''The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady'' is a 1950 American

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...

directed by David Butler. It stars

June Haver June Haver (born Beverly June Stovenour; June 10, 1926 – July 4, 2005) was an American film actress, singer and dancer. Once groomed by 20th Century Fox to be "the next Betty Grable," Haver appeared in a string of Musical film, musicals, but sh ...

and

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer, and television and radio host. He appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, ''Oklahoma!'' (1955) and ''Carousel'' (1956), and ...

. The story is mostly about the lives of musical performers in New York in the closing years of the 19th century. Most of the songs were written for the movie, but "Rose of Tralee" dates from the 19th century, and the song "The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady" dates from 1917.

Plot

At the end of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

in 1898, grumpy and overprotective Irish widower Dennis O'Grady ( James Barton) has three daughters. The oldest, Katie (

Marcia Mae Jones Marcia Mae Jones (August 1, 1924 – September 2, 2007) was an American film and television actress whose prolific career spanned 57 years. Early years Jones was the youngest of four children born to actress Freda Jones. All three of her ...

), welcomes her husband James Moore (

Sean McClory Séan Joseph McClory (8 March 1924 – 10 December 2003) was an Irish actor whose career spanned six decades and included well over 100 films and television series. He was sometimes billed as Shawn McGlory or Sean McGlory. Early years Mc ...

), whom she has married in secret, home from the army. The youngest two, Patricia (

) and Maureen (

Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer and entrepreneur. Her acting career spanned almost 70 years. Reynolds performed on stage and television and in films into her 80s. She was nom ...

), pass a vaudeville theater owned by Tony Pastor (

). Patricia recognizes the man from earlier that afternoon when he mocked her father, and she scolds him for his actions. Dennis is advised by his friend Miklos ( S. Z. Sakall) to warn his daughters about the immoral behavior of most men before it is too late. He is not aware of Katie's marriage and pregnancy, nor Patricia's flirtations with a vaudeville actor. Since the death of his wife Rosie – a famous vaudeville actress – Dennis has been wary of vaudeville, feeling that the hard life of vaudevillians was the cause of Rosie's death. When Patricia is caught by her father accompanying Tony, she lies that Tony is a college student. Dennis is impressed by the young man and decides that he would be perfect to date Katie. Patricia is upset but keeps quiet, afraid of her father's judgment. Patricia tells Tony that she is interested in joining him on the stage, but Tony thinks she should tell her father the truth. Dennis is outraged when he learns about Tony's connections to the vaudeville, and locks Patricia in her room, but she sneaks out to join Tony on the stage, where she quickly becomes a big hit. Dennis, meanwhile, learns that one of his daughters is expecting twins, and decides that Patricia must be the one. Devastated, he gets drunk and gets in trouble with the police. He disowns all his daughters – including innocent Maureen. Lonely without his daughters, Dennis becomes ill. Patricia is informed by Miklos about her father's health and quickly gathers her sisters and their lovers to take care of him. Dennis initially does not accept their company, until he finds out that Katie has just given birth to triplets. Afterwards, Patricia and Tony get engaged.

Cast

as Patricia O'Grady *

as Tony Pastor * James Barton as Dennis O'Grady * S. Z. Sakall as Miklos "Mike" Teretzky *

Gene Nelson Gene Nelson (born Leander Eugene Berg; March 24, 1920 – September 16, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director. Biography Nelson was born Eugene Leander Berg in Seattle, Washington. By 1924, he and his parents mov ...

as Doug Martin *

as James Moore *

as Maureen O'Grady * Marsha Jones as Katie O'Grady *

Jane Darwell Jane Darwell (born Patti Woodard; October 15, 1879 – August 13, 1967) was an American actress of stage, film, and television. With appearances in more than 100 major movies spanning half a century, Darwell is perhaps best remembered for her p ...

as Mrs. Murphy * Virginia Lee as Virginia Lee Cast notes *The role of Maureen was written specifically for 17-year-old Debbie Reynolds, and was her first speaking role in a film. Director David Butler advised her to avoid "acting", and just say the lines the way she would say them herself. Another problem for Reynolds was physical: Because her ears stuck out from her head, they had to be glued back, but the glue had a tendency to come undone under the hot lights. Reynolds' mother eventually solved the problem by having her daughter's ears pinned back surgically.Passafiume, Andrea
"The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady"
on

TCM.com Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcas ...

*S. Z. Sakall is listed in the film's opening credits using his nickname, ''Cuddles'' Sakall.

Production

The film had been in preproduction for years before its release with the working title of ''A Night at Tony Pastor's''. A 1942 article announced that

George Raft George Raft (né Ranft; September 26, 1901 – November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is remembe ...

would play the lead role."Notes"

Reception

Critics agreed that the plot of the film was uninspired, but some had a favorable opinion of the musical numbers.

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though some ...

called it "a standard musical film" with musical numbers "both generous and likeable," but a plot that was "not only fake but formula-made." ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' called it "another one of those familiarly patterned musicals with a backstage plot. It has charm, some wit, nice music and good pace to fulfill all demands of the general market." ''

Harrison's Reports ''Harrison's Reports'' was a New York City–based motion picture trade journal published weekly from 1919 to 1962. The typical issue was four letter-size pages sent to subscribers under a second-class mail permit. Its founder, editor and publish ...

'' called it "consistently entertaining" despite a "thin, commonplace story." ''

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' dismissed the film for "indifferent tunes and slow-paced direction" as well as an "unoriginal" plot, with the "only bright moments" coming from Gene Nelson.

John McCarten John McCarten (September 10, 1911, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – September 25, 1974, New York City) was an American writer who contributed about 1,000 pieces for ''The New Yorker'', serving as the magazine's film critic from 1945 to 1960 and B ...

of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'' wrote that the film was "about an aging horsecar driver who doesn't want his daughter to go into theatrical work, on the ground that slaving in vaudeville contributed to the death of his beloved wife. If the old girl's acting was anything like that of June Haver, who plays the daughter, she was probably a victim of justifiable homicide rather than exhaustion."

Box office

According to Warner Bros accounts, the film earned $2,158,000 domestically and $645,000 foreign.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Daughter Of Rosie O'grady 1950 films 1950 musical films American musical films Films about entertainers Films about Irish-American culture Films directed by David Butler Films set in 1898 Films set in New York City Warner Bros. films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films English-language musical films