SING YOUR WAY HOME (1945)

At the end of WWII, war correspondent Steve Kimball (Jack Haley) is anxious to leave his post in Paris by boat to get home to New York but the only route available is by chaperoning a group of teenage entertainers who were stranded in France at the outbreak of the war. A bit of an egotist (he likes to pawn off copies of his book on unsuspecting people), he's reluctant to lower himself to be a chaperone, but eventually he does, and even allows young Bridget (Marcy McGuire), daughter of a reporter, to stowaway with the kids. Singer Kay Lawrence (Anne Jeffreys) is also on the ship; she vows to kiss the first American she sees, and it happens to be Steve, who resents the attention. He claims to be an experienced womanizer but soon admits that his career has left him little time for intimate companionship, and a rocky romance develops with Kay, who also becomes a second chaperone for the kids. Meanwhile, young Jimmy (Glen Vernon) has a crush on Bridget, but she only has eyes for the older Steve. It all gets worked out, but not before messages that Steve is sending to his newspaper in New York, written in "love code," get misinterpreted, causing problems all around.

This is a cute, high-spirited B-comedy which is kept aloft by the energetic teenagers. Haley tries but he wasn't the best choice for the lead role—he’' a little too drab and slow; a comic actor with the kick of a Bob Hope, or even a Dennis O'Keefe, would have been more appealing. The 19-year-old McGuire is good, though she only made a handful of movies before marrying and retiring in the late 40s. The music is fine, particularly a song called "Heaven is a Place Called Home" which is performed a couple of times and was nominated for an Oscar. "Seven O'Clock in the Morning" is a cute dance number set in the ship's dorm where the kids are staying, and Jeffreys sings a nice "Lord’s Prayer" at a Sunday morning open-air gathering. Pictured are McGuire, Haley and Vernon. [TCM]