THE UNDER - PUP (1939)

NEW EVIDENCE supports the existence of spanking scene in that movie, slthough it seems to have been cut for the DVD version.

While researching for another movie I stumbled upon a line in a plot summary on turner classic movies. The line says:

Mr. Layton, learning the truth about his daughter's behavour, gives Cecelia a well-deserved spanking

The summary was about a movie called „The Under-Pup“ from 1939, a musical picture designed for rising child star Gloria Jean. But another child actress stole the show and got the attention of John Ford: Shirley Mills, who played the role of Cecelia

This would make the

Spankee: Shirley Mills (picture above)

and the

Spanker: Raymund Walburn (picture above)


Here is the original summary:

An essay on trees wins Pip-Emma Binns, a daughter of the New York tenements, a trip to the summer retreat of the Penguins, an exclusive girls's camp headed by the snobby Cecelia Layton and sponsored by the icy spinster Miss Thornton and her assistant, Priscilla Adams. Pip-Emma's eccentric family drives to the train station in their WPA truck to bid her farewell, thus alienating her from all the girls except Janet Cooper, who befriends Pip-Emma on the train to camp. At camp, Cecelia and Letty Lou become Pip-Emma's tormentors, but Priscilla and her boyfriend Denis, the camp's athletic director, become her allies. Although Pip-Emma tames the wild sons of Tolio, the camp's handyman, the camp itself is a disappointment to her because she must make her own bed and perform other chores that are part of her routine at home. The snootiness of the Penguins and their refusal to include her in their activities also add to the little girl's unhappiness. However, Pip-Emma melts the icy reserve of Miss Thornton, and when Cecelia and the others vote to send her home, the sponsor vetoes the order. Discovering that her friend Janet has an unhappy home life, Pip-Emma writes Grandpa to prevent the divorce of Janet's parents by telling them that their daughter is ill. The Coopers rush to the camp, where they are treated by the sight of Janet winning a swimming race, all due to Pip-Emma's coaching. Meanwhile, Cecelia's father arrives at camp in response to his daughter's charge that Pip-Emma is abusing her. At these accusations, Pip-Emma tearfully leaves the camp, but Grandpa forces her to return, and Mr. Layton, learning the truth about his daughter's behavour, gives Cecelia a well-deserved spanking. Pip-Emma is then accepted by the other girls as a full-fledged Penguin and awarded a uniform.

As it turned out, that the DVD version of that film does not contain a spanking scene. It is merely a vague, verbally implied spanking (one line of text). Nevertheless here is the clip:

Here is the testominy of a contributor called Sweetspot wo vividly remembers the scene: "The spanking scene must have been cut out of the version you have. I remember that the girl is spanked over her dad's lap in a scene that is all to briefly on screen when several of the cast open a door and see dad spanking daughter."