Dangerous When Wet

Dangerous When Wet (1953), starring Esther Williams, Jack Carson, Fernando Lamas

Synopsis of Dangerous When Wet

In Dangerous When Wet, Esther Williams stars as a spirited member of a fitness-obsessed family who sets out to swim the English Channel and finds romance along the way.

Katie Higgins: [shouting through the fog] Windy. Windy!
Windy Weebe: Katie, where are you?
Katie Higgins: I’m on a yacht. With a Frenchman.
Windy Weebe: A Frenchman? Oh, no.

Product Description 

The health conscious, dairy-farming Higgins family begin each day with an invigorating swim. One day, traveling health-tonic salesman, Windy Weebe, comes to town and suggests they could swim the English Channel. Sponsored by ‘Liquapep’ and coached by Windy, the family arrive in Europe. There it is decided that daughter Katie is the only one strong enough to enter the contest. But while she should be focused on the difficult and risky task ahead, Katie is pursed by dashing Frenchman, André Lanet… This comedic musical is well remembered for the scene when Katie dreams she is swimming with cartoon characters Tom & Jerry! …Dangerous When Wet

Editorial review of Dangerous When Wet, courtesy of Amazon.com

Esther Williams stars as Katie Higgins, the daughter of an Arkansas dairy farmer. The Higginses keep a simple life, working their farm and swimming to stay fit until they meet the shady promoter (Jack Carson) of a vitamin tonic called Liquapep. Before you know it, they’ve been whisked across the ocean to compete in a swimming race across the English Channel.

Fernando Lamas (who later married Williams in real life) appears on the scene as André, a dashing Frenchman who just might distract Katie from her training. Like any Esther Williams movie, Dangerous When Wet features plenty of silly humor and loads of music. There’s also an animated sequence in which Katie swims through a cartoon sea with none other than Tom and Jerry. But can she make it through the icy waters of the Channel? Swim, Esther, swim! –Ali Davis

Cast of characters

• Esther Williams (Neptune’s Daughter) … Katie Higgins
• Fernando Lamas (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Lost World) … André Lanet
• Jack Carson (Mildred Pierce) … Windy Weebe
• Charlotte Greenwood (Springtime in the Rockies) … Ma Higgins
• Denise Darcel (Vera Cruz) … Gigi Mignon
• William Demarest (The Jolson Story) … Pa Higgins
• Donna Corcoran (Angels in the Outfield (1951)) … Junior Higgins
• Barbara Whiting (Junior Miss) … Suzie Higgins
• Bunny Waters (Bathing Beauty) … Greta
• Henri Letondal (Monkey Business) … Joubert
• Paul Bryar … Pierre
• Jack Raine … Stuart Frye
• Richard Alexander … Egyptian Channel swimmer
• Tudor Owen … Old Salt
• Ann Codee (The Mummy’s Curse) … Mrs. Lanet

Songs

• I Got Out Of Bed on the Right Side
  • Music by Arthur Schwartz
  • Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • Performed by William Demarest, Esther Williams, Charlotte Greenwood and Donna Corcoran
  • Used frequently in the score
  • Reprised by all the principals in the finale
• I Like Men
  • Music by Arthur Schwartz
  • Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • Sung by Barbara Whiting
• In My Wildest Dreams
  • Music by Arthur Schwartz
  • Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • Sung by Fernando Lamas to Esther Williams
  • Reprised by him as an octopus during the Tom and Jerry swim with Esther Williams
• Ain’t Nature Grand
  • Music by Arthur Schwartz
  • Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
  • Sung by Esther Williams and Fernando Lamas
  • Also sung by Barbara Whiting, Jack Carson and Denise Darcel
  • Also sung and danced by Charlotte Greenwood and William Demarest
  • And swum by Esther Williams and Fernando Lamas