Duchess of Idaho (1950)

Director:

Robert Z. Leonard

Writers:

Dorothy Cooper (writer)
Jerry Davis (writer)

Release Date:

14 July 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Plot:

Ellen Hallit is in love with her playboy boss, Douglas Morrison, but is too timid to do anything about it...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Tap Dancing | Swimmer | Womanizer | Betrayal

Cast

Esther Williams	...	Christine Riverton Duncan
Van Johnson	...	Dick Layne
John Lund	...	Douglas J. Morrison Jr.
Paula Raymond	...	Ellen Hallit
Clinton Sundberg	...	Matson
Connie Haines	...	Peggy Elliot
Mel Tormé	...	Cyril, the Bellhop
Amanda Blake	...	Linda Kinston
Tommy Farrell	...	Chuck
Sig Arno	...	M. Le Blanche
Dick Simmons	...	Alec J. Collins
Lena Horne	...	Herself - Cameo appearance
Eleanor Powell	...	Herself - Cameo appearance

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #14430)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

"Warm Hands, Cold Heart" (music and lyrics by Al Rinker and Floyd Huddleston), sung by Mel Tormé, was deleted from this film, leaving The Velvet Fog tuneless and with only a bit of dialogue. The prerecording can be heard on the Rhino CD, "Mel Tormé in Hollywood."

Movie Connections:

Featured in "American Masters: Lena Horne: In Her Own Words" (1996)

Soundtrack:

Baby Come Out of the Clouds

Vapid but harmless ball of fluff

Esther Williams musicals have always made me squirm a bit, but here she's thankfully limited to just a couple of waterlogged numbers and spends most of her time romantically juggling John Lund and Van Johnson. This picture is as glossy and slight on story as they come, but it's an entertaining enough time waster and features the odd fun cameo by MGM stars assigned to the production to keep things lively, most notably Red Skelton and Eleanor Powell. Mel Torme and Amanda Blake are also visible in small roles. A few nice winter shots of Sun Valley and a couple of decent tunes but be warned - the only thing even remotely deep about this picture is the swimming pool.