Calendar Girl (1947)

For Republic Pictures this was undoubtedly one of their bigger productions in 1947 and I couldn't help thinking that with a score by top songwriters Jimmy McHugh and Harold Adamson this film might be better known had some major studio did it.As it is Calendar Girl takes place at the turn of the last century and it concerns life in the artist's colony of Greenwich Village. Two men of the arts from Boston, painter James Ellison and composer William Marshall, arrive in town and take up residence in the artist's boardinghouse of the indulgent Irene Rich who must have a literal last name to put up with the itinerant payments of rents she gets and expects. Another in the house is singer Jane Frazee who both Marshall and Ellison court.The problem is that Ellison is already engaged to Gail Patrick back in Boston and he's wealthy on his own and just taking a hiatus from the family banking business. He's making a play for Frazee and that's coming between him and Marshall. As for Marshall he gets a different kind of partnership. Singer Kenny Baker is becoming Hart to his Rodgers and with his tenor is plugging their songs as well. I can't forget Frazee's father Victor McLaglen who is a fire captain and still regards Frazee as Daddy's Little Girl even after she becomes a celebrity of sorts when Ellison's painting makes her the Calendar Girl of 1901. McLaglen is just his overbearing, lovable, oafish self.The lack of production values kills what is a nice picture and could have been a classic over at MGM.

"Calendar Girl" is a silly piece of fluff—there's no denying that. However, it's also a FUN piece of fluff—simple viewing and enjoyable. While it has none of the big-name Hollywood stars, it works quite well. The film is a musical romantic-comedy starring Jane Frazee, William Marshall, Kenny Baker and Victor Maglaglen. The story begins at a boarding house where lots of unemployed actors, artists, composers and other bohemians live. Two VERY oddly matched friends, Johnny (who is poor) and Steve (who is rich as obnoxious) get a room with ambitions of making it big in the music industry and in art respectively. However, these goals soon become secondary when they meet the fire chief's daughter (Frazee) and both try to woo her—even though Steve ALREADY has a girl (Gale Patrick)—though why Patrick's character wanted Steve never really made sense to me.As for the singing, Frazee struck me as no great singer but she was pleasant and the lyrics were very nice. And, for the story, though a big predictable (you KNOW who will win Frazee in the end!), it's all very pleasant—with lots of atmosphere and likable characters (aside from Steve). Not a brilliant film but a very enjoyable time-passer that I almost awarded a 7…almost.

I enjoyed this movie. It captured the aura of the era better than most 40s productions with many authentic-seeming details. The fire horses were particularly effective. I wonder if they doubled as chariot horses in other movies. One of the most effective devices was having the musicians and singers at their windows, instead of having the music come out of nowhere. The movie made me want to live there! It looked like everyone was having a good time.The characters were engaging and did clever bits of business--I especially liked the artist on the telephone to his fiancée, the songs were buoyant, the patter was funny--such as the cow painter who couldn't get a word out, the dancing and singing very good. My favorite musical number was The Fireman's Ball which was clever and original but also in keeping with the 1900 setting. (I went back and watched that again because it was so entertaining.) Good line in it about "belle of the brawl." The women were strong-minded as was typical in movies of the war years, and the dresses were beautiful. I'm not a big fan of romantic ballads but I know from listening to 1940s radio shows online that they were hugely popular in that decade so I'm sure the audience liked that part better than I did.

This is not a well known musical but includes several excellent songs written by Jimmy McHugh. The principal vocalists include Bill Marshall, Jane Frazee, Janet Martin and specially Kenny Baker. The latter's tenor is shown off to good effect and he is capably joined in duets with Janet Martin, one of the several young players under contract to Republic who disappeared with the decline in the studio system. It is a multi-star cast including Victor McLaglen as a Fire Chief, Irene Rich as a Boarding House owner, Gail Patrick as a wealthy Bostononian and James Ellison. The story involves the trials of young hopefuls in the music/dance world, Martin, Frazee, Marshall, etc. and Ellison, a wealthy young artist from Boston. Martin plays a predatory female after Baker a young song plugger while there is a triangular mixup between Frazee and two potential suitors, Marshall and Ellison and Patrick. Highly recommended as a much better than average small musical from Hollywood just before television started to cut into the profits of the movie studios.