A Yank at Eton (1942)
(Norman Taurog, US 1942, 88 min., 35mm)
Mickey Rooney is once again the rakish outsider as Timothy Dennis, forced to move to England when his mother remarries. Tim’s American ways are considered boorish among the top hat and tails crowd at his new private prep school in Eton. A particular nuisance is strident upperclassman Ronnie Kenvil (Peter Lawford, in his first significant role), who makes it his mission to make Tim’s life miserable. Made after the United States entered World War II, the intent of the film was to demonstrate that Americans and Britons could set aside their superficial differences and pull together in the war effort. Also starring Edmund Gwenn and Freddie Bartholomew, this was the fourth of six films Rooney made with director Norman Taurog.