TWO GIRLS AND A SAILOR

US, 1944, 124 minutes, Black and white.
June Allyson, Gloria de Haven, Van Johnson, Xavier Cugat and his Orchestra, Jimmy Durante, Tom Drake, Lena Horne, Carlos Ramirez, Harry Jages and his Orchestra, Jose Iturbi, Gracie Allen, Virginia O'Brien, Albert Coates.
Directed by Richard Thorpe.

Two Girls and a Sailor is an MG.M musical of wartime morale boosting which is more or less as its title says. However, it was a major introduction to June Allyson who had come from Broadway for her debut in Best Foot Forward. She shows a vivacious personality at the beginning of a very successful career in musicals and comedy and in some serious films. Gloria de Haven is an attractive star although this was the kind of role that she repeated in most of her films. Van Johnson at the start of his career is the rather lovelorn hero with very limited range. Tom Drake, who was in a number of prestigious MG.M films at the time, is the other hero.

As with so many musicals made during the war, the focus on the canteen for the Forces enables a number of songs and routines to be staged. They are a bit more interesting in this film because of the basic plot line. A number of guest artists appear including Xavier Cugat and his orchestra, Harry James featuring largely, Lena Horne, Jose Iturbi and his sister Ampara Navarro, Ben Blue, Gracie Allen and Jimmy Durante has several routines which are worked into the screenplay.