Father Was A Fullback

Director: John M. Stahl John M. Stahl

Overview

First came 20th Century-Fox's Mother Was a Freshman; then, a few months later, the same studio's Father Was a Fullback. Fred MacMurray stars as college football coach George Cooper, whose team can't win a game to save its life. George finds some comfort in the arms of his wife Elizabeth (Maureen O'Hara), but his young daughters Connie (Betty Lynn) and Ellen (Natalie Wood) are too concerned with boys to pay their dad any attention. Connie causes no end of trouble for George by printing a highly imaginative article about her various romances. On the verge of losing his job, George is saved by the arrival of football champ Joe Burch (Richard Tyler). Rudy Vallee virtually repeats his stuffy-suitor characterization from Mother is a Freshman in Father Was a Fullback.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/20/2012
UPC:	0024543852582
Original Release:	1949
Source:	ALLIED VAUGHN
Presentation:	[B&W, Full Frame]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono]
Language:	English
Time:	1:24:00
Sales rank:	32,879

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Fred MacMurray	George Cooper
Maureen O'Hara	Elizabeth Cooper
Natalie Wood	Ellen Cooper,Grandstand Coache
Betty Lynn	Connie Cooper
Rudy Vallee	Mr. Jessop
Thelma Ritter	Geraldine
Jim Backus	Prof. Sullivan
Richard Tyler	Joe Burch
Buddy Martin	Cheerleader
Mickey McCardle	Jones
John McKee	Cy,Cy
Charles Flynn	Policeman
William Self	Willie
Joe Haworth	Reporter
Gwenn Fields	Daphne
Gilbert Barnett	Stinky Parker
Tom Bernard	Delivery Boy
Mike Mahoney	Sailor
Tom Hanlon	Radio Announcer
Pat Kane	Bellhop
Forbes Murray	College President
Fred Dale	Cheerleader
Lee MacGregor	Cheerleader
Don Hicks	Bill
Rodney Bell	Grandstand Coache
Don Barclay	Grandstand Coache
Bill Radovich	Football Player
Harry Carter	Grandstand Bit
Robert Adler	Grandstand Bit
Robert Patten	Manager
Bess Flowers	Woman
Louise Lorimer	Mrs. Jones
Ruth Clifford	Neighbor
Bill Self	Willie
Cyril Mockridge	Composer

Technical Credits

Mary Loos

Richard Sale

Aleen Leslie

Casey Robinson

Fred Kohlmar	Producer
Fred Sersen	Special Effects
John M. Stahl	Director
Mary Loos	Screenwriter
Richard Sale	Screenwriter
Aleen Leslie	Screenwriter
Casey Robinson	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Father Was a Fullback's title is incorrect -- the man is a coach, actually -- but it might as easily have been called "Fred MacMurray Prepares for His Disney Days." This slight but certainly amiable little flick comes some ten years before MacMurray began headlining a number of family films for the "Mouse House," usually playing a character not too terribly different from the one in Father. It's the kind of role that doesn't strain MacMurray terribly, but he handles it quite well -- especially since he's most often called upon to play the straight man and let others get the laughs. Those laughs are very likely to be in response to something said -- or, more accurately, slung -- by the always amusing Thelma Ritter, who knows how to get three or four laughs out of a line that only deserves one and who is perfectly willing, by dint of a disbelieving glance or seen-it-all shrug, to bring forth mirth from even the weakest of jokes. When Ritter's not stealing those laughs from MacMurray, he still has to deal with Betty Lynn and Natalie Wood making off with them, which must make him very thankful for Maureen O'Hara, who is most often content to offer sterling support without worrying about whether she's getting the best of the jokes. Father is total nonsense, but the cast makes it a quite enjoyable way to pass an hour and a half or so.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler