Jane Powell was one of a few young women who made a name for herself during the Golden Era of Hollywood as a classical-style singer. Like Deanna Durbin in the 1930s, Jane achieved fame in the 1940s as an adolescent girl in lighthearted musicals produced by Joe Pasternak, a Hungarian immigrant who brought the music and charm of the Old World to Americans through his heartwarming movies.
Out of the 13 movies Jane Powell made at MGM between 1946 and 1955, Joe Pasternak produced all but four. Many of these movies paired her with older actors who were already established stars, providing contrast for the story and maintaining interest at the box office.
‘Holiday in Mexico’
Pidgeon’s character offers his daughter fatherly advice and stability in this musical movie foray. Christine (Powell) is the daughter of the American ambassador to Mexico, widower Jeffrey Evans (Pidgeon). Christine loves her father very much and enjoys taking care of him. When her childhood friend, Stanley Owen (Roddy MacDowall), turns 16, he wants her to be his girl, but she thinks he is too immature for her.
‘Luxury Liner’
Teens have a mind of their own and in this film, Brent’s character teaches his daughter that reckless behavior has consequences. Polly Bradford (Powell) is a dramatic young singer who lives at a boarding school because her widowed father, Jeremy Bradford (Brent), is captain of a cruise ship. When Polly learns that one of the passengers of her father’s next cruise is her favorite opera singer, Danish tenor Olaf Erikson (Lauritz Melchior), she decides to stow away.
‘Rich, Young and Pretty’
Once again, Powell’s character Elizabeth has a father involved in diplomacy, wealthy Texas rancher, Jim Rogers (Corey). When her father goes to Paris as an international diplomat, Elizabeth decides to accompany him.
She thinks that her mother died when she was an infant, but the truth is that she is a popular Parisian singer, Marie Devarone (Danielle Darrieux), who left her father years ago because she couldn’t stand Texas. Elizabeth meets Andre (Vic Damone), the handsome young son of one of her father’s colleagues, and they become infatuated with each other.
Meanwhile, Marie learns that her daughter is in Paris and is desperate to see her, so, on the advice of her partner, Paul Sarnac (Fernando Lamas), she arranges to meet her without revealing her identity. However, Marie fears that Elizabeth will end up in the same situation with Andre that she had with the girl’s father.
