Mulheres, Sempre Mulheres

The title role of "The First Traveling Saleslady" is played by Ginger Rogers. She portrays Miss Rose Gillray, a woman who sells corsets like she is a missionary selling salvation. But circumstances require that she make a change of vocation and she becomes a traveling saleslady peddling barbed wire to Texas ranchers. Talk about a challenge! She is assisted by Molly Wade, played by Carol Channing. I don't think audiences would have been familiar with Miss Channing when exposed to her in this role. She plays the part with energy and displays her unique vocal talents fully.

I am a fan of Miss Rogers, but I was disappointed by her performance in this silly comedy. When she first spoke, I questioned if the character was supposed to be drunk. I think she was deliberately changing her voice to create her character, but I am not sure. The portrayal is uneven--like the entire film. There were moments I enjoyed and others that had me scratching my head in perplexity.

Clint Eastwood (as Lt. Jack Rice) appears in one of his first credited roles as a fresh-faced Rough Rider who instantly falls for Molly. Barry Nelson plays an entrepreneur (Charlie Masters) who might be an intermittent love interest for Rose as he literally comes into and out of the film repeatedly.

The film contains some interesting content regarding a "Purity League" that safeguards the morals of society and some mentions of Women's Rights, particularly Women's Suffrage.

There are some cute references to how the country has changed, like the mention that traveling over the road at 12 MPH is thrilling.

James Arness portrays Joel Kingdom, owner of most of Texas it seems. When he is on screen, he has a strong presence and he energizes those scenes.

As a whole, this film drags at times and often seems a parody of the type of film it is. It feels like the direction is most to blame.

One of the final RKO radio films produced in the last leap of faith in 1956. THE FIRST TRAVELING SALESLADY is a very enjoyable light comedy. What sets it apart from TV shows like PETTICOAT JUNCTION or films like OKLAHOMA both of which it strongly resembles is the A studio production values which allow the film to take on a lavish western look more akin to CALAMITY JANE. It is a jalopy western set in the horseless carriage days of 1899. Ginger Rogers was 43 and Carol Channing was 35 in production and given the mature age of both and the feminist slant of the story, it makes for a liberating tone for a film of the mid 50s. It is well worth looking at the last 20 films made at the RKO studio in this period by RKO TELERADIO PRODUCTIONS who revived the label after Howard Hughes trashed it. All 1955-58 RKO films are very well made, above the prior years of Hughes. TRAVELING SALESLADY is beautiful to see and has visuals cluttered with style and color. I thought it quite lavish in some scenes with overstuffed furniture and antiques that must have helped see unloved props get a final airing. In widescreen and technicolor it must have resembled GIGI or THE MERRY WIDOW. The most hilarious scenes to really really lap up involve a very young Clint Eastwood (25 years old) kissing Carol Channing! Fantastic! They elope together in the last reel! The railway station Ginger arrives at earlier at is the same as seen in OKLAHOMA, the last big musical distributed by RKO; Their very last film a minor but snazzy musical was THE GIRL MOST LIKELY also beautifully produced. Shame they gave up, but their films of the time, terrific as they were and modern in tone, just did not include respectable profits to continue. All other studios big and small had at least one blockbuster in this period, but alas RKO and Republic did not and folded.

After many years of making wonderful films, RKO closed its doors and was sold to Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball...becoming Delilu Studios. Sadly, its final production was "The First Traveling Saleslady"...an inconsequential piece of fluff starring Ginger Rogers. Apart from it being the studio's last film, there really isn't much to recommend it and making bland pictures like this in the 1950s led to the studio's demise.

The film is about a lady who is trying to make a go of her corset company and later a barbed wire company. And, to help make a go of it, Rose (Rogers) goes on the road to market the products. Not surprisingly for the turn of the century, she encounters hostility from many of the men in the field as well as a bit of romance. And, along for the ride is Carol Channing who is mostly annoying in the role of Rose's friend and business partner. Oddly, Channing's love interest in the film is played by Clint Eastwood...in his first credited movie.

I am pretty sure by now you realize that I was not in love with this film. Too often, I found myself bored by it and found the story uninvolving. Additionally, while Ginger Rogers could be amazingly good in films, here she seems a bit out of her element...and perhaps it was made worse by Channing who seemed out of place in so many ways. All I know is that I found myself wanting to just turn it off after a while and cut my losses. A sad finale for RKO...and perhaps my score of 4 is a bit charitable.

By the way, this film was parodied on "Green Acres" in the episode entitled "The Old Trunk".

Just finished "The First Traveling Saleslady" and I want to thank this site for a much more complete synopsis of the movie. I first clicked on Movie Tome and it didn't even list Ginger Rogers nor Carol Channing in the cast!! Watched it with my father (83) and my wife. We all found it to be a nice, enjoyable movie. Not as much singing as I expected with the two female leads and Ginger Roger's speaking voice was unusual (and I've seen a lot of movies with her from all those she did with Astaire as well as "The Major and the Minor"). Sounded like she was trying to do a match for Channing? Anyway, although you pretty much knew Barry Nelson would get here in the end making it rather predictable, it was cute, clean, and a lot of fun. I'd recommend it to anyone who's not overly critical and looking for relaxing, fun movie.

A dull little situation comedy made at the end of RKO's reign, and it looks desperate -- the patently false production values, the cheesy Americana, the mid-century niceness that dates so many '40s and '50s movies. However, and I can say this with authority: It's the only movie you will ever see where Clint Eastwood ends up paired with CAROL CHANNING. The Fifties were strange times, children.