Three Little Girls in Blue

Three Little Girls in Blue is a smooth and simple, musical fairy tale showcasing some clever and intricate lyrics by Mack Gordon to Joseph Myrow's music which enchant the viewer right at the opening on a New Jersey chicken farm ("A Farmer's Life Is a Very Merry Life") and recur at just the appropriate junctures thereafter and include the enduring favorite "You Make Me Feel So Young." Other plusses include an intelligently lighthearted script by a large team of writers, gorgeous color photography, artful lighting effects, witty directorial touches and the three beautifully costumed and coiffed leading ladies. The male leads are less impressive, though Charles Smith as an eccentric valet who falls for Vera-Ellen is the most surprising and delightful. V-E herself as one of the titular girls is given ample opportunity to show off her balletic and acrobatic dancing skills in lively but overly busy choreography. Celeste Holm appears late in the story as an acerbically articulate, wacky but goodhearted Southern belle who helps tie up the plot in good old-fashioned musical comedy style.