No, there is no real family name the Middletons in this film, but they are supposed to represent the typical all American family of the late 1930's. Real life Hollywood actors get the chance to star in what would be referred to as an industrial film that had its exposition at the actual fair of 1939. There are mother and father (Ruth Lee and Harry Shannon), man crazy daughter Marjorie Lord, mischievous but curious younger son Jimmy Lydon, and the wise but fun loving grandmother Adora Andrews.
Their trip from small town USA to the Big Apple to witness all of the marvels is played along with drama concerning Lord's inability to choose between two admirers, one of whom is a cheat, and the other who is obviously more admirable. Grandma gets into the act to expose the lying soundrel with the help of Lydon, thanks to a visit to a 6th Avenue pawn shop.
Surrounding this feather of a plot are visits to various exhibits at the fair, the most amusing of which is the wisecracking robot who apparently can spot a beautiful woman in the audience even though it's not human. each of the family members has their own desired exhibits which they want to see more than the others, indicating that this was an event you could not simply spend a week at. It's colorful and fun but inconsequential in exposing the fact that many things seen here never came to fruition and that much of the inventions that were displayed never came close to seeing the light of day. But any film that shows in color what Times Square look like in the late 1930s is fascinating even though this could have been done with more detail and good will as an Andy Hardy movie which certainly it reminds me of.
Their trip from small town USA to the Big Apple to witness all of the marvels is played along with drama concerning Lord's inability to choose between two admirers, one of whom is a cheat, and the other who is obviously more admirable. Grandma gets into the act to expose the lying soundrel with the help of Lydon, thanks to a visit to a 6th Avenue pawn shop.
Surrounding this feather of a plot are visits to various exhibits at the fair, the most amusing of which is the wisecracking robot who apparently can spot a beautiful woman in the audience even though it's not human. each of the family members has their own desired exhibits which they want to see more than the others, indicating that this was an event you could not simply spend a week at. It's colorful and fun but inconsequential in exposing the fact that many things seen here never came to fruition and that much of the inventions that were displayed never came close to seeing the light of day. But any film that shows in color what Times Square look like in the late 1930s is fascinating even though this could have been done with more detail and good will as an Andy Hardy movie which certainly it reminds me of.