Gene Kelly in Marjorie Morningstar: Dig That Heel!

This is my contribution to the Gene Kelly Centennial Blogathon, hosted by the Classic Movie Blog Association, honoring the actor, director, choreographer and all around charmer's 100th birthday. To view the other fantastic contributions about all things Gene, click here.

Not the Gene Kelly I first fell in love with

We all know Gene Kelly is one of the very best dancers in the history of musical film, his only serious rival being the incomparable Fred Astaire (you can easily switch their names in this sentence). Who doesn't love Gene in the rain, Gene in Paris or Gene in his Navy whites?

However, the Gene I first fell in love with is a drop dead gorgeous, doomed, womanizing heel by the name of Noel Airman in 1958's "Marjorie Morningstar." Back in the 1960s, local TV stations easily obtained rights to less than classic films. So, as an impressionable and tender tween stuck at home on a rainy Saturday afternoon, I was introduced to May-December love with all of the glamour and caution Hollywood could provide. It planted a seed of a romantic vision that never left me.

Based on Herman Wouk's 1955 novel of the same name, "Marjorie Morningstar" tells the tale of nice Jewish girl Marjorie Morgenstern and her desire to live the life of an artist and break free from the conventions of the life her parents planned for her. We first meet Marjorie (played by an endearing, yearning Natalie Wood) as a lovely but restless student at Hunter College. She rejects the perfectly nice boy she is dating because she wants more than the predictable life he offers. You see, Marjorie wants to be an actress.

The restless Marjorie and her trouble-making friend, Marsha (played by Carolyn Jones) spend their summer as counselors at a girl's camp in upstate New York. Egged on by Marsha, the 2 girls sneak across the lake to an adult camp called "Southwind." This was the era of the Jewish Alps and the Borscht Belt, terms for resorts where performers went to learn their craft. There, Marjorie meets Noel Airman, the camp's social director and admitted big fish in the little pond. Marjorie also strikes up a friendship with Airman protege and aspiring playwright Wally Wronkin (Martin Milner), but Marjorie falls madly in love with Noel and he with her. He basks in her adoration and her belief in his genius and he encourages her to transform from Marjorie Morgenstern to Marjorie Morningstar (just as he had changed his name from Ehrman to Airman).

Marjorie and Wally openly adore Noel

And thus begins the undoing of Noel Airman. Marjorie's love makes him take a respectable job in advertising, but the office life is not for him. Cruelly, he cheats on Marjorie and flaunts his fling in her face. Still, Noel and Marjorie manage to patch thing up. When former protege Wally pens a hit play, Airman finally takes the leap into the big pond of Broadway professionals with his show "Princess Jones" and fails miserably. He goes back to Southwind, where he once again can be the object of the young girls' adoration and the big fish in the little pond. Marjorie reluctantly faces the truth and leaves him behind while faithful Wally, who has loved her all along, is waiting for her.

He knew the romance was doomed from the start

So, here we have Gene, the egotistical, womanizing, romantic loser - and I love him! He is every young woman's fantasy older man: gorgeous, charming and not too old. I remember feeling envious of Marjorie. If she had to have a doomed love affair, at least it was with Gene Kelly! I know that "Marjorie Morningstar" hardly registers as a blip on either Kelly's or Wood's resumes, but, being that tender, romantic tween at first viewing, I never forgot it. Gene does do some dancing in the film, but it's just a brief scene or two. Imagine how thrilled I was to later learn how well Gene could really dance! 

There are 3 things in this film that I can never forget.

One was Gene's rendition of "A Very Precious Love." I still know all the words. Sigh...

Another was Natalie's metallic weave black one-piece bathing suit that I coveted for years (and which sold for $6,000 at auction)

And, the last was the discovery that Gene was one great kisser.

All of this goes to show that Gene Kelly plays a great, sexy heel. This isn't news, since his great Broadway hit was as that all-time heel of heels, "Pal Joey." This darkness was also on display in "Les Girls" and "Christmas Holiday." 

Behind the blinding smile was a deep darkness that Kelly, the actor, "tapped" into with great result. He never was light as a feather, even when dancing. Instead, an earthly force seemed always to be pulling at him, making him conflicted, complex, intriguing, and oh-so desirable.

Remembering Natalie Wood: You Don't Know What You've Got 'Till It's Gone

For no particular reason, I have been thinking of Natalie Wood a lot lately and missing her. 

She was ever present in my life as a pre-teen, teenager and beyond. There was no doubt that she was a star, but she was rarely praised for her acting. During her lifetime she was frequently disrespected by the critics, but loved by her fans. 


Natalie Wood was one of the few child stars who made the successful transition to both teen and adult star. As a child she was adorable, but knowing. She certainly seemed like the smartest person in the room. As a teenager she was a high school goddess, the one the boys all wanted and the girls  imitated. As an adult, oh my, she was perfection: sophisticated, beautiful, elegant and approachable. Proud of her Russian heritage, Natalie (born Natasha Zakharenko and always called Natasha by her friends) was the beautiful girl of slightly exotic origin (she was an ethic all-purpose and,  during her career, played an Hispanic, Native American, Italian and Jewish girl). She was with us for so long, it seemed as though she was an eternal part of the Hollywood scenery. She was always there and, no matter what new faces came and went, she was permanent. Or so we thought.


Here are some of my favorite Natalie Wood films.


Childhood

"Miracle on 34th Street" is my favorite Natalie childhood film. Aside from the fact that it is a totally magical film in all ways, Natalie's Susan is the beating heart of this great movie. She is us, doubting, but secretly wanting to believe.

I love Natalie in "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir," too. She doesn't have a whole lot to do, but it is another magical film and she is just too cute.


Teenager

Every boy fell in love with Natalie after seeing "Rebel Without a Cause." As part of the troubled-teen trio with James Dean and Sal Mineo, Natalie's Judy showcased her growing talent and beauty in a landmark film. While the film belongs to Dean, Natalie's performance gives heartfelt and moving support.

I loved Natalie's performance in "Marjorie Morningstar." First, she gets to go to camp with friend Carolyn Jones and, while at camp and beyond, gets to have a mad affair with older man Gene Kelly (yum yum). That never happened to me at camp!! Then she gets to be an actress. Maybe not a great film, but it grabbed me from the get-go and I was rooting for Marjorie Morningstar (nee: Morgenstern) all the way. She is beautiful and affecting.

Plus, she wore a back metallic weave bathing suit that was killer.


Adult

Ah, "Splendor in the Grass." Natalie's breakout performance as an adult star and one of her very best. This is a beautiful film, one that has a special place in the hearts of so many filmgoers. Her raw-nerve performance as Deanie Loomis has been described as poetry and I think that's a fair assessment. Yet another film that seems to get better with each viewing.

Bells and banjos, indeed. This is the love that Natalie Wood's Angie Rossini wants from Steve McQueen in "Love with the Proper Stranger." Both stars are romantic (in a anti-romance kind of way) and breathtakingly young and beautiful. I saw this movie recently, and, seen from the rear view mirror of life, it made my heart both break and sing.

"Inside Daisy Clover" is not a great film, but it is one of my great guilty pleasures. First of all, Natalie is aces in this film - singing, cutting her hair and getting drunk and screwed over by everyone. Next, it has some of my favorite actors in support: Christopher Plummer being totally mean and sexy, a young and delicious Robert Redford being secretly gay, and the great Ruth Gordon as Daisy's nutty mama. Add a neat song ("You're Gonna Hear From Me," by Andre and Dory Previn) and lovely Edith Head costumes and I'm in. Can't help it - I love it , and I am placing this on my list of favorite Natalies instead of "West Side Story," as I think she looks kind of uncomfortable in the role of Maria.

The Great Leslie, Professor Fate, garters, furs and pies! "The Great Race" has it all. 

Natalie, as photojournalist Maggie DuBois gets to follow and join Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in this over-the-top wonderful Blake Edwards extravaganza.

She look great in all of her wonderful costumes, including the garters, corsets, furs and pies. Silly, but another that gets better with every viewing. 


Movie Star

Most favorite is Natalie Wood as movie star. Always glamorous, she was the vision of a sixties movie star for the junior set. She graced those marvelous movie magazine covers for years. What girl didn't follow her romances, her fashions and her latest films?

And, who wasn't always rooting for her and RJ? Didn't your heart just melt when they married again?

Natalie Wood was a child of Hollywood. Her films and her performances were always professional. always made with that telltale gloss of the Hollywood product. She was dependably, reliably covered in stardust. So, take that all you nay-sayers. Natalie Wood was the real deal and her star burns ever brighter as the years go by. Miss you, beautiful girl.


EXTRA! EXTRA! Click HERE and check out these gorgeous Natalie Wood paper dolls at "Creme de la Creme."