Chip Off the Old Block

Ann Blyth is about 15 years old here in her first movie, Chip Off the Old Block, which was released in February 1944.  Ernest Truex is on the left, and Helen Hinson, center, played her mother.  In this Universal musical, Ann is the third generation of actresses in her family.  Donald O'Connor is her persistent beau and first co-star.  From my book on Ann's career: Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star.:


Our introduction to Ann Blyth is on a train.  Donald sits apart from her, doing eye exercises for his lousy vision, and she misinterprets it as somewhat grotesque flirting.  After a spat and reconciliation, they are cozily ensconced on the rear train observation platform (a much-used movie setting for tête-à-têtes) and sing a duet “It’s Mighty Nice.”  Her voice is a pleasing soprano, but nowhere near the range, control and richness she developed with more training by the next decade... 

Chip Off the Old Block Poster

Here's a "full sheet" poster for Chip Off the Old Block (1944), which was Ann Blyth's first film.

We discussed the movie in this post at my Another Old Movie Blog.  Ann's first four movies were a string of musicals for Universal, which signed her to a seven-year contract when she was 14 years old.  She had been on tour with the play Watch on the Rhine, when she was spotted by Universal execs when the drama played in Los Angeles.

Donald O'Connor and Peggy Ryan were a most dynamic duo, when Ann's arrival turned them into a trio.  Universal showcased the talent of many teens in that period during the late 1930s and early 1940s, even more than the other studios, Deanna Durbin undoubtedly foremost among them.

The "full sheet" posters are huge, of course, about 41 inches tall by 27 inches wide, spectacular for display if you have the room.  It's not always easy to come by them in pristine condition these days, but now and again you hear of someone discovering a stash of classic film posters discovered in some theater storage space, or possibly in the home of a collector who had a connection with one of the great old downtown movie houses. 

Most of the posters were an attempt to summarize the story and yet not give anything away, but in their way, I think they were more creative and entertaining, and storytelling, than today's slicker posters, which are less about plot tags and more about "branding" an image for merchandising.

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The audio book for Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star. is now for sale on Audible.com, and on Amazon and iTunes.

Also in paperback and eBook from Amazon.