This is a classical musical picture. It is the 1956 adaptation of the
1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein Musical. It has the classic song, "You'll
Never Walk Alone" twice. For this alone it is worthy of watching. This
show presents the unlikely marriage of Billy Bigelow (Gordon MacRae) and
Julie Jordon (Shirley Jones.) Billy is a carousel barker and Julie a
factory worker. Some of the music is contrived and forgettable.
People singing about the clams they are eating doesn’t quite cut it.
However this musical has more great music than I remembered. “If I
Loved You” is fun as the characters explore whether or not the really
would ever get married, and then they do. MacRae does the "Soliloquy"
after finding out his wife is pregnant in which he sings to his future
baby. When he realizes he might have a baby, he realizes he needs some
money. For some reason he is not willing to take a job in the fish
industry. He decides to go with his pal and rob a business man. This
doesn't work out, and he ends up dead. However, he is given a chance to
come back and influence his daughter for good. The speech of Dr.
Seldon at his daughter's graduation is classic: I - I can't tell you
any sure way to happiness. I only know that
you've gotta go out and find it for yourselves. You can't lean on the
success of your parents. That's their success. And don't be held back by
their failures...
Makes no difference what they did or didn't do. You just stand on your
own two feet. The world belongs to you as much as to the next fella, so
don't give it up. And try not to be scared of people not liking you,
just you try liking them. And just keep your faith, and your courage,
and you'll turn out all right. It's like what we used to sing every
morning when I was a boy. Maybe you still sing it: "When you walk
through a storm, hold your head up high." You know that one?
The show then ends with "You'll Never Walk Alone."
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