Shivering Shakespeare

technical details:

Production G-29.

Dialogue sheet submitted by H. M. Walker on September 27, 1929.

Filmed September 30 to October 12, 1929. See the 'miscellaneous' section below for details.

Title sheet sheet prepared by H. M. Walker on October 30, 1929.

Copyrighted December 17, 1929, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Corporation. Registration no. LP920. Renewed December 19, 1956, with registration no. R182608. This copyright is currently due to expire at the end of 2024.

Cutting continuity submitted to MGM on December 19, 1929. This piece of information is puzzling, since the continuity would have been sent by MGM to the U. S. Copyright Office two days earlier. Perhaps the film had been reedited after previewing.

Released January 25, 1930. It was the 95th film in the series to be released.

All-talking two-reeler. (In actuality, there is a little bit of silent footage in this film.)

Opening title: "Our Gang " Comedies - Hal Roach presents His Rascals in "Shivering Shakespeare".'

King World Productions episode no. 9, available in both colorized and original black-and-white versions.

the crew:

Produced by Robert F. McGowan for Hal Roach

This is the way Maltin & Bann put it. The film credits Roach as a presenter, with a separate credit reading "A Robert McGowan Production."

Supervised by Robert F. McGowan

This credit appears in the film. Maltin & Bann don't include it in their crew listing, but Maltin did in his earlier book, The Great Movie Shorts.

Directed by Anthony Mack

This credit appears in the film. Mack was actually Robert A. (for Anthony) McGowan, the nephew of Robert F.

Photographed by Art Lloyd and Harry Gerstad

Lloyd is credited in the film. Studio documentation credits both Lloyd and Gerstad.

Film Editor: Richard Currier

This credit appears in the film.

Story Editor: H. M. Walker

This credit appears in the film. Studio documentation credits him with the dialogue.

Recording Engineer: Elmer Raguse

This credit appears in the film.

Story by Robert F. McGowan

This credit doesn't appear in the film.

Props by Bob Saunders

Revealed in the publicity photo shown in Maltin & Bann's book.

Animal Trainer: Harry Lucenay

He was Pete's owner and trainer.

Teacher: Fern Carter

Since there were additional kids in this film, the studio hired a couple of temporary teachers to handle them. Mrs. K. Morrison worked almost every day during the shooting of this film. Mrs. H. Harrison worked only on Oct. 10th, which was one of the three days when the five delinquents in the back of the theater were present.

Released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Indicated in the opening title card.

Passed by the National Board of Review

As indicated in the film.

A Victor Recording, Western Electric System

As indicated in the film.

studio personnel

general manager - Warren Doane

assistant general manager - L. A. French

secretary-treasurer - C. H. Roach

assistant secretary - Mat O'Brien

construction supervisor - C. E. Christensen

laboratory superintendent - Charles Levin

optical effects supervisor - Roy Seawright

still photographer - Clarence "Stax" Graves

transportation director - Bob Davis

possible uncredited involvement

assistant direction - Possibly Charles Oelze.

cutting - Possibly Lloyd Campbell.

writing - Robert A. McGowan, Carl Harbaugh, Jean Yarbrough, Charlie Hall and Harry Keaton may have been among the gag writers.

property department - Charles Oelze, Don Sandstrom and Thomas Benton Roberts were probably involved in this capacity.

main titles - Louis McManus began to design these around this time.

animal training - Tony Campanaro may have been among the animal trainers.

the kids:

Norman "Chubby" Chaney as "Chubby" aka "Norman"

Featured role. He plays "Nero" in the play, as well as an old man among the shepherds. He keeps lifting his robe to remember his lines.

Allen "Farina" Hoskins

Featured role. He plays "Farinacus" in the play and has quite a lot of the dialogue. He's listed in the cutting continuity as "Farina."

Mary Ann Jackson

Featured role. According to the dialogue sheet, she plays "Queen Maryannica," but the cutting continuity states that her character is "Mary Annicus." Usually, though, it lists her simply as "Mary Ann." She's given a lot of the dialogue in this film.

Bobby "Wheezer" Hutchins

Featured role. The nickname doesn't show up in this dialogue, but is indicated in the cutting continuity. He plays Mary Annicus's youthful brother, and is featured fairly strongly in the film.

Jackie Cooper

Supporting role. His big scene is as the Christian who gets arrested. Listed as 'Jack' in the dialogue sheet.

Harmon Tutt

Supporting role. He's the spy who arrests Jackie.

Helen "Jerry" McGowan

Small part. She's the dancing girl that gets the egg in her face. Oddly, her name doesn't appear in the payroll ledger, so perhaps she received her pay in cash.

Edith Fellows

Small part. She's the little girl who gets scared when Kennedy is in the elephant costume.

Gordon Thorpe

Small part. He's the kid that warns the others that they'll all grow up to be rowdies. Listed in the cutting continuity as 'Effeminate boy.'

Donald Haines

Small part. He first plays a shepherd, and then a guard, with his visor repeatedly falling over his eyes. This was his series debut. He's identified in the cutting continuity as "Donny."

Jack McHugh, Johnny Aber, Fred Rollins, Vernon Wiseman and George Verricco

Small parts. These are the five boys sitting in the back of the theater who begin throwing food at the performers. McHugh is the teenager among them and has some dialogue. Aber is the round-faced boy sitting to the far right. I don't yet know who's who among the other three.

Malcolm Sebastion as the court magician

Small part. He's the kid in the wizard costume. Earlier, he's the shepherd just to the right of the sneezing Fletcher Tolbert. Maltin & Bann spell his name Malcom Sebastian in the cast listing, but then spell his first name Malcolm in the text. Classic Images magazine reveals that his last name had been changed to Sebastion after having originally been Sabiston.

Georgie Billings

Small part. He's the littlest boy among the shepherds, and later among the guards. This was his series debut.

Douglas Greer

Bit part. He controls the curtains. Maltin & Bann indicate that he plays "Turkie Egg," but this name wasn't used in the film. It appears, with different spelling, in a casting directory, where he's listed as Dougie "Turkey Egg" Greer.

June Branon

Extra. Applying the process of elimination to the payroll info, I'm led to believe that she's the little blonde girl sitting next to Georgie as they say "so sad."

Buddy Moore

Extra. He's the tall boy poking Mary Ann with the sword. He's also to the far left of the shot when Gordon Thorpe blows his horn. He's also the shepherd behind and to the right of the sneezing Fletcher Tolbert.

Betty Jane Graham

Extra. She's best seen in the shots where Kennedy is working the contraption with the spear points on it. As the curtain comes down on him, she's the blonde girl who turns around to face the camera.

Bradley "Buster" Slaven

Extra. He plays both a shepherd and a guard, and is best seen standing to the left of Mary Ann as she kneels before Nero. He can also be seen behind and in between Wheezer and Farina as they shake the dust out of their clothes.

Bobby Mallon

Extra. He's seen only in the background, and plays both a shepherd and a guard.

Lorraine Rivero

Extra. She's the brunette girl sitting next to Betty Jane Graham to the right of the screen as Fletcher hands the sword to Wheezer.

Georgie Ernest

He worked for four days, but seems to have been entirely cut from the film.

Betty Jane Beard

She only worked for one day, Oct. 4th, and it wasn't a day on which the audience was present, so she must have wound up on the cutting room floor.

other kids

Bit parts.

(1.) One additional girl, just barely seen backstage. Local radio personality Ada May Bender (nicknamed "Eagle Rock Skeeter") put in four days' worth of work. Being a brunette, she's probably the brunette girl (in addition to Rivero) in the establishing backstage shot. She's mostly hidden behind the other kids.

(2.) A girl and a boy in the audience. There might be others as well, but the two shown to the side as Merta Sterling gets hit with the pie are the only ones I've noticed.

the animals:

Pete the Pup (no. 1)

Small part. He's shown in the scene with the shepherds, and briefly has a gag with a beard and moustache. Studio publicity for this film refers to him as 'Pete the dog,' while the cutting continuity calls him "Petie."

Leo

Bit part. The MGM lion appears at the opening of the film.

other animals

Bit parts.

(1.) Two goats, including the one that butts Farina.

(2.) The goose passed off as a peacock.

the adults:

Gertrude Sutton as "Mrs. Funston Evergreen Kennedy"

Featured role. She's the one that wrote the play and directs it.

Edgar Kennedy as "Mr. Kennedy" aka "Kennedy the Cop"

Featured role. He handles various backstage duties, as well as playing "Ursus" during the scene with the bull. He also plays the elephant, and according to documentation, the lion, though this latter role is clearly not the case.

Lyle Tayo as Chubby's mom

Supporting role. She repeatedly reprimands her son for lifting his robe.

Fletcher "Rusty" Tolbert as one of the performers

Small part. He's the young man in the "Ursus" costume early in the film, and later wears the lion costume. This would mean that Mickey Daniels is not in the film, as listed by Maltin & Bann.

Elizabeth Rhoades as Jackie's mom

Small part. That is, assuming she's not Harmon's mother, as she's not sitting near his father, played by Charles McAvoy. She boasts about her son's performance. The spelling of her last name comes from a casting directory. The payroll ledger spells it Rhodes.

Clara Guiol as the pie seller

Small part. She rattles off the various types of pie for sale.

Charles McAvoy as Harmon's dad

Bit part. He takes exception to his son being hit with a pie.

Chris Lynton as a member of the audience

Bit part. He's the old guy who resents it. Listed by Maltin & Bann as Allen Cavan.

Ham Kinsey as a member of the audience

Bit part. He's the first audience member hit with a pie.

Hugh Saxon as a member of the audience

Bit part. He says "give me a pie" and gets a pie.

Pete Gordon as a member of the audience

Bit part. He's to the right and looking up at Lynton as he rants about a lady being struck. Later, he takes a pie in the face.

Edna Hall as a member of the audience

Bit part. She's listed in the ledger, and is the middle-aged woman who gets hit with a pie.

T. Marvin Hatley as the piano player

Bit part. He's shown briefly, but heard for a bit longer.

Harry Keatan as a member of the audience

Extra. He's sitting in the second aisle seat on the right. This is not Harry Keaton (brother of Buster), as ID'd by Maltin & Bann, but the Polish-born actor. The authors say that he takes a pie in the face, so they may have been thinking of one of the other men in the audience, perhaps Pete Gordon (who looks like he could be Buster's brother).

Helen Gilmore as a member of the audience

Extra. She's the woman sitting behind Lyle Tayo.

Charlie Hall as a member of the audience

Extra. He seems to be to the far right in the wideshots. We never see him get hit, but later, when four men are standing in front of the pie booth, he's to the right, already with pie on his face.

Charley Lloyd as a member of the audience

Extra. He's sitting in the same row as McAvoy and can be seen from the side view. Maltin & Bann list him as Charley Young.

other adults

Small parts, bit parts and extras. The payroll ledger provides an exhaustive list. The following people worked on both Oct. 10th and 11th:: Harry Bernard, Rene Whitney, Helen Muir, Marie Bernie, Hope Harper, Mildred Diescar, Loretta Palmer (listed by Maltin & Bann as Retta Palmer), James Youngdeer, Venice Jepperson, Tom Rice, Floyce Brown, Carl Wright, Merta Sterling, Emelie Stone, Kitty Watson and Mrs. L. Karnes. Since they worked for two days, it's likely that these are the people seen in the closer shots, while the following people, who only worked on the 10th, probably only appear in the wide shots: Elsie Kirby, Doris Morton, Eddie Craven, Eugene Verdi, Jack Malone, M.G. McConnell, Mrs. William Mayberry, Evelyn Davidson, Verna Kornman, Narda De Wynn, Nada Remeriez, Peggy Ames, Tom Ryan, Joe Brunell, Mildred Fields, Faith Baldwin, Elizabeth Henry, Blanche Ogden, Leo Lance, Ida May, Mrs. Don Bailey, Betty Mason, Blanche O'Brien, Jessie Womack, Flo Craig, Leila Franke, Nora Bush, Mary Ames, Erna Bucklaw, Marcel Ansley, Albert Ogden, Lucille Ogden, Dolly Rollins, Jeanette Rollins, Hollie Gale, Albert Petrangle and Norma Wallace. All of the people mentioned so far were audience members, musicians and the girls selling sweets in the back of the theater. It should also be noted that Lyle Tayo did all of her work on Oct. 12th, and so did Helen Gilmore, seen directly behind her. To the right of the screen is a mystery woman who presumably also worked on the 12th, but the only other name given for that date is a man's: Robert Ogden. However, a very belated check was issued to the aforementioned Norma Wallace on Nov. 9th, so perhaps she's the one we see in the shot. There was also some belated work done on Oct. 22nd (or perhaps just a belated check) which involved either Charles McAvoy or Harry Arras.

(1.) The two men inside the bull costume. Maltin & Bann credit Carlton Griffin with one of these roles, but he's nowhere to be found in the payroll ledger. Two names that are repeatedly paired up in the ledger are Clarence Wurtz and Perry Murdock, so I suspect it's them.

(2.) The remaining women selling sweets in the back, numbering three. One is selling cakes, another ice cream, and the third candies.

(4.) The remaining four musicians playing with Hatley. Maltin & Bann credit the other two members of the Happy-Go-Lucky Trio: Vern Trimble and Art Stephenson, but they're not listed in the payroll ledger.

(5.) The rest of the audience members, at least two of whom are kids.

the music:

"That Old Gang Of Mine" by Ray Henderson

Written in 1923 with lyrics by Billy Rose and Mort Dixon. This is an instrumental version that's played over the opening titles. It was dubbed from the reel one sound disc for "Wiggle Your Ears" (no. 84).

"The Blue Danube" by Johann Strauss II

Written in 1867 and originally titled "On The Beautiful Blue Danube." Also known as "Blue Danube Waltz." The cacophonous orchestra plays this during the dancing scene.

other music

The only remaining music in this film is the bit of bugle playing by Gordon Thorpe.

music in alternate prints

"Good Old Days" by Leroy Shield

This is played over the opening and end titles of the Blackhawk version of this film, suggesting that perhaps some prints were without the opening music.

miscellaneous:

12 shooting dates went into the making of this film. Two weeks after shooting finished for "Moan & Groan, Inc." (no. 94), the 'start' date arrived for "Shivering Shakespeare" on Sep. 30th. Presumably, these two weeks had been used for writing, since Walker's dialogue sheet was submitted on Sep. 27th. Shooting continued until the 'finish' date of Oct. 12th. No shooting took place on Sep. 29th or Oct. 6th, which were both Sundays. Anthony Mack directed on each of the shooting dates. After this, two weeks passed before the Our Gang unit began to film "The First Seven Years" (no. 96).

The play is called "The Gladiator's Dilemma" and is based on "Quo Vadis." The fictitious venue where it's being performed is Gamut Hall, and the date of the performance is Thursday, February 18th. Proceeds were to benefit the Children's Audobon Society. The play is enacted by pupils of B. Grade, Liberty School. This is according to the poster shown at the beginning of the film, which also credits Mrs. Kennedy with authoring the play, 'with acknowledgment of excerpts from Shakespeare, Confucius, Aristophanes, Bacon, Cervantes and Irwin S. Cobb.' An earlier version of this was 'with acknowledgement to excerpts from Shakespeare, Confucius, Aristophanes, Bugs Baer and Irvin Cobb.'

The first reel ends after the dancing girl gets egged.

According to studio documentation, this film ran twenty minutes and eight seconds.

According to the press release, 200 custard pies were ordered by McGowan.

According to the press release, Mary Ann loved wearing the blonde wig and took it home with her at night. The boys weren't too keen on wearing what they considered to be dresses.

The script submitted to MGM was given the catalog number B595.

See anything that needs changing? Contact me at BtheW@aol.com.

© Robert Demoss.