Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch

This is a poignant drama, about the Wiggs family who live in poverty and give thanks, even though they do not have a turkey for Thanksgiving. Mrs. Wiggs (Pauline Lord) has quite a few children, and the girls are all named after continents. A very young Virginia Weidler plays Europena. And while there may not be enough money to go around to raise the children decent-like, there is plenty of love to make up for it, and kindness from Mom's friend Miss Lucy who gives them a turkey. The family is equally surprised when another turkey shows up, their ne'er-do-well father played by Donald Meek. Meanwhile, W.C. Fields is a neighborhood bachelor that a love-starved neighbor lady, played by ZaSu Pitts, is trying to get her hooks into! Don't ask why, because I haven't figured out why anyone would want to marry Fields.

Years ago, a local independent television station aired this film every Thanksgiving morning because the opening set-piece of the film revolves around the impoverished Wiggs' family's hopes for, and endeavors to create, a bountiful Thanksgiving. Forty-five years later, this darling film is still our holiday tradition. Despite the melodrama and mawkishness, "Mrs. Wiggs" has much to recommend it, not the least of which being one of the only two Hollywood endeavors of the legendary stage actress, Pauline Lord; fans of W. C. Fields and ZaSu Pitts will find much to cheer as well. The recreation of late-19th century poverty has been prettied up, but one is not asked to engage in a sociological critique of conditions, but to enter into a simplicity of motivation and action that captures and compels the imagination. The only weak part of the story is the inclusion of a nod to the temperance sensibilities of the era (of the original play and the '30s) in the scene between Mr. Bob, newspaper editor, and the town drunk. Kent Taylor looks decidedly uncomfortable in the scene, but it serves to introduce the character of the doctor with ties to the private hospital where Billy Wiggs ultimately dies. It is a placid little film with a surprising amount of activity for such circumscribed lives, which is the source of its charm. As in a Jane Austen novel, the minutiae of the everyday lives of ordinary people are endlessly fascinating. I would rate this film a ten because of my great affection for it, but that might be misleading to someone approaching it for different reasons, with different expectations. It is an artifact, yes; a piece of my personal history, certainly; but I suggest watching it with both mind and heart open wide, and judge for yourself.

This movie is the reason that video players come with a fast forward button. How anyone could sit through this saccharine sap fest is beyond me.

The target audience must have been weepy old women.

The last 23 minutes with Fields and Pitts are the only reason to watch this nearly complete waste of celluloid.

Fields must have lost a bet and was thus compelled to participate in this turkey.

It is somewhat odd that in the decades of movie development from the turn of the century to the present so few stage stars were able to achieve stardom on film. Usually excuses are given about aging or the general theory that stage work was more prestigious than film work. So few great performers tried to make the change. George M. Cohan made several silent films and two sound films. Only one of the sound films, the musical THE PHANTOM PRESIDENT, is available to be seen - fortunately it shows a mature Cohan at his best. Sarah Bernhardt did do an early (1910) feature QUEEN ELIZABETH with Lou Telegrin as the Earl of Essex. It is worthwhile to watch, but she was an elderly actress at the time (perfect for that role). Unfortunately it is a silent film. Kathleen Cornell did do a Shakespearian speech in one of those all star Hollywood films of the 1940s, but nothing else. Luckier than most were Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontaine, who did REUNION IN VIENNA in 1932 (and got Oscar nominations that year), but no other films together - but did many television productions for shows like the Hallmark Hall of Fame (such as THE MAGNIFICENT YANKEE and THE GREAT SEBASTIANS) in the 1950s and 1960s.

Who was Pauline Lord? From the 1920s to the 1940s she was one of Broadway's leading ladies. Perhaps she is best remembered for appearing opposite Raymond Massey in ETHAN FROME in 1938. She made a few films, one of which is this one. She plays Mrs. Wiggs, who tries to survive with her children until her husband (Donald Meek) returns from the Klondike with a fortune in gold. The movie (based on a children's book from the 1890s)follows the lady as she struggles on. Ms Lord was actually a very subtle actress, but she had a low speaking voice

which on stage was effective but this film shows it is very tiring. Some critics have seen some of her furtive finger and hand gestures as evidence of great acting ability. Perhaps, but they are too subtle for this film viewer's taste. If the story was more interesting instead of being so simple and boring the movie might be worth watching. So it isn't.

It isn't a W.C.Fields movie either. It was obvious that the film needed some flavoring to keep it alive, so Fields got hired for one week's work as Mr. Stubbins, who is a mail order lover Zazu Pitts has been contacting. Fields tries to do what he can do with his material, but it is dull. Basically Stubbins wants a wife who can cook. Pitts can't cook. So she asks her friend Lord to cook a good meal to impress Mr. Stubbins. He is almost convinced, but he returns to have a second meal and Pitts has to cook it. And it is lousy. Disgusted with a lover who only thinks of his stomach, Pitts throws him out. Hardly the same material for the man who was Harold Bissonet in IT'S A GIFT and Egbert Souse in THE BANK DICK (or even Professor John Quayle in INTERNATIONAL HOUSE).

This was the only film with Charles Middleton as a villain (Lord's landlord) that I wished he would succeed in his villainy. Even he is spoiled in one scene near the end, where he has to be mildly reproved by the soft-spoken Ms Lord, just before Meek returns. This was a dull, boring movie.

Mrs. Wiggs Of The Cabbage Patch was based on a novel, about the exploits of a fatherless family trying to survive, at least through Thanksgiving. Starring Pauline Lord, she plods on with her little brood, looking hopefully to the future. If the story ended with this, then we wouldn't be noting it here.

Paramount had to do something to liven it up, and make it more worthy, so they added a few trump cards, notably W.C. Fields and Zasu Pitts, with a budding romance between the two to make things a bit more interesting. That worked. Pitts is now just a remembered funny name of movies, but we tend to forget that her career was long, fruitful and funny, all of the way into television. Her sense of comic timing was legendary. Bill Fields in his role is somewhat subdued, but as a supporting actor, he dresses up the production greatly. Let's not give anything away here, but this is why I have a copy! Hard to find, (on Goodtimes), and at a budget price, try to find this one.