This week’s mystery movie was the 1952 Columbia film The Happy Time, with Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan, Marsha Hunt, Kurt Kasznar, Linda Christian, Marcel Dalio, Jeanette Nolan, Jack Raine, Richard Erdman, Marlene Cameron, Gene Collins, and Bobby Driscoll.
Screenplay by Earl Felton.
Based on the play by Samuel A. Taylor.
And the book by Robert Fontaine.
Produced on the stage by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein.
Music composed and directed by Dimitri Tiomkin.
Song The Happy Time. Music by Dimitri Tiomkin. Lyrics by Ned Washington.
Associate Producer Earl Felton.
Production design by Rudolph Sternad.
Editorial supervision by Harry Gerstad.
Production manager Clem Beauchamp.
Gowns by Jean Louis.
Photography by Charles Lawton Jr.
Art direction by Carl Anderson.
Edited by William A. Lyon.
Set decorations by James Crowe.
Assistant director Milton Feldman.
Makeup by Clay Campbell.
Hairstyles by Helen Hunt.
Sound by Russell Malmgren.
Directed by Richard Fleischer.
A Stanley Kramer Co. Production.
Further information about The Happy Time is available in the AFI Catalog.
The Happy Time is not commercially available, but you can find it floating around the Internet in decent to dreadful prints.
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I picked The Happy Time by going through the trades, looking for something light and upbeat after last week’s A Day of Fury. It’s a light comedy, a bit more risque than usual, possibly because it was based on a play, with Kurt Kasznar and Marlene Cameron in the Broadway cast – with Eva Gabor! It last aired on TCM in 2018, according to the massive database that has, sadly, stopped in March 2023.
Given its origins on the stage, I’m going to say Bosley Crowther gave the film a qualified rave, though I’m sure he found something to quibble about.
Well, yes. More than a quibble, actually (Oct. 31, 1952):
The highly potential combination of adolescence and a French point of view, which was worked to nice comic advantage in the stage play The Happy Time is allowed to drift off in the direction of rambunctious family farce in the film version of that opus, which Stanley Kramer delivered to the Music Hall yesterday. And in that inelegant area the Samuel A. Taylor play — which was Ah, Wilderness with a French accent — is less warm and amiable than crude.
Somehow the happy little fable of the wide-eyed coming of age of a lad in a French-Canadian household, abounding with wine-bibbers and wolves, has been permitted to develop as a sort of harmless off-color joke, adorned with farcical performing, rather than as a sensitive boyhood tale.
For Monday, we have a mysterious girl. For a change, she approves of such goings-on!
Update: This is Marlene Cameron.
For “Tricky Tuesday,” we have a mysterious lad. And Back of the Head Girl.
Update: This is Bobby Driscoll with Marlene Cameron as Back of the Head Girl.
Brain Trust roll call: Jenny M. (mystery movie and Monday’s mysterious girl).
For “Hm Wednesday,” we have a mysterious fellow. He seems to have a pistol.
Update: This is Maurice Marsac.
Brain Trust roll call: Jenny M. (Tuesday’s mystery baseball player and Back of the Head Girl), Howard Mandelbaum* (mystery movie and both mystery guests), Mike Hawks (mystery movie and both mystery guests), B.J. Merholz (mystery movie and both mystery guests), Sylvia E.* (mystery movie and both mystery guests), Blackwing Jenny (mystery movie and both mystery guests), Bob Hansen (Tuesday’s mysterious baseball player) and Mary Mallory (mystery movie and Tuesday’s mysterious baseball player).
*From the spam folder.
For “Aha Thursday,” we have this mysterious fellow.
Update: This is Marcel Dalio, in fine form.
And we have this mysterious fellow.
Update: This is Kurt Kasznar.
And this mystery woman. She does (wait for it) not approve of such goings-on.
Update: This is Marsha Hunt.
Brain Trust roll call: Mary Mallory (Monday’s mystery girl, Tuesday’s Back of the Head Girl and Wednesday’s mysterious magician), Sylvia E. (Wednesday’s mysterious magician), Howard Mandelbaum (Wednesday’s mysterious magician), Mike Hawks (Wednesday’s mysterious magician), Richard Wegescheide (mystery movie and half-credit; he’s in the movie but in a different role), Suzanne Stone* (mystery movie and all mysterious guests and Back of the Head Girl) and Anne Papineau (mystery movie and Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s mystery guests).
*From the spam folder.
For Friday, we have three mysterious fellows.
Update: This is, from left, Kurt Kasznar, Charles Boyer and Louis Jourdan.
Also a young mystery fellow in the company of a mysterious older woman. Bonus points if you can guess what mysterious film they are watching!
Update: This is Bobby Driscoll and Linda Christian. They are watching Rudolph Valentino and Agnes Ayres in The Sheik.
Brain Trust roll call: Anne Papineau (Monday’s mysterious girl and Thursday’s mystery guests), Greg (mystery movie and all mystery guests and Back of the Head Girl, plus Friday’s leading man), Sylvia E. (Thursday’s mystery guests), Mary Mallory (Thursday’s mystery guests), L.C. (mystery movie and mysterious cast), Howard Mandelbaum (Thursday’s mystery guests), Mike Hawks (Thursday’s mystery guests), Mark G.* (mystery movie) and Benito* (Thursday’s mystery woman).
*From the spam folder.
ladailymirror.com 
Marlene Cameron in The Happy Time.
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Bobby Driscoll and Marlene Cameron.
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Monday: Marlene Cameron in THE HAPPY TIME (1952)
Tuesday: Bobby Driscoll with Ms. Cameron
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Marlene Cameron and Bobby Driscoll in THE HAPPY TIME.
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Oh oh! It looks like not a happy time for Bobby and Marlene.
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“The Happy Time” 1952
Recognized Bobby Driscoll. As a kid, I saw this on the Million Dollar Movie. My older sister was a big Louis Jordan fan (I think “Bird of Paradise” followed the next week, or maybe Jordan movies were spread throughout the week.) Anyway, I enjoyed the story.
Monday – Marlene Cameron
Tuesday – Bobby Driscoll and BOTHG Marlene.
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Monday is Marlene Cameron.
Tuesday is that Disney favorite, Bobby Driscoll. The movie is “The Happy Time”.
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Tuesday’s boy might be Bobby Driscoll. Don’t know the movie though.
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THE HAPPY TIME. Ann Faber Monday, and Bobby Driscoll and Ann Faber BOTH.
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Maureen Cameron Monday and Tuesday and Maurice Marsac today.
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Our magician, Maurice Marsac about to pull a fast one and sets loose the situation that shakes up the family Bonnard.
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Maurice Marsac
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Maurice Marsac.
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‘The Happy Time’ with Charles Boyer on Wednesday.
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“The Happy Time” 1952…Marlene Cameron, Bobby Driscoll as the kids, and Maurice Marsac as the magician.
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Looks like Bobby Driscoll on Tricky Tuesday. And perhaps Maurice Marsac as the pistol-wielding magician in “The Happy Time.”
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On Monday, Marlene Cameron, and on Thursday, Marcel Dalio, Kurt Kasznar and Marsha Hunt.
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We have Marlene Cameron as the moon struck girl on Monday and the back of the head girl on Tuesday. The young man in the iron catcher’s mask on Tuesday is Bobby Driscoll. The magical man on Wednesday is Maurice Marsac. Striped suit man on Thursday is Marcel Dalio and the window hanger is Kurt Kaszner. The gorgeous woman on Thursday is Marsha Hunt. All appearing in “The Happy Time”. Charles Boyer will be the star.
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One of my favorite actors, Marcel Dalio.
Kurt Kaszner in the middle image, then Marsha Hunt.
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Marcel Dalio, Kurt Kaznar, and Marsha Hunt.
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The Happy Time (1952) w/Marlene Cameron, Bobby Driscoll, Maurice Marsac, Kurt Kasznar, Marcel Dalio, Marsha Hunt, Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan…
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Marcel Dalio, Kurt Kasznar, Marsha Hunt
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Marcel Dalio, Kurt Kasznar and Marsha Hunt.
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Our movie is The Happy Time from 1952.
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Marsha Hunt today
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Kurt Kaznar, Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan and Bobbie Driscoll and Linda Christian.
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Friday
Kurt Kaszner, Charles Boyer and Louis Jourdan.
Bobby Driscoll and Linda Christian. I think they’re watching “Son of the Shiek” 1926.
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Kurt Kasznar, Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan.
Bobby Driscoll, Linda Christian.
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THE SON OF THE SHEIK (1926).
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Kurt Kasznar, Charles Boyer and Louis Jourdan on Friday, along with Bobby Driscoll and Linda Christian watching “The Sheik”
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Kurt Kasznar, Charles Boyer, Louis Jourdan, Bobby Driscoll and Linda Christian.
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