User Reviews

Nancy Bernard was the 1966 Queen of Cotton, which looks to be one of the hundreds of beauty pageants a young woman could win in those days. She stars in this short, strolling around various sets on the MGM back lot in various outfits, while one narrator talks about the sets, and another about the outfits she is wearing, like a model at a fashion show -- which is what she pretty much is in this one.

It's a promotional short, promoting the forthcoming MGM feature THE GLASS-BOTTOM BOAT -- we get to see Doris Day and co-star Rod Taylor (without his hairpiece) in costume tests for the movie, and a clip from the movie. It also promotes cotton. Well, I guess it helped to pay the bills on the production.

The only reason for giving this short documentary even four stars is that it has some scenes of Doris Day in it, and one with Rod Taylor. They are amusing as Doris models some of the clothes she will wear in "The Glass Bottom Boat." Taylor gets in the act in one scene.

Otherwise, this short film resembles a home movie someone shot on a tour of the MGM lot and studios in Culver City, CA. Of course, it's an MGM promo piece that was co-produced (probably funded) by the National Cotton Council. So, the film follows Nancy Bernard around MGM – she being the 1966 Maid of Cotton. Believe it or not, from 1939 to 1993 there was such an honorary young woman designated in the U.S. She had considerable distinction and coverage – not on the level of the Miss America pageant, but with similar benefits. She became an international ambassador for the American cotton industry.

So, this documentary is a combination tour of the MGM lot and a fashion show. As Miss Bernard moves from one locale to another, her clothes change. She dutifully poses as the narrator describes the garment she wears. Of course, it's cotton. There's not enough of the behind-the scenes of the studios to make it interesting, so this short film comes off as boring. It sputters to life toward the end with a couple of scenes with Doris Day doing the modeling and some clowning around with Rod Taylor.

Except for a glimpse of DORIS DAY and ROD TAYLOR during the making of THE GLASS BOTTOM BOAT, this MGM short does nothing to raise interest in promotion of a new film. Nor was the feature film anything to rave about.

We follow a girl around the MGM studios after winning a contest. While some dull narration fills us in on the details, mostly talk about the MGM costume department and the various fabrics used, we see costume tests for the stars of the silly comedy.

Since the MGM feature was in Technicolor, it's puzzling to see this short in B&W where the costuming is far less effective and the colors have to be described. This alone defeats the whole purpose of the short.

A trivial short well worth skipping.

One of those cutesy little short subjects. This one has Nancy Bernard, in various costumes and other outfits, that are made of cotton. Nice backlot shots of MGM and there is also rare costume clips of Doris Day and Rod Taylor. The only thing wrong with this film is that they filmed it in black and white. It would have been better to have seen it in color. But, it is still very enjoyable.

Turner Classics and AMC don't show enough "shorts", but at least they show some. There are plenty of great ones, which keep me tuning in toward the last minutes of a 2 hour slot of a feature movie,,, in case they'll be able to fit a short in.

Here was one that made it. If it had been filmed in the 30's or maybe 40's, it'd have some chance to be appreciated, but in 1966, it's time for fashion filming to be fashion filming....and a 'behind the sceens' at MGM to be that. This short is thankfully short.

Even Doris Day and Rod Taylor can't save it (but almost). They should have left the fashion out, and followed Doris.

This is a promo short for The Glass Bottom Boat starring Doris Day and Rod Taylor. It follows Nancy Bernard, the 1966 Maid of Cotton, on a tour or the MGM Studios and back lot in Culver City, CA. The innocently cute narration describes the various outfits Ms. Bernard is wearing (100% cotton, of course) as she visits sound stages and well-known outdoor sets. The film has some historical value since the MGM studios are now owned by Sony and the back lot has long been demolished and replaced by condos. It is well-worth watching if only to see Doris Day modeling costumes she'd be wearing in the Glass Bottom Boat. The best, by far, is the revealing mermaid costume that show off Doris' bare midriff. Probably one of the most revealing costumes she ever wore on film. Every Girl's Dream is a fairly interesting mid-century artifact. Not a work of art, but a little peek into the culture of a time gone by.

Every Girl's Dream (1966)

** (out of 4)

MGM co-produced this short with the National Cotton Council (?!?!) and shows us 1966's Maid of Cotton, Nancy Bernard. The young lady wins the contest, which gets her a tour of the MGM studio where she gets to see various sets including work being done by Doris Day and Rod Taylor on THE GLASS BOTTOM BOAT. The main goal of this film is to show off the film but there's also plenty of talk about the cotton in various costumes. This 9-minute short also gets two narrators, one male and one female, which I think is a first for me, which is saying something considering how many shorts I do watch. Another strange thing is that this was filmed in B&W and we have the narrators having to tell us what colors the clothes are. I really don't understand why they didn't use color but it's interesting to see the movie clips are also in B&W even though the actual movie is color.