IT CAME FROM THE BOTTOM SHELF!

Whenever I’m asked by someone to recommend a movie that they probably haven’t seen, my “go to” suggestion is The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944).  The film was the biggest comedy sensation of 1944 and the funniest film ever made by Preston Sturges, the wittiest screenwriter in the history of Hollywood.  Today, however, The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek is lesser known than most of Sturges’ films (Sullivan’s Travels, The Lady Eve, Palm Beach Story, etc.) even amongst the most devoted cinephiles.  That’s a shame, because there is a lot for modern audiences to love in this screwball masterpiece.  Not only does the humor hold up tremendously well, viewers are often fascinated at how much writer/director Sturges got past the censors during the restrictive era of the Production Code.  Only Preston Sturges could get away with making a screwball comedy during World War II about unplanned pregnancy, which also touches upon the loose morals of U.S. soldiers, potential bigamy, small-town moral hypocrisy, political corruption, and a satire of the biblical account of the Nativity.

The movie starts out in a dead run and it hardly takes a breath during it’s 98 minute running time.  The editor of the local paper (Victor Potel) calls up the Governor of the state (Brian Donlevy) to let him know that a “miracle” has happened in the little town of Morgan’s Creek.  As the editor recounts the story, we find out that the “miracle” centers around Trudy Kockenlocker (Betty Hutton), the man-crazy daughter of the town constable (William Demarest).  Trudy wants to go to a big farewell dance to see the soldiers off to war, but Officer Kockenlocker forbids it (being that he was a WWI vet and knows what a young man’s fancy turns to).  Then Trudy comes up with a tremendous idea — she’ll accept an invitation to the movies from Norval Jones (Eddie Bracken), the anxious, 4-F local who has loved her since Grade School, and convince him to let her sneak away to the party.  While he isn’t happy about it, Norval agrees to cover for Trudy, and Trudy promises to meet Norval back at the theater at the end of the triple feature.

Unfortunately, things don’t go quite according to plan.  Trudy takes a blow to the head at the party, and she doesn’t return to the theater until 8am the next morning, remembering little of the night before.  While there is a bit of a row when Norval brings Trudy home seven hours late, the real problems start when the events of the evening begin to trickle back into Trudy’s brain.  In her stupor, she married one of the troops, but she can’t remember his name.  She thinks it was something like “Ratskiwatzki.”  Plus, the couple used phony names when signing the marriage license, so there is no way for Trudy to track down the phantom soldier.  Worse still, Trudy comes to discover that she is pregnant.  Trudy’s smarty-pants sister (Diana Lynn) suggests that Trudy marry Norval to cover up any scandal, but that gets complicated when Trudy actually falls in love with the schnook.  After much stammering, misunderstandings, pratfalls, gunfire, a walk through a screen door, arrest, and public disgrace, Preston Sturges provides a deliriously happy ending, thanks to the “miracle” of the title (and a lot of illegal paperwork).

If you are looking for a “feel good” film, you can’t do better.  The jubilant ending makes me grin ear-to-ear no matter how many times I’ve watched The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, and that’s starting to get in the high double-digits.  In fact, I’ll reveal now, that this is my absolute favorite film of all time.  Why do I love it so much?  So this review doesn’t get inordinately long, I’ll bulletpoint it:

• The film is incredibly subversive — so much so, that the studio held the film two years after it was complete, as they were unsure how they could release an “unplanned pregnancy” comedy that promotes political corruption as a benefit to mankind.
• At the same time, the film is incredibly good-hearted.  For every sly dig at sexual mores, small town intolerance, the sanctity of marriage, and blind patriotism, there is a depiction of good people going out of their way to help each other.
• The film is damn funny, which is why 1944 audiences didn’t care about the subversive content and made the movie a “standing room only” hit.
• There are no big stars in the film — Preston Sturges was known for his stock company of amazing character actors, but in earlier Sturges films, they were always in support of name talent (Henry Fonda, Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea, Veronica Lake, Claudette Colbert, Dick Powell, etc.).  This time, even the leads are character actors.
• Eddie Bracken, Betty Hutton, William Demarest, and Diana Lynn were reliable pros, but this is their best, funniest work.
• Demarest delivers a few Buster Keaton-level pratfalls.
• Brian Donlevy and Akim Tamiroff reprise their roles from Sturges’ directorial debut, The Great McGinty, meaning that the films exist in the same cockeyed universe.

I could go on for days, but it’s better that you discover some of the film’s pleasures on your own.  Do yourself a favor, and take a chance on this old, black and white movie.  Otherwise, you will miss out on one of the true joys that this world has to offer.

USA/B&W-98m./Dir: Preston Sturges/Wr: Preston Sturges/Cast: Eddie Bracken, Betty Hutton, William Demarest, Diana Lynn, Porter Hall, Emery Parnell, Al Bridge, Julius Tannen, Victor Potel, Brian Donlevy, Akim Tamiroff

For Fans of: If you love Sturges’ more famous films, such as Sullivan’s Travels, you owe it to yourself to see his funniest.  Actually, if you like to laugh, you should see this film, whether you are familiar with Sturges or not.

Video: Warner Brothers released DVDs of The Miracle of Morgan's Creek in 2005 and again in 2013. Unfortunately, both are out-of-print. However, you can find copies on the secondary market. The print used for the DVD is in excellent condition and free of tears, speckles, or debris. However, being a standard definition master, the image is a little soft. The film really deserves a Blu-ray upgrade, either through the Warner Archive or the Criterion Collection.

If you do find a copy of the out-of-print DVD, it contains the following featurettes:

• Preston Sturges and The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (14 min.)
• Censorship: Morgan’s Creek vs. the Production Code (7 min.)

Streaming: The film is available for rent or purchase in digital form from Amazon.

More to Explore: If you enjoy The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, the most natural follow-up is Preston Sturges’ Hail the Conquering Hero (1944), which also stars Bracken and Demarest.  It is available in the DVD box set, Preston Sturges - The Filmmaker Collection.

Trivia: The film was so popular that Bracken and Demarest also teamed for a radio show, The Eddie Bracken Show, where they played variations on their Morgan’s Creek characters.

For More Info: Three collections of Sturges’ scripts, with background on the productions, have been released by University of California Press — Five Screenplays by Preston Sturges, Four More Screenplays by Preston Sturges, and Three More Screenplays by Preston Sturges.