Baby Burlesks
| Baby Burlesks | |
|---|---|
Shirley Temple in Glad Rags to Riches
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| Directed by |
Charles Lamont Ray Nazarro |
| Produced by | Jack Hays |
| Written by | Jack Hays Charles Lamont |
| Starring |
Shirley Temple Georgie Billings Danny Boone, Jr. Eugene Butler Marilyn Granas Philip Hurlic Gloria Anne Mack Arthur J. Maskery Jimmie Milliken Dorian Samson Georgie Smith |
| Music by | Alfonso Corelli |
| Cinematography | Sidney Wagner Dwight Warren |
| Edited by | William Austin Howard Dillinger Arthur Ellis |
| Distributed by |
Universal Pictures Educational Film Exchanges, Inc. Fox Film |
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Release date
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Running time
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10-11 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Baby Burlesks is the collective series title of eight thematically unrelated one-reeler films produced by Jack Hays and directed by Charles Lamont for Educational Pictures in 1932 and 1933. The eight films are satires on major motion pictures, film stars, celebrities, and current events, and sometimes contain material that may be considered racist or sexist by modern standards. Cast members are preschoolers clad in adult costumes on the top and diapers fastened with large safety pins on the bottom.
Many of the children employed in the series were recruited from Meglin's Dance School in Hollywood, and, when not rehearsing or shooting, were sent out by the studio as advertising models for a variety of products (including breakfast cereals and cigars) in order to underwrite the costs of film production.
The series is notable for featuring three-year-old Shirley Temple in her first screen appearances. In her 1988 autobiography, the actress describes the Baby Burlesks as "a cynical exploitation of our childish innocence". She also said the films were "the best things I ever did".
All eight films in the Baby Burlesks series were produced by Jack Hays and directed by Charles Lamont, except the first, Runt Page, which was directed by Ray Nazarro. Rehearsals took place over a week or two for each film, with no pay, and then were shot quickly in two days. As a star, Temple, received $10 a day. In 2009, all eight films were available on videocassette and DVD.
Works cited
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Wikipedia