College Coach

Seven years before Pat O'Brien played his most famous part as Knute Rockne he essayed the role of another college coach thereby giving same title to this flick. This guy is not the hero Rockne was. He's not above using a few dirty tactics to win a game. In a way this movie anticipates films like The Program, it's two generations ahead of it's time.

Dick Powell is also in this as a smart football player who realizes he's in college to get an education. Not so Lyle Talbot who has eyes for O'Brien's wife played by Ann Dvorak. He's a ringer that O'Brien's brought in to win games and O'Brien's so preoccupied with winning he doesn't see the moves Talbot's making.

Powell has one song to sing in this film, an item called Lonely Lane by Sammy Fain-Irving Kahal. Nice, but not up to the usual numbers Powell got in those Busby Berkeley extravaganzas.

Fans of John Wayne and Ward Bond will get a chance to see both of them as football players which is what they were when working as prop men at the studios for summer eating money when John Ford spotted both of them. Wayne was doing some B westerns for Warner Brothers at the time and this was one of a few films he appeared in as a supporting player. One of a small handful.

As I said, an interesting film and way ahead of it's time.

College Coach is the story of a college that invests so much of it's money into schooling that it becomes financially insecure. The board decides that what the school needs to bring in the necessary revenue is to hire an excellent football coach and focus on the sport. Coach Gore is hired (Pat O'Brien), a tough, somewhat crooked man whose interest in money and winning makes for an unbeatable team. Phil Sargeant (Dick Powell) and Buck Weaver (Lyle Talbot) are the two stars of the team. Phil also has an interest in integrity and chemistry while Buck is only interested in fame and in his coach's wife (Ann Dvorak). However, with success comes failure and several pitfalls hinder the team including the discovery that Coach Gore has passed some players that should have failed simply to win games.

If this film sounds interesting to you, it is probably because you already like football. If you're looking for a look at relationships, then skip this movie. And if you're a big Dick Powell fan like I am, don't expect to see much of your star. He sings one mediocre song and fades into the background fairly early in the film despite being credited first. It is really O'Brien that is the star with Talbot following closely after.

I usually like the movies that Warner Bros. put out in the 30's and I liked this little film. Dick Powell is supposedly the main character but to be honest he's not in the film much - Pat O'Brien and Lyle Talbot steal the show. Pat, as usual, is great in the role as the college coach and Ann Dvorak, a very under-rated actress, is wonderful in her small role as his poor wife, he is more into football than he is into her. ;-)Her beauty is really something to behold! Lyle Talbot though really impresses here, usually his roles were small and his talent was never used the way it could've/should've been, but he is wonderful as the loveable bonehead who is only good at one thing - FOOTBALL! Dick Powell was a bit miscast in my opinion as a footballer who is into chemistry although we do get to hear him sing, which is always nice.

Anyway - if you have some free time and this is on tv I advise you to check it out. It's a little entertaining bit o' fun!

College Coach isn't a bad film in any respect and better than most of it's contemporary college football-themed brethren, but I'd like to make a few admittedly mild observations: watching it reminded me of the 40-year old looking college "kids" that would do walk-ons on Ozzie and Harriett in the early 60's. Almost all the principal football players here are over 30 (Lyle Talbot was 31, Guinn "Big Boy" Williams 33, Nat Pendleton was 37!)... even Dick Powell was 28 or so. This one's got almost all of Warner's stock company: Donald Meek, the underrated Arthur Hohl, Herman Bing (a tragic comedic character actor), daffy Hugh Herbert, and Guy Kibbee's brother, Milton. It seemed like half the cast of Footlight Parade's here. Another thing: even as late as 1933, college life was an unattainable netherworld to most of the audiences that paid 15-cents to see this. Having the college on the verge of insolvency managed to humanize an institution that might've as well been on Mars to most Depression-era Americans. Made during the late spring-early summer of pre-code 1933, this one's nowhere near as racy as many of the studio's other releases of the year. Bonus: keep your eyes peeled for John Wayne taking one of his many 1933 walk-on breaks from Warner's micro-budget Lone Star oaters. His future buddy (and fellow right-winger) Ward Bond is also on hand as an assistant coach. Still I don't know how Wellman (who had an astounding 7 films released that year!) sandwiched this between timely Wild Boys of the Road and the steamy Female.

"Calvert University" is facing bankruptcy. The board of trustees regret putting money into a science laboratory instead of financing football. "A winning football team is the answer to our problems," they agree. Since the Calvert players haven't won a game in three years, the college hires hard-nosed coach Pat O'Brien (as James Gore) to heat up the gridiron. Singing chemistry major Dick Powell (as Philip "Phil" Sargeant) is star player and the son of headmaster Arthur Byron (as Phillip Sargeant). Brought in to beef up the team, Lyle Talbot (as Herbert "Buck" Weaver) laments that Mr. Powell can't cook as the two become roommates...

With some sissy spoken innuendos, Mr. Talbot seems to have an implicit sexual interest in Mr. Powell. Nothing happens there, apart from their fight being peculiarly shot from the waist down. Instead, Talbot becomes interested in Coach O'Brien's neglected wife, sexy Ann Dvorak (as Claire). She's hard to resist. Football players seem to pass exams without even turning in test papers, which irks Powell. Everything comes together for the climactic big game. John Wayne has a bit part after about 11 minutes, welcoming Powell to the picture. "College Coach" is interestingly immoral, and nicely directed by William A. Wellman.

****** College Coach (11/4/33) William A. Wellman ~ Pat O'Brien, Dick Powell, Lyle Talbot, Ann Dvorak