Su alteza mi secretaria

A whole crowd of directors on this one, due to various health issues, acc to the trivia here. Also a pretty large cast list, if you include all the credited, uncredited, and Scenes Deleted. Betty Grable is Miss Pilgrim, an early female pioneer to work her way into the office. I LOVE the symbolism of making her name miss PILGRIM. Grable made this about halfway between Moon over Miami and How to Marry a Millionaire. Dick Haymes is Pritchard, the boss, and he's shocked that a woman would even consider working for him. Ann Revere is his aunt Alice, who stands up for her, and demands she be given a chance. Gene Lockhart is in here as Saxon. probably the most interesting credit on here is the singer, Countess Elektra Rozanska. if you search around enough, you'll find her story.. apparently she worked with children to resolve their speech issues. and of course, the debate over whether she really was a countess or not. sounds like a made up title to me. As period pieces go, this one is actually pretty good! it's almost a documentary, with some humor thrown in to keep it from being boring. they mention the Parker House, an actual Boston landmark, with over 500 rooms. i personally could have done with less songs; the story, the characters, and the historical significance were quite enough to carry the film. good stuff. shows occasionally on Turner Classics.

"The Schocking Miss Pilgrim" a curiosity piece rarely seen these days. The film focus on the early women's right movement in the late 19th Century. Some of the ideas from that time still resonate these days, although there is no comparison. Director George Seaton delivers an entertainment movie that is enhanced by some unheard music by George and Ira Gershwin that is a delight to the ear.

Betty Grable, a charismatic actress, portrays Cynthia Pilgrim, who has just finished a sort of secretarial school in which the use of the typewriter by a female was a breakthrough. Ms. Pilgrim is assigned to Boston where she is the first woman employed by a solid old firm that only employs male personnel. Soon Cynthia changes the perception of the office about women in the work place, winning the heart of her boss John Pritchard.

The musical numbers are delightful without being flashy. Ms. Grable and Dick Haymes make some nice music together. Mr. Haymes with his melodic voice is one of the best things in the film. Also, Anne Revere and Gene Lockhart do excellent work in minor roles.

This film should be seen more often because of the charismatic Ms. Grable and her costar Dick Haymes.

The highlight of this film is the undiscovered songs by George Gershwin, which brother Ira wrote new lyrics to and Kay Swift arranged to make a film score that is a delight. One genuine hit, "For You, For Me, For Evermore," plus a near-hit, "Aren't You Glad We Did," are supported by a host of other pleasing tunes, including the witty novelty, "But Not in Boston." Dick Haymes' rich baritone is another strong point in what is, from a storyline point of view, a rather silly film.

THE SHOCKING MISS PILGRIM was one of the few BETTY GRABLE movies that did not bring them in at the box-office, probably because her famous legs are not in display in this story about women in the work force, circa 1870s. Instead, the usually bubbly Miss Grable is seen in demure costumes, although her blonde hair is a rather garish touch considering the era.

She's paired with the rather weak DICK HAYMES, although his baritone voice lends itself nicely to a couple of Gershwin songs--notably "Aren't You Glad We Did?" and "For You, For Me, For Evermore".

As with all of Fox's Grable films, it's nicely photographed in Technicolor and there are supporting players like ANN REVERE and GENE LOCKHART to add a genial touch to the proceedings. The story itself concerns itself with the proper place for women at a time when they were new to the work force and found it hard to be accepted in the all male society of the office, even if they did graduate from secretarial schools. The film deals neatly with these aspects and has a certain nostalgic charm.

Not one of Grable's box-office hits, probably because she was too covered up to be the glamorous Fox star of previous musicals, but modestly entertaining for fans of the genre.

The Shocking Miss Pilgrim was born when Ira Gershwin might have been doing some spring cleaning and came on some old unpublished music of his late brother George. From that both a score came and a movie for that score, The Shocking Miss Pilgrim who shocked Boston by becoming a professional woman, a Type Writer.

Betty Grable is in the title role and she's graduated from a secretarial school in New York and she gets assigned to Boston to a shipping firm headed by Dick Haymes. Haymes is a proper Bostonian of the time and believes the woman's place is in the home. Eventually he'd like to see Grable in his home, but not in the office. When he tries to reject her, his sister suffragette Anne Revere interferes and Betty starts a career there on this newfangled machine called a typewriter.

As the first one in Boston, a city loath to break any traditions she's a hero to the women's suffrage movement, not something Dick is ready to deal with. Of course it all works out in the end and in a most peculiar manner too.

Of these trunk songs that Ira Gershwin developed for the film, For You For Me Forevermore and Aren't You Kind Of Glad We Did became posthumous hits for brother George. Both are duets in the film sung by Grable and Haymes. Dick recorded them for Decca with his usual singing partner Helen Forrest, but Betty as per Darryl Zanuck's ban on his stars recording never put these down on wax. A pity too, they're both presented quite nicely.

The Shocking Miss Pilgrim got very good reviews but did not do well at the box office. Grable's fortune was her legs and we got barely a glimpse of them in this film.

Fortunately we can still enjoy a musical literally born in a trunk.