| The Happiest Millionaire |
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| 1967 films | |
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PLOT The story follows an Irish immigrant named John Lawless ( Tommy Steele ) as he applies for a butler position with eccentric Philadelphia millionaire Anthony J. Drexel Biddle ( Fred MacMurray ). Even though the family is a bit strange, Lawless soon learns that he fits right in. Mr. Biddle takes a liking to him immediately and "hires" him. For the rest of the film, Lawless serves as the narrator/commentator. Mr. Biddle busies himself with his Biddle Boxing and Bible School (located in his garage) and his Alligator s in the Conservatory . His wife, Cordelia ( Greer Garson ), stands by, accepting his eccentricities with a sense of pride and class. The two sons, Tony and Livingston ( Paul Petersen and Eddie Hodges , respectively) are headed off to college, never to be seen in the film again. The daughter, Cordy ( Lesley Ann Warren , in her film debut), is a Tomboy of sorts that had knocked out all of her potential suitors with a single punch. She tires of her father's eccentric house and wishes to see what's beyond the Biddle manor. Biddle lets Cordy go to a boarding school, where her roommate teaches her how to lure men with her feminine wiles, know as "Bye-um-pum-pum". At a social dance, Cordy meets Angier Duke ( John Davidson , in his film debut) and falls in love with him. He tells Cordy that he is fascinated with the new Automobile and wants to head to Detroit, Michigan to make his fortune separate from his family's fortune. Cordy comes back to her parents' home and tells them that she is getting married to Angie. At first, this is a difficult thing for Mr. Biddle to take. He does not want to give up his little girl. After meeting Angie, and sampling his Jiu Jitsu fighting skills, Biddle takes a liking to him and accepts the proposal. The family then makes arrangements for a very grand wedding. The stress of the wedding plans and disapproving remarks from Angie's mother ( Geraldine Page ) cause Cordy to get lost in the fray. Not surprisingly, Angie feels the same way. But their ways of dealing with the stress differ, which leads them to fight and call off the wedding. This ends the entire familt into upheaval. Biddle sends John Lawless after Angie. John finds Angie at the local tavern, contemplating what he will do next. During a rousing song-and-dance sequence, John tries to convince Angie to go back to Cordy. At first, Angie is stubborn and thinks of other ways to get out of his fix, saying that he wants to join the Foreign Leigion . A bar fight breaks out and Angie is hauled off to jail. In prision, Biddle comes to bail Angie out. He then reasons with Angie and gets him to understand how much Cordy cares for him. Angie decides to marry Cordy after all. But, he becomes forceful, and elopes with Cordy to Detroit. After a few months, Biddle becomes lonely and longs for people in the big empty house again. Cordelia assures her husband that their children will always come back. It is good to let them go and make their own way, she tells him. It won't be long before Christmas and they will all come back to the house. It is a feeling that Biddle has never had to deal with before. But, like all "empty-nesters", he accepts it. TRIVIA
DIFFERENT VERSIONS The film previewed at the length of 172 minutes, which included overture, intermission music, entr'acte, and exit music. However, the studio decided to shorten the film to 160 minutes soon afterwards for its premiere. In the face of mixed reviews and low box-office returns, the studio cut it to 144 minutes. Again failing to stem the tide, they cut it to 118 minutes. The complete 172 minute version has been restored in recent years and has been released on DVD . EXTERNAL LINKS |
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