The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1943)

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 3 wins & 1 nomination.

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:

cranky father | hero father | unknown husband | adoring mother | indian | 

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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:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

February 1944 (USA)

Also Known As:

El milagro de Morgan Creek

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

Although Preston Sturges was working at an unusually frantic pace, he still kept tight reins on the production, ensuring that neither Eddie Bracken nor anyone else became the main attraction. Sturges favoured ensemble pieces, and even the smallest parts were given some choice bits.

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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

Featured in Censorship: Morgan's Creek vs. the Production Code (2005)

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Soundtracks

Sleepy Summer Days
(uncredited)
Music by Ted Snyder
Lyrics by Preston Sturges

User Reviews

Screamingly funny farce

One of the most audacious comedies ever made in Hollywood, this is a screamingly funny satirical farce about the World War II homefront. Betty Hutton, Eddie Bracken, Diana Lynn and William Demarest give phenomenal performances (Lynn is particularly funny as she keeps her composure while everyone else is cracking up around her), and Preston Sturges's writing and direction were never more frenetic and explosive. This is Sturges's most sustained comedy: he starts it in overdrive, and he never lets up. The movie would be exhausting if it weren't so hilarious.