Born Yesterday (1950)

Set in Washington D.C., a corrupt but very rich thug (Broderick Crawford) has social ambitions. But he's embarrassed by his ex-chorus girl's (Judy Holliday in her Oscar winning performance) crass behavior and lack of social grace. So, he hires a journalist (William Holden) to give her some culture and make her more presentable. Based on the play by Garson Kanin and directed by George Cukor (DINNER AT EIGHT). In perhaps the greatest "dumb blonde" screen performance (only Marilyn Monroe's Lorelei Lee in GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES comes close), Holliday is pure magic here. Recreating her stage performance, she's irresistible. Surprisingly, some of the play's raciest lines remain intact. Crawford and Holden are both just fine but remain straight men to Holliday's quips. Though some have said that Holliday's character becomes less interesting (and less funny) as she becomes smarter, I disagree. She also looks terrific in her Oscar nominated Jean Louis costumes. With Howard St. John and Claire Carleton.