Lovely to Look At *** (1952, Kathryn Grayson, Red Skelton, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Marge Champion, Gower Champion, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Kurt Kasznar, Marcel Dalio) – Classic Movie Review 5740

Red Skelton stars as Al Marsh, who is bequeathed a Paris boutique and travels to France to sell the shop to stage a show in New York with Tony Naylor (Howard Keel) and Jerry Ralby (Gower Champion). The trio of Broadway producer types then take over the near-bankrupt Paris gown store/ salon, with predictably complicated romantic and business results.

Heiresses Stephanie and Clarisse (Kathryn Grayson, Marge Champion) help the three producers to convince their creditors to back a fashion show in Paris. But Al and Tony both fall in love with Stephanie and then Al’s girl friend Bubbles Cassidy (Ann Miller) arrives from New York.

Director Mervyn LeRoy’s expensive 1952 MGM remake of the 1933 Broadway musical Roberta (previously filmed in 1935) is scripted by George Wells, Harry Ruby and Andrew Solt, in a lively and imaginatively re-imagined screenplay .

Roberta is a vintage classic and the larger budget and glorious Technicolor shooting (by George J Folsey) here unfortunately doesn’t make for a better movie, as, even with this stupendous cast of professionals plus the spectacular costumes (gowns by Adrian) and sets (by Cedric Gibbons and Gabriel Scognamillo, the movie rarely sparkles.

However, it does have some fabulous songs though, among ten written by the great Jerome Kern (lyrics by Otto Harbach), particularly the heartstopping ‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’ (with Kathryn Grayson trilling thrillingly as Stephanie), but also ‘I Won’t Dance’ and ‘Lovely to Look At’.

Roberta (1935) had ‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’ as a stand-alone performance in the fashion show finale but here it is divided into two performances, sung by Grayson and by Marge and Gower Champion when they begin falling in love.

The dancing by Ann Miller (‘I’ll Be Hard To Handle’) as Bubbles Cassidy and by the dancing Champions Marge and Gower also stirs the blood. Uncredited director Vincente Minnelli is responsible for the amusing and lavish fashion parade sequence, showing off the gowns of Adrian [Adrian Adolph Greenburg]. It concluded his 28-year film career a he retired from the fashion industry in 1952 after a heart attack and died of another on 13 September 1959. The fashion show set and background costumes are designed by Tony Duquette.

Also in the cast are Zsa Zsa Gabor in her movie debut as Zsa Zsa, Kurt Kasznar, Marcel Dalio, Diane Cassidy, Jean De Briac, André Charlot, George Davis, Jean Del Val, Thomas Browne Henry, Alfred Pollet, Manuel Paris and Pierre Watkin.

Wanting to make some fresh and original, the makers make lots and lots of changes. Except for someone inheriting a dress shop, the plot of the original Broadway show of Roberta is almost entirely changed. Two new songs written for the film of Roberta were retained and several Broadway show cut from the 1935 film were restored for Howard Keel.

Even the characters’ names, except for Stephanie, are changed from the original show. Keel’s character Tony Naylor is named after Tiny Naylor’s coffee shop in Hollywood at the corner of Sunset Blvd and Vine Street.

Kathryn Grayson enjoyed a 15-year 22-movie reign from Andy Hardy’s Private Secretary (1941) to The Vagabond King (1956).

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5740

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