“That Hagen Girl” stars Ronald Reagan and Shirley Temple in a drama film in which small town gossips where they live speculate that young Temple is the out-of-wedlock child of the much older Reagan. There is excessive melodrama in this poorly constructed B-film from director Peter Godfrey (“Christmas in Connecticut” 1945), who lost focus at the helm of the project. And the screenplay by Charles Hoffman is poorly written. Nevertheless, the film did have some success in theatrical release for Warner Bros. Pictures.
Reagan and Temple did their best as actors, with both of them in the midst of movie careers in decline. Co-stars include Rory Calhoun, Dorothy Peterson, Charles Kemper, Conrad Janis, Harry Davenport, Moroni Olsen, and Lois Maxwell in her feature film debut. She won the Golden Globe for the Most Promising Newcomer, and went on to international fame as Miss Moneypenny in the first fourteen James Bond movies, 1962-1985.
The most fascinating feature of “That Hagen Girl” is seeing two future Republican politicians together on the big screen. The future 40th President of the United States and the former child actress turned Congressional candidate and Ambassador do make an interesting pair, not only in Hollywood’s acting craft but in America’s statecraft as well.
That Hagen Girl (1947)
cinema
My Review
“That Hagen Girl” stars Ronald Reagan and Shirley Temple in a drama film in which small town gossips where they live speculate that young Temple is the out-of-wedlock child of the much older Reagan. There is excessive melodrama in this poorly constructed B-film from director Peter Godfrey (“Christmas in Connecticut” 1945), who lost focus at the helm of the project. And the screenplay by Charles Hoffman is poorly written. Nevertheless, the film did have some success in theatrical release for Warner Bros. Pictures.
Reagan and Temple did their best as actors, with both of them in the midst of movie careers in decline. Co-stars include Rory Calhoun, Dorothy Peterson, Charles Kemper, Conrad Janis, Harry Davenport, Moroni Olsen, and Lois Maxwell in her feature film debut. She won the Golden Globe for the Most Promising Newcomer, and went on to international fame as Miss Moneypenny in the first fourteen James Bond movies, 1962-1985.
The most fascinating feature of “That Hagen Girl” is seeing two future Republican politicians together on the big screen. The future 40th President of the United States and the former child actress turned Congressional candidate and Ambassador do make an interesting pair, not only in Hollywood’s acting craft but in America’s statecraft as well.