Military Academy with That Tenth Avenue Gang is a 1950 American comedy-drama film directed by D. Ross Lederman,[1] and starring Stanley Clements, Leon Tyler, Myron Welton, and Gene Collins.
| Military Academy with That Tenth Avenue Gang | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | D. Ross Lederman |
| Written by | Howard J. Green |
| Starring | Stanley Clements, Leon Tyler, Myron Welton, and Gene Collins |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 64 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
editFour streetwise teenagers are local troublemakers, always running afoul of the law. The gang has an audience with Judge Ralph Townsend, himself a former street kid named "Knuckles" (John Hamilton). The kids have the choice of one year in reform school or a term in a military academy. Ringleader Stash Martin thinks "that's a vacation" -- they can simply goldbrick, flunk out, hit the street again, and “beat the rap by six months.” Their superior officer, Major Tony Thomas (James Millican), was once a streetwise kid from the old neighborhood, and he tries to straighten out the gang without betraying his past to the commandant. Meanwhile, Thomas’s by-the-books rival Major Norcross (James Seay) finds out about Thomas and blackmails him.
Production
editThe film was inspired by Columbia's 1940 feature Military Academy, and was a direct imitation of the then-popular series of features starring The Bowery Boys and their antecedents The East Side Kids: part “problem teen” drama and part roughneck comedy. The kids incite trouble wherever they go: in the dormitory, in the boxing ring, at the pool table, with the cavalry installation, and with the academy's riding mower.
Leading player Leon Tyler told author Scott MacGillivray that the film was supposed to be the first of a new series, which was called off after the one installment. Tyler cited the disruptive behavior of actor Myron Welton as the cause.[2] Six years later, Stanley Clements recruited Welton -- now billed as Danny Welton -- to appear in Clements's first Bowery Boys picture, Fighting Trouble. Welton again proved unreliable and was dismissed after production.
Military Academy with That Tenth Avenue Gang was produced very inexpensively, with many scenes filmed on location at the Brown Military Academy in California. The film was directed by D. Ross Lederman, who had been with Columbia for most of his career. Because of his blunt, one-take, get-it-done style he was usually assigned to the cheapest quickies on the schedule. (He had also directed Columbia's 1940 version, Military Academy.) This was his last feature-film assignment; he did second-unit work on two more films. Lederman then became a television director, back at Columbia for all 39 episodes of Captain Midnight.
Cast
edit- Stanley Clements as Stash Martin
- Leon Tyler as Specs
- Myron Welton as Danny
- Gene Collins as Mac
- James Millican as Maj. Tony Thomas
- James Seay as Maj. Norcross
- William Johnstone as Col. Jamison
- John Hamilton as Judge Ralph Townsend
References
edit- ^ Hal Erickson (2016). "Military Academy with That Tenth Avenue Gang". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2014.
- ^ Leon Tyler to Scott MacGillivray, Aug. 29, 2004.
External links
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