''Love Is Better Than Ever'' is a 1952 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film directed by

Stanley Donen Stanley Donen ( ; April 13, 1924 – February 21, 2019) was an American film director and choreographer whose most celebrated works are '' On the Town,'' (1949) and ''Singin' in the Rain'' (1952), both of which he co-directed with Gene Kell ...

from a screenplay by Ruth Brooks Flippen, starring

Larry Parks Samuel Lawrence Klausman Parks (December 13, 1914 – April 13, 1975) was an American stage and film actor. His career arced from bit player and supporting roles to top billing, before it was virtually ended when he admitted to having once been ...

and

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

. The plot concerns a small-town girl who falls in love with a big-city talent agent.

Plot

Confirmed bachelor Jud Parker (

) likes his life the way it is. A talent agent, he goes to

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

on a client's behalf and meets Anastacia "Stacie" Macaboy (

), who owns a dance school. Stacie then runs into him in New York when she goes to a convention. Jud takes her to a New York Giants baseball game and to dinner and dancing. Stacie falls in love, but Jud is furious when a story in the New Haven paper claims they are engaged. Mrs. Levoy and her daughter, who run a rival dance school, sully Stacie's reputation and cause students to drop out. Stacie and Jud disagree on how to explain their relationship until Stacie ultimately bets everything on the outcome of the Giants' next game.

Cast

as Jud Parker *

as Anastacia (Stacie) Macaboy *

Josephine Hutchinson Josephine Hutchinson (October 12, 1903 – June 4, 1998) was an American actress. She acted in several theater plays and films. Early years Hutchinson was born in Seattle, Washington. Her mother, Leona Roberts, was an actress best known for ...

as Mrs. Macaboy *

Tom Tully Thomas Kane Tulley (August 21, 1908 – April 27, 1982) was an American actor. He began his career in radio and on the stage before making his film debut in ''Northern Pursuit'' (1943). Subsequently, he was nominated for an Academy Award for hi ...

as Mr. Charles E. Macaboy *

Ann Doran Ann Lee Doran (July 28, 1911 – September 19, 2000) was an American character actress, possibly best known as the mother of Jim Stark (James Dean) in ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955). She was an early member of the Screen Actors Guild and serv ...

as Mrs. Levoy * Elinor Donahue as Pattie Marie Levoy *

Kathleen Freeman Kathleen Freeman (February 17, 1923August 23, 2001) was an American actress. In a career that spanned more than 50 years, she portrayed acerbic maids, secretaries, teachers, busybodies, nurses, and battle-axe neighbors and relatives, almost in ...

as Mrs. Kahrney * Doreen McCann as Albertina Kahrney * Alex Gerry as Hamlet (Smittie's regular) *

Dick Wessel Richard Michael Wessel (April 20, 1913 – April 20, 1965) was an American film actor who appeared in more than 270 films between 1935 and 1966. He is best remembered for his only leading role, a chilling portrayal of strangler Harry "Cu ...

as Smitty - cafe owner * John Handley as Johnny - Little boy dancer who plays the "grape" (uncredited) *

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, singer, filmmaker, and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

and

make uncredited cameo appearances as themselves seated at a table at 21 Restaurant.

Box office

According to MGM records the film earned $634,000 in the US and $340,000 elsewhere resulting in a loss of $362,000.

References

External links

* * * * * 1952 films 1952 romantic comedy films American black-and-white films American romantic comedy films Films directed by Stanley Donen Films scored by Lennie Hayton Films set in Connecticut Films set in New York City Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films {{romantic-comedy-film-stub