Sonny Boy(1929 film)

Sonny Boyis a 1929 soundpart-talkiefilm released byWarner Bros.,directed byArchie Mayo.In addition to sequences with audible dialogue or talking sequences, the film features a synchronized musical score and sound effects along with English intertitles. The soundtrack was recorded using theVitaphonesound-on-disc system. The film starsDavey Lee,Edward Everett Horton,andBetty Bronson.

Sonny Boy
Lobby card
Directed by	Archie Mayo
Written by	Charles Graham Baker James A. Starr
Story by	"Leon Zuardo" (Jack L. Warner)
Starring	Davey Lee Betty Bronson Edward Everett Horton Gertrude Olmstead
Cinematography	Ben F. Reynolds
Edited by	Owen Marks
Music by	Louis Silvers
Production company	Warner Bros.
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	April 18, 1929(1929-04-18)
Running time	70 minutes
Country	United States
Languages	Sound (Part-Talkie) English Intertitles
Budget	$98,000
Box office	$1,072,000

The film was named after the 1928 hit song "Sonny Boy",which was previously featured in the filmThe Singing Fool(1928), starringAl Jolson.Davey Leealso played the role of Sonny Boy inThe Singing Fool.

Plot

Sonny Boy's parents are in the midst of a bitterdivorcewhen the boy's mother talks her sister into kidnapping him because she is terrified that her husband will take the boy out of the country after the divorce. The nervy sister takes the lad to the apartment of her sister's husband's lawyer who believes that she has gone away for a time. A merry mix-up ensues when he returns to the apartment with his parents in tow. To maintain appearances, the sister must pose as the lawyer's wife. Eventually she decides to take the boy and flee, but then she realizes that Sonny Boy has vanished. It seems he saw an interesting theater marquee, climbed down the fire escape, and went to the movies. The adults arrive just in time to hear a rousing rendition of the hit song "Sonny Boy".

Cast

• Davey Leeas Sonny Boy
• Betty Bronsonas Aunt Winigred Canfield
• Edward Everett Hortonas Crandall Thorpe
• Gertrude Olmsteadas Mary
• John T. Murrayas Hamilton
• Tom Duganas Mulcahy
• Lucy Beaumontas Mother Thorpe
• Edmund Breeseas Thorpe
• Jed Proutyas Phil
• Richard Talmadge

Reception

According to Warner Bros records the film earned $838,000 domestically and $234,000 foreign.

Preservation status

According to silentera, a print ofSonny Boyexists.

See also

• List of early sound feature films (1926–1929)

External links

• Sonny BoyatIMDb
• SynopsisatAllMovie