Director, Michael Curtiz, was nurturing his new star, Doris Day, here and it showed
This beautiful 1949 film, if made today, would be hailed as a triumph, a tour de force, proof that Warner Bros.’ new star, Doris Day, was no fluke, but a genuine discovery by the studio, which had for years searched for a musical-comedy star who was on par with the giants at MGM. The film proved that they had found in this former Big Band singer a unique talent who could almost single-handedly save a dying art form, the movie musical. Her good looks and winning personality were embraced by the film-going public worldwide. After My Dream is Yours, there was no doubt that a star had truly been born.
The story centers around the booming radio business in the late 1940s, with Doug Blake (Jack Carson), a talent scout and agent, about to lose his prize singer, Gary Mitchell (Lee Bowman). Doug has fought for years to make Mitchell a star and now that he’s a celebrity, Gary is ungrateful, spoiled and drinking heavily.
After an all-out dispute, Doug washes his hands of Gary and goes to New York to find a new singing star to replace him. There he discovers Martha Gibson (Day), a young widow who is trying to break into radio as a singer. Doug convinces her that he will get her a good job in Hollywood, so she reluctantly leaves her small son in New York with her uncle (Edgar Kennedy) until she can get established.
Eve Arden as Vivian Martin.
While pursuing her new career, Martha rooms with Doug’s friend, Vivian Martin (Eve Arden). Complications arise when, much to Doug’s disgust, Martha meets and falls for Gary. After bringing her son to Hollywood, however, she finally realizes that Doug – not Gary – is the right man for her. Their heart-to-heart conversations are very touching and I admired Carson’s character, who tries (but ultimately fails) to keep his relationship with his singer strictly business.
Bowman plays a very unsympathetic Gary Mitchell, the archetype of a spoiled, selfish star who is aloof, arrogant, wolfish and completely ungrateful. Arden is as stylish as in all of her pictures. S Z Sakall, as the radio program’s sponsor, is enjoyable to watch, as usual. Adolphe Menjou, nearing the end of a distinguished film career, is appropriately stuffy; Edgar Kennedy, the perfect uncle/father figure; and Franklin Pangborn as the uppity station manager all play well.
Director, Michael Curtiz, was nurturing his new star here and it showed. He showcased Doris Day to her best advantage by giving her the opportunity to show that she could act, not just sing.
I wish that more songs had been assigned to Day because many of her musical numbers were snippets shown while she was auditioning. A couple more ballads would have added much to the proceedings, but the film has a lovely title song by Harry Warren and Ralph Blane.
In short, this was a nice movie.
Ralph McKnight, New York
Amazon.com has My Dream Is Yours
Other Reviews
Worthy of special note is a dream sequence featuring Bugs Bunny in which the cartoon characters blends with live action. The screenplay by Henry Kurnitz and Dane Lussier takes every chance to poke fun at radio and to get all the comedy out of the various situations. The many song numbers include: My Dream is Yours, Someone Like You, Love Finds a Way, and I’ll String along with You.
The studio was shrewd.. in assigning Day roles that emphasized the similarities between her private self and her public persona.. Day’s acting in My Dream Is Yours is far more restrained and varied than in her first film, and she is surrounded with a superior cast as well… Although My Dream Is Yours is shot through with music, much of it is thrown away or merely used in the background while the dialogue continues.. Especially lovely is Day’s rendering of the standard, I’ll String Along With You, which she sings to her son in an effort to lull him to sleep. – George Morris, Doris Day
I enjoyed singing for films because it wasn’t the impromptu business of standing in front of a ballroom band or a radio audience and hoping that one shot, despite all its distractions, would approximate my best effort.” – Doris Day, Her Own Story
“This is a reasonably entertaining variant of the tired, old backstage musical, due chiefly to Doris Day’s fresh and appealing personality and Jack Carson’s glib and amiable buffoonery… Miss Day.. turns in another exuberant performance that will win the favor of audiences. She is becoming a marquee asset.” – Film Bulletin
Derald Hendry