Something in the Wind

1947

Technical Information:

Studio: Universal-International
Running Time: 1 hour, 29 minutes
Black and White
Video Availability: Available on MCA/Universal home video.

Cast:

Deanna Durbin...Mary Collins
Donald O'Connor...Charlie Reed
John Dall...Donald Reed
Charles Winninger...Uncle Chester Reed
Helena Carter...Clarissa Prentice
Margaret Wycherly...Grandma Reed
Jean Adair...Aunt Mary Collins
The Four Williams Brothers...Themselves
Jacqueline de Wit...Saleslady
Jan Peerce...Tony

Credits:

Screenplay...Harry Kurnitz, William Bowers
Based on a story by...Fritz Rotter, Charles O'Neal
Director of Photography...Milton Krasner, A.S.C.
Art Direction...Alexander Golitzen, Frank A. Richards
Film Editor...Otto Ludwig
Sound...Charles Felstead, Joe Lapis
Set Decorations...Russell A. Gausman, Ruby R. Levitt
Musical Numbers Staged by...Eugene Loring
Orchestrations...Ted Duncan, George Siravo
Gowns by...Orry Kelly
Hair Stylist...Carmen Dirigo
Make-Up...Bud Westmore
Assistant Director...Frank Shaw
Special Photography...David S. Horsley, A.S.C.
Music Composed and Directed by...Johnny Green
Lyrics...Leo Robin
Produced by...Joseph Sistrom
Directed by...Irving Pichel

    Mary Collins (Deanna Durbin) is a disc jockey on radio station WFOB with her own morning show, "Turntable Time." Unfortunately, the show doesn't have a sponsor and thus, is not broadcast nationally.
    After closing her show one day, Mary is told that there is a man waiting to talk to her. The man turns out to be Donald Reed (John Dall). He informs her that he is the grandson of the late Henry Reed, a very rich and very powerful man, and that he is going to stop his grandfather's payments to her. Mary is confused and has no idea what he is talking about, since she has never met Henry Reed and is not receiving payments. She becomes angry with him when he accuses her of being Henry's mistress and also for being so rude and storms home.
    Once at home, she tells her elderly Aunt Mary (Jean Adair) about Donald. Aunt Mary is shocked. She explains to her niece that it is a case of mistaken identity. She is actually the one receiving the payments. Many years ago, Aunt Mary was the governess to Henry Reed's sister's children and the two soon fell in love. Unfortunately, they weren't allowed to marry since she didn't come from a wealthy family. Henry married another woman a year later and, feeling bad about the way his family treated his former love, started giving her checks. When Mary's mother died, she was left with her aunt, who used the checks to bring the girl up. Mary, disgusted at the fact that practically everything she had and was brought up on as a child was bought by the Reed family, decides that they are bad people and that she won't cooperate with them.
    Meanwhile, the Reeds are in a fix. They have had a good reputation for years and don't want it to be tarnished by Mary, suspecting that she may have kept a diary and wouldn't hesitate to sell it. They are also concerned that Donald's fiancee Clarissa Prentice (Helena Carter) won't want to marry him anymore, if Mary doesn't keep quiet. They decide that the only way to keep her quiet is to pay her. Doanld enlists the help of his third cousin Charlie (Donald O'Connor) to help get Mary to settle.
    The next morning, Mary auditions for a group of men from New York who are interested in sponsoring her show. Charlie and Donald wait at the radio station for Mary to finish. They then kidnap her and take her to the family mansion. Shocked at the fact that they kidnapped her and tired of trying to explain everything to them, she decides to make their lives difficult and pretend like she really was Henry Reed's mistress. She informs them that she might settle for $1,000,000 - $5,000 to keep quiet, and $995,000 for the baby she and Henry are having. The Reeds are upset by this, and contact their lawyers to draw a contract up. They decide not to let her leave the house until the papers are signed.
    Charlie then tells Mary that he knows she is pretending. He has found checks written by his grandfather to Mary Collins for the last twenty years. He decides to help her, since he doesn't have any money and also because he is in love with Clarissa. Charlies hopes to use Mary to break Clarissa and Donald up. Mary agrees to help him.
    That night, Clarissa arrives to talk to Donald. He tries to hide Mary, thinking that Clarissa would be suspicious. Mary foils his plan though by coming downstairs and flirting with him. Clarissa storms out of the house.
    Mary then makes Donald take her to a fashion show and flirts with him in front of his fiancee and her father who are also there. Clarissa then breaks off her engagement to Donald. Charlie is happy about this but Mary is convinced that Clarissa is only planning on marrying Donald for his money and won't be angry with him too long.
    Charlie then tells Donald that he can persuade Mary to sign the papers if he makes love to her. Donald agrees that it might work and goes up to her room. After a while, they kiss and realize that they are both really in love with each other. Mary then tries to tell him about the charade, but he won't listen. Unbeknownst to them, Donald's grandmother (Margaret Wycherly) has seen them kissing from her bedroom window.
    That night, Donald's grandmother talks to Mary. Mary tells her that she and Donald are in love, but Grandmother Reed informs her that he is engaged to Clarissa, and that he must marry someone from a prominent family.
    Mary, tired of the whole thing and upset that she can't see Donald, leaves the Reed mansion and returns home to her Aunt. Her aunt tells her that a man from New York kept calling and wants her to go there.
    Meanwhile, Donald's uncle Chester (Charles Winninger) calls the airport, pretending he's Donald, and tells them to detain Mary Collins, if she should go there. He says that she is suspected of extortion. Just as Mary is to board her plane, she is thrown in jail. Uncle Chester then comes and informs her that he will get her out of jail and keep the whole affair quiet if she signs the papers and then gives him half. She refuses.
    After sneaking a key off the belt of guard Tony (Jan Peerce) Mary calls Donald to get her out of jail. Unfortunately, he and Charlie are drunk because Donald's grandmother just reconciled he and Clarissa! He goes down to get her out as soon as possible.
    The lawyers then arrive, and Mary signs the papers and gets a check for $1,000,000. She then gets out of jail. Donald is upset to hear that she actually took the check.
    Back at the Reed mansion, Grandmother Reed is informed that Mary Collins is waiting to see her. It is not the Mary Collins she expected, instead it is her Aunt. She returns Mary's check to her and says that her niece only signed it because then she would never see Donald again, as his grandmother had requested. Aunt Mary then tells her that she was in love with a Reed when she was young, but they were forced to break up as well and that it is wrong.
    Mary then goes to appear on television. Just as she is about to go on, she finds out that it is being subsidized by the Reed family. She refuses to go on but after seeing how badly Charlie does in front of the cameras, decides to. Behind the cameras she can see Charlie and Clarissa are together, a happy Grandmother Reed and Donald. She rushes off camera to embrace him, so they can live happily ever after.

Songs:

[Songs performed by Deanna Durbin in boldface]
"The Turntable Song" (Green, Robin)
"Happy-Go-Lucky and Free" (Green, Robin)
"I Love a Mystery" (Green, Robin)
"You Gotta Keep Your Baby Lookin' Right" (Green, Robin)
"Something in the Wind" (Green, Robin)
"It's Only Love" (Green, Robin)
"Il Miserere" (Verdi)

Reviews:

"All in all, entertainment is the word for Something in the Wind."
- Abe Weiler, New York Times

My Review:

Something in the Wind is a cute little film that I like a lot. It is very funny and lets Deanna display a more feisty side of herself which shows up in a number of ways. She gets some very witty dialogue including hilarious one-liners. She also gets the chance to wear some more beautiful dresses, a little more daring than her others (including a dress done entirely in black sequins). Her songs also show a more bold, brassy side of her, especially "The Turntable Song," a catchy little ditty. Donald O'Connor and John Dall are also great. in supporting roles. The one thing I didn't like about the picture is the ending. It is not satisfactory at all, and seems to be carelessy tacked on, almost as an after-thought. I believe that something better could've been done to tie up all the loose ends. All in all though, I think this rates as one of Deanna's best!

Picture credits:
1. Video cover scanned by webmaster.
2. Publicity still scanned by webmaster.
3. Movie still scanned by webmaster.

Filmography | Home | Next Film

This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page