Possibly the most endearing "dumb blonde" ever? Judy Holliday rightly won the best actress Oscar for her portrayal of dumb blonde kept woman Billie Dawn, a role she successfully played on Broadway in the stage show production. Yet to only mention her would be doing a disservice to the films other strengths as it has many to justify it being labelled a classic of its time. Billie Dawn is the girlfriend of scrap metal magnate Harry Brock, she's not that bright and Brock uses her as a front for some less than honest dealings. Sure he cares but his treatment of her borders on the repulsive whilst still managing to get the ribs tickled, Brock worries that her dumbness will do down important business issues socially, so he arranges for the calm and well spoken Paul Verrall to be her chaperon and train her to be eloquent and more astute of the world and its history. The film then becomes your standard Pygmalion story as the nice but dim Billie not only learns about the world she lives in, she also learns about the world SHE HAS been living in, and coupled with the sexual awakening she finds with Verrall this fills out the rest of the story. It's full of delightful scenes that linger long in the memory, and outside of Holliday's brilliant performance, we get a wonderful example of the polar opposite Male love interest, Broderick Crawford as Brock is a maelstrom of shouting daftness,…

Intelligent script and a very funny movie, a true classic with a perfect cast. Judy Holliday steals the show, and both Crawford and Holden are at the top of their game. You will not be disappointed!

Born Yesterday’s philosophy – a fusion of Greek myth and allegory; specifically, Pygmalion (by way of Shaw) and Plato’s Cave – is not only timeless but timely. At one point, William Holden’s character says “I want everybody to be smart. I want 'em to be as smart as they can be. A world full of ignorant people is too dangerous to live in.” This is as true now as it was more than 70 years ago – perhaps truer; as recent events, such as the covid pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have made abundantly clear, the world is still a very dangerous place full of ignorant people. This film is not only about the beauty and richness of the written and spoken language, but also about the power of words and thoughts. An uncouth, older, wealthy junkyard tycoon, Harry Brock (Broderick Crawford) comes to Washington in order to bribe a congressman. Brock brings along his “fiancee” (more like lover; and although he does intend to eventually marry her, it’s only because a wife cannot be forced to testify against her husband) Billie Dawn (Judy Holliday), an uneducated young woman. When Billie embarrasses him socially, Brock hires journalist Paul Verrall (Holden) to tutor her. Billie is willfully ignorant (“[Harry] thinks I'm too stupid, huh? … He's right. I'm stupid, and I like it … I'm happy. I got everything I want … There's somethin' I want, I ask … So, as long as I know how to get…

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