Rich, Young and Pretty

MGM, 1951, Color, 95 minutes, ***

Elizabeth Rogers (Jane Powell) is rich, young and very, very pretty!! She's rich because she lives with her Texan tycoon father (Wendell Corey), who has been estranged from his wife since Elizabeth was a baby. A business trip takes daddy to Paris, and Elizabeth goes along, only to fall in love with Andre Milan (Vic Damone) and to discover that the nightclub singer she so admires (Danielle Darrieux) is her mother! Song-filled comedy features several numbers by Darrieux and Lamas. Other musical highlights include "Wonder Why," "We Never Talk Much" and "How Do You Like Your Eggs in the Morning."

"It's bon voyage to Paris when Jane Powell meets up with Danielle Darrieux and Vic Damone in this lighthearted Technicolor musical treat!

Elizabeth Rogers (Powell) is giving her father (Wendell Corey) plenty to worry about; he warily brought his petite fille with him on a political trip to France, hoping that she would discover a little culture. Instead, she finds love with a debonair Frenchman (Vic Damone in his screen debut) and the mother she has never known (charming chanteuse Danielle Darrieux). Her older and wiser father, knowing the disaster that can occur when one falls for a French foreigner (as he did for Darrieux), attempts to keep Elizabeth away from her mother and her new Parisian Prince. But when he leaves town for two days to take care of state affairs, the devine Darrieux takes care of affairs of the heart and makes sure that the young couple discovers all the love that Paris has to offer.

With bright and cheery songs, colorful sets and a supporting cast which includes Fernando Lamas, Una Merkel and Hans Conried, Rich, Young and Pretty will make you feel just that. [from videotape sleeve]

Produced by: Joe Pasternak
Directed by: Norman Taurog
Screen Play by: Dorothy Cooper and Sidney Sheldon
Story by: Dorothy Cooper
Musical Direction: David Rose
Musical Score: David Rose
Songs: Lyrics by Sammy Cahn, Music by Nickolaus Brodszky
Musical Numbers Staged by: Nick Castle
Art Directors: Cedric Gibbons and Arthur Lonergan
Set Decorations: Edwin B. Willis
Associate: Jack D. Moore
Women's Costumes: Helen Rose
Hair Styles Designed by: Sydney Guilaroff
Make-Up Created by: William Tuttle
Recording Supervisor: Douglas Shearer
Special Effects: Warren Newcombe
Montage Sequence by: Peter Ballbusch
Director of Photography: Robert Planck
Color by Technicolor
Technicolor Color Consultants: Henri Jaffa, James Gooch
Film Editor: Gene Ruggiero

Awards: Nominated for Best Song Academy Award ("Wonder Why")

Cast:
Jane Powell ... Elizabeth Rogers
Danielle Darrieux ... Marie Devarone
Wendell Corey ... Jim Stauton Rogers
Vic Damone ... Andre Milan
Fernando Lamas ... Paul Sarnac
Marcel Dalio ... Claude Duval
Una Merkel ... Glynnie
Richard Anderson ... Bob Lennart
Jean Murat ... Henri Milan
Duci de Kerekjarto ... Gypsy Leader
Hans Conried ... Jean, the Maitre D'
George Tatar & Katrin Tatar ... Hungarian Dancers
Monique Chantal ... Maid
Bess Flowers ... Extra at Le Parisien
The Four Freshmen ... Four Musicians

Songs:
[0:06] Paris (sung by Jane Powell with a little help from Wendell Corey)
[0:10] Hungarian Rhapsody (danced by George and Katrin Tatar)
[0:12] Deep in the Heart of Texas / Mademoiselle from Armentieres (played by string quartet, sung by Wendell Corey, Jane Powell and Ensemble)
[0:16] L'Amour Toujours (Tonight for Sure) (sung and danced by Danielle Darrieux and Mens Chorus)
[0:22] There's Danger in Your Eyes, Cherie (sung by Danielle Darrieux)
[0:31] Wonder Why (sung by Vic Damone)
[0:36] I Can See You (sung by Jane Powell and Vic Damone)
[0:43] Paris (sung by Fernando Lamas)
[0:45] We Never Talk Much (We Just Sit Around) (sung by Danielle Darrieux and Fernando Lamas)
[0:51] Wonder Why (sung by Vic Damone and Jane Powell while dancing)
[1:00] We Never Talk Much (We Just Sit Around) (sung by Jane Powell and Vic Damone)
[1:05] Dark Is the Night (C'est fini) (sung by Danielle Darrieux)
[1:14] The Old Piano Roll Blues (sung by Jane Powell, Vic Damone and Fernando Lamas)
[1:17] How Do You Like Your Eggs in the Morning? (sung by Vic Damone and Jane Powell with The Four Freshmen)
[1:33] Paris (reprised by Danielle Darrieux and Company)