Hello!
I thought it would be apropos to take a look at Jack Kelly's 1952 film No Room For the Groom, since it deals with a man (played by Tony Curtis) whose life is upended by a virus, in this case the chicken pox.
Curtis portrays "Alvah Morrell", a young draftee who elopes to Las Vegas with pretty "Lee Kingshead" (Piper Laurie) during a two-day leave:
They find their hotel room already decorated with flowers. Alvah instructs the bellhop to bring them a bottle of "Delicioso" champagne, since it's made from grapes grown in Alvah's vineyard.
The newlywed's honeymoon ends before it can really begin, however, when Lee notices that Alvah has broken out in spots and has a fever:
After Lee anxiously summons a doctor, Alvah is rushed to the hospital with chicken pox. As soon as he recovers, he's shipped overseas with his outfit and is absent from Lee's side for 10 months.
When he's finally able to get a week's leave, Alvah returns to his house to find it overrun with Lee's various relatives, who beat him to the dinner table and hog the bathroom.
First and foremost among the brood is "Mama" (Spring Byington), Lee's manipulative mother. The rest of the kooky clan runs the gamut from infant twins and a bratty little boy to a lumbering distant cousin (Fess Parker in his film debut).
Alvah feels like a stranger in his own home. What's worse, Lee hasn't told Mama that she and Alvah are actually married (Mama thinks they're only engaged) and the couple has no room to be alone.
Enter JK:
He plays "Will Stubbins", an old buddy of Alvah's who was invalided from the service after being shot in the leg. He now owns a bar that Alvah walks past while in search of a little peace and quiet.
Will invites Alvah in and explains that while the bar is making him rich, he's not enjoying it because he doesn't enjoy their town (Suttersville) anymore. Suttersville has changed lately, mainly due to the Strouple Cement Plant, which is burgeoning due to defense contracts. He tells Alvah that so many women are wearing minks in the once quaint burg the coats are nicknamed "Suttersville Squirrels":
Alvah knows all about the cement plant, since Herman Strouple (Don Defore), the owner, is Lee's boss. He informs Will of his marital dilemma.
Will comes up with the perfect solution--Alvah and Lee can use his apartment that evening while he's out on a date:
Unfortunately, their plan hits a snag when Mr. Strouple unexpectedly shows up at Alvah's house to announce before the entire family that he wants to offer the soldier an enormous sum of money to run a railroad spur for his cement plant through the vineyard.
Alvah angrily refuses the offer since his grandfather and father owned the vineyard before him. And, he notices that Lee is wearing a Suttersville squirrel, which came from Herman (as a bonus). The couple argue and Alvah stomps out on his own.
Will returns to his apartment to find Alvah alone and drunk on Delicioso:
Will starts to return to his bar, but Alvah insists that he stay so he can tell him his troubles:
Will leaves to let Alvah sleep it off. Ironically, his apartment faces the cement plant:
Mama and Herman Strouple double-down on their efforts to break up the newlyweds, including a ludicrous scheme to have Alvah declared mentally incompetent so Lee can gain control of the vineyard and allow the spur to proceed. Lee is appalled and furiously quits her job. She and Alvah are reunited at Will's apartment.
Will quickly peeks in on the happy couple and vamooses so they can finally resume their long-delayed honeymoon:
While it's far from being a cinematic masterpiece, No Room for the Groom is a pleasant little farce and JK is extremely pleasant in it. He expertly plays the role of comedic matchmaker for a couple who's already married. And, he looks fantastic while doing so. :)
No Room for the Groom is just the thing for watching while having to shelter in place. It's available on DVD from the Turner Classic Movies Shop and can also be found on eBay.
Please stay tuned for more fun with TDS, stay well, stay strong...and stay home.
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