Classic Films in Focus: EASTER PARADE (1948)

This colorful MGM musical includes all the bonnets and fancy new outfits one might expect from a movie called Easter Parade, but the chief attraction of the 1948 film is the pairing of two of the genre’s biggest stars, Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, as a song and dance team trying to make it big in the Ziegfeld era. The Irving Berlin tunes and supporting performances from Ann Miller and Peter Lawford also make Easter Parade a memorable springtime confection, although like most sweets - and Fred Astaire musicals - it’s a little light on substance. If, however, you’re looking for an antidote to the heavy religious epics that often dominate the Easter movie lineup, then Easter Parade is a perfect choice, a light, bright romantic romp bursting with humor and style.

Astaire pays famous hoofer Don Hewes, whose Easter celebration is cut short when his partner, Nadine (Ann Miller), announces that she’s leaving for a solo career. Determined to win Nadine back by showing her that he doesn’t need her, Don sets out to make a successful partner of the next girl he meets, who happens to be novice dancer Hannah Brown (Judy Garland). Don’s friend, Johnny (Peter Lawford), promptly falls for Hannah, but Hannah pines for Don, while Don still harbors feelings for Nadine. As one Easter gives way to the next, the performers see their careers take off, but their romantic lives remain stalled, especially after a jealous Nadine makes a public play for Don’s attention.

Two very different partners give Fred Astaire a chance to change pace in the film’s dance numbers. Ann Miller is the more powerful and assertive dancer of the two leading ladies, but Judy Garland excels at light comedy bits like “We’re a Couple of Swells” and the Vaudeville montage sequence. As singers, Miller brings the sex appeal with “Shakin’ the Blues Away,” while Garland pulls out the pathos in her rendition of “Better Luck Next Time.” Astaire’s solo performances are also a lot of fun, especially the “Drum Crazy” piece in the toy store, where Don distracts a rival customer from a stuffed Easter bunny by dancing with a whole collection of brightly painted drums. Of course, the earworm of the lot is “Easter Parade,” which you might well end up crooning for days once you hear Garland sing it.

The plot serves mostly to string the musical segments together, which helps to explain why we get so little resolution about what happens with Nadine and Johnny at the end. Astaire’s character seems headed into Pygmalion territory early on, but he realizes his mistake and stops trying to make Hannah into another Nadine, so the only remaining tension depends on the characters’ misplaced affections. Ann Miller’s stage diva is the closest thing the story has to an antagonist, but it’s really very hard to dislike her when her performances are so delightful. Nadine is shallow, uses dogs as fashion accessories, and hopes that Don and Hannah will be a flop, but Hannah imagines Nadine as much more of a threat than she really is. The handsome, young Peter Lawford ought to give the much older Astaire more competition for the heroine’s attention, but as likable as he is Lawford lacks the charisma that makes a short, balding, middle-aged dancer one of Hollywood’s greatest stars.

Be sure to appreciate the screen debut of Jules Munshin as the hilarious headwaiter; he would go on to star with Gene Kelly in Take Me Out to the Ballgame (1949) and On the Town (1949). Director Charles Walters worked with Astaire again in The Barkleys of Broadway (1949) and also directed Garland in Summer Stock (1950). Although Easter Parade is the only true pairing of Fred Astaire and Judy Garland, you’ll find both of them in separate numbers in Ziegfeld Follies (1945). See more of Peter Lawford in Good News (1947), Little Women (1949), and Royal Wedding (1951), which also stars Fred Astaire.

Classic Films in Focus: DANGEROUS WHEN WET (1953)

Musical comedies tend to be light, colorful affairs, the cinematic equivalent of cotton candy, and they have to be judged accordingly. If the picture is fun, sweet, and easy to watch, then it succeeds at its intended purpose, and Dangerous When Wet (1953) certainly fits the bill. Yes, Esther Williams is a bit of a gimmick star, a sort of aquatic Doris Day, but she has plenty of personality even when she isn’t in the water, and this particular Williams film gets a boost from a memorable supporting cast that includes Jack Carson, Fernando Lamas, William Demarest, Charlotte Greenwood, and Denise Darcel. With veteran musical director Charles Walters at the helm, Dangerous When Wet provides a fast-moving story, some unexpected twists, and a peppy energy that will keep the whole family entertained.

Williams plays Arkansas farm girl Katie Higgins, the oldest daughter in a family of fitness buffs. When tonic salesman Windy (Jack Carson) arrives in town, he convinces the Higgins clan to represent his product and enter a competition to swim the English Channel. Windy and the Higgins family travel to England and then France to prepare for the contest, but Katie becomes distracted from the race by a suave Frenchman (Fernando Lamas), while a sexy French swimmer (Denise Darcel) sets her swim cap at Windy.

In films with Doris Day and other leading ladies, Jack Carson often plays an unlikely love interest; sometimes he gets the girl and sometimes he doesn’t. Dangerous When Wet works hard to keep us in suspense about its various amours, with Windy clearly interested in Katie but then sideswiped by the more aggressive French characters. We can’t blame Windy for being attracted to Katie; her first scenes in the film amply display Williams’ robust physical charms. Fernando Lamas’ rival admirer initially comes off as something of a wolf, so we don’t know whether to root for Carson’s snake oil American or Lamas’ champagne seducer. Does Katie end up with the right guy? The movie makes us wait to find out, and I won’t spoil the ending by telling you here.

The supporting players are great fun. Crabby William Demarest and lanky Charlotte Greenwood make credible health nuts as the Higgins parents, and both are sublimely gifted physical comedians who are justly beloved by classic movie fans. Barbara Whiting provides most of the musical numbers as Katie’s younger sister, Suzie, although the family anthem is a ridiculously perky tune that gets repeated several times throughout the film. Denise Darcel puts her French accent to good use as Gigi, a rival swimmer who befriends Katie and pursues Windy with boundless joie de vivre. Stealing the picture from the human stars are cartoon icons Tom and Jerry, who appear in an underwater dream sequence with Esther Williams and an amorous octopus standing in for Fernando Lamas. Kids will enjoy the rest of the movie, but the animated sequence is a definitely a highlight that younger viewers are sure to love.

Dangerous When Wet might not be one of the greatest Hollywood musicals ever made, but it’s perfectly entertaining, and those interested in Esther Williams will find it a charming example of her signature style. For more of the swimming star, try Take Me Out to the Ballgame (1949), Neptune’s Daughter (1949), and Million Dollar Mermaid (1952). Look for Jack Carson playing similar roles opposite Doris Day in Romance on the High Seas (1948), My Dream is Yours (1949), and It’s a Great Feeling (1949). Fernando Lamas also stars in The Merry Widow (1952), Sangaree (1953), and The Lost World (1960); after three unsuccessful marriages, he married Esther Williams in real life in 1969 and remained with her until his death in 1982. Catch William Demarest playing more dads in The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944) and Viva Las Vegas (1964), and see Charlotte Greenwood in Down Argentine Way (1940) and Oklahoma! (1955). Denise Darcel has memorable roles in Westward the Women (1951) and Vera Cruz (1954). For more from director Charles Walters, try Easter Parade (1948), Summer Stock (1950), and The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964).

Dangerous When Wet is currently available for streaming on Warner Archive Instant.

Classic Films in Focus: TORCH SONG (1953)

Television viewers of a certain age might remember Torch Song (1953) primarily as the butt of a spot-on parody on The Carol Burnett Show, in which Burnett offers a hilarious spin on Joan Crawford's performance in the classic melodrama. It's true that Torch Song, directed by Charles Walters, operates at a pitch that invites such skewering; women's pictures typically favor emotional excess, and Crawford has a particular talent for it, which is why she became such a huge star in that genre in the first place. If, however, you have a taste for weepies, there's a lot to enjoy in this film, not only in the troubled romance between the two leads but also in a number of solid supporting performances, including appearances by Harry Morgan, Gig Young, and Marjorie Rambeau.

Crawford stars as Broadway success Jenny Stewart, whose wealth and fame fail to protect her from years of bitter loneliness. Relentlessly demanding of everyone around her, Jenny finds herself in conflict with her new accompanist, a blind war veteran named Tye Graham (Michael Wilding). As she learns more about him, Jenny's feelings evolve, but his repressed anguish about his blindness keeps him from telling her how long he has loved her from afar.

As the plot summary suggests, there are untold stories that lurk behind the main plot of the film, and these stir the viewer's imagination and build sympathy with the central characters. We don't know how Tye Graham was blinded in the war, and we don't know what he has been doing all these years, although it was obviously enough to afford a very nice apartment. We only get a feeling about the toll that those same years have taken on Jenny; our idea of her as a young newcomer, fresh and lovely, flits around the edges of the story like a beautiful ghost of Broadway past. That idea lives primarily in the memory of Tye, who cannot see the older Jenny but can hear the strain in her voice and the deep-rooted unhappiness that inspires her harsh words. We also only get glimpses of Jenny's rocky relationship with her boyfriend, Cliff (Gig Young), but it's enough to convince us that neither of them is doing the other any real good.

Crawford's intensity fits perfectly with her character, who is so driven that she worries over every aspect of her play, from the costumes and the dance steps to the songs and the lights. The actress does not do her own singing in most of the picture, but her dancing, though somewhat limited, is more graceful and attractive than that seen in earlier work like Dancing Lady (1933). Her hair color at first seems an unfortunate choice, but, as it turns out, the color of her hair is an important plot point, and the less flattering shade functions as a provocative commentary on the way in which the aging Jenny resists the march of the years. Michael Wilding's mildness and blind stare as Tye contrast with Jenny's fierce temper and flashing eyes, and the two stars work well together, particularly in the climactic scene when their characters' roles are finally reversed.

Of the supporting players, Marjorie Rambeau merits special attention; she earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Jenny's blue-collar mother, who really loves her famous daughter even though she's not above pumping her for cash. Gig Young makes a likable if useless leech as Jenny's drunken playboy beau, and Harry Morgan reveals stores of long-suffering patience as the theater director who has to put up with Jenny's constant demands. Maidie Norman also puts in a fine performance as Jenny's household manager, who is not so much a maid as a personal assistant, and, apparently, one of the few people with whom Jenny actually behaves herself.

Charles Walters also directed Easter Parade (1948), High Society (1956), and The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964). For more of Joan Crawford's later roles, try The Damned Don't Cry (1950), Sudden Fear (1952), and Johnny Guitar (1954). By the end of the 1950s she was mostly doing television and hagsploitation horror like Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962). See Michael Wilding in In Which We Serve (1942), Under Capricorn (1949), and Stage Fright (1950). Marjorie Rambeau also earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Primrose Path (1940), but she turns up in films going all the way back to 1917. You'll find Gig Young in Old Acquaintance (1943), The Three Musketeers (1948), and Desk Set (1957). Harry Morgan, best remembered for his role on M*A*S*H, has particularly memorable roles in The Ox-Bow Incident (1943), High Noon (1952), and Inherit the Wind (1960), but he worked as a supporting player in many other films, especially Westerns.