Best Foot Forward (1943)

My Review

Lucille Ball and company put their “Best Foot Forward” in this bouncy musical comedy. The storyline has the “B-movie” star invited to a military academy dance by a cadet, incurring the wrath of his girl friend. Director Edward Buzzell (“Honolulu” 1939) did a fair job at the helm of the movie where the music by Lennie Hayton is the real star of the show. The script was adapted from the 1943 book of the same name by John Cecil Holm.

Harry James and his Music Makers and the cast performed such numbers as “Alive and Kicking,” “The Flight of the Bumblebee,” and “Buckle Down, Winsocki,” whose tune was used in the 1960’s for “Buckle up for Safety, Buckle up.” Co-stars with Lucille Ball include William Gaxton, Virginia Weider, Tommy Dix, Nancy Walker, June Allyson, Gloria DeHaven, Chill Wills, Beverly Tyler, Donald MacBride, Sara Haden, Henry O’Neill, and Harry James and his Music Makers. “Best Foot Forward” was a hit at the box office for producer Arthur Freed and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.