If you’re going to make a movie in the mid sixties about sex and philandering, you’d better have a cutesy gal like Doris Day or Jane Fonda bat her long, false eyelashes through the entire romp. Any Wednesday is such a surprisingly enjoyable sexual comedy about the mistress of a New York executive that mixes cliche moments with surprising realism.

Ellen Gordon (Jane Fonda) is sitting pretty on her high horse, enjoying her job at an upscale art gallery, happily living in New York City with two roommates, and looking down her nose at two-timing married men like the wealthy Mr. John Cleves (Jason Robards). Until one day when Ellen’s roommates have moved away and she winds up sick and alone in the hospital. She’s about to lose her apartment until Mr. Cleves, who has been relentlessly pursuing her for a whole year, most recently visiting her in the hospital, suggests buying her apartment as a business expense and allowing her to stay there. Fast-forward a year, and we find little Miss Gordon happily playing the role of a kept mistress who plays housewife every Wednesday at her apartment which has now become Mr. Gordon’s executive suite. But everything comes to a head when on the same day of her thirtieth birthday, Ellen meets Mrs. Cleves, and begins to wonder about her future.

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Some movies you watch as a kiddo, totally transfixed, living the rest of your life with fond but vague memories of the film. A long time ago I watched a movie about a widower and his son and the son’s quest to find his dad a new wife. I remember being enamored with the costumes, sets, and romantic storyline, and also relating to the sadness the little boy felt at losing his mother. (Not that I lost my mother, but I was a terribly sensitive and emphatic child.) It wasn’t until a couple of years ago that a preview for the movie came on Turner Classic Movies, a nostalgic and upbeat whistling song playing in its background, that I realized the movie I loved as a kid was The Courtship of Eddie’s Father starring Glenn Ford and little Ron Howard. So of course, I took a trip down memory lane and watched it again. But my reaction to the movie was quite different than the wide-eyed adoration of my childhood.

Read my review of The Courtship of Eddie’s Father after the jump, and watch the movie for yourself instantly online right here.

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I just adore mid sixties romantic comedies- the ones before the sexual revolution, but after the repression of the ’50s. It’s a nice five years that are saturated with witty writing, fabulous fashion, silly sexual innuendo, and colorful, interesting sets. Admittedly, the acting in these movies is sometimes hit or miss, but if you ask me, sixties movies aren’t all about great acting, really. They’re about great entertainment! If you enjoy this genre, you’ll love Sunday in New York. You can watch it instantly right here!

Sunday in New York is a really fun sixties romp, starring one of my favorite comedy actresses of the era, Jane Fonda as Eileen Taylor, and another charming funny guy, Rod Taylor as Mike Mitchell. I adored the interior sets of the film, and am so ready to move into that apartment! Loft bedroom, sunken kitchen with open shelving, brick walls with modern art, and beautiful tailored midcentury modern furniture. When can I move in? And don’t get me started on Eileen’s outfits. I wish I could find her white wiggle dress with the embroidered eye pattern. That dress is a keeper for sure!

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