Mother Wore Tights

Betty Grable and Dan Dailey              

Walter Lang's Mother Wore Tights is a pleasant Technicolor musical released by Twentieth Century Fox in 1947. The film, based on the best selling memoir by Miriam Young. is a nostalgic look back at the relationship of two married vaudevillians played by Betty Grable and Dan Dailey. What little discord there is in the film stems from the couples' two daughters shame at the snobbery displayed towards their parents' lowly profession. This predicament is predictably rectified by film's end. There is little suspense to this conclusion because the film is narrated by the youngest daughter, in retrospect, with a warm glow. The plum voiced Ann Baxter provides that narration, often directly from the book, offering the occasional piquant detail such as the gifting of a pickle fork as a wedding present. 

The immediate post-war period has been thought of, in retrospect, as being dominated by increasing realism, location shooting, and film noir. This is a vast simplification. While these developments can be noted in the work of rising young directors, most of these films were B pictures. If one takes note of the films that were the top box-office draws for 1947, one sees that the industry was still dominated by light escapism: such as the relatively forgotten Bing Crosby vehicle Welcome Stranger, The Egg and I, Life with Father, Forever Amber, Road to Rio, The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer, and, yes, Mother Wore Tights. Grable and Dailey are not really persuasive performers in a realistic setting, but this cinematic bon-bon is a perfect fit for their talents. I particularly admire Dailey's hoofing in the film. Lang's direction is graceful and unhurried. The tune are above average. The supporting cast boast many familiar faces who are as cozy as an old shoe: Sara Allgood, William Frawley, Sig Ruman, Mae Marsh, and Señor Wences.