Mary Martin Goes to Hollywood

Mary Martin made a cameo as herself in the 1946 Warner Bros. musical Night and Day, quite possibly the most factually inaccurate biopic ever made. Cary Grant starred as a suave and debonair - and decidedly heterosexual - Cole Porter, with Alexis Smith, 17 years Grant's junior as Porter's older wife, Linda. Almost every aspect of his life is made up, exaggerated or just extremely far-fetched. Apparently Porter loved every minute of the fiction they created of his life.

Here Martin recreates her 1938 show-stopping, star-making number "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" from Leave it to Me, which accurately places the number in its original setting: Siberia. What? Oh well... here goes! (Doesn't Jane Wyman look like the eager little beaver?).



I also unearthed this gem of Martin singing "Ta-Ra-Ra-Boom-De-Ay" from Happy Go Lucky, a starring vehicle for Martin that didn't jumpstart her film career the way I'm sure the suits would have hoped. This number reminded me of the hilarious floor show number from Leo McCarey's The Awful Truth. (Anyone?)