Lively, entertaining reviews of, and essays on, old and newer films and everything relating to them, written by professional author William Schoell.

Thursday, February 15, 2018

MEN ON HER MIND

Mary Beth Hughes
MEN ON HER MIND (1944). Director: Wallace Fox.

Making her debut on the radio, singer Lily Durrell (Mary Beth Hughes) thinks back on her involvement with several men who fell in love with her on her pathway to success. These include a trucker, Joe (Lyle Lytell); a music teacher and aspiring songwriter named Jim (Ted North); a wealthy socialite named Jeff (Edward Norris of Jungle Queen); and a rich patron of the arts named Roland Palmer (Alan Edwards). Along the way Lily also gets involved in murder, an alleged jewel theft, and poses as a phys ed teacher at an all-girls' school. Breaking a number of hearts along the way, she eventually settles on the right man ... Men On Her Mind is an entertaining, if minor, PRC light drama with a winning performance by Hughes [Dressed to Kill], who managed to amass over a hundred credits in films and on television. The beautiful actress also had an excellent singing voice, and does a nice job with both "Ave Maria" and the movie's one new tune, "Heaven on Earth." Hughes was married to Ted North when the film was made, but their union only lasted three years. Wallace Fox also directed Pillow of Death and a number of cliffhanger serials.

Verdict: By PRC standards this isn't too shabby. **1/2.

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