Main Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Tony Randall, Paul Douglas, Fred Clark, Una Merkel
Release Year: 1959
Country: US
Run Time: 96 minutes
Plot
George Marshall directed this breezy romantic comedy starring Tony Randall and Debbie Reynolds. Randall plays Lorenzo Charlton, a stuffy tax investigator sent to the farm of Pop Larkin (Paul Douglas) and Ma Larkin (Una Merkel) to find out why they haven't been paying taxes. He discovers that the Larkins, instead of money, use a homegrown barter system. Their complex economic network causes Lorenzo to drink one home brew too many. Awakening from a hangover, he sees a vision of loveliness before him -- the Larkin's spunky daughter Mariette (Debbie Reynolds). Enraptured by Mariette, he decides to stick around and help the family out of their onerous tax burden. Further research reveals an ancestral claim dating to the Civil War -- in reality, the government owes the Larkins $14 million. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
Malcolm Brown - Art Director, William Horning - Art Director, Helen Rose - Costume Designer, George Marshall - Director, John MacSweeney - Editor, John McSweeney, Jr. - Editor, Jeff Alexander - Composer (Music Score), Robert J. Bronner - Cinematographer, Philip Barry Jr. - Producer, William Roberts - Screenwriter, H.E. Bates - Book Author
The Mating Game is an MGM color film made in 1959. It is very loosely based on a British novel, The Darling Buds of May, by H.E. Bates, which was later adapted into a more faithful 1991-93 British miniseries, starring Catherine Zeta-Jones in the role that Debbie Reynolds plays in the 1959 film. Set mostly in rural Maryland, the film features some physical comedy and a funny scene in which Lorenzo (Tony Randall) becomes intoxicated and attempts to sing a Cole Porter song. Reynolds sings the title song during the opening credits. The film features the final screen appearance by actor Paul Douglas. The film has been featured on Turner Classic Movies, and was released on DVD by The Warner Archive in March, 2009[1]
Plot summary
A young tax collector named Lorenzo Charlton (Tony Randall) is sent by the IRS to the Larkin family farm in Maryland to collect their back taxes, and falls in love with the farmer's daughter, Mariette (Debbie Reynolds).
