Bachelor Mother (1939).

Bachelor Mother (1939). A comedy directed by Garson Kanin. Cast: Ginger Rogers, David Niven and Charles Coburn. The screenplay was written by Norman Krasna based on an Academy Award nominated story by Felix Jackson (aka Felix Joachimson) written for the 1935 Austrian-Hungarian film Little Mother. It was remade in 1956 as Bundle of Joy, starring Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher.

After her work day at Merlin's department store, salesgirl Polly Parrish watches as a woman leaves her baby on a foundling's home doorstep. Then thought by the attendants working there that she's the mother. After saying that she is not the baby's mother, Polly leaves the orphanage, but the people from the home, not believing her... track her down at work.

Feeling sorry for the "unwed mother," the boss's playboy son, David Merlin, gives her a better paying job in the toy department. When Polly still says that the baby does not belong to her, David threatens to fire her, she changes her story. Polly, takes to motherhood and names the baby boy, Johnnie.

Meanwhile, David, can not get them out of his mind and love begins to bloom.

Things become complicated when a disgruntled shipping clerk Freddie Miller sends a note to J. B. Merlin claiming that Johnnie's father is his son David.

Wanting a grandson, J. B. threatens to take the baby from Polly. Not wanting to lose her baby, Polly convinces her landlady's son to pretend to be the baby's father and as she visits J. B. to introduce him as the baby's father, David appears with Freddie, claiming that the shipping clerk is Johnnie's real father. Confronted by two fathers, J. B. remains unconvinced of the baby's parentage. As Polly prepares to flee, David proposes, and all ends happily as Polly and David plan to marry and adopt baby Johnnie.

This charming light-hearted film, is my favorite version of Bachelor Mother. The plot is full of fun mistaken identities. Also, it is a little different to see Ginger Rogers, perform in a film where she does not dance or sing..

 

Frank Albertson (February 2, 1909 – February 29, 1964) was a character actor who made his debut in a minor part in Hollywood at the age of thirteen. As he worked as a laboratory assistant in a photographic shop, which resulted in meeting the right people to get him started in his acting career.

He served in the U.S. Army Air Forces' First Motion Picture Unit making training films during World War II.

In his early career he often sang and danced in such films as: Just Imagine (1930) and A Connecticut Yankee (1931).

He landed a part in Alice Adams (1935) as the title character's brother and in, Room Service (1938) with the Marx Brothers.

As he aged he moved from featured roles to supporting and character partas Sam Wainwright, the businessman who said, "Hee-Haw" in the movie, It's a Wonderful Life (1946).

Albertson portrayed future U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt in the 1956 episode "Rough Rider" of the CBS western television series, My Friend Flicka.

He guest starred in the early NBC western series, The Californians and twice in the David Janssen crime drama, Richard Diamond, Private Detective.

He was cast in 1959 and 1962 in different roles on Walter Brennan's sitcom, The Real McCoys.

In 1960, He appeared as General Devery in the episode "Strange Encounter" of the ABC/Warner Brothers western series Colt .45.

In 1960, he played the wealthy rancher, Tom Cassidy, at the beginning of Psycho (1960), who provides the $40,000 in cash that Janet Leigh's character later steals.

In the 1960-1961 television season, he played the character Mr. Cooper in five episodes of the CBS sitcom, Bringing Up Buddy, starring Frank Aletter.

In 1964, Albertson was cast as Jim O'Neal in the episode "The Death of a Teacher" of the NBC education drama, Mr. Novak.

One of his final screen appearances was as "Sam," the bewildered mayor of Sweet Apple, Ohio, in the 1963 musical Bye Bye Birdie.

Please Don't Eat The Daisies(1960).

Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960). Comedy. Cast: Doris Day and David Niven. Director: Charles Walters. Produced by Joe Pasternak, with Martin Melcher (Day's husband) as associate producer. The screenplay, partly inspired by the book of the same name by Jean Kerr, a collection of humorous essays, was by Isobel Lennart. The film also features Janis Paige, Spring Byington, Richard Haydn, Patsy Kelly, and Jack Weston. A television series starring Patricia Crowley and Mark Miller premiered five years later and ran for 58 episodes.

Drama professor, Lawrence Mackay, first job, as as a New York newspaper theater critic, is to review his old friend, producer Alfred North's, new Broadway musical.

On opening night, Larry's wife Kate, is visited by wannabe, playwright and cab driver, Joe Positano, who wants Larry to read his play. After Kate tries settling down her four boys, with no luck.. agrees to tell Larry about the play.

Kate meets up with Larry, while is giving his last lecture as a professor, knowing he has become a critic, his students believe he will put down every performance he reviews, just to help his own career.

Alfred's new show is terrible, Larry feels guilty, that he has to tell the truth about his friend's play.

The next morning, Alfred runs over to the apartment upset about the review, Larry tries to calm his friend.

Later, while Larry and Kate have breakfast at a restaurant, Deborah Vaughn, the star of Alfred's show, walks in and slaps Larry in front of a cameraman who captures the moment on film.

Soon the picture makes front-page headlines and Larry, decides to publish a column with the photo claiming the shows popularity failed, not because of Deborah's bad performance but on her derriere.

Days later at a cocktail party, Larry is the center of attention while Kate is ignored. When Deborah arrives at the cocktail party, she heads straight over to Larry to apologize hoping that he will reconsider his opinion of her derriere. As Kate prepares to leave the party, Alfred warns Kate that Larry is on his way to the "downelator" becoming a critic who thinks his own jokes are better than any play. As they leave, Larry makes fun of the play opening that evening.

At home after seeing the play, angry/worried Kate asks Larry if he disliked the play before seeing it. Larry promises to her he had given the play an honest review.

Days later, as Larry reads Joe's biblical play and criticizes him for writing about a subject he does not know anything about. Offended, Joe tells Larry that he is not the same man he used to be and storms out.

Soon after, Larry and Kate learn that the lease on their apartment is about up and talk about their plans to move to a large house outside the city. Now, that Larry is a success, he wants to live in the city. Using her feminine wiles, Kate agrees that his work comes first and calls the entire family a "parasite". Larry charmed by her agrees to the move.

 

With not many choices in their price range, the family moves into a huge fixer upper of a house in Hooten, 70 miles outside New York. When Community leaders ask Larry and Kate to help them find a play for the local theater group, Larry says that he has no time.

Later in the city, Deborah finds Larry and makes a pass at him, but Larry refuses and then returns home.

On the children's first day of school, Larry refuses to volunteer, claiming the school is performing "moral blackmail."

The next day, when community leaders once again ask for a suggestion on a play, Kate calls Alfred for help. Alfred sees an opportunity to get even with Larry. Will he be successful getting even with Larry?

This is one of my favorite Doris Day movies. I feel it captures her best performances as a mother. Doris interaction with the children is hilarious, she's so natural with them.

 And of course, the musical numbers are fluffy, but that was what we loved about her. Niven makes a wonderful husband for Doris. I also loved Janis Page performance in this film as she was the top billed female in Doris first film, Romance on the High Seas. Spring Byington is fantastic as the grandmother. I think Anyone who loves Doris Day will also say this one of their favorite movies.

Fun Facts: The musical number Kate rehearses for the amateur show ("Any Way The Wind Blows," music by Marilyn Hooven and Joseph Hooven, lyrics by 'By Dunham') had been written for Doris Day movie, Pillow Talk (1959).

After Doris Day and Janis Paige first had worked together in Romance on the High Seas (1948), Miss Paige performed on Broadway as, Babe Williams, in the Tony Award-winning musical of 1954, "The Pajama Game."

When Warner Bros., the former home lot of Janis and Doris, recast Babe Williams for the delightful 1957 film version, Babe then turned into - Doris Day!

Beginning her film career portraying Katharine Hepburn's mother in Little Women (1933), Spring Byington closed her movie years playing Doris Day's mother in this film.

Please Don't Eat the Daisies is a collection of funny essays by playwright Jean Kerr about suburban living and raising four boys. The essays do not have a plot or through-storyline, but the book sold so well it was later adapted into a film starring Doris Day and David Niven. The film was later adapted into a television series starring Patricia Crowley and Mark Miller.

Dodsworth (1936).

Dodsworth(1936). Drama film directed by William Wyler. Sidney Howard based the screenplay on his 1934 stage adaptation of the 1929 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis. Cast: Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Mary Astor, David Niven, Baron Kurt Von Obersdorf, Spring Byington.

After Sam Dodsworth, a successful business man, sells his company he makes plans for a glamours European trip with his social climbing wife, Fran.



Sam, does not fit in with Fran's new friends and when she begins an affair, he heads for home. When her affair ends she decides to go back to her husband Sam, for a short time, until she begins another affair with a much younger man, Kurt von Obersdorf.

Sam, is traveling alone in Naples, when he runs into Edith Cortwright, who he first met on the voyage to Europe. Edith, invites Sam to lunch at her villa and then asks him to stay.

Kurt's mother, does not want her son to marry Fran, because of the age difference. Heartbroken, Fran returns to Sam, but just as they are about to sail for America, he realizes that he is in love with Edith and wants to go back to her.

The film Dodsworth, shows the emotionally sad ending of a marriage.. David Niven, does a wonderful job with one of his first performances. The costumes are absolutely beautiful in a film that you will not soon forget.

Ruth Chatterton (December 24, 1892 – November 24, 1961), moved to Hollywood with her husband Forbes in 1928 and with the help of Emil Jannings, was cast in her first film, Sins of the Fathers.

That same year she was signed to a contract by Paramount Pictures. This was followed by films: The Doctor's Secret (1929), The Dummy (1929) and Madame X (1929). She received her first nomination for Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the latter film.

The following year she received a second Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her role in, Sarah and Son (1930).

She co-starred in the film, Dodsworth (1936), which is thought of as her best film.

Due to her age and the studios' focus on younger actress, she moved to England and continued to star in films there.

Chatterton's last film was, A Royal Divorce(1938).

Happy Birthday: David Niven!

David Niven (1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983), was a British actor, who found that he needed a work permit, to work in the U.S. Niven, moved to Mexico and earned a living cleaning rifles. When he received his Resident Alien Visa from the American Consulate, he moved back to the U.S. where he was then accepted by Central Casting. He hired agent: Bill Hawks, who found him several small parts, including a non-speaking part in the film, Mutiny on the Bounty.

Niven, soon met film producer Samuel Goldwyn, who signed him to a contract. He had supporting roles in the films: Rose-Marie (1936), Dodsworth (1936), The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), The Prisoner of Zenda (1937), The Dawn Patrol (1938), Three Blind Mice (1938), and Wuthering Heights (1939). He co-starred with Ginger Rogers in the film, Bachelor Mother(1939) and starred as the safe-cracker in the film, Raffles(1939). Is one of several film adaptations of an 1899 novel by E. W. Hornung, Raffles, the Amateur Cracksman. The thief known as "The Amateur Cracksman", is really cricket star A. J. Raffles, who has to live a life of crime to support his life style. When Raffles falls in love with Gwen Manders, he hangs up his life of crime until Gwen's brother Bunny, tells him that he needs to pay back the money he embezzled and lost at gambling.

While staying at Crawshay's home Raffles, quickly learns that he, is making plans to steal Lady Melrose's emerald necklace. Raffles some how gets the necklace from Crawshay, who is arrested by the police. The next morning, Raffles leaves for London to sell the necklace and Gwen overhears the inspector setting a trap for him. She goes to warn Raffles, but is too late, the inspector springs his trap and arrests Raffles with the necklace. Will Raffles, get away with his crime?



After a small break, he resumed his career in 1946, now only in starring roles. A Matter of Life and Death (1946), The Bishop's Wife (1947), and Enchantment (1948). The widowed patriarch of the Dane family adopts a young girl named Larke, whose parents have been killed in a train wreck. As the sons of the family, grow into young men they find themselves in love with the same girl.

Niven had a complex relationship with Goldwyn, who gave him his first break. There was a period of time when Niven was barred from the Hollywood studios. In 1951 to 1956, he made 11 movies, of which two were MGM productions. However, Niven won a Golden Globe Award for his work in the film, The Moon Is Blue (1953).

Niven's film career took off in 1956, when he starred as Phileas Fogg in, Around the World in 80 Days.

Niven won a Academy Award for Best Actor for the film, Separate Tables(1958) he was also a co-host of the 30th, 31st and 46th Academy Awards ceremonies. After his Academy Award, Niven's career began to improve and Niven performed in the films: The Guns of Navarone (1961), The Pink Panther (1963), Murder By Death (1976), Death on the Nile (1978), and The Sea Wolves (1980).

Blake Edwards brought Niven back for cameo appearances in two final "Pink Panther" movies (Trail of the Pink Panther and Curse of the Pink Panther), reprising his role as Sir Charles Litton. By this time, Niven was having serious health problems. His voice was inaudible and his lines were dubbed by Rich Little. This was his last film performance.

List of David Niven movies I have seen:

Cleopatra (1934)
Barbary Coast (1935)
The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936)
Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (1938)
The Dawn Patrol (1938)
Wuthering Heights (1939) Please click here to view Wuthering Heights movie review.
Bachelor Mother (1939)
Eternally Yours (1939)
The Bishop's Wife (1947)
Around the World in 80 Days (1956)
My Man Godfrey (1957)
Separate Tables (1958)
Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960) Please click her to view Please Dont Eat the Daisies movie review.
The Guns of Navarone (1961)

Eternally Yours(1939)

Eternally Yours (1939). Director: Tay Garnett. Cast: Loretta Young, David Niven, Broderick Crawford, Billie Burke, Eve Arden, Hugh Herbert, C. Aubrey Smith, Virginia Field, Zasu Pitts, Raymond Walburn.

While Anita is making plans to marry Don, she meets Tony a magician and they fall in love and marry. Anita goes on the road with Tony’s act, even performing in his show with him. But his stunts become more and more dangerous and Anita can no longer take it. She divorces him and to get over the heartbreak, she marries Don. But Anita can’t escape Tony for long and not long after her wedding they’re stuck at the same party together.

The first half of the movie is very charming. David Niven, was quite impressive as a dare devil magician, who becomes torn between his fans and his commitment to his wife, which makes for a very interesting love story. Niven and Young, have wonderful on screen chemistry.

 

Virginia Field (November 4, 1917 – January 2, 1992) was a British-born film actress who performed in over 40 films including: Ladies in Love (1936), Waterloo Bridge (1940), Repeat Performance (1947), A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949) and Dial 1119 (1950).

She started her film career in England then was brought to the U.S. to perform in, Little Lord Fauntleroy (1936). In the late 1930's she performed in various parts in, Mr. Moto movie series.

Fields married three times, including a marriage to actor Paul Douglas and a marriage to actor Willard Parker.

My Man Godfrey (1957).

My Man Godfrey (1957) . Comedy. June Allyson and David Niven. It is a remake of Gregory La Cava's 1936 comedy of the same name.

Allyson played the role created by Carole Lombard  and Niven played the William Powell role. The plot begins as a scatterbrained heiress, who uses and then hires a man whom she believes to be homeless. She gives him a job as the family's butler. The family's  does not know  their new butler, is actually as wealthy as they are.

The supporting cast: Jessie Royce Landis, Robert Keith and Eva Gabor. It was adapted by Peter Berneis, William Bowers and Everett Freeman, and directed by Henry Koster.

Jessie Royce Landis (November 25, 1896 - February 2, 1972). In the 1950s, she began appearing in movies as a character actress, best known in, To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959), both starring Cary Grant and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In North by Northwest she played Grant's character's mother and in To Catch a Thief she played Grace Kelly's mother.

List of Jessie Royce Landis films:

1949 Mr. Belvedere Goes to College
It Happens Every Spring
My Foolish Heart
1955 To Catch a Thief
1956 The Swan
1957 My Man Godfrey
1958 I Married a Woman
1959 North by Northwest (pictured below)
1961 Goodbye Again
1962 Boys' Night Out
1963 Critic's Choice
Gidget Goes to Rome
1970 Airport