Primrose Path Reviews

The producers had to make drastic alterations to this play in order to prepare it for the eyes of the Joe Breen Censorship Office. Emphasis was switched from the harridan grandmother to the granddaughter in order to provide a starring vehicle for Rogers who dyed that gorgeous blonde hair black for no apparent reason. Rogers and Carroll are sisters who live with their mother, Rambeau, their father, Mander and their aged grandmother, Vassar. Rambeau earns her living as an over-the-hill prostitute to support Mander's drinking and the others' eating. McCrea, a fine young man who works at a beachfront hamburger stand, meets Rogers, and the two fall in love. Rogers is thrilled when he proposes because that will get her away from her relatives. When McCrea learns the truth about his in-laws, he is shocked, and the couple separates. Since her mother is dying, providing for the family will now become Rogers' task, and she knows of no other way than following in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother. In the end, it all works out with McCrea and Rogers getting back together. The language was very salty, something not the norm in 1940, and that was after it had been cleaned up as much as possible before filming. Vassar, who was married to character actor Joe Cawthorn, made her debut in this picture after years of working on the stage. The play's locale was Fall River, Massachusetts (where Lizzie Borden attained fame for allegedly hatcheting her parents), but was switched to the West Coast for the movie. Rogers does a good job of acting as a tomboy, so Fred Astaire was not missed. It was the first time Rogers and McCrea had worked with each other since CHANCE AT HEAVEN, seven years before. A story about three generations of prostitutes was not the simplest one to make work, but they managed to get their point across without ever lapsing into bad taste. Rambeau earned a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination, losing to Jane Darwell for THE GRAPES OF WRATH.