MARJORIE MORNINGSTAR

Natalie Wood and Gene Kelly

MARJORIE MORNINGSTAR (1958). Director: Irving Rapper.

Marjorie Morgenstern (Natalie Wood) takes a job at a summer resort and falls in love with the theater director, Noel Airman (Gene Kelly). At first Noel, who hides his Jewish roots, tries to convince himself that Marjorie is just another "Shirley," a typical Jewish American Princess, and her middle-class desires would never fit in with his plans. Still, over the years the two can't pull themselves away from each other, and their on-again/off-again relationship is beset with problems. Herman Wouk's novel has been reduced to an entertaining, slick soap opera that has some very good performances. Wood gets high marks as Marjorie, really giving a first-rate and honest portrayal of a tormented young lady. Gene Kelly just can't seem to get that far away from Gene Kelly, and his anguish over his failings both as an artist and a man just don't ring true -- he's too much of a winner for it to work. It's a perfectly good "Hollywood" performance but nothing more. As Marjorie's parents, Everett Sloane [The Big Knife] and especially Claire Trevor [The Velvet Touch] are more on the money, and Ed Wynn [Son of Flubber] makes his mark as Marjorie's beloved Uncle Samson. Carolyn Jones as Marjorie's best friend has a terrific scene when she nearly has a meltdown just before her wedding (as she's marrying Jesse White one can completely understand!). There are also good, if brief, performances from Martin Balsam as a doctor who falls for Marjorie; Edd Byrnes (billed as Edward Byrnes) as Marjorie's first boyfriend, Sandy; Martin Milner, as a playwright who carries a torch for Marjorie for years; Ruta Lee as a gal pal of Noel's; and others. Max Steiner has contributed a pleasant romantic score which helps a bit in putting this over.

Verdict: At least Wood and Kelly have definite chemistry! **1/2.

BEACH BALL

Call her Miss Ross

BEACH BALL (1965). Director: Lennie Weinrib.

"Wriggle, wriggle. Dr. Tickle, Dr. Tickle, Right now." -- lyrics.

Dick Martin (Edd Byrnes) tries to raise money to pay for instruments for his band, the Wrigglers, by getting grant money for college under false pretenses. When Susan (Chris Noel). the gal who hands out the grants, discovers the truth. she and her intellectual lady friends put on bikinis and try to get Dick and the guys to stay in school. This is the plot -- I wouldn't kid you. Five minutes into the flick The Four Seasons appear to sing the catchy "Dawn," but, unfortunately, they are never seen again. There are appearances by the Righteous Brothers, the Hondells, and the Supremes, each of whom are given one number except for the last group, who are forced to sing a couple of bad, inappropriate "surfer" songs, although the second one, the title tune, is somewhat less awful than the first. Desperately playing college boys are Aaron Kincaid and Robert Logan, the latter of which appeared with Byrnes on 77 Sunset Strip. Even the worst episode of that series would have been better than sitting through this excruciatingly boring and completely unfunny farce, although the actors are at least enthusiastic. The songs sung by the "Wrigglers" are mostly dreadful, although "Candy, Baby," is perhaps the least dreadful. Rock movies in the fifties generally spent more time on the special guest-stars than the plot -- if only that had been the case with Beach Ball, whose acts have limited running time. If they'd just let Frankie Valli and the fellows sing one number after another, you might not be reaching for that fast forward button. The fellows dress in drag for their final number, and a gag is lifted from Some Like It Hot. A guy asks Logan, still wearing his wig, for a date. Logan removes the wig and says "It wouldn't work out between us." The guy replies, "Yeah, you're taller than I am." He then turns to Kincaid, "what about you, honey?" This little bit of gay humor. albeit unoriginal, is handled with perfect amiability. The movie, alas, is too stupid to ever really amount to anything. Dick Miller has a small role as a cop and is fine. James Wellman, who plays Bernard Wolf, the man who wants the money for the band instruments, is pretty bad.

Verdict: This imitation of the AIP Beach party movies from Paramount is even worse than the originals. *1/2.

77 SUNSET STRIP

The cast of 77 Sunset Strip

77 SUNSET STRIP (1958 - 1964).

This hour-long black and white private eye series lasted for six seasons and was one of the most successful and influential of its type on television. The main stars were Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as Stuart Bailey and Roger Smith as Jeff Spencer. Edd Byrnes ["Final Escape"on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour] as Gerald Kookson III or "Kookie," originally parked cars for the real-life Dino's Lodge next door -- the club was owned by Dean Martin who never appeared on the show -- did odd jobs for the detectives, and later became an employee with Bailey and Spencer. When Bourbon Street Beat was canceled Richard Long and the character he played were both moved over to Sunset. Louis Quinn played Roscoe, a horse player who made money also doing odd jobs for the agency; Jacqueline Beer was their secretary, Suzanne; and Robert Logan [Claudelle Inglish] took Kookie's old parking job, hung around the office, and got involved in a case or two. In the last episodes of the final season Stuart Bailey was the only private eye in sight, the others (as well as "Bailey and Spencer," Kooky, the agency's offices, the logo and theme,  and everything and everyone else) were all gone, possibly in a cost-cutting move.

While not every episode was a winner, the show, produced by former actor William Orr [The Hardys Ride High], managed to maintain a high-standard of entertainment value. Some of the most memorable episodes include "The Duncan Shrine," in which the statue of a dead western star is stolen from a cemetery; "Pattern for a Bomb," in which the gang try to stop a clever bomber-extortionist (with Joan Marshall); "The Gemologist Caper," in which a half million in gems disappears from a gallery; "Tarnished Idol," in which Suzanne goes undercover to investigate a paralyzed tennis player (Van Williams; Edgar Barrier); "Never to Have Loved," in which an actress tries to break with her Svengali-like husband/director; "By His Own Verdict," with Joseph Cotten as a lawyer whose acquitted client admits he's guilty; and one of the very best, "White Lie," in which a land claim dispute centers around a mulatto woman who has been passing for white, and who is understandably reluctant to answer tough questions in court (Gene Evans; Elizabeth Montgomery). The show featured many well-known guest-stars, such as Bert Convy, Paula Raymond, Diane McBain, George Petrie, Pat Crowley, Robert Clarke, Joan Taylor, Robert Vaughn, Jay Novello, Gena Rowlands, and many, many others. Orr also produced Surfside 6, which lasted two seasons.

Verdict: Snappy detective show with a finger-snappin' theme and appealing players. *** out of 4.