Small Town Girl

OK, last Robert Taylor movie this week...I promise.

TCM recently showed 1936's Small Town Girl, based on the book of the same name by Ben Ames Williams. Since it showed up in my TiVo list, I thought I'd give it a try.


It's the day of the Yale vs. Harvard football game. Kay Brannan (Janet Gaynor) is trodding away at her job at the small town grocery, when mobs of hyped up college students whiz by in fur coats, banners, and donkeys. She's missing out the fun of the game and, in modern terms, is bummed out.After the game, and a tantrum over the repetative pattern of dinner time at her parents' house, she storms out for an evening walk. Along drives RT (Dr. Bob Dakin) in a slick white convertible roadster, looking for directions to Tait's Tavern. You know where this is going. Kay semi-reluctantly gets into the car to lead the way.

I'll tell you, I've never seen so much drunk driving in a movie. Not that I want to lecture folks here, but boy, times have changed.

After a night of multiple bottles of champagne, Kay & Dr. Bob get married. Kay knows what's up, but Dr. Bob is drunker than a skunk. He has been taken advantage of, so to speak. Heh, here's the kicker - Dr. Bob has a fiancee.

By no means is this movie the next Citizen Kane, just another fun-to-watch romantic comedy from the 1930s. So hide your car keys, sit back, grab a Cosmo, and watch up.

Oh, and guess who else is in the movie - Jimmy Stewart, with eighth billing as Elmer.