Life Begins in College
| Life Begins in College | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | William A. Seiter |
| Produced by | Harry Wilson |
| Written by | Don Ettlinger Karl Tunberg |
| Starring |
The Ritz Brothers Joan Davis Tony Martin Gloria Stuart |
| Music by |
Lew Pollack Sidney D. Mitchell Louis Silvers |
| Cinematography | Robert H. Planck |
| Edited by | Louis R. Loeffler |
| Distributed by | Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation |
|
Release date
|
October 1, 1937 |
|
Running time
|
94 min |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.5 million |
Life Begins in College is a 1937 American comedy film. It marked the Ritz Brothers' first starring role in a feature film.
The action takes place at Lombardy College, founded "to give the Indian nations of North America access to higher education". Little Black Cloud (Nat Pendleton) enrolls as "George Black". After being the subject of a hazing prank by football star Bob Hayner (Dick Baldwin), George decides he is too humiliated to stay at school. He first stops to get his ripped pants repaired and meets the Ritz Brothers who convince him to stay.
Tim O'Hara (Fred Stone), the football coach, is being pressured to resign because of his age. Janet (Gloria Stuart), the coach's daughter, is Bob's love interest. Bob is on the committee trying to force out Coach O'Hara, but he likes the coach's daughter Janet. He tries to gain Janet's approval by helping her father, but fails at both. Janet, meanwhile, helps George escape from Inez (Joan Davis, a love-struck student. Then George wishes to return the favor by helping the coach. George is actually rich, but does not want anyone to know in case they only like him for his money. The Ritz Brothers offer to pretend it is their money. After spending a good deal on themselves, the brothers donate $50,000 to the college with two conditions: O'Hara must remain as coach, and they must be allowed to play for the football team.
After a scuffle between them on the practice field, Bob is replaced by George as quarterback. A winning streak for Lombardy ensues, no thanks to the Ritz Brothers, who score for the other side whenever they play. Inez continues to pursue George, and Janet's feelings towards Bob soften. Bob, however, is being pursued by his former girlfriend, Cuddles (Joan Marsh).
It turns out that George's participation on a company football team makes him a professional and therefore ineligible for the college team. This information is used by Cuddles to blackmail Bob into dating her. When she sees Bob with Janet, she makes good on her threat of exposing George right before the "big game". Since George cannot play, Bob must take over as quarterback. Bob scores a touchdown but breaks his collarbone while the other team is still ahead. The Ritz Brothers sneak onto the field and nearly destroy Lombardy's chances with their antics. At the last second Harry Ritz scores an unlikely touchdown to win the game.
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