stepdaughter, Sylvia (Anne Gillis), to pack up and leave with him. Sylvia refuses due to her caring for her paralyzed wheelchair-bound grandfather (J. Arthur Young). When Morley gets physically abusive with Sylvia, she runs outside the building that attracts the East Side Kids to come to her rescue. Leaving Morley unconscious in the living room, the boys locate the runaway Sylvia on the pier to find out what it's all about. Getting the full story, the kids agree to hide Sylvia in their clubhouse disguised as a boy. In the meantime, Danny returns to the apartment to get Sylvia's clothes only to be confronted by the police for the murder and arrest of Morley (whose body now rests in the kitchen), with the only witness being Sylvia's grandfather, who is unable to speak on Danny's behalf. With the police guarding the building, the gang must plot on how to get the old man out of the apartment and back into the care of the hidden Sylvia while trying to clear Danny. Co-starring Noah Beery Jr (Butch, a member of the East Side Kids on leave from the Navy); Dewey Robinson (The Police Captain); Betty Wells (Bunny) and Jack Mulhall (Sergeant Clancy).

Bobby Jordan and Dave O'Brien return playing brothers, again. Initially their roles for PRIDE OF THE BOWERY and BOYS OF THE CITY (both 1940) had them playing Danny and Knuckles Dolan. For FLYING WILD and SPOOKS RUN WILD (both 1941), Jordan resumes his Danny role while O'Brien plays different characters. For 'NEATH BROOKLY BRIDGE, they assume new surnames of Lyons rather than Dolan. Overlooking these inconsistencies, for what it's worth, 'NEATH BROOKLYN BRIDGE is quite entertaining. While Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall have minimum comedic byplay, before the 60 minutes is over, their closing scene is something not to be missed.

Available on video cassette and DVD formats, 'NEATH BROOKLYN BRIDGE has played on cable television, notably Turner Classic Movies (TCM premiere: April 26, 2004). Next installment: KID DYMANITE (1943) (**).

They help move furniture and admire the architecture of The Brooklyn Bridge. But more importantly, "The Eastside Kids" Leo Gorcey (as Muggs McGinnis), Bobby Jordan (as Danny Lyons), Huntz Hall (as Glimpy), Ernest Morrison (as Scruno), Stanley Clements (as Stash) and Bobby Stone (as Skinny) save beautifully-shaped Anne Gillis (as Sylvia) from her wicked step-father. Unfortunately, this leads to Mr. Jordan being arrested for murder… which leads to Mr. Gorcey being blackmailed into heavy-duty crime...

This average Bowery entry is made engaging by the regular, semi-regular, and guest characterizations. Former "Dead End" kid turned "cheap crook" Gabriel Dell (as Skid) works for accomplished hood Marc Lawrence (as McGuffey). Returning "charter member" of the kid gang Noah Berry Jr. (as Butch) makes his first appearance and gets to romance Ms. Gillis, who hides out with the guys disguised as a boy. Making his last appearance on the Bowery is officer Dave O'Brien, always genuine as Jordan's big brother.

***** 'Neath Brooklyn Bridge (11/20/42) Wallace Fox ~ Leo Gorcey, Bobby Jordan, Marc Lawrence, Dave O'Brien

This time Muggs, Glimpy and the gang take on a real hard case: gangster Marc Lawrence, a cold-blooded baddie who entraps sweet young thing Ann Gillis (whose most recent film credit remains 2001: A Space Odyssey) in a murder case. Lawrence elevates this Poverty Row billfiller above its station; as always, he brings absolute conviction to his role. There's also a fun subplot involving a wheelchair-bound paraplegic played by Ed Wood regular Bud Osborne. The fact that these films were all shot on a shoestring oddly benefits the East Side Kids movies: the threadbare sets, minimal costuming, and muffed lines add a patina of Bowery believability to these endearing little films.

Although in many of the Bowery Boys films the gang seemed like a bunch of hoodlums, they were never really THAT larcenous in their films. They just acted tough and the police were forever dogging them. But, as usual, they are the good guys in "'Neath Brooklyn Bridge"....and once again the police suspect one of them. This is because someone was horribly beaten to death and Danny (Bobby Jordan) was arrested because his weapons were on the murder weapon, a bat. Little does anyone know that a mute man who can only speak with his eyes was a witness. As for the gang, they spend a lot of the film taking care of a young lady who is in trouble and eventually they are instrumental in finding the real culprits. On hand as one of the supposed ex-members of the gang (he was a bit old for this...Noah Beery, Jr.).

Overall, this film is pretty typical of a Bowery Boys film--- modestly entertaining and nothing more. Worth seeing if you are a fan but not among their best.