this could be the night

September 8 movie: This Could Be The Night. I loved this! Really, really enjoyed it. Jean Simmons stars as a schoolteacher who gets a part-time job as the secretary for a nightclub full of colorful, and not quite respectable, characters. It's basically the "bad boy myth" writ large: not just the love interest (Anthony Franciosa) but the entire organization is reformed by the influence of the nice girl. Much of the comedy comes from the staff figuring out that Simmons is a virgin -- though of course they never come right out and say so. The closest they come is "greenhorn" and "no runs, no hits, no errors." Anyway they realize she's a virgin and then Franciosa spends the rest of the movie trying to protect her from ever being alone with any man in the place. My favorite subplot involves the strip-tease girl who wants to become a chef. Also there was excellent singing by Julie Wilson, who I had never heard of before. I will definitely watch this again next time it shows up on TCM.