''A Millionaire for Christy'' is a 1951 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

George Marshall George Catlett Marshall Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American army officer and statesman. He rose through the United States Army to become Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Chief of Staff of the US Army under Pre ...

and starring Fred MacMurray,

Eleanor Parker Eleanor Jean Parker (June 26, 1922 – December 9, 2013) was an American actress. She was nominated for three Academy Awards for her roles in the films ''Caged'' (1950), ''Detective Story'' (1951), and ''Interrupted Melody'' (1955), the first ...

and Richard Carlson. The film is a

screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1940s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary characteristi ...

, in which Christy Sloane (Parker) is a legal secretary from

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

who is sent to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

to inform radio host Peter Lockwood (MacMurray) that he has just inherited $2 million.

Plot

Christabel "Christy" Sloane (Parker) is a

legal secretary A legal secretary is a particular category of worker within the legal profession. Background In the practice of law In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, ...

whose desire for finer things is at odds with her desperate financial straits, causing her to lament to her coworker Patsy (

Una Merkel Una Merkel (December 10, 1903 – January 2, 1986) was an American stage, film, radio, and television actress. Merkel was born in Kentucky and acted on stage in New York in the 1920s. She went to Hollywood in 1930 and became a popular film ...

) that she needs to find a

millionaire A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...

to marry. Her boss orders Christy to go to

to inform Peter Ulysses Lockwood (MacMurray) of an inheritance of 28,000,000

pesos The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named "dollar" ...

($2,000,000) that a deceased uncle has bequeathed him and obtain the necessary legal documents. The pragmatic Patsy sees the assignment as the opportunity Christy has been waiting for and counsels her to romance the heir before telling him of his good fortune. Christy is not inclined to a gold digger, but Patsy's words ring in her ears as she makes the journey. Unbeknownst to her, Peter is "the Sunshine Man," the self-promoting and simpering host of a

radio program A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio networ ...

on which he offers syrupy homilies and moral tales about "spreading the sunshine around" (often linked to the products of his sponsors). Christy arrives on Peter's wedding day as he is scurrying to get dressed for the ceremony and finish packing for a honeymoon cruise to

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

with his bride, heiress June Chandler. When Christy knocks on Peter's apartment door, she is surprised by his good looks and impulsively swoons in his arms. The half-dressed Peter, baffled by the mysterious woman's appearance and with his living room cluttered by his luggage, carries her to his bed. Christy "awakens" and acts seductively, but Peter, in reality a notorious ladies' man, believes she is mentally unstable and is unmoved. Just then his friend, psychiatrist Roland "Doc" Cook ( Richard Carlson), who despite his irritation over losing June to Peter is to be best man at the wedding, enters the apartment and assumes that Peter is having one last fling before his marriage. While Christy is trying to explain her mission from his bathroom, Peter is in the living room trying to convince Doc that appearances are not what they seem and does not hear her. Christy follows Peter and Doc to the Chandler mansion where the wedding is being held. Doc refuses to be part of the wedding, and a bewildered Christy inadvertently gives the impression that she is Peter's girl friend, whom he has abandoned for June. Christy's erratic behavior and insistence that Peter has inherited a fortune in pesos convince everyone that she is unbalanced. The wedding is called off until Peter can clear himself by driving Christy to Doc's clinic in

La Jolla La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. La Jolla is surrounded on ...

to confirm her instability. During the trip, fog rolls in and Peter drives off the highway onto a beach, where he loses the car keys. The wet and weary couple are found by a group of Mexican

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

workers, who, mistaking them for newlyweds, welcome them into their crew car on a nearby siding. After enjoying a night of dancing and drinking

tequila Tequila (; ) is a distilled beverage made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands ('' Los Altos de Jalisco'') of the central western Mexican s ...

with the Mexicans, Peter and Christy go out into the moonlight and kiss. In the morning, Peter apologizes to Christy for making the advances as the car is being towed to La Jolla. Doc talks with Christy, who explains everything, and confirms the truth with her boss. Doc bemoans the fact that while his clinic is facing financial ruin, Peter has just come into a fortune of his own, but also deduces that Christy is in love with Peter. Hoping to regain June for himself and Peter for Christy, Doc conspires with her to perpetuate her "illness" for 24 hours while he tricks Peter into "letting her down gently" in order to effect a cure. After putting up Peter in his own room and installing Christy in the same hotel, Doc summons June, who finds Peter again succumbing to Christy's charms. Doc, however, persuades June that Peter was just following Doc's therapy. The glum Doc and Christy get drunk together in the hotel bar, where one of Peter's Sunshine Man broadcasts makes Doc want to make him "eat his words." They approach Peter and June to "share" their bottle of tequila. After several drinks, Peter, still believing that he is humoring Christy, is cajoled by the jealous June and intoxicated Doc to pledge his entire inheritance to various La Jolla charities, including Doc's clinic. The next morning, a hungover Peter is awakened by the press and a stream of well-wishers, all congratulating him on his generosity. Upon learning that he really did inherit two million dollars and has given it away, Peter is dumbfounded and believes he owes Christy an apology for thinking that she was crazy. June angrily warns him not to see her again but he knocks on Christy's door anyway, only to see her leaving. Peter chases her into a train station, where she hides in the ladies room. Peter declares his love for her, and literally smokes her out with burning newspapers. The happy couple escape pursuing police and reporters by jumping aboard a train carrying their Mexican friends.

Cast

* Fred MacMurray as Peter Ulysses Lockwood *

as Christabel "Christy" Sloane * Richard Carlson as Dr. Roland "Doc" Cook *

as Patsy Clifford * Chris-Pin Martin as Manolo *

Douglass Dumbrille Douglass Rupert Dumbrille (October 13, 1889 – April 2, 1974) was a Canadian actor who appeared regularly in films from the early 1930s. Life and career Douglass Dumbrille ( ) was born in Hamilton, Ontario. As a young man, he was employed ...

as A.K. Thompson * Kay Buckley as June Chandler *

Raymond Greenleaf Raymond Greenleaf (born Roger Ramon Greenleaf; January 1, 1892 – October 29, 1963) was an American actor, best known for ''All the King's Men'' (1949), '' Angel Face'' (1952), and '' Pinky'' (1949). Early life He was born as Roger Ramon Gre ...

as Benjamin Chandler *

Nestor Paiva Nestor Paiva (June 30, 1905 – September 9, 1966) was an American actor of Portuguese descent. He is most famous for his recurring role of Teo Gonzales the innkeeper in Walt Disney's Spanish Western series ''Zorro'' and its feature film ''The ...

as Mr. Rapello

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Millionaire For Christy, A 1951 romantic comedy films 1951 films 20th Century Fox films American romantic comedy films American screwball comedy films Films scored by Victor Young Films directed by George Marshall Films set in California American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films