Arthur Takes Over
{{Infobox film
| name = Arthur Takes Over
| image = Arthur Takes Over poster.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = Malcolm St. Clair
| producer = Sol M. Wurtzel
| screenplay = Mauri Grashin
| starring = Lois Collier
Richard Crane
Skip Homeier
Ann E. Todd
Jerome Cowan
| music = Darrell Calker
| cinematography = Benjamin H. Kline
| editing = Roy V. Livingston
| studio = 20th Century Fox
| distributor = 20th Century Fox
| released = {{Film date|1948|4|7}}
| runtime = 63 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}
Arthur Takes Over is a 1948 American comedy film directed by Malcolm St. Clair and written by Mauri Grashin. The film stars Lois Collier, Richard Crane, Skip Homeier, Ann E. Todd and Jerome Cowan. The film was released on April 7, 1948, by 20th Century Fox.{{cite web|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/67671/arthur-takes-over |title=Arthur Takes Over (1948) - Overview |publisher=Turner Classic Movies |date=1948-05-19 |access-date=2015-10-01}}{{cite web|author=Hal Erickson |url=http://www.allmovie.com/movie/arthur-takes-over-v84000 |title=Arthur Takes Over (1948) - Malcolm St. Clair | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related |publisher=AllMovie |date= |accessdate=2015-10-01}}{{cite web|url=http://www.afi.com/members/catalog/DetailView.aspx?s=&Movie=25452 |title=Arthur Takes Over |publisher=Afi.com |date= |accessdate=2015-10-01}}Dwyer, 1996 p. 240-241: Filmography
Plot
Mrs. Bixby (Barbara Brown) is determined that her daughter Margaret (Lois Collier) will marry a successful man and arrange a match. Margaret, however, marries her sweetheart James (Richard Crane), but insists the couple keep it a secret from her mother. The groom objects to this deception, but acquiesced. In an attempt to distract their mother, Margaret’s younger brother (Howard Freeman) pretends to be engaged, but only makes matters worse. Ultimately the mother discovers and truth and acknowledges that her daughter has married for love.Dwyer, 1996 p. 240-241: Filmography
== Cast ==
- Lois Collier as Margaret Bixby
- Richard Crane as James Clark
- Skip Homeier as Arthur Bixby
- Ann E. Todd as Valarie Jeanne Bradford
- Jerome Cowan as George Bradford
- Barbara Brown as Fiora Bixby
- William Bakewell as Lawrence White
- Howard Freeman as Bert Bixby
- Joan Blair as Mrs. Bradford
- Almira Sessions as Mrs. Barnafogle
- Jeanne Gail as Betty Lou
- Donald Kerr as Cab Driver
- Luana Walters as Newspaper Woman
Retrospective appraisal
Arthur Takes Over is representative of the low-budget “B” movies that director St. Clair made at the end of his career. Film historian Ruth Anne Dwyer reports that the scripts offered to St. Clair at 20th Century Fox in the late 1940s were “the weakest he had encountered” from the studio.”Dwyer, 1996 p. 153
Though Arthur Takes Over exhibits “some charm and reasonable production values” the storyline is decidedly weak, “almost plotless.”Dwyer, 1996 p. 153
Notes
{{Reflist}}
References
- Dwyer, Ruth Anne. 1996. Malcolm St. Clair: His Films, 1915-1948. The Scarecrow Press, Lantham, Md., and London. {{ISBN | 0-8108-2709-3}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0040118|Arthur Takes Over}}
{{Malcolm St. Clair}}
Category:1940s English-language films
Category:20th Century Fox films
Category:American comedy films
Category:Films directed by Malcolm St. Clair