call me madam

the year: 1953

the genre: musical


the cast: Ethel Merman (Sally Adams); Donald O’Connor (Kenneth Gibson); Vera-Ellen (Princess Maria); George Sanders (General Cosmo Constantine); Billy De Wolfe (Pemberton Maxwell)




the plot: Sally Adams has made it her business to know everyone worth knowing in Washington D.C., and her penchant for parties pays off when she's appointed United States Ambassador to Lichtenburg. Once she is installed in her new position, she falls in love with suave Foreign Minister Cosmo Constantine, while Princess Maria has her head turned by Sally's press attaché, Kenneth.



don’t miss: Sally’s curtsy.



check out: another of my favorite “meet cutes” (see video below).


listen for: “Tell me - how does this reception differ from your famous Washington parties?” “Well we have a good time!”


did you know: Lichtenburg is actually a fictionalized name for Luxembourg. The character of Sally Adams is based on the real-life Perle Mesta (although the plot of the film is entirely fictional), and Perle Mesta was named Ambassador to Luxembourg by President Truman.



also check out: Sally’s promotion to Dame.

happy go lovely

the year: 1951

the genre: musical


the cast: Vera-Ellen (Janet Jones); David Niven (B. G. Bruno); Cesar Romero (John Frost); Diane Hart (Mae)


the plot: In Edinburgh, Scotland, beleaguered American theatrical producer Jack “Frosty” Frost convinces his creditors to give him two more days in which to come up with some money to pay for his latest show. Running late, chorus girl Janet Jones hitchhikes to the theater and is picked up by a friendly chauffeur driving the limousine owned by Scottish millionaire and greeting card giant, B.G. Bruno. When the chauffeur returns to the theater with Janet’s forgotten purse, rumors begin to circulate that she is Bruno's fiancée. Seeing an opportunity, Frosty give Janet the starring role and Madame Amanda, a French dressmaker presents Janet with some expensive clothes. The next day, Bruno, a unadventurous bachelor, receives Madame Amanda's bill and determines to investigate the matter himself. At the theater, Janet mistakes Bruno for Paul Tracy, a reporter who is scheduled to interview her but has not yet arrived, and bemused by the charming American, Bruno does not correct her. And so the fun begins.


count: how many backstage collisions occur between the chorus girl and Frosty.


don’t miss: what the B.G. stands for.


check out: how Mr. Bruno reprimands Dodds for giving Janet a ride.


listen for: “Well, that's where we met. On the pyramids. I mean... near the pyramids, just a little to the left.”


you can watch the movie in parts starting here. And I give you full authority to skip all of the songs - it's one of my new favorite movies WITHOUT the musical numbers. Besides, it's kind of fun to watch Vera-Ellen dance in "fast forward".

on the town

the year: 1949

the genre: musical


the cast: Gene Kelly (Gabey); Frank Sinatra (Chip); Jules Munshin (Ozzie); Vera-Ellen (Ivy Smith); Ann Miller (Claire Huddesen); Betty Carrett (Brunhilde Esterhazy)



the plot: Three sailors - Gabey, Chip and Ozzie – are let loose on a 24-hour pass in New York and the Big Apple will never be the same! Gabey falls head over heels for "Miss Turnstiles of the Month" (he thinks she's a high society deb when she's really a dancer at Coney Island); innocent Chip gets hijacked (literally) by a lady cab driver; and Ozzie becomes the object of interest of a gorgeous anthropologist who thinks he's the perfect example of a "prehistoric man".



did you know: this was the first musical feature film to be shot on location. At the end of "New York, New York", as the camera tilts up at Rockefeller Plaza, you can see the skating rink lined with spectators watching Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly.


don’t miss: Chip’s thwarted attempts to see the sights of NYC. My favorite scene is "You're Awful" atop the Empire State Building.


check out: Ozzie hanging around the Empire State Building.


listen for: “You oughta feel proud that three sailors from the United States Navy got off the ship for one day, and what did they do? Were they thirsty for hard liquor? No. They were thirsty for culture. Were they running after girls? No. They came running to the museum to see your dinosaur. For months out at sea they were dreaming about your dinosaur.”

great videos here, here, and my favorite here.

extra bonus points: if you can name the other two movies where Frank and Gene co-starred together.

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.