the mating game

the year: 1959

the genre: comedy



the cast: Paul Douglas (Pop larkin); Una Merkel (Ma Larkin); Debbie Reynolds (Mariette Larkin); Tony Randall (Lorenzo "Clarlie" Charlton); Fred Clark (Oliver Kelsey)



the plot: Irritated neighbor Wendell Burnshaw brings the Larkin family to the attention of the Internal Revenue Service. Lorenzo Charlton is assigned to the case and Ma and Pop Larkin warmly welcome him to their family farm in Maryland, at first unaware of why he is there. Lorenzo is aghast to learn that the Larkins have never filed a tax return. With their cooperation, he sets out to figure out what, if anything, they owe in the way of back taxes - a difficult task, as Pop usually just trades for what they need and keeps no records. Lorenzo and the eldest Larkin daughter Mariette become attracted to each other, but he doesn't let that get in the way of his work...at least not at first.




listen for: "Don't you boys have a project to work on?"





also listen for: "Lorenzo, what's holding you up down there?" "What's holding me up? The truth of the matter is I'm defying the law of gravity."




don't miss: Lorenzo's version of I've Got You Under My Skin.


also listen for: "You know, whenever I get in a nasty mood, I just come out here and I lie down and listen, and look. And in no time at all, whatever has been bothering me seems no bigger than one leaf on a whole tree. Now you tell me how much that's worth and I'll pay the taxes on it myself."






did you know: the film was loosely based on a British novel, The Darling Buds of May by H.E. Bates.

bells are ringing

the year: 1960

the genre: musical


the cast: Judy Holliday (Ella Peterson); Dean Martin (JEffrey Moss); Fred Clark (Larry Hastings); Jean Stapleton (Sue); Frank Gorshin (Blake Barton)


the plot: Ella Peterson is a Brooklyn telephone answering service operator who listens in on others' lives and adds some interest to her own humdrum existence by adopting different identities for her clients. They include an out-of-work Method actor, a dentist with musical yearnings, and in particular playwright Jeffrey Moss, who is suffering from writer's block and desperately needs a muse. Adding complications to the plot are the police, who are certain the business is a front for an "escort service," and the owner's shady boyfriend, who unbeknownst to her is using the agency as a bookmaking operation.



don't miss: the mail-order classical record business/horse betting system.



watch for: Frank Gorshin's spot on Brando impression.




listen for: "Titantic Records - the highest fi of them all."






did you know: Judy Holliday won Broadway's 1957 Tony Award as Best Actress for the same role she recreated in the film version.



count: how many orders come in for Beethoven's tenth symphony.




also listen for: "I'm going back where I can be me, at the Bonjour Tristese Brassiere Company!"



and my favorite song:

how to marry a millionaire

the year: 1953

the genre: comedy

the cast: Lauren Bacall (Schatze Page); Betty Grable (Loco Dempsey); Marilyn Monroe (Pola Debevoise); William Powell (J.D. Hanley); David Wayne (Freddie Denmark); Cameron Mitchell (Tom Brookman); Rory Calhoun (Eben); Fred Clark (Waldo Brewster)


the plot: Three New York models move into a Manhattan penthouse apartment and set out to find eligible millionaire bachelors to marry. Do they choose love or money?


count: the acreage of trees that "belong to" Eben.


don’t miss: my favorite scene: “Men aren't attentive to girls who wear glasses.”






check out: the poetic justice for Mr. Brewster.


listen for: “We'd better put a check on that one. Nobody's mother lives in Atlantic City on Saturday.”



extra bonus points: if you know why Schatze’s line “I've always liked older men... Look at that old fellow what's-his-name in The African Queen. Absolutely crazy about him.” is so funny.