Calamity Jane (1953)

 

Calamity Jane - 1953

Coming up next is 1953's "Calamity Jane", a musical comedy about that firecracker of the west Calamity Jane and her adventures in Deadwood City, Dakota Territory.   Let's get started, Whip Crack Away!

The film's cast includes Doris Day, Howard Keel, Allyn McLerie, Philip Carey, Dick Wesson, Paul Harvey, Gale Robbins, and Bess Flowers.

Calamity Jane, fearless with a gun, sees in the Deadwood Stage and sings its praises as she escorts the stage home to Deadwood City, Dakota Territory.

Her best friend is Wild Bill Hickok, also legendary in his own right.  "I'm glad to say he's a very good friend of a friend of mine," sings Calam with a twinkle in her eye.

In matters of the heart, Calamity has her heard set on Lt. Danny Gilmartin, whom she must rescue from the clutches of an Indian war party.

After rescuing Danny, Calam has to go to Chicago to bring an actress (Adelaide Adams) back to Deadwood to perform at the saloon.  Bill tells her to pay attention to how woman dress and fix their hair while she's in Chicago.  He laughs as he watches the coach depart.

Calam brings back someone, but it isn't Adelaide Adams.  It's her maid, Katie Brown, masquerading as the famous actress.  All the men in Deadwood are keen to pay their attentions to "Miss Adams".  (The truth later comes out, and they are just as eager to show attention to Katie.)

Everyone wants to know about Calamity's trip to Chicago.  "Boys," she starts, "Chicagie's the biggest noise in Illinois".  Then she launches into a song describing "The Windy City".

Calamity takes Katie to room with her at her one room cabin.  As she walks around, Katie isn't impressed.  The place definitely needs something.

It needs "A Woman's Touch".  Katie gets busy scrubbing up the place and with it Calamity, too.

Although, Calamity can't keep clean long enough to impress any callers.  When Danny and Bill come to visit, Calam thinks something's up.  "Well, gosh amighty, look who's here.  What brung you to this neck of the woods?  Injun trouble?" she asks seriously.  The boys actually came over to ask the girls to a dance.  Danny goes with Katie, and Bill winds up with Calamity.

On the way to the dance, the group sings "Take Me Back To The Black Hills" (my personal favorite song of the film).  Bill compliments Calamity on her coat.  "It was Custer's, Bill.  Gave it to me hisself.  If it was good enough for Custer, it oughta be good enough for Fort Scully," she says matter-of-factly.

Once at the dance, nobody, especially Bill, can believe how different Calamity is in an evening gown.

Eventually, Bill and Calam realize their feelings for one another and share a kiss.

Later, Calamity sings to the world how her "Secret Love" is no secret anymore.

The film ends with a double wedding (Bill and Calam's and Danny and Katie's) and also a medley of all the songs from the movie.  The couple's drive away in a coach that proclaims them to be "Just Hitched".

Cast rundown:

   Doris Day.....................................Calamity Jane

   Howard Keel.................................Wild Bill Hickok

   Allyn McLerie................................Katie Brown

   Philip Carey..................................Lt. Danny Gilmartin

   Dick Wesson.................................Francis Fryer

   Paul Harvey..................................Henry Miller

   Gale Robbins................................Adelaide Adams

   Bess Flowers.................................Officer's Wife

And that's it for Calamity Jane.  Doris Day proclaimed this to be her personal favorite out of all of the films she made during her time on the silver screen.  She filmed the song "Secret Love" in only one take.  Day's performance as Calamity Jane inspired was the inspiration for the character "Jessie" from the Toy Story franchise.

As always, if you wish to leave a comment, please remember our posting rules.

The Girl Who Had Everything (1953)

 

The Girl Who Had Everything - 1953

Coming up next is 1953's "The Girl Who Had Everything", a story about a young woman who throws away the safe man she's been dating for a worldly and dashing whose connections with the darker side of life make him exciting.

The film's cast includes Elizabeth Taylor, Fernando Lamas, William Powell, Gig Young, James Whitmore, Robert Burton, Bill Walker, and Paul Harvey.

Meet Jean Latimer, a young woman who has the world at her feet.  She resides in Lexington, Kentucky.

Her father, Steve, is a very successful defense attorney, and he's tried to provide Jean with the life he feels she deserves.

Jean's also got a boyfriend, Vance Court, who thinks the world of her and would do anything to marry her.

Her father Steve agrees to defend Victor Raimondi who runs a gambling ring.  He's being tried for the crimes of gambling and organized crime.

Before the trial is set to begin, Jean's boyfriend Vance asks her to marry him yet again.  Jean tells him that she's not ready to be married, and casually breaks his heart once more.

After the trial is over and Victor is assured a successful outcome, he meets Jean.  The two hit it off instantly, and they are swept up in a whirlwind romance.

Jean becomes very impressed when he starts to throw his money around, buying a mansion with which Jean is very familiar sight unseen.  He even buys her a $20,000 race horse!

Vance objects to Jean seeing Victor, but she basically tells him she's going to continue seeing him whether he likes it or not.

Steve warns Jean about the kind of man that Victor is and the kind of circles he runs in.  Jean tells her father that she can't help what she feels about him.

The more time that Jean spends with Victor, the more she sees things that her father warned her about.  They have an argument, but Jean still can't help feeling attracted to him.  Eventually, they get engaged.

Steve and Jean continue to disagree about Victor.  He asks her to spend some time with him in the Smoky Mountains in order to put some distance between herself and the relationship.  Jean agrees.

In the Smokies, Jean spends every minute thinking about Victor.  After a few days, she can stand it no longer and she returns to Lexington and Victor.

Jean is very saddened when Steve won't give his blessing to her marriage to Victor.  She leaves the house without it.

A friend of Victor's comes with a newspaper headline that says the case against him will be reopened because of some new evidence from a mystery witness.

Victor is furious when he finds out that the mystery witness is actually Steve, who has evidence of a multitude of sins that goes way beyond gambling.  Now, it's allegations of murder.

He lets his true colors show and violently attacks both Steve and Jean.  Jean realizes her mistake and leaves him.  Eventually, Victor is shot and killed while walking down the street.  As Steve said, "What is there to say about him?  Raimondi was a gambler.  He lost."

Jean reconciles with her father and comes to realize that maybe settling down to an ordinary sort of life isn't so horrible after all.

Cast rundown:

   Elizabeth Taylor...............................Jean Latimer

   Fernando Lamas..............................Victor Y. Raimondi

   William Powell.................................Steve Latimer

   Gig Young.......................................Vance Court

   James Whitmore.............................Charles "Chico" Menlow

   Robert Burton.................................John Ashmond

   Bill Walker.......................................Julian

   Paul Harvey.....................................Senator Drummond

And that's it for The Girl Who Had Everything.  Though this movie did decently at the box office and starred two of Hollywood's big draws (Elizabeth Taylor and William Powell), it went unnoticed by critics, including those at The New York Times.  Elizabeth Taylor was expecting her first child at the time of the film's production.

As always, if you wish to leave a comment, please remember our posting rules.