She's Working Her Way Through College (1952)

A burlesque queen (Virginia Mayo) quits show business to enter college and one of her professors (Ronald Reagan) helps hide her past. But when a malicious and jealous student (Patrice Wymore) finds out, she blackmails her. Directed by H. Bruce Humberstone (HELL FRISCO HELLO), the trite songs in this musical slow down what may have been a passable, if pedestrian, straight comedy. The songs and musical numbers are the height of mediocrity. This film has some of the oldest college students I’ve ever seen including Gene Nelson who has the film’s best number, an athletic dance number in a gym. Poor Reagan has an endless (it runs about 20 minutes) drunk scene and it’s one of the worst acted drunk scenes I’ve ever seen, I just cringed for the poor guy. Phyllis Thaxter as Reagan’s wife and Don DeFore as her ex-boyfriend co-star.