Under Age is a 1964 black-and-white film written and directed by Larry Buchanan and starring Annabelle Weenick, Judy Adler and Roland Royter. The film was shot in Dallas, Texas.
Contents
Plot
A woman from Dallas goes on trial, charged with encouraging her 14-year-old daughter to have sex with a 16-year-old Mexican boy.
Cast
Annabelle Weenick as Ruby Jenkins (as Anne McAdams)
Judy Adler as Linda Jenkins
Roland Royter as George Gomez
George R. Russell as D.A. Tyler
John Hicks as Prosecutor Adkins
George Edgley as The Judge
Tommie Russell as Mrs. Sybel Riley
Regina Cassidy as Dr. Vivian Scott
Patrick Cranshaw as W.J. Earnhardt (as Joseph Patrick Cranshaw)
Raymond Bradford as Wilbur Neal
Jonathan Ledford as Barney Jenkins
Howard Ware as Bailiff
Joreta C. Cherry as Court Reporter
Robert B. Alcott as Assistant District Attorney (as Robert Alcott)
Bill Peck as News Photographer (as William Peck)
Production
Under Age was produced by American International Pictures (AIP). Following the success of Buchanan's previous courtroom drama Free, White and 21, AIP co-founder Samuel Z. Arkoff encouraged the filmmakers to create a similar film specifically targeted at young people. The plot was based on a real-life court case in which a woman, Wanda Duckworth, was found guilty of rape and jailed for encouraging her 15-year-old daughter to have sex with a 17-year-old male. A number of actors from Free, White and 21 returned for this film, playing the same characters.
Reception
Under Age was given a minor release by AIP. When the film did poorly in theaters, Buchanan said he would never again do a "courtroom picture", though due to current events he soon made The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald.