That Funny Feeling (1965)

Sandra Dee is just too cute... and how adorable was it that she found a sweetheart just as cute as she was - Bobby Darin! The twosome met while making Come September in Italy in 1960 and after a whirlwind courtship by Darin (who sent Dee 18 yellow roses every day), they married in December 1960. They remained married for seven years and in that time made two more romantic-comedy films together where they played the junior-set version of Rock Hudson and Doris Day: If a Man Answers (1962) and That Funny Feeling (1965).

That Funny Feeling is about swinger Tom Milford (Darin) who uses a maid service to clean his apartment after his nightly parties. He has never seen this maid and she (Dee) thinks the playboy that she cleans after is a horrible man judging from the aftermath of his messy wingdings. He is about to be sent on an assignment in California so he leaves a note for his maid telling her she doesn't have to come by for 10 days. That same day he meets Joan Howell (Dee) and when he offers to take her home she gives the cab driver Milford's address since she is embarrassed of her tiny one-room apartment. When Milford insists taking her to her door, he is naturally surprised when she opens up his apartment with a key! He is even more surprised when she tells him her name is Joan Milford!

The story to That Funny Feeling is about a simple mix-up like this and that's all it takes to make a very amusing comedy. Of course, having two cute stars with a natural acting flair helps make the film so entertaining. This could easily have been a script written for a Rock Hudson and Doris Day comedy but one can't picture Doris Day living in such a tiny apartment with a roommate, nor being a maid. That's why a college-aged actress was needed and Sandra Dee was perfect for the part. Playing her roommate Audrey is Nita Talbot who is best known for portraying Russian spy Marya on the television series Hogan's Heroes. She's the younger version of Thelma Ritter, complete with the snarky remarks and New York accent. 

Also co-starring in the film is Donald O'Connor as a Tony Randall-ish boss to Tom Milford. He is all in a tither about his valuable paintings (which are being stored in Tom's apartment) being in danger of getting damaged. Donald is always good to watch and his character adds a nice addition to the chaos Tom is already experiencing. Also in the cast is Larry Storch as another roommate and Leo G. Carroll as a nosy pawnbroker. 

Bobby Darin sings the title song "That Funny Feeling" (which he also wrote) but, other than that, we don't get to hear him croon any tunes in this picture - darn. Aside from that minor disappointment, there's not much to dislike about That Funny Feeling, it's genuinely funny and delightful to watch - especially for Valentine's Day. 💗

State Fair ( 1962 )

Often when a film becomes a smashing box office success, the production studio that made it believes they can replicate its ticket sales with the next generation, and so, every 15-20 years the same titles crop up with new casts and slightly modified scripts.

State Fair is one such film. The 1932 novel by Phil Strong was brought to the screen in 1933 as a Janet Gaynor/Lew Ayres hit for Fox Studios. It told the story of the Frake family and their adventures at the Iowa State Fair, focusing on the romantic entanglements that the two teenage children, Margy and Wayne, get themselves into. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II then set this story to music for the 1945 Technicolor musical adaptation starring Dana Andrews, Jeanne Craine, Vivian Blaine, and Dick Haymes. This was a most entertaining production and it set the bar high for future remakes, one of which was State Fair ( 1962 ).  

For this picture, Fox took the opportunity to cash in on the popularity of two of the top singing stars of the era - Pat Boone and Bobby Darin - and paired them up with two pretty gals, Ann-Margret and Pamela Tiffin, to make what they considered prime bait for the younger generation. To lure in the older crowd, one of Fox's biggest stars of the 1940s, Alice Faye, was cast as Melissa "Ma" Frake and Tom Ewell, a popular stage and screen actor of the 1950s, was cast as Papa Frake. Richard Rodgers also added a few extra tunes to spice up the picture. And so, with an ideal cast, a dependable and well-used story, and lush Cinemascope, the brass at Fox thought this remake would be a box-office hit. They thought wrong. The film lost nearly a million dollars. 

In life, imitation is often the sincerest form of flattery but in Hollywood it is a sign of unimaginative filmmaking. The 1962 version of State Fair tries so hard to have the bucolic charm of its predecessors that it fails to stamp its own impression, which is unfortunate since it really only disappointments when it attempts to duplicate the 1945 version. It is during these scenes that the acting seems bland and uninspired. The cast is uncomfortable in their roles and the entire production comes off as an apology to the audience for having such a "hokey" old-fashioned plot to work with. They should have taken a cue from Bye, Bye, Birdie ( 1962 ) a musical which oozes with small-town naivety and yet is perfectly at home in its own generation. There certainly is nothing hokey about a fair....unless you make it out to be. 

Screenwriter Richard L. Breen adapted Sonya Levien and Paul Green's original screenplay in an attempt to inject some new verve into the story and moved the Iowa setting to Dallas, Texas which, not surprisingly ( since Texans do everything big ) features "the largest state fair in America". It was filmed on location at the modern Dallas fairground which boasts nearly 100 acres of exhibition halls, dance and dining venues, and a stock car track.  Pat Boone gets to try his racing skills on the track and Ann-Margaret performs a show-stopping rendition of "Isn't it Kinda Fun" at a Hollywood Bowl style outdoor theater on the fairgrounds. The giant 52' tall Big Tex who booms his welcome speech to the fairgoers, continues to greet visitors today. 

Pat Boone, who could croon as well as Dick Haymes, and Ann-Margret were the only redeeming actors in the film. They added a genuine warmth and sincerity to their parts, which the rest of the cast should have mirrored. Pamela Tiffin, sweet as she looked, was no comparison to Jeanne Crain. Her airy interpretation of Margy lacked a depth of character, and one had to wonder what she saw in Jerry Dundee ( Bobby Darin ) who seemed bent on simply making her one of his conquests. Tom Ewell did an adequate job in the role that Will Rogers originally performed in the 1933 version, but Alice Faye was wasted - and wooden in the few scenes she had. She had signed for the part believing that she would be reunited with her screen partner, Don Ameche, and be directed by Henry King ( who filmed the original '33 version ). Instead, Jose Ferrer took the reins....and found himself riding a dead horse. Or was he the man to blame for killing it?