How can a childless, middle-aged intellectual writer relate to children enough to find out why they aren’t watching the television show for which he writes? The answer is to become a scoutmaster for a rowdy Boy Scout troop! Clifton Webb faces this dilemma in “Mister Scoutmaster” from 1953. It costars Frances Dee, Edmund Glenn, and George “Foghorn” Wilson. This is a really fun family film.
Perhaps you know Clifton Webb as the acid-witted writer, Waldo Lydecker, in “Laura” from 1944, his first major film role at age 54. He also is famous as the self-proclaimed genius Mr. Belvedere in “Sitting Pretty” (1948), a hit that prompted two sequels, “Mr. Belvedere Goes to College” (1949) and “Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell” (1951). These two characters are very similar to Robert Jordan in “Mister Scoutmaster,” as are most of Mr. Webb’s characters. However, this character is softer, because he’s a married man when the story begins, while the other two characters are bachelors.
In this case, the story is about a married couple who are missing something in their lives and their relationship. By getting involved in the lives of children, they discover what they are lacking. “Mister Scoutmaster” is fun, heartwarming, and funny, with great performances from all the actors.
A Charming Story
Robert Jordan (Webb) has a very successful television show, “Spectrum,” but his sponsor, Mr. Swanson (Otis Garson), is concerned that children don’t like the show and thus aren’t buying his breakfast cereals. Jordan is disgusted by the notion he must tailor his programming to fit the taste of comic-book-reading munchkins. His wife, Helen (Dee), thinks the answer to his problem is to adopt a child, since they can’t have their own. However, he is concerned about the idea of welcoming a strange child into their family. His day goes from bad to worse when he learns Helen donated his lucky suit to the Boy Scouts’ rummage sale. And Robert doesn’t share Helen’s affection for eight-year-old Mike Marshall (Winslow), the deep-voiced Cub Scout who procured his suit and refuses to give it back to him for less than $10!Eventually, Robert agrees to go to the local Episcopalian minister, Dr. Stone (Gwenn), for advice about a shortcut to adopting a child. Although Dr. Stone has no secret for skipping the yearlong waiting period, the visit gives Robert an idea for another solution to his problem. During their meeting, they hear a rowdy Boy Scouts troop meeting in the basement, and the current troop leader soon barges in and quits. Mr. Jordan volunteers, seeing the perfect opportunity to get to know some boys.
The new scoutmaster is very eager, but he quickly finds the lads are mischievous troublemakers, who are reluctant to respect his authority. The boys are also annoyed that Mike always wants to hang around with their troop, since he is still just a Cub Scout. Mr. Jordan tolerates him, but he believes the little boy’s grand stories about his family are appalling lies. Only Helen understands Mike’s stories stem from a desire to be accepted and loved. As the older boys start to shape up, Robert feels himself unwillingly growing fond of Mike, his little shadow. Little does he know the little boy is glomming onto him because he is an orphan who lives with his irresponsible aunt. He’s looking for loving parents and especially a father figure, since he has none of his own.
An Important Task
This is a story about a man who takes an important job for the wrong reasons but ends up doing it well, changing for the better in the process. At the beginning of the film, Robert Jordan has a very settled, well-ordered life. The Jordans are successful, accomplished, respected, and financially comfortable, but they need something more. Robert doesn’t realize this because he’s consumed with writing his television show and his novel. He eagerly accepts the challenge of leading the Boy Scout troop because he thinks it will help him understand children without having one of his own. However, he realizes the task is harder than he had anticipated when the scouts start heckling his television show during the first meeting. Within minutes, all the boys are chanting that Jordan needs a blood transfusion because he said he often writes his show with his heart’s blood! The boys’ behavior seems exceptionally disrespectful for this era, but they aren’t delinquent or really bad boys. They just need a strong leader who will challenge and discipline them. Dr. Stone’s attempts to regain control are too gentle, since the boys completely ignore his remonstrances that they are being rude.Instead of yelling and showing frustration, which is what the boys want, Jordan calmly starts singing “The Star-Spangled Banner.” At first, his voice can barely be heard above the chanting. Mike is the first to join his singing. One by one, the other boys gradually give up their immature behavior, until the whole room is singing with reverent patriotism by the end of the song. By singing “The National Anthem,” Mr. Jordan reminds the boys they aren’t just disrespecting their scoutmaster by making fun of him. They are also breaking the Scouts Oath and dishonoring their flag and country. This inspiring patriotic moment is a breakthrough for Mr. Jordan, since it’s then the boys realize that he won’t let them goof off, as previous scoutmasters have. After this, it doesn’t take long for the boys to shape up into a serious troop. They don’t have time for bad behavior because Mr. Jordan gives them constructive activities, like going on an overnight camping trip.
Being a father figure to all those boys makes Robert Jordan a better man, but what really changes him is developing a relationship with Mike. Helen grows to love Mike very quickly, but Robert is initially cynical and suspicious of his persistent little friend. Although she has never had children of her own, Helen has a mother’s intuition about Mike’s emotional hunger, which she tries to feed along with giving him a nourishing meal. It takes much longer for her husband to understand Mike, but bonding with the little boy is the only thing that can really transform him. It’s one thing to lead a bunch of boys as a scoutmaster, but it’s another to learn to know and love just one child. At first, he shoos Mike away from the meetings, but he gradually realizes the younger boy needs his leadership and guidance even more than the older boys. It turns out Mike isn’t just a little pest, like the Boy Scouts say, but an asset to their troop. His skills at survival in the wilderness end up saving Mr. Jordan’s life.
Glorifying the Boy Scouts
The Boy Scouts of America was founded in 1910. For over a hundred years, it’s been a beloved extracurricular activity for boys across the nation. Its foundation is the Scout Oath: “On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.” The Scout Law represents a strong set of moral guidelines: “A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.” Per its 1916 federal charter, “The purposes of the corporation are to promote, through organization, and cooperation with other agencies, the ability of boys to do things for themselves and others, to train them in scoutcraft, and to teach them patriotism, courage, self-reliance, and kindred virtues, using the methods that were in common use by boy scouts on June 15, 1916.”Sadly, these principles no longer govern the organization as they did in 1911, 1916, or 1953. With the promotion of liberal agendas and the inclusion of girls in the Boy Scouts, American scouting is not what it used to be. This film shows the motivating spirit behind the organization: to make strong, responsible young men out of unruly, undisciplined boys. When Mr. Jordan first takes over the troop, the boys are hilariously out of control. Their playing, running around, shouting, and smart-alecky joking is strangely refreshing compared to modern youths, who would all be sitting around staring at electronic devices. These fellows are real boys, who just need a strong man to show them how to be good citizens.
This is a delightful movie the whole family will enjoy. It’s also a wonderful tribute to the Golden Era of the Boys Scouts of America. Even though the Boy Scouts are no longer what they used to be, the principles of the Scout Law and Oath are still a valuable goal to which boys should be encouraged to aspire. Movies like this may encourage them to be good scouts in their daily lives!
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