The Beloved Brat
Brief Synopsis
A compassionate teacher tries to reach a spoiled tomboy.
Cast & Crew
Read More
Arthur Lubin
Director
Bonita Granville
Roberta [Morgan]
Dolores Costello
Helen Cosgrove
Donald Crisp
Mr. Morgan
Natalie Moorhead
Mrs. Morgan
Lucille Gleason
Miss Brewster
Film Details
Also Known As
Girls on Probation, Too Much of Everything
Genre
Drama
Classic Hollywood
Release Date
Apr
30,
1938
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 3m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
6 reels
Synopsis
Although Roberta Morgan's parents give her everything money can buy, she is an unhappy child. Her parents are too busy for her, and her bratty behavior, which is actually an unspoken cry for love, only alienates them further. The only person to take any notice of her thirteenth birthday is her father's secretary, Williams. Roberta's only friends are a little black boy, Pinkie White, and his sister Arabella.
When they take Roberta home with them, she is charmed by the warmth and love of their mother, Mrs. White, who unlike Mrs. Morgan, gives her children first priority. When Roberta tries to reciprocate by inviting Pinkie for dinner, however, Jenkins, the butler, angrily throws Pinkie out. Furious, Roberta acts even brattier, and after her parents leave for Europe, Jenkins locks her in her room. She runs away, but Jenkins tracks her to Pinkie's house. On the way home, Roberta and Jenkins argue and Roberta grabs the steering wheel causing the car to swerve into an oncoming car and kill the driver.
At first, out of revenge, Roberta insists that Jenkins was drinking and the accident was all his fault, but after he is sentenced to prison, she confesses and is sent by the court to a special girls' school run by the enlightened Helen Cosgrove. Helen tries every method to reach Roberta and is about to give up when a talk with Williams convinces her to ask for Roberta's help with the younger students. Roberta loves her new duties and is delighted when she makes friends. By the time her parents return from Europe, Roberta has changed, but when Helen tells her that she will be allowed to go home, Roberta cries that her parents never loved her and refuses to go.
The Morgans overhear her protests and, chastened, change their ways. At Roberta's next birthday party, they attend with all her new friends, including Pinkie, Arabella and Mrs. White, who has baked a beautiful cake.
Director
Arthur Lubin
Director
Cast
Bonita Granville
Roberta [Morgan]
Dolores Costello
Helen Cosgrove
Donald Crisp
Mr. Morgan
Natalie Moorhead
Mrs. Morgan
Lucille Gleason
Miss Brewster
Donald Briggs
Williams
Emmett Vogan
Jenkins
Loia Cheaney
Mrs. Jenkins
Leo Gorcey
Spike
Ellen Lowe
Anna
Mary Doyle
Miss Mitchell
Paul Everton
Judge Harris
Bernice Pilot
Mrs. White
Stymie Beard
Pinkie White
Meredith White
Arabella White
Gloria Fischer
Boots
Carmencita Johnson
Estella
Priscilla Lyon
Sylvia
Doris Brenn
Jackie
Patsy Mitchell
Betty Mae
Betty Compson
Eleanor Sparks
Victor Wong
Gardener
Al Duval
Cab driver
Glen Cavender
Fireman
Jack Mower
Fireman
Cliff Saum
Fireman
John Harron
Driver
Monte Vandergrift
Officer
Jessie Arnold
Nurse
Gordon Hart
Judge
Mary Avery
Teacher
Sarah Edwards
Miss Brundage
Douglas Wood
Mr. Butler
Isabelle La Mal
Teacher
William Worthington
Dr. Reynolds
Ottola Nesmith
Mrs. Higgins
Lottie Williams
Maid
Evelyn Mulhall
Louise Bates
Maybelle Palmer
Ann Bupp
Crew
George Barnes
Photography
Frank Beckwith
Dialogue Director
Stanley Fleischer
Art Director
Bryan Foy
Associate Producer
Lawrence Kimble
Screenwriter
Wally Klein
Contr to Screenplay const
Arthur Lueker
Assistant Director
Jean Negulesco
Original Story
Frederick Richards
Film Editor
Francis J. Scheid
Sound
Howard Shoup
Gowns
Jack L. Warner
Executive Producer
Film Details
Also Known As
Girls on Probation, Too Much of Everything
Genre
Drama
Classic Hollywood
Release Date
Apr
30,
1938
Premiere Information
not available
Production Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Distribution Company
Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
Country
United States
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 3m
Sound
Mono
Color
Black and White
Theatrical Aspect Ratio
1.37 : 1
Film Length
6 reels
Articles
The Beloved Brat
A compassionate teacher tries to reach a spoiled tomboy.
The Beloved Brat
A compassionate teacher tries to reach a spoiled tomboy.
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The film's pre-release titles were Girls on Probation, not to be confused with the 1938 Warner Bros. film of the same title, and Too Much of Everything.
