Mr. Music

Paul Merrick (Bing Crosby) is a composer whose best years seem behind him. Since his last big Broadway success, he's done everything but compose more music and his producer (Charles Coburn) is getting tired of waiting. In desperation, he hires a young lady (Nancy Olson) to be his secretary and task master! The arrangement works marvelously...but in the process she finds herself falling for Merrick.

"Mr. Music" was remade at the end of the decade and had Clark Gable falling for a significantly younger Carol Baker. This film was pleasant but a letdown for Gable...and a lot of it was the lack of chemistry between them and it just seemed difficult to see the young lady falling for him. In "Mr. Music", although there also is the age difference, Bing Crosby is so charming that the romance, though a bit forced, does work better. It also helped having a few nice cameos--Peggy Lee and Groucho in particular. Overall, a pleasant little film...nothing super special but a nice time-passer.