Le plus Heureux des milliardaires

This picture has some excellent songs written by the same team of song writers that wrote the award winning songs for Walt Disney's MARY POPPINS. The opening number of "Fortousity" is a delight. Although this movie is based on a true story about Cordelia Drexel Biddle, I would recommend it more as a lighthearted and fun movie for the whole family.

This was a great movie. When I saw it, I was amazed. The plot changed so many times on me, that I did not know what was going to happen at the end. It turned out being the best movie that I have ever seen and would give it 500 thumbs up.

Yes, "The Happiest Millionaire" was Walt Disney's last film. Yes, it was obviously made to top "Mary Poppins" and yes, like many late-sixties musicals, it flopped at the box office. But the fact remains that it is a glowing, beautifully made musical (with songs by the Sherman Brothers who were responsible for "Poppins") and it never got the recognition it truly deserved. The cast, headed by Disney Stalwart Fred MacMurray and legendary star Greer Garson (in her last film appearance) is excellent. The musical numbers are fun and engaging and the players do them well. Both Lesley Ann Warren and John Davidson were introduced in this film and proved an ideal pair of romantic leads. Warren, who became an overnight star courtesy of her delightful performance as Cinderella in the 1965 Rodgers and Hammerstein television musical, literally shines as Cordelia Drexel Biddle. Many scenes are stolen by Geraldine Page playing Davidson's haughty mother, and Tommy Steele can sing and dance with the best of them. There is also a grand performance from Gladys Cooper as the family matriarch. And, for "Poppins" fans, Hermione Baddely appears as the Irish housekeeper. There is also a brief bit by Joan Marshall, the star of William Castle's "Homicidal" (billed as Jean Arless) as a maid. The fact that this story is (loosely) based on the prominent Biddle family of Philadelphia, adds to the fun. Because the film was released after Disney's death and exhibitors complained about its long running time, it was drastically edited, shortening and removing several scenes, as well as one musical number ("It Won't Be Long Till Christmas"), and here is where the controversy comes in. Garson was originally cast as Mrs. Duke, after the part was turned down by several actresses, including Geraldine Page. Just before filming began however, Page changed her mind, and Greer ended up as Mrs. Biddle. (a part she was not anxious to play). She agreed to the switch when she heard the score--especially "It Won't Be Long Till Christmas" which was her one musical number. Indeed she COULD sing, and she did so in a few of her '40's films. Because her song was subsequently cut from the film (after it's Hollywood world premiere) she declined to attend any further premieres, though she had been at the Hollywood opening. Thanks to the newly restored roadshow edition, the song has been restored, and Garson and MacMurray perform it to perfection, truly the highlight of a warm and wonderful story that makes for perfect holiday viewing.

A combination of desires- to top "Mary Poppins" and to capitilize on the then-current trend of big-budget, three-hour musical films playing to roadshow audiences- caused Walt Disney to make this film, the last he personally oversaw. He hired several of the same people to work on it that had worked on "Poppins", including the songwriting team of the Sherman brothers, the chereography team of Marc Breaux and Dee Dee Wood, and supporting cast member Hermoine Baddely in much the same role of the acerbic maid. In addition, he spent freely on costumes and production and hired an impressive cast, including Fred Macmurry, Greer Garson, Tommy Steele, Gladys Cooper, Geraldine Page, and in their film debuts, Lesley Ann Warren and John Davidson.

The result was a pleasent, somewhat entertaining but all-around silly and, for the most part, instantly forgettable confection. Yes, it's fine for the whole family, but it will be hard for the kiddies (and even the adults) to stay awake as the rather simple story is stretched to nearly three hours, with a series of plotlines connected by merely a shimmer all going on at once. Macmurry is at his least inspired, making the title character into a bumbling, blustering idiot; it's pretty hard not to cheer whenever someone shows him up, verbally or physically. The songs are nice enough, but only one or two really stick in the memory, and half of them are totally irrelevant. (I saw the restored roadshow edition; there are a variety of other editions that cut out several of the songs) Still, Tommy Steele is likable as the forever perky Irish butler (He gets a very hummable song to sing called "Fortuosity") and the chereography certainly is lively. The songs, for all the irrelevance of many of them, really move the picture along, as it slows down considerably whenever the screenplay takes over.

It's too bad Disney's last film couldn't have been better, but oh, well. That's life.

I remember the first time I saw this terrific film. I was nine going on ten and living in Westchester County, New York, at the time. "Happiest Millionaire" was the Christmas attraction at Radio City Music Hall that year [1967] and it was a delight! The performances, particularly those of Tommy Steele, Fred MacMurray, and Leslie Ann Warren are all bursting with effervescence and energy, and the Sherman brothers' songs, if not up to their work on "Mary Poppins," (But, then, what could be?) are consistently pleasant and enjoyable. As the last complete film that Walt Disney was to oversee before his death, it's one of his best latter-day works.

Which is why I find the critical drubbing it's taken over the years, particularly Leonard Maltin's in his book "The Disney Films," so hard to understand. "Happiest Millionaire" is what many family films try to be today, rarely succeeding. I was given a video of it as a present recently and found it just as enjoyable as I did 32 years ago, if not more so. Plus, living in the Philadelphia area as I do today, there's the historical interest, as well.

In short, "Happiest Millionaire" was great in 1967, and even better today. If you can see it, by all means do. You'll be in for a rare treat and a hidden treasure from the Disney vaults!