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Princess O'Rourke - 1943
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Coming up next we have 1943's "Princess O'Rourke", the story of an exiled foreign princess living in America. She falls for an average American guy and now has to convince her handlers that he's the right man for her.
The film's cast includes Olivia de Havilland, Robert Cummings, Charles Coburn, Jack Carson, Jane Wyman, Harry Davenport, Gladys Cooper, Minor Watson, Julie Bishop, Frank Puglia, Ferike Boros, Nydia Westman, Nana Bryant, and Fala.
Exiled Princess Maria (of an unknown foreign country) is living in America. To make sure the royal line continues, she's instructed to get married and do so quickly. The trouble is: she's not interested in any of the pre-approved candidates.
On an incognito trip across the country from New York to California, the princess (traveling as Mary Williams) is given sleeping pills to help calm her nerves. Not only does she take what she's given, she keeps taking the pills like they are candy, accepting them from everyone who passes by.
When the plane is diverted back to New York because of bad weather, "Mary" is by now fast asleep and nothing can rouse her. The plane's crew don't have any idea who she is or how to help her.
One of the pilots, Eddie O'Rourke, helps her out. He takes her to his apartment, where she sleeps off the incredible amount of sleeping pills she's taken.
After checking in with her staff the next day, "Mary" spends the day with Eddie and his friends, Dave and Jean Campbell. Jean takes her to a Red Cross meeting, where she volunteers to be a "dummy" and get bandaged by practicing nurses.
When the group wants to know more about her background, "Mary" tells them that she's a war refugee on her way to San Francisco to work as an upstairs maid.
The two couples go dancing, and Eddie and "Mary" start to fall in love with each other.
By the end of the evening, Eddie impulsively asks "Mary" to marry him. She hesitates but is ultimately persuaded to say yes to his proposal.
When Princess Maria tells her staff about the engagement, they decide that it would be good for her to marry an American, which will strengthen relations between their two countries. One of her staff, Holman, has already done some investigating about Eddie through a Secret Service agent who has been following them. And it seems that Eddie comes from a family that produces a large number of male children, something that delights Holman, who persuades Maria's father, the King, to give the union his blessing.
Naturally, Eddie has to be told the truth of the situation. And when he finds out that "Mary Williams" is actually a princess, he is absolutely flabbergasted. The surprises don't stop there. President Franklin D. Roosevelt has invited the couple to The White House to personally give them his good wishes.
On the way down to Washington, Eddie is given a tutorial in what is expected of a future "prince consort" by a member of the State Department. Naturally, he struggles with grasping all the nuances of the position.
Once at The White House, Maria introduces Eddie to the president's dog, Fala. She gives him a personal tour of the upstairs living quarters and even shows him the Lincoln Bedroom where the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
As Eddie learns more about what is expected of him as Maria's husband, he finds out that he must give up his American citizenship, something he isn't prepared to do for any reason. "I'm not giving up any American citizenship. I've never gotten over how lucky I was to be
born here in the first place," he says. Eventually, Holman forces Eddie to leave The White House and he locks Maria in the Lincoln Bedroom.
While locked in the Lincoln Bedroom, Maria writes a letter to President Roosevelt. She slips it through the door so Fala can take it to his master.
The next thing you know, Eddie is back at The White House, and so is a Supreme Court justice. Maria agrees to live a quiet life with Eddie, and the two are married in the greatest secrecy, so as not to let Holman find out about it.
As their leaving The White House, Eddie bumps into someone whom he assumes is a guard. He apologizes, and he and his new bride make their exit.
As their running across the lawn to begin their new life, Eddie says he hopes that the guard can keep quiet. Maria tells him that that was no guard. That was the president. A startled Eddie says, "The president?
Holy mackerel, I tipped him a buck!
And he took it!"
Cast rundown:
Olivia de Havilland...............................Princess Maria
Robert Cummings................................Eddie O'Rourke
Charles Coburn....................................Holman
Jack Carson........................................Dave Campbell
Jane Wyman.......................................Jean Campbell
Harry Davenport..................................Supreme Court Judge
Gladys Cooper.....................................Miss Haskell
Minor Watson......................................Mr. Washburn
Julie Bishop........................................Stewardess
Frank Puglia........................................Cafe Proprietor
Ferike Boros........................................Mrs. Anna Pulaski
Nydia Westman...................................Mrs. Bowers
Nana Bryant........................................Mrs. Mulvaney
Fala...................................................Himself
And that's it for Princess O'Rourke. Originally, the stars were to be Loretta Young and Fred MacMurray. It was during this film that Olivia de Havilland began fighting with Warner Bros. Ultimately, the "de Havilland Law" went into effect as a direct consequence. By special arrangement from President Roosevelt, the cast and crew were given limited access to The White House for filming.
President Roosevelt even allowed his dog Fala to portray himself. A Fala "double" named Whiskers was also used in places when the real Fala was unavailable.
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