Trouble with Father – The Stu Erwin Show: Jackie Knows All (1951)

Directed by: Howard Bretherton | 28 minutes | comedy | Actors: Stuart Erwin, June Collyer, James Dean, Sheila James, Martin Milner, Emory Parnell, Ann E. Todd

In the early 1950s, the film world suddenly had a competitor: television. In those years countless series were produced. For many young stars, those series were an opportunity to find their place in Hollywood, to gain experience and get to know the right people. James Dean also made a living through television work in his early years as an actor. More than thirty series are on his record. In most of them he has only minor roles. The fact that the man who went on to become a legend has turned up in this series for years after shooting, providing interesting bonus features for fans of James Dean.

“The Stu Erwin Show” – also known as “Trouble with Father” – ran from 1950 to 1955 and revolved around actor Stu Erwin and his wife June Collyer (they were also married in everyday life; they basically played themselves). ). The ups and downs in their family (which was fictional) are put under a microscope. In the episode in which Dean shows up, ‘Jackie Knows All’, a boyfriend of daughter Jackie (Sheila James) tells her that she becomes clairvoyant when she buys a book from him. Of course, the booklet doesn’t work, but the two do come up with another way to predict the future: They eavesdrop on others to gain information that no one else can know. For example, she overhears Drexel (Martin Milner), her sister Joyce’s (Ann E. Todd) boyfriend, while he argues with his buddy Randy (Dean) when he asks Joyce out. While her sister lingers around the phone and fears that Drexel won’t call again, Jackie tells her that he will ring at seven o’clock.

Central to the story, however, is the fact that a mysterious Mr Smith knocks on the door of the Erwins to buy their piece of land. Mother June doesn’t even know they own a piece of land and Father Stu tries to approach Smith for an interview but can’t get a hold of him. However, Jackie manages to figure out who is behind this mysterious purchase and together with her father she plays a game to make the purchase price as favorable as possible for them.

‘Jackie Knows All’ is a short film in which everyday situations within a family are explained in a humorous way. It is one of the forerunners of the subgenre in which series like ‘Family Ties’, ‘Growing Pains’, ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel Air’ and you name them all, would later reign supreme. Compared to its later equivalents, ‘The Stu Erwin Show’ is well-behaved and innocent, and the niggles are a bit on the bland side. But that makes sense since we’re talking about a series from early 1950s America. Then TV was mainly entertainment; it shouldn’t get too complicated. The fact remains that because of this everydayness the tension arc does not become too tight: in fact there is pressure for nothing.

The fact that this film is worth watching has to do with the fact that interesting actors participate in it. Ann E. Todd and Martin Milner would later create a furore in various films. But the most interesting thing about ‘Jackie Knows All’ is of course the presence of James Dean, albeit only briefly but powerful.