Sunday, August 12, 2012

5th Ave Girl (1939).



5th Ave Girl(1939). Comedy. Cast: Ginger Rogers and Walter Connolly.

The story begins with New York millionaire Alfred Borden, thinking about his business meeting troubles, getting ready to leave his office headed for home, when his secretary wishes him happy birthday.

To make matters even worse.. after arriving home he learns his wife Martha is out out playing polo, with a playboy friend. Feeling sorry for himself, he decides to take a walk in Central Park, where he meets Mary Grey by the seal pond.

Alfred, enjoying feeding the pigeons and his talk with unemployed Mary, invites her to help celebrate his birthday. While at dinner he spots his wife having dinner with her playboy friend and sends over a bottle of champagne to their table.... Much to his wife's surprise.



The next morning, Alfred awakens with a hangover, a black eye, his name in the gossip columns and Mary sleeping in the guest room. It seems his wife Martha, is jealous and Alfred, happy about the turn of events decides to invite Mary to stay and even gives her a job.

Enjoying life, Alfred begins to neglect his business, forcing his son Tim to take over. Martha, is now worried what her friends might think, decides that she better start pay more attention to her husband.

After, having heart to heart talks with the son, daughter and mother, in tears Mary decides it time to leave the house.

Will the family ever stop taking their father and husband for granted and learn that Mary is not a gold-digger and has been only working for Alfred?

I just finished watching this fun film for the first time.. Ginger Rogers, was wonderful playing the sassy and street-smart lead. Other memorable performances: Walter Connolly and Verree Teasdale, the perfect neglectful wife.

Verree Teasdale (March 15, 1903 – February 17, 1987). Teasdale attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn and trained as a stage actress at the New York School of Expression.

She first performed on Broadway in 1924 and performed there regularly until 1932. After co-starring in the play, The Constant Wife with Ethel Barrymore in 1926-27, she was offered a film contract, and her first film, Syncopation, was released in 1929.

Teasdale appeared older than her physical age, which enabled her to play bored society wives, scheming other women and second leads in comedies such as, Roman Scandals (1933).

 In 1935 she married actor Adolphe Menjou, and they remained together until his death in 1963. Teasdale and Menjou performed together in two films, the Harold Lloyd vehicle The Milky Way in 1936 and Hal Roach's Turnabout in 1940, and were also co-hosts of a syndicated radio program in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Teasdale retired after the radio program finished its run, keeping busy with her hobby of costume design.


 

6 comments:

  1. I love this movie! Almost everything Ginger was ever in was amazing!

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  2. I only recently discovered Veree Teasdale in Come Live With Me, and it made me want to see more of her work. I love it when you discover a character actor and it's exciting seeing them popping up in films. Hope your blogging problems resolve soon, good luck

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  3. I'm so mad I forgot to DVR it this morning. Sounds like I missed a wonderful film.

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  4. I love Verree Teasdale! I first saw her in Fashions of 1934, singing "Spin a Little Web of Dreams" (the song is on Youtube and really worth watching!), then 5th Avenue Girl and have been searching for her films since then - so far I've seen Turnabout, Goodbye Love, The Milky Way, Skyscraper Souls and Roman Scandals. It's so nice to see someone appreciating her as no-one else I know has ever heard of her!

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  5. Marcela Costa, I agree.. Ginger, really lit up the screen.

    Alyssa LM, I really enjoyed spotlighting the not very well known actress, Veree Teasdale. I will be looking for more of her performances.

    Amanda, I will keep an eye out for the next showing of "5th Ave Girl(1939)", and let you know. I think it is worth seeing.

    callmemadam, Thank you for letting us know about the "Spin a Little Web of Dreams" video. I will add it to the bottom of my post.

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  6. I really like "5th Ave Girl" but I really LOVE that first photo of Ginger. I've never seen that photo of her before - what a stunner! Thanks for posting.

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