Welcome to February on the blog. In honor of Valentine's Day, for the next two weeks we'll be celebrating love. So, get ready for all your favorite ooey, gooey, romantic movies. To start things off, 1939's "Love Affair" tells the story of two people who meet on a trans-Atlantic crossing. After falling in love, they plan to meet on top of the Empire State Building in six months. Fate, however, intervenes, and throws their plans awry.
The film's cast includes Irene Dunne, Charles Boyer, Maria Ouspenskaya, Lee Bowman, Astrid Allwyn, Maurice Moscovitch, Joan Leslie, and Ferike Boros.
Suave international playboy Michel Marnay and American nightclub singer Terry McKay are traveling from Europe to New York. They meet on board ship one evening by chance. Having heard all about Michel's antics at a party on Lake Como, Terry is a little bit fascinated to meet the man in person. "Look, I'm in trouble, serious trouble," he tells. She looks at him and says, "Well, I could've told you, playing around Lake Como."
The two get to talking and discover they enjoy each other's company quite a lot. And they've got a delightful banter that goes back and forth.
They start spending all their time together and telling each other about their backgrounds. "What's the name of that strange place you came from?" Michel asks. "Kansas," says Terry proudly. In the evenings, they enjoy pink champagne before dinner (which became a very popular drink as a direct result of this film).
At a stopover in Madeira, Michel invites Terry to visit his grandmother, Janou.
Even though both are involved with other people back home, Janou takes an instant liking to Terry, and implies that she is the one for Michel. "There’s many a slip betwixt the lip and the
altar. And anything could happen on a boat," she says before the two head back to their ship.
On board the ship that night, Terry says, "I want to thank you for what was undoubtedly the loveliest day I've ever known." The two start a romantic relationship. "We're heading into a rough sea, Michel," says Terry. He agrees, "We changed our course today."
On the day the ship arrives in New York, Terry and Michel agree to meet in six months time on the top floor of the Empire State Building. If they can tie up all their loose ends and everything works out, they will be together.
During the months they are apart, Terry breaks up with her boyfriend and takes a job singing in a nightclub in Philadelphia. Michel breaks things off with his fiancée and takes up work as a painter.
On the day they are to meet, Michel is at the designated place waiting a little impatiently for Terry to join him.
Unfortunately, Terry has an accident as she attempts to enter the building and cannot make it. When she wakes up, she doesn't want Michel to be told of her condition. Michel, extremely hurt and upset, buries himself in his work. Eventually, his grandmother dies and he is given her shawl, which she wanted Terry to have after her death. Michel paints Terry with the shawl on. Through a dealer, he sells the painting to a woman in a wheelchair, whom he does not know.
As part of her recovery, Terry takes a job teaching music. She has her little group sing "Wishing Will Make It So". (In reality, Irene Dunne was told she could pick the song. She chose "Wishing" and it became one of the top songs of 1939.)
When Terry feels strong enough, she goes to the theater with her old boyfriend. There, she comes face to face with Michel. "Hello," she murmurs as he passes her the purse she dropped. He returns her greeting and walks out.
"It’s tough.
The first time you’re able to get out and you have to meet him," says her former boyfriend Kenneth. "All I could say was hello," sighs Terry.
Unexpectedly, one day Michel comes to visit Terry, who is lying on the couch. He tries to make sense of why she never came that day they were supposed to meet, but she refuses to answer questions. He gives her his grandmother's shawl and tells her that he painted her in it. He becomes very suspicious of why Terry does not get up from the couch and starts to walk around the apartment a bit.
He finds the portrait he painted that was sold to a woman in a wheelchair, and Michel realizes that Terry was the woman.
With tears in his eyes Michel turns to Terry and takes her in his arms. "If you can paint, I can walk," Terry says, and they share a laugh together.
And that's it for Love Affair. Both Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne later said that this was their favorite of any of the movies either of them made. It was remade in 1957 as "An Affair To Remember", starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, and again in 1994 as "Love Affair", starring Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, and Katharine Hepburn.
Since this movie is in the public domain, you can watch it in its entirety here.
Coming up next is 1936's "Stowaway", starring Shirley Temple, Robert Young, and Alice Faye. An American orphan in China arrives in Shanghai without any guardians. When she stows away on a boat, she meets two people whom she would love to become her family. (Side note: This is my favorite Shirley Temple movie EVER). The film's supporting cast includes Eugene Pallette, Helen Westley, Arthur Treacher, Allan Lane, J. Edward Bromberg, Astrid Allwyn, Philip Ahn, Helen Jerome Eddy, and Ching-Ching.
Great unrest in the Chinese village of Sanchow necessitates the evacuation of its residents. One American orphan in the care of missionaries who do not wish to evacuate is smuggled out of the village by someone very concerned for her safety.
Her name is Ching-Ching. She goes around saying things like "Friendship is a tree of shelter from the rains of trouble." Everyone loves her. She is given a small amount of money to help her when she reaches Shanghai. The only thing she takes with her is her little dog, Mr. Wu.
When they reach Shanghai, Ching-Ching finds that all her money is stolen and she doesn't have anything to feed her little puppy. So, she begins to wander the streets.
She meets a wealthy American and acts as a translator for him in a local souvenir shop.
His name is Tommy Randall, and he takes an instant liking to Ching-Ching. He finds out a little bit about her, and then invites her to lunch.
Ching-Ching is only too glad to get the chance to get a meal for herself and Mr. Wu. Since she speaks Chinese, she orders for them all. When she finds out that Tommy has money, she orders TWO soup bones for her dog instead of one.
Tommy says he wants to straighten Ching-Ching's living situation out, but first he's got to meet some friends. He tells her to wait in the car for him.
It starts to rain. So, Ching-Ching and Mr. Wu hop into the rumble seat and close it up so they don't get wet. Ching-Ching eventually falls asleep.
Tommy looks all over but can't find them. He drives his car back to the cruise ship he is a passenger on and it is loaded on board. Ching-Ching is still sound asleep in the rumble seat.
When she wakes up, she finds that she's on the ship and get's scared. She puts on a dragon head souvenir she finds in the rumble seat in order to disguise herself.
She begins to roam the halls of the ship. Mr. Wu follows her. Ching-Ching still has no idea that Tommy is on board. Passengers see her in her mask. They definitely are surprised.
She runs into an open cabin and hides in the bathroom. The poor thing is frightened to death.
Eventually, she and Mr. Wu are discovered. The cabin belongs to Mrs. Hope and her soon-to-be daughter-in-law Susan. Mrs. Hope is mean, domineering, and crotchety. Susan, on the other hand, sympathizes with Ching-Ching and is anxious to help her.
Ching-Ching tells her about Tommy Randall. Susan takes her to Tommy along with the Captain. Tommy says he'll be only too glad to pay for her passage. The Captain says that's fine, but he's got to alert the authorities in China about Ching-Ching.
Meanwhile, Tommy gives his manservant a dressing down for not telling him such a beautiful woman as Susan was on the ship. "The most beautiful girl in the world is on this ship, and you never told me. Men have been court martialed for less," he says. The butler, Atkins, replies, "Begging your pardon, sir, but you don't usually have to be told."
Tommy and Susan take dual charge of Ching-Ching. After she goes to bed, they go out for a night on the ship. They dance and Susan even sings a bit. It's an instant attraction that both of them can feel.
Mrs. Hope notices it, too. She sends a telegram to her son and tells him to join them as soon as possible when they land in Hong Kong.
In Hong Kong, Tommy, Susan, and Ching-Ching spend the day together sightseeing, shopping, and even seeing a show.
It's sort of a talent show, and Ching-Ching gets up on stage and wows the audience with her rendition of "You Got To S-M-I-L-E" and her impersonations of Al Jolson, Eddie Cantor, and Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
While Ching-Ching is singing, Tommy and Susan clap along supportively from the audience. (It's really a well-done sequence and very humorous.)
After the show, they run into Mrs. Hope and her son, who happens to be Susan's fiance, just as Tommy happens to be carrying Susan over a very muddy section of street. Susan goes back to the ship with them, and Tommy and Ching-Ching continue to walk around Hong Kong.
A mix-up lands them in jail, but they make it out just in time to catch the ship before it leaves.
Tommy is sad because Ching-Ching has to get off the boat and go to an orphanage. He tells Susan that he wants to do something so that he can keep Ching-Ching and give her a home. Susan also wants to help her, but her fiance wants nothing to do with the scheme. Susan gets mad (also because Mrs. Hope keeps interfering in the relationship) and breaks her engagement.
Tommy says goodbye to Ching-Ching as she and Mr. Wu prepare to leave the ship.
Just before she leaves, Tommy gets the chance to talk to Susan. He tells her they can be married to save Ching-Ching. They'll have a better chance of keeping her if they're married. After the adoption is through, Susan can go to Reno and get a divorce. Tommy begs her to think about it quickly. She doesn't have to think. She wants to help, and quickly says yes.
Ching-Ching is brought back on board, and Tommy and Susan are married that very evening.
Of course, Mrs. Hope and her son walk in just as the wedding ceremony is going on. He is not happy with his mother for interfering with him and Susan and now sees the consequence.
That night, Tommy expresses how glad he is to Susan for what she's done. After he leaves her for the night, Susan realizes she loves Tommy.
Tommy, feeling grateful but sad about his platonic marriage to Susan, mopes about on deck. Susan sings "One Never Knows, Does One?" next to a window.
Tommy smiles as he listens to Susan sing. (It's worth it to hear Alice Faye's rich voice sing this song.)
Several months later after the adoption is finalized, it's back to court for divorce proceedings. Susan has been living in Reno and hasn't seen Tommy or Ching-Ching in a while. She's overjoyed to see them. The judge wants to talk to Ching-Ching alone, so Tommy and Susan have a few moments by themselves.
Tommy still loves her, but he finds that Susan is engaged again to Richard Hope, who has promised to leave his mother out of their affairs.
All's well that ends well, though, when during the court proceedings, the judge gets Tommy and Susan to admit that they love each other. He denies their motion for divorce. Ching-Ching is delighted to have the family she's dreamed about. Cast rundown:
Helen Westley................................Mrs. Hope
Arthur Treacher..............................Atkins
Allan Lane.....................................Richard Hope
J. Edward Bromberg.......................Judge J.D. Booth
Astrid Allwyn.................................Kay Swift
Philip Ahn......................................Sun Lo
Helen Jerome Eddy.........................Mrs. Kruikshank
Ching-Ching..................................Mr. Wu And that's all for Stowaway. The little dog in the film was gifted to Shirley Temple after the completion of the movie. She renamed it "Ching-Ching" after her film character.
A bonus scene occurs after the penultimate courtroom scene. Since this film was released on Christmas Day, Ching-Ching sings "That's What I Want For Christmas" in her new family home with her new parents. As always, if you wish to leave a comment, please remember our posting rules.
