‘Four Daughters’
Classical flutist and conductor Adam Lemp (Claude Rains) has four musically gifted daughters, Thea (Lola Lane), Emma (Gale Page), Kay (Rosemary Lane), and Ann (Priscilla Lane). Thea and Emma are being respectively courted by wealthy Ben Crowley (Frank McHugh) and florist Ernest Talbot (Dick Foran).
One day, young composer Felix Dietz (Jeffrey Lynn) arrives in town planning to get a job at the local music foundation. As the son of one of Adam’s dearest friends, Felix is naturally invited to dinner. The young ladies and their aunt Etta (May Robson) are quite taken with the young man, and he is invited to board with them.
All four quickly fall for Felix, but it’s Ann whom he fancies. Everything changes when Felix hires an old acquaintance, Mickey Borden (Garfield), to orchestrate his composition. Ann is immediately moved by the young man’s bitterness and strong belief that the fates are against him, so she sets about making “a human being out of him.”
Mickey soon falls in love with Ann. When she accepts Felix’s proposal of marriage, Mickey will do anything to stop the wedding, including revealing Emma’s love for Felix.
This film was originally intended to star Erroll Flynn as Felix and Bette Davis as Ann. Flynn turned down the role, suspecting the actor playing Mickey would end up stealing the show. The film was changed to a vehicle for the Lane sisters, with the part of Felix going to lesser contract player Jeffrey Lynn.
Hollywood newcomer Garfield was cast in the supporting part of Mickey. The film was made quickly and easily, without any great aspirations for success. Nevertheless, Garfield, the cynical young man at the piano with the half-mast tie and the cigarette in the corner of his mouth, became an instant sensation.
‘Daughters Courageous’
Single mother Nan Masters (Fay Bainter) was deserted by her husband 20 years before. She works as a dress designer to support herself, her four eligible daughters, Linda (Lola Lane), Cora (Page), Tinka (Rosemary Lane), and Buff (Priscilla Lane), and their longtime housekeeper, Penny (Robson).
Nan plans to marry Sam Sloane (Donald Crisp), a dull but reliable businessman, while her daughters are courted: Linda, by George (McHugh), penny-pinching but devoted; Cora and Tinka by lifeguard Eddie Moore (Foran), who can’t choose between the two; and Buff by playwright Johnny Heming (Lynn), with whom she has a love-hate relationship.
When Buff joins her mother on a trip to the hall of justice to intercede for troublesome local boy Gabriel Lopez (Garfield), she is immediately taken with him.
That night, their happy family is interrupted by the arrival of an unexpected guest: the girls’ father, Jim Masters (Rains). Cool and charming, he imposes himself effortlessly upon the family, and Nan unwillingly offers him the couch for a few nights.
The girls make a pact to ostracize him, but as each shares a special moment alone with her father, they begin to soften toward him. Meanwhile, a romance blossoms between Buff and a much-reformed Gabriel, despite the misgivings of her mother, who sees him as Jim reincarnate. When Jim asks Nan to let him back into the family and Gabriel proposes marriage, both mother and daughter must decide between their hearts or their heads.
While financially successful, this film was not well-received critically, largely due to its exaggerated similarity to “Four Daughters.” It was not quite a sequel and not quite a remake, yet, aside from Bainter and Crisp, it had the same main cast.
Too Many Daughters
None of John Garfield’s movies are widely remembered by any besides the most devoted cinephiles. Many might be more familiar with the 1954 remake of “Four Daughters,” “Young at Heart,” which stars Doris Day and Frank Sinatra, but the original is in a class of its own. With the signature charm of 1930s films and the distinct bond of the real-life Lane sisters, “Four Daughters” truly gives the feeling of a small-town family’s experiences with the joys and trials of life.
Interestingly, there was a fourth Lane sister, Leota, who was tested for the film, but she was found inadequate by the studio, so Gale Page was cast in her place. While there is a certain family resemblance which Page noticeably lacks, she fits into the spirit of the family beautifully and was known as the “fourth Lane sister” for the rest of her career.
“Daughters Courageous” is something of a conundrum. Viewers are immediately won over by the authentic characters, unique storyline, and particularly the unlikely romance between Buff and Gabriel. Rains’s performance, in contrast to the lovable, blustering father figure he plays as Adam Lemp, is more his usual sinisterly charming self.
The story is begging to be completed by a fairytale Hollywood ending. Moviegoers look for the reformed Jim and Gabriel to be welcomed into the family, and the audience feels sure they will stay put and be happy. Moviegoers want Buff and Gabriel to get their happily-ever-after.
If you’re an admirer of great 1930s cinema, a fan of any of these excellent actors, or just someone looking for a stirring film experience, you’re sure to have a great time with all of these daughters.
