She's Working Her Way Through College (1952)

Purely Joyful Movie!

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Memorable, crazy movie

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

All the social commentary that James Thurber wrote in The Male Animal about academic freedom has been deleted in this scrubbed version of that classic. She's Working Her Way Through College comes out as a rather insipid, but pleasant musical where singing and dancing is taken care of by Virginia Mayo and Gene Nelson. Ronald Reagan in the part that Henry Fonda played of the college professor is defending the right of former burlesque performer Virginia Mayo to attend class and star in a musical show the college is putting on.Back in the day Mayo was known as 'Hot Garters Gertie' on the stage and all she wants to do is attend college quietly. But when Nelson who was formerly going out with Patrice Wymore starts paying attention to Mayo, Wymore finds out who she is and blows her cover. Which comes to the attention of chair of the board of directors Roland Winters who wants her expelled from the college. He puts it on Reagan's shoulders to do the job.It was the age of McCarthyism and the original story which dealt with Henry Fonda reading a letter from the jailed Bartolomeo Vanzetti would never have been made at Warner Brothers at that point. And Ronald Reagan who as Governor of California would clash on academic freedom with the Berkeley Free Speech movement is still in an ironic position defending freedom for Mayo to attend college. But Reagan who fought communists in his union, the Screen Actors Guild would never have played the part as originally written and this is before his political career. And Virginia Mayo was also quite the conservative lady in her time as well.One part of the film is retained where Don DeFore takes Jack Carson's role as the All American football alumnus who was a rival for Reagan for his wife Phyllis Thaxter. Reagan does repeat and does it well, Henry Fonda's drunk scene from The Male Animal.She's Working Her Way Through College is pleasant enough, but not anything special and Thurber aficionados will not be pleased.

Billed as "42nd Street's Secret Weapon," pretty blonde burlesque dancer Virginia Mayo (as Angela Gardner) arouses male patrons as "Hot-Garters Gertie". She shows off a beautifully proportioned body (with legs up to there). Claiming he wants to obtain "theatrical data," cold-stricken college professor Ronald Reagan (as John Palmer) stops in to admire Mayo and her leggy dancers. When he sneezes, Mayo recognizes Mr. Reagan as a former high school teacher. He helps her educational aspirations with room and board...College men greet Mayo with wolf whistles. While Reagan suffers a little friction in his marriage, Mayo hoofs it up with dancing football player Gene Nelson (as Don Weston). Mr. Nelson excels in the gymnastic dance "Am I in Love?" Surprisingly, Reagan's marital discord stems not from Mayo's presence, but by pretty wife Phyllis Thaxter (as Helen) associating with former sweetheart Don DeFore (as Shep Slade). Reagan has a prolonged "drunk scene" over the matter. The film's "Technicolor" is a vibrant highlight.**** She's Working Her Way Through College (7/9/52) Bruce Humberstone ~ Virginia Mayo, Ronald Reagan, Gene Nelson

"She's Working Her Way Through College" is a bizarro version of college life--where students wear perfectly coordinated outfits, the average age of a co-ed if 30 and everyone breaks into song in giant choreographed numbers on a college set that is obviously a sound stage! It's very glossy but also very trivial--the sort of forgettable film you see once and soon forget.The film begins with a college professor (Ronald Reagan) stopping by to watch a burlesque show. Now 'burlesque' is the term they use, but for burlesque, the show shows an amazingly small amount of skin--practically none! Well, it turns out that the leading lady of this show (Virginia Mayo) is an ex-student of Reagan--he taught her years ago in high school. They have a nice but brief little reunion. Afterwords, she decides that the dancing life sucks and she should go back to college to improve her writing ability--as she's written a play and wants to polish it. Naturally, when Mayo comes to campus she finds a room to rent with Reagan and his wife! You know this will cause some friction, but bookish Ronnie doesn't seem to anticipate this. What he is focused on are two things--how unfair it is that the football team gets all the funding and how he does not look forward to producing another dull Shakespearian play as their annual fund-raiser. Virginia, however, convinces him to try something new and different--and Ronnie thinks they should put on her play--after, of course, adding a lot of singing and dancing to the script. Sadly, while all the ensuing songs are pleasant enough, they really are pretty forgettable.So, can good Professor Reagan manage to pull off a hit AND finally show up that accursed football team (headed by fat-headed Don DeFore)? If you care, see for yourself.Although it's hard to recognize, Warner Brothers took one of their old scripts ("The Male Animal") and re-worked the story into "She's Working Her Way Through College". It's very different but the conflict between Ronnie and DeFore as well as DeFore's interest in the Professor's wife is exactly the same one in "The Male Animal"--with Reagan and DeFore filling in for Henry Fonda and Jack Carson. My advice? See "The Male Animal"--it's a much better film. While it lacks all the songs and burlesque queen plot (thank goodness), it has a nice infusion of humor--something curiously lacking in "She's Working Her Way Through College". Forgettable and a bit silly.silly musical numbers reworking of The Male Animal.

This is a horrible apolitical McCarthy Era remake of "The Male Animal" starring Henry Fonda and Olivia DeHavilland. The original had Fonda as a professor standing up to regent Eugene Palette to read a letter by Sacco of Sacco and Vanzetti while simultaneously battling Jack Carson as the faded college football star for the affections of DeHavilland. This is mindless fluff. Reagan is to Fonda as an actor what Reagan was to Roosevelt as a President, a cheap imitation. The only interesting thing is that Dan Defore ("Hazel") is in both films. He is the half-witted football player suitor for the affections of DeHavilland's sister in the original, and the half-witted former football player suitor for Thaxter's affections in this film, reprising Jack Carson's role.