Spinout

Plot synopsis:
Mike McCoy (Elvis), the lead singer for a traveling band who is also a part-time race car driver, enjoys his carefree single life, which is threatened by three different women who seek to marry him.
Enter Cynthia Foxhugh (Shelley Fabares), a spoiled heiress and "daddy's girl", who is determined to get what she wants, no matter the cost. Such as was the case when Cynthia's millionaire father Howard (Carl Betz) tricks Mike and his band into interrupting their gig tour to serenade Cynthia with "Am I Ready" for her birthday. Cynthia becomes first of the three women who want to marry Mike. Also, apparently knowing about Mike's racing skills, Howard is determined to hire Mike to drive Howard's Fox Five car in an upcoming road race, but Mike prefers to race his own car, a Cobra 427 sports car, which is towed around the country by a 1929 Model J Duesenberg.
Meanwhile, Mike is stalked and spied upon by Diana St. Clair (Diane McBain), an author of books for women about men. Diana is in the process of writing her new book, The Perfect American Male, and uses Mike as one of her subjects. Actually, she later reveals to Mike that he is the "perfect American male", thereby planning on Mike to marry her—to the point of already making wedding arrangements.
The female drummer of Mike's band, Les (Deborah Walley), is looked upon by Mike and the other band members as a tomboy, and becomes fed up with such treatment. Mike and his other band members are taken aback when at a party, Les picks her moment and reveals her true feminine side, walking back out from a room dressed up in an evening dress. She reveals herself as the third woman who wishes to marry Mike.
Faced with this predicament, Mike must decide which of the three women he will marry—after the race (which Mike wins in a car he does not even own). So, he decides to marry all three of them—to other men. Mike marries Cynthia to Phillip (Warren Berlinger), a nervous employee of Howard's who is prone to fainting (he had a secret crush on Cynthia since he has known her, which he finally picks up the nerve to tell her). Next, Mike marries Diana to Howard, who fell in love with each other after they met at one of Mike's parties. And finally, Mike marries Les to Lt. Tracy Richards (Will Hutchins), a police officer whom Les won her way to his heart through his stomach (he likes her gourmet cooking). This allows Mike to reclaim his single and carefree life, which he dearly enjoys.

Tags: romantic

Review:
Elvis Presley spent most of the 1960s making fluffy lightweight romantic comedies with music, all constructed on a studio assembly line during the waning days of the old Hollywood studio system.
Having said that, some of these films were more tolerable than others.SPINOUT, made at MGM, is one of the most entertaining thanks to its teaming of Elvis with three colorful and delightful leading ladies, all of whom more than hold their own with their charismatic leading man.
Deborah Walley plays the tomboyish redhead drummer in Elvis' band and has a secret crush on him; Diane McBain plays a sexually voracious best-selling author on the hunt for the perfect American male; and Shelley Fabares plays the heiress of an auto fortune who thinks she's entitled to whatever she wants and whose father wants Elvis to race a car for him.
Fortunately, the film's racing angle is downplayed in favor of comic situations and a set of enjoyable songs.The supporting players deserve singling out, including Jack Mullaney as Elvis' comical bandmate; Carl Betz as Shelley's father (a role he played with Shelley on "The Donna Reed Show" as well); Warren Berlinger as Betz's loyal assistant; TV cowboy Will Hutchins as a highway cop with a penchant for gourmet cooking; and Hollywood veterans Cecil Kellaway and Una Merkel as an elderly rich couple who allow Elvis and his band to take over their house when they go on vacation.
This movie was released in a year that wasn't a particularly good one for Elvis Presley but it's still, in my opinion, an excellent film.
Elvis Presley plays Mike McCoy, the leader of a small time combo on the road.
Millionaire Howard Foxhugh played by Carl Betz wants McCoy to sing solo for his daughter's birthday.
This is not one of Elvis' best or most memorable films, but it is pretty good.
For one thing, we get to see Elvis in his most suitable film role, as a racecar driver caught up with multiple ladies (seen that before?
Fabares is always a good match for Elvis, and here as a scheming heiress she is virtually his film nemesis.
This wasn't shown in time for the 30th anniversary from Elvis Presley's passing, but it did turn up on TCM UK some time later; still, it took me this long to watch and, as a matter of fact, only opted to check the film out alongside two contemporary vehicles by fellow singers Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin – that said, it can't really compare with them!It's the second of three Presley titles with a racing milieu, though this element isn't as much to the fore here as in the others; conveniently, he doubles as a swooning singer/guitarist with a band – and most of the running-time sees him dodging a couple of marriage proposals from eminent figures in the community!
It transpires that even the tomboyish female drummer in his outfit secretly pines for him…but, given the film's jejeune nature, everything is neatly sorted out by the end – as a writer researching The Perfect Male eventually hitches up with Presley's proposed racing employer (played by a U.S. TV stalwart who was completely unknown to me but is a real dead ringer for Darren McGavin!), the latter's young daughter (Shelley Fabares, from the star's earlier vehicle GIRL HAPPY [1965]) realizes she loves her father's goofy secretary after all, and the drummer (who's something of a gourmet) finds a like-minded soulmate in, of all things, a highway policeman!
Not that it matters much given their thankless roles but two veteran character actors from Hollywood's Golden Age - Cecil Kellaway and Una Merkel - also appear in this film.
The songs aren't exactly memorable either and, while the film's certainly harmless in itself, it's also not engaging enough to warrant more than a cursory viewing (I, for one, was greatly surprised to learn that it was co-scripted by Theodore J.
Rich girl Shelley Fabares, Jacqueline Susann like author Diane McBain, and the drummer in the King's own group, Deborah Walley who is a gourmet cook on the side.As usual Colonel Tom Parker got quality help for his boy behind and in front of the camera.
Such movie veterans as Frederic Worlock and Cecil Kellaway have small roles and this is the farewell big screen appearance of Una Merkel.
Also in the cast is Carl Betz once again playing Shelley Fabares father as he did on the Donna Reed Show.
Will Hutchins, television's Sugarfoot is also around as a policeman who appreciates good cooking and Jack Mullaney and Jimmy Hawkins are the other members of Elvis's group.
Note that they play electric guitars or simulate playing them while Elvis sticks with a regular model.Of course Spinout ends with the Big Race and I don't think I have to tell you who wins, but the race itself is 3/4 of the fun.
Many people (like myself) who have never bothered to watch them through.Yes, it is true that many of these movies would never have been made (or watched) if Elvis wasn't in them.
Elvis' movies may not have been Oscar material, but many of them, including "Spinout" are a nice escape from reality.
The songs are good, at work I think about them time-to-time, and the movies are fun.
Elvis juggles a career as singer/race car driver in this typical but harmless '60s Presley vehicle.
Looking more pudgy than usual, he is an unmarrying kind of guy contending with the attentions of three beautiful women.Shelley Fabares is one delicious cutie I could stare at all day long, and Diane McBain exudes sophisticated beauty.
But putting up with the over-animated antics of Deborah Walley as Presley's jealous tomboy drummer wears on my nerves.This one's got a ton of Elvis songs, none of which are great but range from pretty good ("Spinout" "All That I Am") to unbearable ("Beach Shack", "Smorgasbord")..
Harry Medved listed it among the movies in his "Fifty Worst Movies" book, though it isn't that bad--though it certainly wasn't very good either.In SPINOUT, we find Elvis as a struggling rock 'n roll star AND champion race car driver!
Unlike the real life Elvis, his character shuns glamor and glitz and travels with his three musicians--camping out and living a bohemian life while STILL managing to have clean clothes, multiple wardrobes, gourmet meals, a race car and a 1929 Duesenberg!
Their "camping out" was pure hooey and the camp sites bore an amazing similarity to the sound stage.Well, because he can sing and drive fast cars and is Elvis, it's not surprising that he's pursued by some hot ladies.
Considering how beautiful these ladies were in the film AND how much Elvis avoided them and preferred to hang out with the guys, I really think some might watch this film and wonder if his character was supposed to be gay.
However, what was not entertaining were the many songs Elvis sang as well as the "kooky" race at the end of the film.
As for the songs, Elvis does have a lovely voice but every one of the 1,893 songs he sings in the film is completely forgettable and insipid.
Well, Elvis is pleasant in a plastic sort of way and the ladies quite lovely (particularly the radiant Ms. Fabares) and it was nice to see Una Merkel, Cecil Kellaway and a 1929 Duesenberg.
The few good things are the women - cute Dodie Marshall (who made two Elvis films), Diane McBain (Claudelle English), Deborah Walley, and Shelley Fabares who always lights up the screen.
Carl Betz who played Fabares' Dad on The Donna Reed Show on TV is also in it.A 2 out of 10.
Best performance = Dodie Marshall (what ever happened to her?)  Bad songs, bad race car jokes and meandering "NON-PLOT" puts this in a category of it's own.
to the frames: great to watch under rated Debbie Waley as the girl drummer and the sensuous Shelly Fabares (like Elvis) playing a not very hip 20 year old.there's even a real Duesenberg on hand....great performance....sorry yes we have CArl Betz , Shelly's real TV Father from the Donna Reed show, playing her Dad here.
Spinout (1966) ** (out of 4) Mindless but sometimes fun film about a stockcar driver (Elvis) who must choose between marrying a rich girl (Shelley Fabares) or driving her mean father's car in a big race, which could get him a lot of money.
Elvis sings nine songs in this movie and they're actually all pretty bad and they make for the worst part of the film.
The movie story once again features Elvis involved and having trouble with various women but it plays out okay with a nice ending but the real fun comes from all the racing footage, which certainly looks fake but it's still fun.
Elvis Sings & Drives Race Cars.
In this Elvis outing not only does he sing lead in a band, but he also drives race cars!Two ladies are out walk down the aisle with Elvis, which one will win him over?
Or will Elvis win the race and avoid the marriages?Cute, but at some point all the Elvis movies seem like a carousel.
In this film, Elvis "does battle" with Shelley Fabares (again) and two other women who are determined to marry him.
His bandmates want him to stay single so that their band will remain intact.The film includes fast cars, of course, and some of them are impressive, but the big road race scene feels like a cartoon.Carl Betz, who plays Shelley Fabares' father in "The Donna Reed Show" from 1958-1966, plays her father in this film as well.Sometimes I cringe when films include those scenes on the beach or around the pool where bunches of bikini-clad girls go-go dance, but it did not bother me in this film.
Band singer/race driver Mike McCoy (Elvis Presley) must choose between marrying a beautiful rich girl and driving her father's car in a prestigious race.The script was written by Theodore Flicker and George Kirgo.
Working titles included "Never Say No", "Never Say Yes", and "The Singing Racing Car Driver".
He embarked on a film career consisting of 33 films from 1956 to 1969, films that did well at the box-office but mostly panned critically (especially his later films) and while he was a highly charismatic performer he was never considered a great actor.As far as Elvis films go, 'Spinout' belongs in neither extreme of best or worst.
It's average fare that serves as a serviceable enough one-time watch, but not particularly distinguished and one for completests intent on checking out all of Elvis' films (like me).
It's no 'King Creole', 'Flaming Star', 'Jailhouse Rock', 'Viva Las Vegas' and 'Loving You', but it is far better than 'Kissin' Cousins', 'Frankie & Johnny', 'Paradise Hawaiian Style' and particularly 'Harum Scarum' as well as his later efforts.'Spinout' benefits in particular from the climactic big race, an incredibly fun scene that is the most energetic everything gets, and a generally polished supporting cast (with Shelley Fabares, Diane McBain, Dodie Marshall and Carl Betz lighting up the screen and Cecil Kellaway and Una Merkel nearly stealing the show).It is a decent looking film, there are better-looking Elvis films but it is a long way from cheap apart from the racing footage looking artificial but the photography and sets are fine.
The soundtrack is generally unimpressive (though there are far worse Elvis film soundtracks), but there are a few standouts, such as the title song, "I'll Be Back" and "All That I Am".
Usually a hit and miss director, Norman Taurog gives some of his most enthusiastic directing of his numerous collaborations with Elvis.However, there are exceptions with the supporting cast and they are Jack Mullaney and Deborah Walley, both very annoying in roles written in a way that grates on the nerves fast.
Most of the soundtrack is forgettable at best, with "Beach Shack" and "Smorgasbord" being disposable songs that one can easily do without.Regarding Elvis himself, he has certainly been far more disengaged before and since but he has also been much more enthusiastic and it was like he didn't trust the material.
Elvis Presley's 22nd film (from the year England won the World Cup!!) is far from one of his best, although at least he had restored his good look, looking slimmer and fresher than in a few of his previous films from "Paradise, Hawaiian Style".
It's ruined, in truth, by an annoying support cast consisting of three of Elvis (Mike McCoy)' bandmates (the two guys are terrible actors) who fake - badly - their playing of instruments.
Irritated by spoilt Cynthia (Shelley Fabaras) who gets her millionaire father to force Mike into performing a song for her for her birthday AFTER she's already ran him off the road at the start of the film.
The highlight of the film is a race at the end of it, that pits Elvis in a clunker substitute car after having his own race car stolen by another annoying supporting cast member - the millionaires butler - and the millionaire himself in his new "supercar" the 'Fox 5'...despite starting about 10 minutes behind everybody else, Mike catches the field...and of course takes the chequered flag first...right at the end.
Released in 1966, "Spinout" was Elvis' 22nd movie.
"Roustabout" (1964) is my favorite simply because it has the most compelling story, and the story – including the way it's told – is the most important part of a movie in my book.In "Spinout" Elvis plays Mike McCoy, a singer/guitarist of a band that lives like well-to-do gypsies, living a nomadic life in tents.
In this case there are three who desperately want to marry him: the tomboy drummer of his band (Deborah Walley), a spoiled heiress (Shelley Fabares) and a woman writing a book on him (Diane McBain).
Carl Betz plays the heiress' rich father who wants McCoy to drive his fancy new racecar, but also to stay away from his daughter.
One quick example from "Spinout": McCoy (Elvis) wants to temporarily move into the mansion next door to the heiress and her rich dad so he charms the elderly neighbors and convinces them to immediately go on a second honeymoon while he and his bandmates – perfect strangers – stay at their mansion.
Elvis is Mike, a racer/singer/gypsy living free soul who impresses a spoiled rich girl (Fabares) and her dad (Betz), who desperately wants Mike to race his car and NOT marry his daughter.
Along for the ride is an author (McBain) who also wants to marry Mike and a tomboy drummer in his band (Walley) who's quite obviously vying for his affections.
But as far as Elvis's later flicks go; "Spinout" rates pretty high..
Elvis Presley as a rock 'n roll crooner playing clubs with his goofy musical trio (two men and drummer Deborah Walley, who dresses like a man for no particular reason); he attracts the attention of a wealthy man's daughter who schemes to keep Presley in town--to drive her father's car in an auto-race AND possibly walk her down the aisle!
Walley adds some bounce, but Shelley Fabares gets a thankless role.
Elvis Presley is an out-of-shape rock 'n' roll singer who digs girls and race cars.
Best of the women is Shelley Fabares, the spoiled rich girl interested in Elvis.
She, and the man who plays her father (Carl Betz) were both on "The Donna Reed Show".
Ms. Fabares, Mr. Betz and flunkie Warren Berlinger are more entertaining than the others.Presley's good "Spinout" songs are not presented well, visually; the film attempts to hide his overweight status, with varying success.
** Spinout (10/17/66) Norman Taurog ~ Elvis Presley, Shelley Fabares, Diane McBain, Deborah Walley.
I was expecting a movie similar to Speedway, another film where Elvis is a race car driver.
Surprisingly, the fact that Elvis was a race car driver really didn't have that much to do with the movie except at the end.
The movie had some good quotes, but the music wasn't all that good, although I love the song "All That I Am".
The acting in the movie wasn't the greatest I've seen, but who watches an Elvis movie expecting Oscar grade performances?
As for the rest, Well its just typical Elvis stuff, if you've seen Girl Happy or Roustabout or any of the rest then just fast forward to the car scenes..
Presley plays the lead singer of a band that includes Hawkins, Mullaney and girl drummer Walley.
When millionaire Betz decides he wishes Presley to not only sing for his daughter Fabares' birthday, but also to drive his car in an upcoming race, a battle of wills begins which results in Presley living next door to Betz and playing cat and mouse with him and his daughter.
Betz (who had played Fabares father in a far different way for years on "The Donna Reed Show") isn't particularly challenged in his role, but lends solid support.
Fabares made three Elvis films in all..
Another Wonderful pairing of Elvis and the Lovely Shelley Fabares.
This is one of my favorite Elvis films because of the humor, the cast, and the music.
Elvis plays Mike Mccoy, a singer and race car driver.
it also includes Jimmy Hawkins(my favorite male Elvis co-star), Jack Mullaney(comic relief) and Deborah Walley.
Shelley Fabares is one of the three women after Elvis in the film.
She plays the spoiled rich girl Cynthia beautifully, and she has never looked prettier on film than she does here.
He also does a great job trying to get Elvis to drive his car, but keep him away from his daughter.
Warren Berlinger also plays a great comic relief role as Philip, who really likes Cynthia.
Adding a nice touch to the film as well is Una Merkel and Cecil Kellaway.
They play an elderly couple that Elvis meet and convinces them to let him and his band watch their house as they take a vacation in his car.