Two Weeks with Love

Two Weeks with Love


MGM, 1950, 93 minutes, ***½

Released November, 1950

Class Act



Must See!



Kittenish teens Patti (Jane Powell) and Melba (Debbie Reynolds) turn a 1900s family vacation in the Catskills into Two Weeks with Love, "a bright entertainment that may come as a surprise to those who think there is nothing new under the musical sun -The Hollywood Reporter. Patti is fluttery over a suave older man (Ricardo Montalban) and thinks romance will bloom if her disapproving parents let her wear... a corset! With that longed-for garment, 18-year-old [sic] Patti is sure she'll look like a more mature woman. Meanwhile, Melba stalks a local boy (Carleton Carpenter) with lovestruck determination. In a sensational showstopper, Reynolds and Carpenter tear into a version of "Aba Daba Honeymoon," so frisky and charming it became a smash-hit record. Busby Berkeley staged all the numbers, including "Row, Row, Row" and a dream sequence that has corseted Powell wowing Montalban with, of all things, an aria from The Chocolate Soldier. Aba daba, what a delight!

 Debbie Reynolds and Jane Powell are the most charming duo of all time. Debbie Reynolds' and Carleton Carpenter's rendition of "Aba Daba Honeymoon" was so popular the record became a chart topper. This was Debbie Reynolds' first full role at MGM, and she's simply gushing with talent!



Contrary to what you may read elsewhere, "The Aba Daba Honeymoon" was not written for this film. It was written in 1914, and it was originally used in Billy Rose's "Diamond Horseshoe."




Produced by: Jack Cummings

Directed by: Roy Rowland

Screen Play by: John Larkin and Dorothy Kingsley

Story by: John Larkin

Musical Direction: Georgie Stoll

Musical Numbers Staged by: Busby Berkeley

Orchestrations: Leo Arnaud

Vocal Arrangements: Saul Chaplin

Art Directors: Cedric Gibbons and Preston Ames

Set Decorations: Edwin B. Willis

Associate: Richard A. Pefferle

Women's Costumes by: Helen Rose

Men's Costumes by: Walter Plunkett

Hair Styles Designed by: Sydney Guilaroff

Make-Up Created by: William J. Tuttle

Director of Photography: Alfred Gilks

Special Effects: Warren Newcombe

Color by Technicolor

Technicolor Color Consultants: Henri Jaffa, James Gooch

Film Editor: Irvine Warburton



Cast: Jane Powell [Patti Robinson], Ricardo Montalban [Demetrio "Demi" Armendez], Louis Calhern [Horatio Robinson], Ann Harding [Katherine Robinson], Debbie Reynolds [Melba Robinson], Carleton Carpenter [Billy Finley], Phyllis Kirk [Valerie Stresemann], Clinton Sundberg [Mr. Finley], Gary Gray [McCormick Robinson], Tommy Rettig [Ricky Robinson], Charles Smith [Eddie Gavin], additional cast: Lillian Bronson [Miss Zilly], Everett Glass [Mr. Hibbs], Mitchell Lewis [Mr. Schimpf], Melba Meredith [Mrs. Armendez], Dorothy Neumann [Miss Pinwhistle], Marjorie Wood [Mrs. Stresemann], Jack Shea [Lifeguard], Edward Clark [Druggist], Betty Farrington [Customer], Mary Jane Smith [Girl], Bob Stebbins [Young Man], Dickie Humphreys [Boy Partner], Wilson Wood [Band Leader], Peter M. Thompson, Ted Eckelberry [Boys], Lucille Curtis, Jack Daley, Fred Santley, George Brandt, Alice Richey [Hotel Guests]



Musical Program: [0:00] Waltz (played by Orchestra [band in bandstand onscreen] behind titles); [0:01] A Heart That's Free (sung by Jane Powell accompanied by band in bandstand [onscreen]); [0:04] Light Cavalry Overture (played by Ochestra [band in bandstand onscreen] fades to background); [0:15] That's How I Need You (sung by Debbie Reynolds, Carleton Carpenter and boys at hotel); [0:17] Oceana Roll (sung and danced by Jane Powell, Debbie Reynolds, Carleton Carpenter and kids at hotel); [0:28] The Aba Daba Honeymoon (sung by Debbie Reynolds and Carleton Carpener with Chorus, dance segment by Debbie Reynolds and Carleton Carpenter); [0:36] By the Light of the Silvery Moon (sung by Louis Calhern, Ann Harding, Jane Powell and Ensemble); [0:50] Waltz (danced by hotel guests and by Ricardo Montalban and Jane Powell); [0:54] Polka (danced by hotel guests); [1:11] The Corset Scene: Beautiful Lady (sung by Chorus) / My Hero (sung by Jane Powell, Ricardo Montalban [probably dubbed] and Chorus, danced by Ricardo Montalban and Jane Powell); [1:19] Row, Row, Row (sung and danced by Debbie Reynolds and Carleton Carpenter at Kissamee Kapers); [1:26] El Tango (danced by Ricardo Montalban and Jane Powell)