Affectionately Yours

Plot

Affectionately Yours offers the spectacle of glamorous Merle Oberon and gorgeous Rita Hayworth jockeying for the best camera positions, virtually pushing male leads Dennis Morgan and Ralph Bellamy right off the screen! Here's the deal: Neglected wife Sue Marberry (Oberon) obtains a quickie Nevada divorce from her globetrotting war-correspondent husband Rick (Morgan). Still in love with Sue, Rick rushes home to win her back, but by now she has found solace in the arms of her new fiancee Owen Wright (Bellamy). To arouse Sue's jealousy, Rick pretends to carry on an affair with female journalist Irene Malcolm (Hayworth), a scheme that backfires when Irene decides she wants Rick for keeps. Of interest is the supporting-cast presence of Hattie McDaniel and Butterfly McQueen, two years away from their domestic duties in Gone with the Wind. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Review

Affectionately Yours is a fairly entertaining little screwball comedy, one that fans of the genre should seek out. Such fans won't find an undiscovered gem, but there's enough here in this lesser-known film to keep them happily entertained. What is it that keeps Affectionately out of the front ranks of screwball comedies? It is, regrettably, leading lady Merle Oberon. Impossibly beautiful, Oberon could turn in good performances, but comedy was not her natural forte, and she was especially unsuited for the requirements of the screwball genre; she doesn't have that devil-take-it-all ability to throw herself into the proceedings, and as a result, Affectionately too often comes across with a slightly forced air when it needs to either float or chug along. This is a shame, as otherwise Affectionately is in good shape. Rita Hayworth (Looking scrumptious), Dennis Morgan and Ralph Bellamy are in sync with each other and with the proceedings, and they handle the material with an appropriate deftness, and director Lloyd Bacon gives the material the appropriate touch. The representation of the black characters will be problematic for some modern viewers. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

Cast

• Merle Oberon - Sue Mayberry
• Dennis Morgan - Richard "Ricky" Mayberry
• Rita Hayworth - Irene Malcolm
• Ralph Bellamy - Owen Wright
• George Tobias - Pasha

James Gleason - Chester Phillips; Hattie McDaniel - Cynthia; Jerome Cowan - Cullen; Butterfly McQueen - Butterfly; Renie Riano - Mrs. Snell; Frank Wilcox - Tom; Grace Stafford - Miss Anderson; Carmen Morales - Anita; Murray Alper - Blair; William Haade - Matthews; Pat Flaherty - Harmon; James Flavin - Tomassetti; Henry Blair; Eddie Brian; Nat Carr; Charles Drake; Faye Emerson; Frank Faylen; Edward Gargan; Fred Graham; William Hopper; Douglas Kennedy; Charles Marsh; Alexis Smith - Bridesmaid; Craig Stevens; Billy Wayne; Ann Edmonds; Garrett Craig

Credit

Anton Grot - Art Director, Matty King - Choreography, Lloyd Bacon - Director, Owen Marks - Editor, Heinz Roemheld - Composer (Music Score), Leo F. Forbstein - Musical Direction/Supervision, Tony Gaudio - Cinematographer, Mark Hellinger - Producer, Hal B. Wallis - Producer, Edward Kaufman - Screenwriter, Aleen Leslie - Screenwriter, Fanya Foss - Screenwriter

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