The Moon Is Blue ** (1953, William Holden, David Niven, Maggie McNamara) – Classic Movie Review 10,090

Director Otto Preminger’s then frank-speaking 1953 age gap romantic comedy The Moon Is Blue turned the air blue and ruffled the feathers of the censors of the day with words like sex, virgins, mistress and seduce.

America’s Motion Picture Production Code refused to pass it, but Preminger boldly went ahead and local states licensed it. It was stamped “C” for Condemned by The Catholic Legion of Decency.

Now it seems a tame and meek romantic comedy, with William Holden as Donald Gresham, a mid-30s architect meeting early 20s actress Patty O’Neill (Maggie McNamara) atop the Empire State building and bringing her home to his bachelor pad, although she has already got a mid-40s lover in David Slater (David Niven).

There is some spark generated from the pleasing McNamara in an Oscar-nominated performance, but Holden and Niven appear unexpectedly tired and bored in roles seemingly tailor-made for them. The film is based too obviously on F Hugh Herbert’s 1951 hit stage comedy that ran three years on Broadway, with the playwright writing his own screenplay.

However, David Niven won the Golden Globe for Best Actor – Comedy or Musical.

It is the film début of McNamara, who made only four films before committing suicide by overdose in 1978, aged 48. She has been working as a typist. At 23, she was discovered by Preminger, who signed her to play the ingénue role in a Chicago production of The Moon Is Blue on stage, then spent 18 months touring with the show in the national company. For the film version, he offered her the lead role.

It was nominated for three Oscars, including Best Actress in a Leading Role, Best Film Editing (Otto Ludwig) and Best Music, Original Song (The Moon Is Blue – Herschel Burke Gilbert (music) and Sylvia Fine (lyrics)).

Also in the cast are Tom Tully, Dawn Addams, Gregory Ratoff and Fortunio Bonanova.

This Happy Feeling (1958) is ‘Another spicy look at love by the author of The Moon Is Blue’.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,090

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