road to morocco

the year: 1942

the genre: comedy


the cast: Bing Crosby (Jeff Peters); Bob Hope (Orville "Turkey" Jackson / Aunt Lucy); Dorothy Lamour (Princess Shalmar); Anthony Quinn (Mullay Kasim)


the plot: Jeff and Turkey, two wild and crazy guys adrift on a raft in the Mediterranean, are cast away on a desert shore and hop a convenient camel to an Arabian Nights city where Turkey soon finds himself sold as a slave...to luscious Princess Shalmar of Karameesh. Naturally, Jeff would like to rescue Turkey from this "dire" fate, even if it means taking his place! But they haven't figured on virile desert chieftain Mullay Kassim, who has designs on the princess himself...


don't miss: the camel spitting in Bob Hope's face. The camel did it of its own accord while the cameras were rolling, and Hope's recoil and Bing Crosby's reaction were so funny that it was left in the final cut of the film.


listen for: "This must be the place where they empty all the old hourglasses."


also listen for: "A fine thing. First, you sell me for two hundred bucks. Then I'm gonna marry the Princess; then you cut in on me. Then we're carried off by a desert sheik. Now, we're gonna have our heads chopped off." "I know all that." "Yeah, but the people who came in the middle of the picture don't." "You mean they missed my song?"


and then listen for: "We must storm the place." "You storm. I'll stay here and drizzle." (SO many quotable lines!)

high society

the year: 1956

the genre: musical



the cast: Bing Crosby (C. K. Dexter-Haven); Grace Kelly (Tracy Lord); Frank Sinatra (Mike Connor); Celeste Holm (Liz Imbrie); Louis Armstrong (himself)


the plot: C.K. Dexter-Haven, a successful popular jazz musician, lives in a mansion near his ex-wife Tracy Lord's family estate. Holier-than-thou Tracy is on the verge of marrying a man blander and safer than Dex, who incidentally is still in love with Tracy. Spy magazine blackmails Tracy’s family by threatening to reveal her playboy father's exploits if not allowed to cover the wedding. Mike Connor, covering the nuptials for Spy magazine, of course, also falls for Tracy. Tracy must choose between the three men and realize that it’s okay to get down off her high horse.



don’t miss: Uncle Willy. He pinches.



listen for: “Uncle Willy, this morning you look like a tree full of owls.”


count: the wedding presents.


did you know: Grace Kelly, recently engaged to Prince Rainier of Monaco at the time filming began, wore her actual engagement ring as Tracy’s engagement ring.



check out: Bing and Frank hiding out in the library (bar) singing “Did You Evah”. The song was late addition so that the two crooners would have a chance to sing together.


also listen for: “Oh, class my…” “Grandmother!”



extra bonus points: if you know what can be found “under Harvard Classics. Just give Darwin a little nudge.”

white christmas

the year:1954

the genre: musical




the cast: Bing Crosby (Bob Wallace), Danny Kaye (Phil Davis), Vera-Ellen (Judy Haynes); Rosemary Clooney (Betty Haynes); Dean Jaggar (Major General Thomas F. Waverly); Mary Wickes (Emma Allen)





the plot: After serving together in WWII, Bob Wallace and Phil Davis team up to become a top song-and-dance act. Phil plays matchmaker for Bob, and when they meet the beautiful Haynes sisters (Betty and Judy), who also have a song-and-dance act, Phil realizes they can't let the girls get away. When Betty and Judy travel to a Vermont lodge to perform a Christmas show, Bob and Phil follow, only to find their former commander, General Waverly, is the lodge owner. A series of romantic mix-ups ensue as the performers try to help the General.




count: the number of children Bob would need to have (and spend 5 minutes with) in order for Phil to have 45 minutes all to himself.

don't miss: Phil's technique in keeping the General from watching the Ed Harrison Show.





check out: the guys' version of "Sisters." It wasn't originally in the script, but when the director saw Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye clowning around on the set, he thought it was so funny that it was written in.

listen for: "When what's left of you gets around to what's left to be gotten, what's left to be gotten won't be worth getting, whatever it is you've got left."




extra bonus points: if you can name the two actors slated to play Phil Davis before Danny Kaye was asked.