Long before Harry Potter cast his first spell, Andy Hardy was Hollywood’s golden boy, the beloved protagonist of more than 15 films made between 1937 and 1958. Like Daniel Radcliffe in the Potter films, Andy Hardy star Mickey Rooney literally grew up before his audience’s eyes, and his constant presence made him one of Hollywood’s most familiar and successful players. The fourth film in the series, “Love Finds Andy Hardy” (1938), makes a perfectly good sample of the overall group and offers the additional attractions of Judy Garland and Lana Turner as two of the girls who vie for Andy’s affections. With its familial humor and screwball sense of fun, “Love Finds Andy Hardy” is a classic movie that the entire family can enjoy, and youngsters who only know Garland from “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) will especially like seeing her in this earlier film.
In this outing, teenaged Andy (Rooney) looks forward to a Christmas Eve dance with regular girlfriend, Polly (Ann Rutherford), but her departure for the holidays leaves him free to court Cynthia (Lana Turner) as a favor for a pal. New girl Betsy Booth (Judy Garland) pines for Andy’s attention, but he finds two girls to be more than he can handle already. Meanwhile, a family emergency takes Mother Hardy (Fay Holden) away from home and disrupts the household and the holidays for everyone.
The Andy Hardy films belong to the “don’t make ‘em like they used to” school of classic movies, and “Love Finds Andy Hardy” is as innocent and good-natured a picture as one could want. Although it touches on sentimentality with Mother Hardy’s absence, its focus stays mostly with the rambunctious, eager Andy and his minor romantic crises. The rest of the family members play well-defined roles, with Lewis Stone as the amiable, wise father, Fay Holden as the sweet, devoted mother, and Cecilia Parker as the irritating older sister. Fans of “The Addams Family” television series will also be pleased to see Blossom Rock – credited here as Marie Blake – in the role of the family’s new cook, Augusta.
The Mickey Rooney of the Andy Hardy films is a familiar version of the long-lived actor, puckish and energetic, although children might know him better from late career performances in “Babe: Pig in the City” (1998) and “Night at the Museum” (2006). More surprising, however, are the girlish faces of Judy Garland and Lana Turner. Garland in particular looks strikingly young, but her screen presence and incredible voice are already well developed in this picture. Although this movie shows both actresses very early in their careers, Garland and Turner are already falling into the roles that would define them, with Garland as the sincere girl next door and Turner as the sexy temptress.
Aside from the Andy Hardy films, look for young Mickey Rooney in “Captains Courageous” (1937), “Boys Town” (1938), and “National Velvet” (1944). Rooney and Garland appear together in two more Andy Hardy films and also team up in “Thoroughbreds Don’t Cry” (1937), “Babes in Arms” (1939), and “Babes on Broadway” (1941). In addition to the legendary “The Wizard of Oz” (1939), see Judy Garland in “Meet Me in St. Louis” (1944), “The Harvey Girls” (1946), and “Easter Parade” (1948). Lana Turner can be seen in “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (1941), “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (1946), and “Peyton Place” (1957). Director George B. Seitz, who helmed the Andy Hardy films, also directed many silent films and the 1936 adaptation of “The Last of the Mohicans.” For more classic family films, try “Lassie Come Home” (1943), “Life with Father” (1947), and “Cheaper By the Dozen” (1950).
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