I put my hand on her arm. There was nothing I could say to explain it.
“Gee, that’s rough.” Trixie spoke from behind me. I hadn’t noticed her appear. And I didn’t acknowledge her in front of everyone.
Marty gave us all of fifteen seconds to experience our emotions. Then, “Are we actually going to get the theater ready? Because a million people might show up today if your ass of a husband sends out another tweet.”
I stood. “You’re right. Not about Ted tweeting, but we’ve still got a lot to do in case more than the usual handful show up. We sold out of everything yesterday, so I’ll go make a Costco run, and Albert, could you give that carpenter a call? I have no idea how we’re going to pay for it, but we really need to get the stage repaired.”
“Of course,” he said, standing.
“Nora?” Trixie had moved to the window. She was waving me over. I moved around the desk.
“Oh!” Callie yelped. “I forgot to ask you. Lisa came by earlier. She gets her new ovens next week, but it’s going to take a while for all the repairs. She wondered if she could bake things across the street and have a popup shop here in the lobby to sell them.”
“That’s brilliant. I’ll call her later.” I couldn’t wait to tell her that, with June under arrest and McMillan no doubt facing investigation for his part in things, the threat to Lisa’s café seemed to be lifted. Likewise, the threat to the Palace.
We were safe.
At least for now.
“Nora?” Trixie pointed out the window. “Why is there a moving van outside the theater?”
I went to the window and looked out. I was just saying “Why is there a moving van outside the theater?” myself when there was a loud rapping from the lobby doors below.
We all went downstairs.
“Nora Paige?” The mover asked when I opened the door. “Where do you want this?”
“What is it?”
Trixie clapped her hands and scampered to my side. “A delivery! What is it? Is it a present?”
The mover checked his invoice. “Twenty-two boxes of personal goods.” He squinted at me. “Are you expecting it?”
My things. Everything Ted had sent me.
“Your clothes from LA,” Callie said from behind me. “Cool. Are they, like, nicer than what you’ve been wearing?” She saw the look on my face. “I mean, not that—”
“Never mind,” I said. “Where am I going to put it all?” Robbie’s guest cottage wasn’t big enough for twenty-two boxes of anything.
“Bring it in here!” Trixie said. “I want to see it! I haven’t seen new clothes in ages!”
“There’s always the basement here,” Albert said doubtfully.
I shared his doubt. “I need to go through it all. I’m not even sure I want most of it.” It belonged to a different person. To a different life.
Trixie pouted. “Aw, come on, Nora. We can play dress up. At least you can.”
I shook my head. “Let’s take it to Robbie’s,” I said. “We can store it all in the garage until I figure it out.”
“Don’t you already have a Tesla in Robbie’s garage?” Marty glanced over from the position he’d taken at the candy counter, pointedly not joining in.
I stared at him. I’d completely forgotten about the Tesla. Ted had given it to me, along with a diamond bracelet, when he’d come back into my life three months ago, begging me to forgive him. I hadn’t wanted the car or the bracelet, which was probably still in the glove compartment of the car I had never even considered using.
“Nora?” Trixie said.
“Ma’am?” the driver asked.
I held up a finger. “One minute.” Then I pulled out my phone and sent Otis Hampton a text.
Otis, how would you feel about buying a Tesla from me? And a diamond bracelet?
It might not cover the cost of all of the repairs, but it would be a good start.
I hit Send. The reply came immediately.
I’ll be in San Francisco in three hours. We have a lot to plan.
I stared at the text with a sinking feeling.
What had I just started?
Born to Dance
1936
Okay, sure. There are a jillion movies like this. Movies with a plot about a plucky and talented young thing trying to break into show business—specifically, trying to get into a Broadway show, and getting the One Big Break she needs just in time for the finale. Eleanor Powell made a career out of them. But you might not realize what everyone in 1936 knew: the plot didn’t matter.
What matters is the music. What matters is the songs. What matters (a little) is the romance, and when we’re talking about Eleanor Powell, what matters most is the dancing. Because—you may get this from the title—that woman was born to dance.
And in the case of this movie, that woman is dancing to Cole Porter songs, and the love interest is Jimmy Stewart. So this is one to watch, my friends.
Eleanor comes to town and for no apparent reason is befriended by the delightful Una Merkle. In the world-building of a 1930s musical, girls who run the desks of hotels and sailors who are in town on shore leave all have talent and are just one number away from starring in the latest hit show. And why not? This is America, after all! Three cheers for the red, white, and blue! (Wait—we don’t get to sing that until the extravaganza of a finale.)
Anyway, the three sailors are a short guy from Brooklyn, a tall guy from the hay fields of the heartland, and Jimmy Stewart, looking young and wistful and, as described by a lovesick telephone operator, “A tall sort of answer to a maiden’s prayer, on stilts.”
Everybody gets to dance. The tall hayseed you may recognize. He’s Buddy Ebsen (Yep, from The Beverly Hillbillies) and he has a lanky, awkward, comic style of dancing that (and this is just my opinion, but why else are you reading this?) is a tad overdone in this film. But he gets to gambol, and there’s a fun number with our six leads singing about being nuts about each other that’s just a breezy delight.
All this leads to Eleanor and Jimmy walking through a moonlit park, Cole Porter helping them out with “Easy to Love.” Which is a love song for the ages, but the whole interlude is a somewhat misbegotten attempt to have Jimmy croon and Eleanor waft gracefully. She was God’s own tap dancer, but wafting was never her thing. Luckily, they’re interrupted by a park cop before things can get too uncomfortable.
Hollywood was trying hard to figure out what to do with Jimmy Stewart in 1936. He released nine films that year. I think they had him try a little bit of everything to see what would stick. Now, I love my Jimmy Stewart, but I think we can all agree it was for the best that his musical career never really took off.
Back to Eleanor. The number in the park is one of very few I can think of where she actually danced with a partner. And even in this case, they were sort of in the same place at the same time, but not dancing together. There was none of that Fred and Ginger stuff. And that was typical for her. Eleanor most often danced without a partner.
And when I say danced, I mean she tore up the freaking stage. The way she could tap! She found rhythms where there were no rhythms. She hit that stage and she owned it. Even if you don’t watch this whole movie, do yourself a favor and look up the finale online somewhere. Your jaw will drop at her strength, at the athleticism and the speed and the unbelievable life she brings to a ridiculously overblown shipboard spectacular.
You may not notice the sequined and spangled sailors in the chorus. You may not see the gigantic guns on the ship behind her (although it’s fun to wonder if Cher saw this number before filming the “Turn Back Time” video). You may not register that there’s a full marching band on the ship. Because Eleanor’s dancing is bigger than all of that.
She had this thing where she’d bring her shoulders up and open her mouth as if she just couldn’t contain all the joy that her dancing was giving her
. She’s not trying to be pretty or feminine or romantic. She doesn’t appear to be trying at all. She’s just dancing like she was born to.
I’ve learned a lot watching Eleanor Powell movies. A lot about finding my own rhythm. A lot about staying plucky and trusting that I’ll get my One Big Break in time for the finale. But I think there’s something more to learn. Something about how she danced. It wasn’t as if no one was watching. No self-help adages for her. She knew everyone was watching. They had no choice. She demanded them to watch, she demanded them to marvel, because she was up there on that stage and she was doing something extraordinary.
I want to be more like Eleanor Powell. She danced unpartnered. And she danced with joy.
Movies My Friends Should Watch
Sally Lee
Want More Sally?
If you enjoyed Sally Lee’s movie blogs, check out the Movies My Friends Should Watch website for more.
Visit moviesmyfriendsshouldwatch.com.
And watch good movies!
About the Author
Margaret Dumas lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she reads and writes books when she isn’t watching old movies.
The Movie Palace Mystery Series
by Margaret Dumas
MURDER AT THE PALACE (#1)
MURDER IN THE BALCONY (#2)
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Murder in the Balcony Page 26