Dangerous When Wet *** (1953, Esther Williams, Fernando Lamas, Jack Carson, Charlotte Greenwood, William Demarest, Denise Darcel) – Classic Movie Review 6510

Wet she’s a star! Director Charles Walters’s 1953 movie Dangerous When Wet is a snug figure-hugging vehicle for Esther Williams, who gets nicely in the swim for MGM’s breezy musical outing when her character Katie Higgins and her family are persuaded by a hustler called Windy Weebe (Jack Carson) to enter his company’s contest to swim the English Channel.

The rest of the family are disqualified, so Williams must swim the Channel alone to win the contest to save her family’s farm. No trouble, as she gets help from Gallic smoothie André Lanet (played by Fernando Lamas – actually Argentinian, but hey this is the movies. The couple married in real life 16 years later and remained together till Lamas’s death in 1982.

It is all good-natured if mild fun, with barely a soggy moment thanks to the swinging songs from Johnny Mercer (music) and Arthur Schwartz (lyrics), Walters’s brisk direction, Esther’s amazing swimming and Charlotte Greenwood and William Demarest’s appealing clowning as mom and dad.

The William Hanna and Joseph Barbera-animated Tom and Jerry scene, where the star meets the cartoon characters for some underwater frolics in a comic dream sequence, really is a vintage treat. In the dream sequence, Katie Higgins (Williams) does an underwater ballet with Tom and Jerry as well as animated depictions of the different people in her life.

Tom and Jerry previously appeared together in MGM’s 1945 Anchors Aweigh where Tom briefly appears as a butler for King Jerry, who has a dance sequence with Gene Kelly.

Lamas’s beautiful baritone voice gets round three songs, including the ‘Ain’t Nature Grand’ duet with Williams.

Dangerous When Wet runs 95 minutes, is made by MGM, released by Loew’s Inc, written by Dorothy Kingsley, shot in Technicolor by Harold Rosson, produced by George Wells, and scored by George Stoll and Albert Sendrey, with Art Direction by Cedric Gibbons and Jack Martin Smith.

Also in the cast are Denise Darcel, Barbara Whiting, Donna Corcoran, Bunny Waters, Henri Letondal, Paul Bryar, Jack Raine, Richard Alexander, Tudor Owen, Ann Codee, Michael Dugan, Eugene Borden and Reginald Simpson.

The Roger Moore who plays a Reporter is the Chicago-born character actor (1900–1999). He ended up with 246 film credits, ironically most of them uncredited. His real name was Joseph I Young and he was the older brother of actor Robert Young.

It is featured in That’s Entertainment! III (1994).

Williams recalled: ‘Hanna and Barbera, searching for the right metaphor for this romantic Frenchman who Fernando portrayed, made him an octopus. “Perfect. I’ve heard his tentacles are everywhere,” I said’.

The two had never been formally introduced till Williams heard it was planned to cast him as her love interest in the film. Lamas told Williams he did not want to be in the film with her because he only wanted to be involved in important pictures and his role was rewritten to persuade him to take part.

The main cast are Esther Williams as Katie Higgins, Fernando Lamas as André Lanet, Jack Carson as Windy Weebe, Charlotte Greenwood as Ma Higgins, Denise Darcel as Gigi Mignon, William Demarest as Pa Higgins, Donna Corcoran as Junior Higgins, Barbara Whiting as Suzie Higgins, Bunny Waters as Greta, Henri Letondal as Joubert, Paul Bryar as Pierre, Jack Raine as Stuart Frye, Richard Alexander as Egyptian Channel swimmer, Tudor Owen as Old Salt, Ann Codee as Mrs. Lanet, and Darrell Wesley Clow as the Norwegian Swimmer.

It was a hit, costing $1,465,000 and earning $3,255,000.

Esther Williams (1921–2013).

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6510

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