Because They're Young (1960)

A new school teacher (Dick Clark) not only clashes with the rigid policies of the high school principal (Wendell Holmes) regarding students but must deal with raising his adolescent nephew all alone. Unlike the nightmarish out of control high school of BLACKBOARD JUNGLE of five years earlier, the film focuses on a relatively "nice" school and the typical situations and emotions teenagers of the era were going through and for the most part, does a decent job of it. Still, the characters are pretty much stereotypes: The well intentioned teacher (Clark), the principal's pretty secretary (Victoria Shaw, EDDY DUCHIN STORY), the bad boy (Michael Callan), the good girl gone "bad" (Tuesday Weld), the jock (Doug McClure), the wholesome cheerleader (Roberta Shore) and the troubled teen (Warren Berlinger). Clark's limited acting ability holds the film back. The nondescript score is by a young John Williams but the film's title theme was written by Don Costa and was a big top 40 hit of the day. Directed by Paul Wendkos. With James Darren, Duane Eddy, Rudy Bond, Marlyn Mason and Linda Watkins (THE PARENT TRAP) as Berlinger's trampy mother.