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... who didn't even appear in it.

Sir Peter Calverton (C. Aubrey Smith) and his young grandson Roger (Ronald Sinclair) come to the United States from England with their racehorse Pooka. They seek out the best jockey around, Timmie Donovan (Mickey Rooney), who has a swelled head to match his reputation. Using some reverse psychology, the Calvertons get Timmie to agree to ride their horse in the upcoming big race, and the Calvertons really need that success because they are castle rich and bank poor.

Timmie and Roger come to be friends after a rocky start that includes both guys giving each other black eyes. But then Timmie gets word that his long-estranged father needs an expensive operation, and he's considering throwing the race to get the money he needs. Complications ensue.

This is hardly a prototype film for Mickey and Judy. In fact, Judy Garland and her fabulous voice take a backseat to the relationship between Mickey and Ronald Sinclair. There is some romance inserted, but it's an insinuation of an adolescent crush between Judy and Ronald versus Judy and Mickey.

Ronald Sinclair was a more than adequate placeholder for Freddie Bartholomew, who was supposed to have the part of young Roger Calverton. But he was in a contract dispute with MGM and on top of that , his voice started to change and crack just as filming began. Bartholomew missed a vital year of film work and would never really recapture the star power he had before 1937. As for Mickey and Judy, this film was like what "Manhattan Melodrama" was for Powell and Loy - maybe not great shakes in and of itself, but it did show the studio how much chemistry they had together.

Look out for Blossom Rock (Mama in the Addams Family) as a hospital switchboard operator. She played the same role in the Dr. Kildare/Dr. Gillespie movies. Also look fast for Elisha Cook Jr. Of the noirs in a bit part as a jockey.

When Mickey Rooney died last month, I got a jones to watch some of his movies so when I went to the library, and this was among the films there, I had to get it especially since I knew this was the first one he made with Judy Garland. He plays a jockey and Ms. Garland plays the niece of the owner of the boardinghouse for jockeys. But the main character is played by Ronald Sinclair, another teen who's from England (actually Sinclair was from New Zealand), who has a horse he wants to enter into the America's Cup race. I'll stop there and just say it was quite fascinating watching Rooney and Garland bicker and also helping Sinclair in his troubles. Ms. Garland had one song she performed a few times in the movie. Her character dreams of stardom which, of course, is what happened to Judy in real life. Legendary singer Sophie Tucker plays her aunt but she doesn't have a number for some reason. All in all, Thoroughbreds Don't Cry was quite an entertaining programmer.

A rum affair. Always noted as Judy's first teaming with Mickey Rooney, but her love interest is Ronald Sinclair, and the plot is more interested in the boys', ahem, friendship. I am bored by constant readings of old movies as coded gay, but you can't ignore the scenes when the boy owner and his jockey move together on horseback, or a protracted episode of Timmie massaging Roger's legs and trying to keep Cricket out of the room. As a jockey Timmie specialises in 'coming from behind'.

Another mystery concerns casting. MGM's first thought was to reunite their British boy wonder, Freddie Bartholomew, with C. Aubrey Smith, reprising the grandfather-grandson relationship of 'Little Lord Fauntleroy'. Barthlomew reportedly dropped out due to a contract fight; yet he stars in the trailer introducing Sinclair, falsely, as an old pal. Judy wrote that he had been dropped when his voice broke.

Sinclair was a New Zealander and not quite as veddy veddy British as most kids from over the water in pre-war Hollywood. Though obliged to wear short pants in most scenes, he does okay in the puppy-love passages with Judy, but soon faded as an actor, transforming into the editor of Roger Corman's horror films.

Rooney, already in the Jolson class for self-confidence, breezes through the plot's twists (one of them, involving his crooked dad, is ingenious) and displays his gift for emoting without seeming soppy. The great C. Aubrey is only in the first half but scores in contriving to make Timmie hitch a ride on The Pookah. Did Cricket get her unusual monicker as a play on the ball game Smith and the English Colony brought to California?

Judy's role is undercooked: her showbiz ambitions remain unfulfilled and her main task is to feed Sophie Tucker, repeating their double act in 'Broadway Melody of 1938'. Again Tucker is cast as a den mother: she does some sleuthing but no singing. Judy's only song, delivered while barred from the massage, is 'Got a Pair of New Shoes'. This was later picked up by Eleanor Powell, star of 'BM38', for her cabaret tap dancing; also Smith and Tucker reappeared in Powell's last vehicle, 'Sensations of 1945'.

A poignant note: uncredited as one of the track stewards is Francis X. Bushman, the rival of Ramon Novarro in 'Ben Hur', MGM's biggest silent picture. From chariot race to horse race in 12 years: a long way down.

In nine subsequent movies Garland and Rooney would cement their status as America's prototypical teenagers- but not yet in this jolly little programmer.

Roger Calverton is an English boy, grandson of famous Lord Sir Peter Calverton, who has come to America eager to race his horse. He wants cocky Timmie Donovan (Mickey Rooney) to be his jockey. He befriends aspiring-actress Cricket West (Judy Garland) whose aunt Mother Ralph runs a boarding house for young jockeys.

This is a great trio of young actors playing great characters. I'm going to make an unusual comparison. They're the Star Wars original trio. Roger is the young idealist. Timmie is the cocky brigand. Cricket is the sassy princess. They have some fun scenes together. They even have a sweet puppy love triangle. It's more notable for being the first film to team up Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland. Their chemistry is undeniable. Garland's career is just ramping up as the new It girl as she films this and Everybody Sing at the same time. The story could use a little more work but it's simple and effective. I just love the three young actors starting with the fight to the slapstick massage and the diner. They're great together.

Young English boy (Ronald Sinclair) wants a jockey (Mickey Rooney) to ride his horse in an upcoming race. But the jockey's an arrogant jerk who doesn't want anything to do with the kid. Enter cutie Judy Garland, the niece of Rooney's landlady. She befriends Sinclair and gets Rooney to agree to ride his horse. Things are complicated when Mickey's crooked dad asks him to throw the race.

A rather pedestrian plot sparked some by the delightful Judy and energetic Mickey. This was the very first movie Mickey and Judy Garland did together. Nice support from C. Aubrey Smith and Sophie Tucker, who sadly does not sing. A watchable flick but nothing special.