12 Days: Dennis Morgan in Christmas in Connecticut

 'A food writer who has lied about being the perfect housewife must try to cover her deception when her boss and a returning war hero invite themselves to her home for a traditional family Christmas.'

Every Christmas,  I plan a 12 Days post featuring actor Dennis Morgan, but every year, I seem to forget until I see a listing of Christmas in Connecticut airing on TCM.  The 1945 rom-com aired again last night, and I caught a few minutes and decided this was the year for Dennis to get his due.

When I was in high school, I have vivid memories of the film coming up while sitting at a Chinese food restaurant with my long term girlfriend.   Although we all had VCR's, and even DVD players in the 90's, she and her family had a tradition with the film.  Over the holidays, it usually aired late at night on a local channel on the weekends.  Instead of taping, or renting it, they all stayed up, watched and decorated their tree while it aired.

I remember her wanting to get home early, at least two Christmas' in a row to join her family for the film.   I never joined them, or stayed up to watch, but I did make the connection when I finally watched it about 10 years ago on TCM.  I loved it.  I loved the story, the look and feel of the film, and I loved Barbara Stanwyck, who I'd never seen in a comedy before.  I also loved actor Dennis Morgan who played Jefferson Jones, Stanwyck's love interest in the film.

In all of the years I've worked on FH, I don't think I've ever used the term, 'cut of his jib', but I like the cut of Dennis Morgan's.  He has a warm, welcoming presence on screen and a great face and profile, and is really sexy and funny in the role.   I checked Morgan's IMDB page, and don't think I've seen him in anything else, but I'll make a point to try to find another film of his to watch in 2024.

I've now watched the film a few times since that first viewing, but always DVR it, so I can start it about a half hour in.   They take a long time with the set up, and it seems to take forever for Stanwyck to appear and the action on the farm to get started.  Once it does however, it's work a repeated viewing.