Bathing Beauty

Bathing Beauty is a 1944 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical comedy directed by George Sidney. Songwriter Steve Elliott, played by Red Skelton, is set to marry Caroline Brooks, a swimming instructor played by Esther Williams. Their wedding is derailed when a woman interrupts the ceremony claiming to be Steve's wife, prompting the furious Caroline to return to her job at a women's college. The schemer behind the disruption is Steve's impresario George Adams, played by Basil Rathbone, who fears losing his songwriter. Determined to win Caroline back, Steve follows her to the college and, through a legal loophole, becomes the only male student on campus. The story resolves through water ballet sequences and a wedding.

The film was written by Allen Boretz, Dorothy Kingsley and Frank Waldman, and produced by Jack Cummings. It was Sidney's second feature, following Thousands Cheer, and precedes Anchors Aweigh, Ziegfeld Follies and The Three Musketeers in his filmography. Skelton and Williams lead an 87-person credited cast that includes Bill Goodwin, Jean Porter and Nana Bryant. Made for about 2 million dollars, it took roughly 7 million dollars worldwide, a strong return for MGM. On IMDb it holds a 6.4 rating from around 2,100 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 5.9 from a much smaller base of 33 votes, with the two audiences broadly agreeing on the film.