ABCs at the Movies: The Doubles Round!

[MaineWriter]

==comment==

No, they didn't take me to see this movie in French class, but I have seen it and it is definitely worth watching...

[memento]

[dot-matrix]

I loved these movies on TV when I was a kid 

[Ellemeno]

[MaineWriter]

==comment==

From an IMDb commenter:

"How to Be Very, Very Popular" was anything but upon its release, and has not gained any stature since. In fact, its reputation has actually grown worse. It's infamous as the picture that Marilyn Monroe refused to do, leading to her celebrated walk-out on Fox. Sheree North, a practically unknown dancer-starlet, was quickly put into the role, coiffed and made up to look almost exactly like MM. The film, needless to say, bombed, and Sheree--strong armed into being a virtual Monroe clone--bore the brunt of most of it. Betty Grable (MM's co-star from "How to Marry a Millionaire") took advantage of the film's lack of success and used it as her chance to retire from the grind. In retrospect, the film really isn't all that bad--although it's obvious why Monroe balked at playing the North role; it's little more than window-dressing. Actually, had North been given the role from the get-go, and not encouraged to look and sound EXACTLY like a carbon copy MM, the picture might've been pulled off as a cute, harmless little comedy. The film was clearly a step down for a superstar of Monroe's stature, but could've been a nice, showy stepping stone for a rising starlet. Grable is her usual warm, bright self, but she's getting a bit old to be playing scantily-clad chorines. Next to the very young North, especially, she looks decidedly matronly. North isn't given much to work with (again, it's hard to comment on a performance which was basically conceived as a blurred copy of an original), but she does get to do a splendid, wild, rock and roll dance to "Shake, Rattle & Roll." Sadly, the film's complete failure relegated the promising North to the back burner; and she had much more musical and dramatic talent than Jayne Mansfield, whom Fox began to build up instead. So, if "How to Be Very, Very Popular" should show up on television one afternoon, sit back and enjoy it. It may not be great cinema, but it's an underrated little slice of mindless entertainment.

[dot-matrix]

Taglines
"The Story Behind The Terrifying 60-Day Hunt For Desperado 'Mad-Dog' Earle!"

"The Million-Dollar Killer And The Dime-A-Dance Doll..."

[oilgun]

[Fran]

[dot-matrix]

[Meryl]

An enormous sleeper hit, the film enjoyed national and international success, winning the 1955 Academy Award for Best Picture and becoming the first American film to win the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Marty and The Lost Weekend are the only two films to win both awards.