The Flaming Teenage

Drunken teenager Tim Kruger stumbles and collapses in a street and is picked up by police. After Tim is released into his father's custody, his father and mother discuss his drinking problem and realize they have not spent enough time with him. Tim's father decides to show Tim the ugly side of alcohol by taking him to honky-tonks and bars. Tim thereby sees firsthand how drinking leads to ruination, and his father admits that social drinking nearly ruined his marriage years earlier. Tim then recalls what happened the night he was arrested: Tim meets high school dropout Gloria at his friend Bill's party. Gloria convinces Tim to try a potent drink. As the party continues late into the night, various teenagers amuse each other with stories of how they deceived their parents in order to attend the party. Around midnight, Bill offers to drive Tim home, but Tim insists on walking home alone. Tim now admits to his father that he had no idea what he was doing. Tim's lesson concludes when they witness a drunk woman get into a fight with her husband because she is flirting with another man.
       Theatrical producer Fred Garland watches a rehearsal of a musical play called The Broadway Scandals , and reflects how far his career has come since he was a teenager: Fred owns a candy store but discounts the business as "kid's stuff". Fred disappoints his girl friend Mary when he gets drunk for the first time at a party. As weeks pass, Fred continues drinking despite Mary's and his parents' disapproval. One day after a confrontation with his mother, Fred admits that he sold the candy store and moves to New York City. There, Fred works as a drugstore clerk and soon gets into trouble after overspending on dating, drinking and gambling. After he becomes indebted to loan shark Jack Hartell, Fred hastily moves out of his rented room to avoid Jack, who has threatened him. Fred gets a job in a touring theatrical production after meeting an actress at a coffee shop, but eventually quits because the schedule interferes with his fun. Now broke, Fred returns home and, after vowing to reform, gets a job as a shoe salesmen and reunites with Mary. One evening, Fred's boss, Mr. Barnes, asks him to produce a musical on his behalf, with Barnes as a silent financial backer. A delighted Fred immediately puts together the cast that he is now watching rehearse. When Fred drinks up the profits following their successful opening, Barnes demands an explanation. Instead, Fred quits and forms a booking agency with actor Lee Taylor. Mary breaks up with Fred because of his lifestyle, and as a result, Fred tries to commit suicide by drinking iodine. Fred survives thanks to an unexpected visit from Lee, but is still emotionally distraught and moves without telling Lee. When a disreputable friend named Harry uses Fred as a shill in a robbery, Fred is arrested for grand larceny. After being released on bail, Fred falls prey to his friend Felix, a drug dealer, and becomes addicted to heroin. His father, meanwhile, is stricken with a fatal illness and sends for his son. Fred returns home too late to talk to his father, as he has slipped into a coma. Fred blames himself for their failure to communicate over the years and returns to New York. After becoming a homeless, addicted beggar, Fred is caught stealing ties from a clothing store, and is arrested. Although convinced that Fred cannot be reformed, a district attorney pleads for leniency on his behalf and he is sentenced to only six months in prison. Fred is enlightened by the prison minister's religious services and accepts Jesus Christ as his savior. Having given up his sinful lifestyle, Fred embarks on a career of evangelism. Years later, Fred preaches to a large audience on the merits of Christian salvation.