Follow Me, Boys!

Synopsis

In 1930, Lemuel "Lem" Siddons (Fred MacMurray) is a saxophonist in a traveling band who dreams of becoming a lawyer. When the band's bus reaches the small town of Hickory, Lem suddenly decides to leave the band and settle down, finding a job as a clerk in the general store owned by John Everett Hughes (Charlie Ruggles). At the town civic meeting, Lem again notices Vida Downey (Vera Miles), a bank teller whom Lem had seen on his first day in town, and eventually attempts to woo away from her boyfriend Ralph Hastings (Elliott Reid). Lem notices Vida crosses off the YMCA and the 4-H from her list of three possible organizations to keep the town's boys off the streets, leaving only the Boy Scouts, and he decides to suggest and volunteer to become Scoutmaster of the newly formed Troop 1.

A short time later, Lem becomes an all-around natural leader with the Scout troop, even putting his plans to become a lawyer aside as he helps the town's boys mature into men. Meanwhile, the town's troublemaker boy Edward "Whitey" White, Jr. (Kurt Russell) refuses to join the troop. One night, while Lem and Vida are on a date, they catch Whitey shoplifting from Hughes' store. Startled, Whitey falls and sprains his ankle, which Lem bandages using the techniques provided in the Boy Scout Handbook. Impressed by Lem's work, Whitey secretly steals the book, which Lem allows because he sees his past self reflected in Whitey. One night, Lem invites Whitey's father, Edward, Sr. (Sean McClory), to attend parent's night at the Boy Scouts' meeting place located the lake property of Hetty Seibert (Lillian Gish). Edward arrives drunk and embarrasses Whitey, causing him to quit the troop. However, Edward later dies that night of alcohol poisoning, leaving Lem and Vida to adopt Whitey.

In 1944, Lem is accidentally captured by the United States Army, who are playing a war game in the area near the lake. Lem is taken for a spy due to his Scouting equipment and is unable to prove he is a Scoutmaster after the military captain asks Lem to tie a sheepshank, the only knot Lem never learned. Across the lake, Troop 1 fires their morning canon, accidentally signaling the military to playfully attack the boys. The scouts take shelter in a staged base and successfully capture a tank with explosive squibs, meant to resemble land mines, thus freeing Lem from the captivity of the embarrassed military.

Back at the lake, Lem and the troop discover that Ralph is taking Hetty to court over the lake property, since he believes it belongs to him. Lem is hired as Hetty's lawyer. He questions her on the stand, revealing that the property was once the location of her family cottage before it burned down in September 1918, two days after she learned that her sons were killed in France. Hetty states that she allowed the troop to meet there as the boys reminded her of her late sons at play. Ultimately, Hetty wins the case and Lem is allowed to keep the property.

On September 1, 1945, Lem and Vida celebrate Hughes' birthday by listening to Harry S. Truman announce the end of the war over the radio. Whitey, who became a captain in the army, returns to Hickory to introduce Lem and Vida to his wife, Nora, an army nurse. In 1950, Hughes passes away, leaving the store to both Lem and Vida. Meanwhile, due to Lem's health, the Scout committee forces Lem to retire as Scoutmaster. In appreciation for his two decades of service, the entire town gives Lem a surprise celebration on October 2, 1950, with both current and former members of Troop 1 in attendance for the dedication of Hetty's property as Camp Siddons in honor of Lem.

Cast

The Boys of Troop 1:

Production

This was Ruggles' last feature film. He has a small but critical role in the film. He was age 80 when this picture was made, and did only television work afterwards, until his death in 1970.

Reception

The film was popular, earning $5,350,000 in North American rentals in 1967.

Versions

The film ran 131 minutes originally. In 1976, the film was re-released to theaters in a heavily shortened version running 107 minutes. When the film first came to video in the US in 1984, it ran 120 minutes. The 2004 DVD release is the complete 131-minute original theatrical cut.