Happy Movie for the Season

My time has been quite used up just keeping the ordinary things going at home. I have been trying to do a video of the decorating type, but after spending an entire day for just a two minute clip, discovered it was done from the wrong angle. It is amazing the things one must look at through a lens before perfection is achieved. There can be a cord hanging out, or a stray piece of paper, etc. The light has to be cast in a certain direction or it will reflect badly back into the camera. Sometimes objects behind a person or thing can create an illusion of something else. People are not always careful about that. I remember one really good film I watched, where the speaker stood with a tree in the background. It looked like the tree was growing straight out of the top of his head. It is things like that that make filming very tedious...it is very hard work.

Speaking of Films, about 35 years ago my husband and I saw a really good movie on a station that showed old movies late at night. We stayed up into the night laughing so hard at this story, which was called "It Happened on 5th Avenue." It ranks right up there with "It's a Wonderful Life." We searched for this movie over the years and finally landed it this week. We ordered the DVD from Nostalgia Family in Baker City, Oregon, which is available on the web.http://www.nostalgiafamilyvideo.com/ Thirty five years later last night, our children and grandchildren got to watch this film and share the laughter and warmth of it.

The story begins with a transient sort of man who moves into mansions when the owners leave to warmer places for the winter. He does no harm, and he eats very little of the stock of food in the pantry, so that no one knows he has been there. Before the owners come back, he leaves to the next empty mansion.

In this story, however, he meets up with former U.S. Service men, home from the war with no housing available, and offers to share the residence with them, as long as they do their share of work and don't damage anything.

In the meantime, the daughter of the owner of the mansion comes home unexpectedly. The resident "butler" as he poses himself, thinks she is a thief and chastises her completely. She catches on to the things that are going on, and begs to stay. One serviceman and the butler agree to let her stay on the condition she won't take anything. She then invites her father, the owner of the mansion, (who is also the 2nd richest man in the country) to pose as a beggar and come and stay with her there. He reluctantly agrees and is shocked to see his home turned into a type of soup kitchen for homeless people. In desperation he sneaks away in the house to use the phone and trade a few stocks, and make some transactions from his accounts, just doing business. The transient butler overhears him talking about millions of dollars and tells him, "You really must control these fantasies you have of being a rich man. I know you think you have millions of dollars hanging in the balance, but Mike, today, you didn't make your bed." He makes him take his turn washing dishes and doing menial tasks.

Evolving throughout the story are two romances, one which is incredibly funny. The owner of the mansion tries to talk to his wife, who also joins them and becomes the cook. The relationship of the father, mother and daughter are not known to these homeless people, so they treat them like they would any ordinary person. The transient chastises them when he sees them in a room alone together and tells them, "There are children living here and we have to be good examples to them."

You can see pictures and read more descriptions here: http://ihofa.gspband.com/