That was an excellent one.

Brilliant and touching

A lot of fun.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

This would be a most enjoyable period musical if it weren't for the fact that Penrod has the lion's share of the action. True, some of this material is quite amusing. We like the cleverly directed sequence in the schoolroom with suspense supplied by an iris mask around a roving camera and an amazing bit of special effects work. But unfortunately Penrod out-stays his welcome. There's just too much of him. The script also lets interest suffer by being less taut than its sequel "By the Light of the Silvery Moon". In fact it's so episodic in construction, we can only conclude that the original Tarkington novel is more like a series of inter-related short stories.Now the movie's good points. Doris Day as usual is an absolute delight. She looks great in Technicolor and period costumes too. And she has a full repertoire of nostalgic songs and dances. MacRae also is in pleasant voice. We especially love the sequence in which he kids the title tune — "Must have been written by a guy with a glass of beer in one hand and a rhyming dictionary in the other!" Another scene to anticipate is his confrontation with the carnival sharpie (deftly played by Eddie Marr). Day's first meeting with MacRae is a gem. A pity the fun doesn't continue on this high level right to the fade-out but is sidetracked firstly by Penrod's more involved escapades and secondly by the script's descent into jingoism and bathos.Leading an especially strong support cast, Jack Smith makes a notable contribution to the fun. His work alone as Doris' relentlessly stuffy suitor makes the picture worth seeing. I like his singing too. Oddly, this is the only film I have for him. (Perhaps he was a TV identity).OTHER VIEWS: For pity's sake, here's a re-make of Penrod with Doris Day, glossy Technicolor and A-1 production values. Although she receives top billing, Doris actually takes second place to Penrod (now called Wesley and here band-box packaged without his little friend) and his occasionally bright but often boring family (Leon Ames, Rosemary DeCamp, and Mary Wickes of the running joke swinging doors). Penrod's scrapes rather than Marjorie's occupy center stage. They start off as humorous, but end up tedious. The script is not so much one or two taut plots, but a series of short stories strung very loosely together. Just when you think the proceedings have come to a merciful end, yet another story starts off.Undeterred, the players all act most enthusiastically through this slapstick charade. They play in fact as if their lines and characters were the funniest in the world. (In the early 1950s, funny families reached their zenith of popularity, both in the movies and on television. Compare Paramount's Dear Ruth series in which the Penrod changeling is a teenage Mona Freeman).True, the movie starts off most promisingly. MacRae sings the cornball title song with appropriate irony, but unfortunately this witty excursion is but a side trip from the more routine and often lackluster domestic mishaps to come.It's a shame that Doris has such a comparatively small part, too often playing second fiddle to Billy Gray. She does have some agreeable songs, however, though perhaps not as many as Mr. MacRae. What we do see and hear of her is most attractive.Although the direction is mostly smoothly routine, it does have its stylish moments. Photography, sets and costumes are suitably bright. Production values are breathtakingly glossy.In all, "On Moonlight Bay" would be a charming musical comedy if its makers had tried a recipe with a lot more music and a lot less "comedy". — JHR writing as George Addison.

Despite the Day-MacRae pairing the movie's not exactly a musical, the numbers being few and far between. Instead, the storyline is more like a down-home romantic comedy set in 1917. In fact, young Billy Gray gets as much screen time as Day. That's not to say the results are not generally delightful, especially the first part. But MacRae later disappears for a surprising period, while Day's presence is also intermittent. Somehow I suspect there may be a backstory here, even though the results are consistently entertaining.It's a fine cast, Day never fresher nor lovelier, MacRae as handsome as ever, along with stuffy dad Ames and sweet mom DeCamp. And for comedic effect, it's a surprisingly accomplished Gray as the impish son and Wickes as the sarcastic cook. On the other hand, there's tuneful singer Jack Smith in thankless role as nerdy extra man. It appears he's taking up some slack in MacRae's absence. Nonetheless, the pairing of the leads is almost picture perfect.The plot has daughter Day falling for unconventional neighbor McRae of whom her conventional banker dad (Ames) disapproves. So how can their true love blossom, especially when her mischievous little brother (Gray) is always up to something amusingly disruptive. Somehow, though, you know things will work out.A couple of points to note—catch Mom's pressing Day to enhance her natural attributes with a pair of falsies worn for the big dance. That really surprised me. After all, the 50's were the big airbrushed decade; plus, falsies amount to an ironic comment on the Monroes, Mansfields, and Russells of the decade. Also, having hero MacRae talk down our conventional economy, primarily the role of banks, seems a risky move for the movie's hero in that Cold War period. Then too, unless I missed something, he never recants those sentiments.Despite the occasional edginess, it's still a fun film full of candybox colors and the two charming leads. But fans looking for big production numbers may be disappointed.

Roy Del Ruth directed this charming bit of Americana, based on stories by Booth Tarkington. Doris Day plays a tomboy named Marjorie Winfield whose family moves to a new neighborhood in their small town. Hilarity and romance ensue as she meets the boy across the street and he wins her heart after many light-hearted complications. The great Gordon McRae plays Bill Sherman and gets to show off his voice and some comic acting chops. Day and McRae have real chemistry here.Much of the hilarity comes from Marjorie's family, with Leon Ames, Rosemary DeCamp, Billy Gray and Mary Wickes taking turns making the audience laugh. Gray steals every scene he is in and has some great scenes with Ellen Corby as the stuffy (and gossipy) school teacher. His cough alone is worth a dozen laughs.This film is often considered a weak cousin to "Meet Me in St. Louis," one of the truly great Hollywood musicals. That film also centers around a young woman finding love with a neighbor boy ("The Boy Next Door") and features a beleaguered father also played by Ames. Certainly, "On Moonlight Bay" does not have the great score, the perfect art direction, or the magic of Judy Garland. But it does have a true spirit of fun, some great music, and a lot of great comic scenes.This film was an instant hit and inspired a quick sequel ("By the Light of the Silvery Moon") that was not quite as good but is certainly worth a look.

This musical comedy focuses on the trials and tribulations of a family in a small Indiana town in early 20th century. There isn't much singing. There are only a few short songs that are not bad but not particularly memorable either. In fact, there isn't much of a plot either. It's episodic, playing like a sitcom without a laugh track. This was the third of five films in which Day and MacRae co-starred. They were both around thirty at the time - too old to be believable as teenagers. Ames does a variation of his role in "Meet Me in St. Louis," the classic that this one seems to be patterned after. Wikes is funny as the housekeeper. It's a light and inoffensive little film.