Happy Birthday, Judy Holliday!!

Happy 91st birthday to one of my top 10 favorite actresses---the lovely and talented Judy Holliday (June 21, 1921-June 7, 1965).

Born Judith Ann Tuvim, this delightful lady first found success on the stage.  Her first major role was in Born Yesterday, a role which she would reprise in film in 1950 and which would garner her a Best Actress Academy Award.  In addition to an Academy Award, Miss Holliday also won a Tony Award for her work in Bells Are Ringing.

My first experience with Judy was in Born Yesterday---a film which I obtained solely because of my love for William Holden.  I had never even heard of Judy before that.  To my surprise, I not only enjoyed her...I loved her.  What's more, her character in Born Yesterday---Billie Dawn---became one of my three all-time favorite female film characters.  Judy's portrayal of Billie (which The Academy deemed Oscar worthy) was completely delightful.  (Actually, "delightful" is THE adjective which comes to mind when describing the lovely Judy.)

Sadly, Miss Holliday succumbed to cancer at a very young age...just two weeks before her 44th birthday.  She left behind a son...and a handful of wonderful films.

My all-time favorite Judy Holliday film is that first one I ever watched---Born Yesterday (reviewed HERE).  I can't get enough of Billie Dawn and her amazing transformation from a dumb blonde, ex-chorus girl to an intelligent, "don't try to pull the wool over my eyes" woman of culture.  Of course, it doesn't hurt that William Holden was there to assist Billie in her transformation.  In addition to William Holden, Broderick Crawford also stars in this film.

Rounding out my list of five favorite Judy Holliday films are:

2.  Bells Are Ringing  (with Dean Martin---reviewed HERE)

3.  It Should Happen to You  (with Jack Lemmon and Peter Lawford)

4.  Full of Life (with Richard Conte)

5.  The Solid Gold Cadillac (with Paul Douglas)

So, Miss Judy Holliday, I am remembering you on your 91st birthday.  I'm sad that you departed this world at such a young age, but I love that you left us with your completely delightful presence through your wonderful films.

(For more information about Judy, visit the Judy Holliday Resource Center HERE.)

Phffft (3 stars)

Phffft, from 1954, is a romantic comedy starring Judy Holliday and Jack Lemmon, with Kim Novak and Jack Carson taking on supporting roles.  Probably the strangest-named film I have ever heard of, Phffft, which features Miss Holliday and Mr. Lemmon in their second pairing, was part of my Judy Holliday birthday celebration.  While it's not one of my favorite of Judy's films, it is enjoyable and quite funny in parts.

After eight years of marriage, Robert and Nina Tracey (Lemmon and Holliday) are bored with each other and have decided to call it quits.  When Nina announces that she wants a divorce, Bob agrees that it's a good idea; in fact, he tells her, he's been wanting to suggest that very thing for six months.  In agreement that they need to end their marriage, Nina flies off to Reno.





Newly single, Bob moves in with his Navy buddy, Charlie (Jack Carson).  Quite the playboy, Charlie immediately suggests that Bob begin seeing other women; Bob, however, isn't interested at first and ends up reminiscing about how he and Nina met.  Soon, though, Charlie fixes Bob up with a friend, Janice (Kim Novak), but since Bob still thinks of himself as a married man, the date doesn't go well.

Nina, also, is attempting to move into a new season of life.  Besides dating an overly aggressive colleague, she seeks to bone up on her "culture" by taking French lessons and dance classes.  Bob, too, enrolls in dance lessons, and now hot on their feet, the two of them happen to meet up on the dance floor while on dates with others.

In due time, both Bob and Nina feel like giving their relationship another chance; however, when Nina informs Bob that with his newly-acquired mustache and 3-piece suit, he resembles either Graucho Marx or a gigolo, and Bob counters that Nina is looking like a middle-aged woman, all hopes for a reconciliation are off...that is until Charlie moves in on Nina himself.

What will Nina do when Charlie puts his playboy moves on her?  What will Bob do when he discovers his best friend is moving in on "his wife?"  These are the questions which play out in the balance of this film.

While Phffft is an enjoyable film, it is definitely only so-so in my book.  Miss Holliday and Mr. Lemmon were paired earlier in 1954 in It Should Happen to You---a film which I find vastly superior to this one.  That said, here in Phffft, Judy is her usual delightful self, and Jack (Lemmon) is completely wonderful as well.  Quite honestly, I think Mr. Lemmon stole the show.  While I don't see Jack Carson as the playboy type, he actually worked quite well in this role.  Kim Novak, though---at least for me---was definitely miscast.  While I think she's wonderful in several dramatic films (Middle of the Night, Picnic, The Man with the Golden Arm, The Eddy Duchin Story), I don't think she fits in a comedic role.  I didn't find her funny at all; in fact, because I'm used to her in dramatic roles and, therefore, see her as much more than the "dumb blonde" she portrays here, I found her character annoying rather than funny.

At any rate, I adore Judy Holliday (which is quite surprising since most of her works are comedic and I'm not a huge comedy fan), so I do view this film occasionally...I just happen to enjoy several of her other films more than this one.  However, it is a very solid, 3-star film (4 stars according to my husband and kids), and fans of Miss Holliday, Mr. Lemmon, or Miss Novak won't want to miss it.  The film is out on DVD, so it should be easy to track down.  Additionally, it is on the TCM schedule for Wednesday, August 22nd, at 6:00 a.m. (ET).

Happy viewing!!

Bells Are Ringing (5 stars)

Bells Are Ringing, from 1960, is an adorable musical romantic comedy starring the totally delightful Judy Holliday and Dean Martin.  Directed by Vincente Minnelli, this film, which features the wonderful supporting cast of Jean Stapleton, Eddie Foy, Jr., Fred Clark, Frank Gorshin, and Bernard West, first appeared as a Broadway musical in 1956.  Both Miss Holliday and Miss Stapleton portrayed their same characters in each venue, and for Miss Holliday, her Broadway performance garnered her a Lead Actress Tony Award.

Kind, compassionate Ella Peterson (Judy) works as a phone operator at Susanswerphone, her cousin Sue's (Jean Stapleton) answering service.  Far more than just a job to Ella, her position gives her access to the lives of people she has come to care about.  Though Sue continually warns Ella not to get involved in their clients' lives, lest the service be shut down for law violations, Ella simply can't help herself; she loves people too much to not do everything in her power to make their lives happy.

Ella is especially attached to Jeffrey Moss (Dean Martin), a playboy playwright who is struggling with his latest script.  Wanting to do more than just give and take messages for Mr. Moss, Ella, using an old lady voice, has developed a phone relationship with him. Thinking that his message taker is a motherly old woman, Jeffrey calls Ella "mom" and feels very comfortable sharing his troubles with her.

When Jeffrey's agent leaves a message indicating that he is down to his final chance, Ella wants to encourage him to do the writing she knows is in him.  However, with his phone unplugged and her call not getting through, drastic measures are necessary.  Only a trip to his apartment will work, and when Ella manages to get inside and she sets eyes on her client for the first time, she finds that he is "Better Than a Dream."



As the kindhearted woman encourages him along, Jeffrey writes...and his agent loves it. Before long, Jeffrey has fallen in love with Ella...only thing is, Ella has never told him her true identity, and now, not wanting him to know that she deceived him, she is afraid to do so.

In addition to helping Mr. Moss write his play, Ella has gotten involved in the life of a dentist who aspires to write music (Bernard West) and a down-on-his-luck actor (Frank Gorshin). How those men's dreams entwine with Jeffrey's, all the while two detectives are investigating Susanswerphone as a possible escort service, makes for a very sweet, heartwarming film.




Judy Holliday is, as always, pure delight.  From beginning to end, she is a total joy.  Her character is the kind of person we need more of in this world; she's caring, compassionate, unselfish, friendly, warm, and kind.  I love the way Judy brought Ella to life.  I love her wardrobe too---the blue dress, the pink one, the white, the red...they were all gorgeous, and as I often do, I found myself wondering why women threw away that kind of a wardrobe.  The scene in which she dresses in grubs and dons a Marlon Brando-type voice is quite amusing...one of the funniest in the whole film.  Sadly, Bells Are Ringing would be Judy's final film performance.

Dean Martin is terrific in his role.  I have to admit, when I first saw this film about four years ago, I was lamenting that Frank Sinatra wasn't cast in the part.  As a huge Ol' Blue Eyes fan and a lover of his musicals, I thought he would have been the icing on the cake here in Bells Are Ringing.  However, the more I've seen this film (4 or 5 times now), the more Dean grows on me, and now, I've come to the place of not only thinking he was perfect, but of being interested in listening to more of his music and discovering more of his works.  I really love him here, and when he broke into "Just in Time," I was thrilled.



Nominated for the Best Music Academy Award, Bells Are Ringing features ten lovely songs, and I loved every one of them, which is often not the case (for me) with musicals. Usually, there are two or three songs I don't care for, but here, I loved them all.

Finally, my whole family loves this film.  When I said we were watching a Judy Holliday film for her birthday month, both my kids made the same request..."Bells Are Ringing" please.  While Born Yesterday is my favorite Judy film, this one is definitely my family's favorite...and a 5-star second favorite for me.  Those who enjoy fun, lighthearted musicals, Judy Holliday, or Dean Martin, ought to completely love this.  Out on DVD, this film should be very easy to track down.

Happy viewing!! 

It's Gals This Month

While May was heavily devoted to the films of Tyrone Power and Gary Cooper, this month it's the girls' turn.  June is the birthday month of three of my top-10 favorite actresses...

Susan Hayward

Eleanor Parker

and Judy Holliday

Two of these lovely ladies are in my top 4...


Miss Hayward

and Miss Parker

One of those dear ladies is actually still alive and about to celebrate her 90th birthday!

I will be OD' ing on the films of these lovely ladies this month...plus enjoying the works of a few other faves...plus taking part in the "Cinematic World Tour" blogathon going on over at All Good Things.  I hope you'll join me...and perhaps discover a few "new to you" films which you simply must see.

Born Yesterday (5 stars)

Born Yesterday, from 1950, is a comedy/drama starring the totally delightful Judy Holliday, William Holden, and Broderick Crawford.  (To be quite honest, Broderick Crawford actually gets second billing...but given that William Holden is my all-time favorite actor, I am giving HIM second billing.)  This movie deals with some very heavy subjects....government corruption, abuse towards women, lack of education....but because it does so in a sometimes comedic way, it doesn't come across as preachy. 

Judy Holliday is Billie Dawn, a rather ditzy former chorus girl who is now the "dumb blonde" girlfriend of corrupt businessman, Harry Brock (played brilliantly by Broderick Crawford).  Billie is fairly uneducated ("stupid" by her own admission) and does whatever Harry tells her to do, never questioning anything.  For that reason, it works to Harry's advantage to have Billie as one of his corporate officers.

Harry and Billie arrive in Washington D.C., where Harry intends to lobby a congressman for some legislation that will benefit his business; however, while meeting with said congressman and his wife, Harry realizes that Billie's lack of refinement and education will probably hurt his business aspirations.  So, at his lawyer's suggestion, he asks reporter Paul Verrall (William Holden) to "learn Billie some things."  Paul, who is disgusted by Harry's boorish behavior, eagerly accepts the job and is soon showing Billie around Washington D.C. and giving her history and civics lessons in the process.  In time, Billie blossoms under Paul's tutelage and begins to see Harry for what he really is.  She begins to question what Harry tells her to do...which doesn't sit well with Harry at all.

I won't reveal more than this.  Suffice to say that watching Billie's metamorphosis is totally delightful.  And that the incredibly handsome Bill Holden is there to help in the process just adds to the delight for me.  Judy Holliday is wonderful in this role.  While I have seen all but one of Judy's movies and REALLY like several of them, Born Yesterday is easily my favorite.  She actually won the Best Actress Academy Award for her performance.  (1950 was an amazing year, and the Academy had an extremely tough decision for actress that year.)  I must admit, the first time I saw this movie (which was my first Judy Holliday experience), I cringed when I heard her VERY strong New York accent.  But I've come to love the accent AND her.  She's a total sweetheart.

As an aside, I want to mention that Born Yesterday was on Broadway back in the 40's, with Judy Holliday in the lead.  So, both on the stage and on the screen, she has given life to Billie Dawn.  AND hear this...later this month (March 31st, I believe) Born Yesterday will be opening on Broadway again.  I'm not sure who will be playing the Judy Holliday/William Holden roles, but Broderick Crawford's role will be played by Jim Belushi (in his Broadway debut). Should be fantastic!!!  And guess what....my daughter and I are planning a trip to New York City in early June.  Seeing Born Yesterday on Broadway is definitely on our must-do list.  However, I must say that I have already been warned by my daughter that I absolutely CANNOT whine about the fact that there's another actor and not dreamboat Holden playing Paul Verrall.  Oh, boy, can I do that?  Not whine about another man taking Holden's role, I mean?  I doubt it...but I AM excited to see this beloved story on the stage.  (ADDENDUM:  We ended up not taking that trip after all, so we didn't have the opportunity to attend the Broadway show.)

Anyhow, if you haven't ever seen Born Yesterday, I highly recommend it.  It is a totally wonderful movie, and if you've never before seen Judy Holliday, start here with her Academy Award winning performance.  You'll love her.  This movie is out on DVD and should be very easy to track down.  Add to that, Turner Classic Movies has it on their March and April schedules.

Happy viewing to all!!