The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1962)

61% of users liked it
(1,706 ratings)

Vincente Minnelli takes another of his occasional dips into situation comedy (i.e. The Long Long Trailer) in The Courtship of Eddie's Father. Ron Howard is the precocious Eddie, who wants to see his recently widowed father, Tom Corbett (Glenn Ford), get married again. He even has the lucky bride… More Vincente Minnelli takes another of his occasional dips into situation comedy (i.e. The Long Long Trailer) in The Courtship of Eddie's Father. Ron Howard is the precocious Eddie, who wants to see his recently widowed father, Tom Corbett (Glenn Ford), get married again. He even has the lucky bride picked out -- their attractive neighbor Elizabeth Marten (Shirley Jones), a young divorcee. When his father's interest isn't whetted, he strikes up a friendship with Dollye Daly (Stella Stevens), a shy, beauty contest winner. But, much to Eddie's disappointment, Dollye falls in love with Tom's friend Norman Jones (Jerry van Dyke). When Tom meets stylish fashion consultant Rita Behrens (Dina Merrill) and announces their plans to marry, Eddie -- who disapproves of the match -- runs away from summer camp and hides out in Elizabeth's apartment. Tom breaks off his engagement to Rita and tries to find Eddie. Arriving at Elizabeth's apartment, Tom confronts Elizabeth and decides to try to get to know her a little better. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 57 min.
Directed By: Vincente Minnelli
Written By: John Gay, Mark Toby
Genres: Drama, Kids & Family, Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Mar 27, 1963 Limited
On DVD: Jun 1, 2004
Studio: MGM

Critic Reviews

Michael E. Grost, Classic Film and Television
Strange film about family tragedy masquerading as a comedy, the film does have some impressive sequences.
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
One of Minnellli's weakest (or is it modest?) serio comedies, dealing with the adjustment problems of a recent widower (Glenn Ford) and his young son (played by child actor-future director Ron Howard).
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Enjoyable family comedy.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Lanning :

I've never been a great Glenn Ford fan, but his low-intensity performance style actually works well here as Ron Howard engineers his dear dad's romantic life beyond widowerhood. A year after <i>The Music Man,</i> Howard steals the show with his charm, wit, and… More
I've never been a great Glenn Ford fan, but his low-intensity performance style actually works well here as Ron Howard engineers his dear dad's romantic life beyond widowerhood. A year after <i>The Music Man,</i> Howard steals the show with his charm, wit, and good humor, and Shirley Jones is knockout gorgeous as little Howard's target for his father's second wife. Jones is definitely one of the most beautiful women ever to grace the sliver screen, and her projected intelligence has never hurt her, even in the acting work she does nowadays. I will always regret that I didn't have a chance to witness her in her heyday on the big screen.
jay n

Utterly charming delicate story of the sometime rocky love between a boy and his recently widowed father. Some of the standards are of course different but how could they not be in a film over 40 years old, ignore that and just enjoy the sweet simple story. Shirley Jones is incredibly… More
Utterly charming delicate story of the sometime rocky love between a boy and his recently widowed father. Some of the standards are of course different but how could they not be in a film over 40 years old, ignore that and just enjoy the sweet simple story. Shirley Jones is incredibly lovely and Stella Stevens is wonderful in her small role, a vastly underrated actress.