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Directed by Michael Curtiz, Romance on the High Seas (1948) the the story of Elvira Kent (Janis Paige) and her husband Michael (Don DeFore), who suspect each other of cheating. For their wedding anniversary, Elvira books a cruise to Rio de Janeiro, but Michael suddenly cancels the trip for business reasons. Seeing an opportunity, Elvira pretends to go alone, but in fact sends Georgia Garrett (Doris Day), a singer she had met at the travel agency, in her place and under her name. By secretly staying behind, Elvira hopes to discover if Michael is indeed having an affair with his attractive new secretary, Miss Medwick (Leslie Brooks). Michael, however, is suspicious over his wife's willingness to take the trip alone, so he hires private detective Peter Virgil (Jack Carson) to see if she is sneaking around behind his back. (from left to right) Janis Paige, Don DeFore, Doris Day and Jack Carson on Romance on the High Seas . Peter joins the cruise and, as part of his job, becomes acqua...

In honor of Judy Garland's 94th birthday, which is today, this week on "Film Friday" I bring you one of her most iconic pictures , one that should have given her the Oscar for Best Actress. Groucho Marx was right; it was "the biggest robbery since Brinks."  Original release poster Directed by George Cukor, A Star Is Born (1954) tells the s tory of E sther Blodgett (Judy Garland), a band singer who saves screen legend Norman Maine (James Mason) from complete h umilia tion when he arrives drunk at a benefit show at t he Shr ine Auditorium . Once sober, No rman goes looking for Es ther and finds her pe rforming in an a fter-hours club. Impressed by her talent, he convinces her to leave her band and pur s ue a career in motion pictures , prom ising to introduce her to studio head O liver N iles (Charles Bickford). Just as Esther ar rives in Hollywood, Norman is called away to filming on location and is unable to reach her. Assuming that he was bein ...