BILLYBOY-10 Shirley Booth runs a rooming house in Beverly Hills before WWII. She's an unmarried frump. Thru flash-backs we see her pathetic life unfold. First she's a torch singer in a bare shoulder evening gown. Unfortunately, Shirley Booth is not the hotsy torch singer type and she looks ridiculous. Then she agrees to run off to California with Robert Ryan who has a continuous scowl on his face. The go for a swim in the ocean and Shirley wears a one piece suit with a frilly skirt on it. Shirley Booth should not do bathing suit scenes. Time passes and affairs of her present day boarding house intermingle with her platonic 6 weeks a year "arrangement" with depressing Ryan. Soon, Shirley finds out Ryan is married so she disappears but he finds her one night roaming the streets of New York. They reconnect but he has to split and she has a foreboding that they will never see each other again. The war is over and Ryan dies. He leaves her money to buy a house and then all her current roomers move on. There is a useless scene with the neighbor girl, Pixie which does'nt make sense and Shirley calls Ryan "Mr.Leslie,honey". Throughout the film there is lush, loud overly violiny music blaring. In the scene with Pixie she serves her a sandwich of cold ham. How appropriate.

Scoval71 What a movie. I don't know how or where to start to rave and praise it. The acting, the story. So very believable, and for a woman to live with a man outside of wedlock in the 1930's...well, unheard of then...or maybe not so. This is the story of a woman who accepts a man who can only offer her a six week a year commitment. But, oh, it is so worth it. You have to see this movie to fully understand it. The casting of both Shirley and Robert were perfection. So realistic. A very, very poignant and touching piece. Youth vs. age, many subplots, but done in a superior way of flashbacks. The character of Mrs. Leslie is one who has learned all about life's foibles and disappointments. She has her memories of her "Mr. Leslie, honey," to sustain her. I cannot praise this movie enough. I have it on VHS, recorded from TV. I cannot locate it on DVD. See this if and when it replays on television. It is amazing.

bjon First, it must be mentioned that Shirley Booth was a fantastic actress in both film and stage, the latter being her forte. Here was an actress who, despite the fact that she was not Hollywood model material by any means, could run rings around scores of her drop-dead gorgeous contemporaries in the acting department! It's really a pity that she became typecast as "Hazel" in her popular television series, because she could, and did, offer so much more.That said, now comes the plot of this particular film. A fairly good looking, well to do up and comer in politics, albeit married to someone else, falls in love with Ms. Booth's somewhat frumpy character. Highly unlikely, some people would say, but it happens in this film, and it happens in real life, no matter what the media would have you believe. Robert Ryan rendered a fine performance, and both of them generated the right chemistry. This is where it gets really good. The love that's shared between these two comes across as quite genuine. In fact, it blossoms throughout the film by way of a good plot! No spoiler here! You must see the film in its entirety to understand this.Yes, the film plays out like a soap opera for the most part, but the idea behind it, the love between these two people, no matter the odds, is very real. There are lots of sub-plots going on throughout, but they all seem to come together perfectly and sensibly in the end. Many facets and foibles of human nature are addressed quite well in the process.This is a must see, as are all of Shirley Booth's movies, at least in my opinion. It's too bad she didn't make more of them.

Ainsley_Jo_Phillips Mrs. Leslie knows both the joys and sorrows that come with loving deeply--and, to her, the joys outweigh the sorrows! She goes all out to help those rooming in her home to fulfill their dreams. Mrs. Leslie's story is moving and inspiring!