The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944)

After an all-night send-off party for the troops, a small-town girl wakes up to find herself married and pregnant, but with no memory of her husband's identity.

Director:

Preston Sturges

Writer:

Preston Sturges

Stars:

Eddie Bracken, Betty Hutton, Diana Lynn

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Eddie Bracken	...	Norval Jones
Betty Hutton	...	Trudy Kockenlocker
Diana Lynn	...	Emmy Kockenlocker
William Demarest	...	Constable Edmund Kockenlocker
Porter Hall	...	Justice of the Peace
Emory Parnell	...	Mr. Tuerck
Al Bridge	...	Mr. Johnson (as Alan Bridge)
Julius Tannen	...	Mr. Rafferty
Victor Potel	...	Newspaper Editor
Brian Donlevy	...	Governor McGinty (as McGinty)
Akim Tamiroff	...	The Boss

Storyline

Trudy Kockenlocker, a small-town girl with a soft spot for American soldiers, wakes up the morning after a wild farewell party for the troops to find that she married someone she can't remember--and she's pregnant. Norval Jones, the 4-F local boy who's been in love with Trudy for years, tries to help her find a way out of her predicament. Trudy complicates matters further by falling for Norval, and events snowball from there.

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Plot Keywords:

love | party | small town | soldier | creek | 

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Taglines:

The True Story of Trudy Kockenlocker, who kissed the Boys Goodbye... REGIMENT BY REGIMENT!

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance | War

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 January 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

Csoda a Morgan-pataknál

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character Gov. McGinty is Dan McGinty, from the earlier film by Preston Sturges, Down Went McGinty. Brian Donlevy played the character in both films. Akim Tamiroff also appears as "The Boss," reprising his role from the earlier film.

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Goofs

When Norval and Mr. Kockenlocker are sitting on the front porch talking, Mr. Kockenlocker is cleaning his gun. He has an automatic pistol, he cocks it to open the chamber for cleaning, and in the next scene he cocks it again.

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Quotes

Norval Jones: W-what was his first name?
Trudy Kockenlocker: You mean Ratzkywatzky?
Norval Jones: N-n-naturally.
Trudy Kockenlocker: Does he have to have a first name?
Norval Jones: Of course he has to have a first name. Everybody has a first name. Even dogs have first names, even if they don't have any last names.
Trudy Kockenlocker: Well, I don't know. I had an uncle named Roscoe.
Norval Jones: Roscoe, Roscoe, he eats them alive!
Trudy Kockenlocker: What?
Norval Jones: That - that's a snake eater's name.
Trudy Kockenlocker: Well, it was my uncle's name.
[...]

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Connections

References The Bride Wore Crutches (1940)

User Reviews

A subversive satirical gem

Writer-director Preston Sturges is generally regarded as one of the greatest comic talents ever, and his impeccable track record--including The Lady Eve and Sullivan's Travels--is more than worthy of the praise. Often overlooked, The Miracle Of Morgan's Creek ranks with Sturges' absolute best work.

Sturges takes an almost Capra-esque WWII America and turns it on its pointy little head, with Betty Hutton as a girl who's more than willing to give "the boys" departing for the war the utmost reason to fight for our country. Stripped of her usual production numbers, Hutton cranks up her comic acting skills and creates a surprisingly rich characterization of a young woman straining against the restrictive social attitudes of the time. Eddie Bracken is his usual self-effacing self, and his sad-sack Norval Jones is an earnest, often moving portrayal of the kind of understanding, devotion and love almost never seen in American movies of the era.

A "screwball comedy" only on paper, the often frenetic pacing and physical humor was sufficient to distract censors (and often audiences) from Morgan Creek's almost brutally derisive satire about the hypocrisy of small town "values" and military behavior during wartime, satire that still resonates given the current political climate. No target is safe, from "the troops" and bucolic Anywhere USA to state governors, the Dionne quints, and Adolf Hitler. Sturges pushed hard against the production code and probably earned a few ulcers slipping racy plot twists and subversive dialogue past the censors, but the results were well worth the Maalox. One of the funniest and most pointed satirical comedies ever produced.