A Woman's Touch from Calamity Jane (1953)

Calamity Jane (Doris Day) has just agreed to let Katie Brown (Allyn Ann McLerie) stay with her, so they can act as each other's "chaperone". In this scene, a dismayed Katie enters Calam's ramshackle cabin for the first time. Following Calam's (heart-wrenching) exclamation about the pitiful accommodations she has to offer and her failings as a "lady", Katie shows her how she can become the ideal 1950's housewife. While redecorating the cabin and getting Calam a more feminine wardrobe, they sing the virtues of women as agents of cleanliness. After their duet, Katie teaches Calam the age-old gimmick of baking cakes and pies to win a man's affection.

Note: It's also a special kind of hospitality to allow your guest to paint her name on your door!


Lyrics:

[Katie:] A woman's touch
[Calam:] A woman's touch
[Katie:] The magic of Aladdin couldn't do as much!

[Katie:] She's a wizard, she's a champ
[Calam:] And she doesn't need a lamp!

[Katie:] A woman's touch,
Can weave a spell.
The kind of hocus-pocus
That she does so well.
[Calam:] With the magic of a broom,
She can mesmerize a room.

[Katie:] With a whisk-whisk here,
And a whisk-whisk there,
And a dustpan for the cinders.
[Calam:] With a rub-rub here,
And a rub-rub there,
She could polish up the winders.

[Calam:] Then presto-chango, suddenly....
The sun comes shining through!
[Katie:] And what does Mr. Sunshine say to you?
[Calam:] How-d'ya-do

[Katie:] It makes you blink,
To stop and think,
A woman and a whisk broom...
[Calam:] Can accomplish so darn much
[Both:] So never underestimate a woman's touch!

[musical interlude]

[Calam:] A woman's touch,
Can quickly fill,
The empty flower boxes on a winder sill.
[Katie:] One smile from her and zoom,
Little buds begin to bloom.

[Katie:] A touch of paint...
[Calam:] A magic nail,
[Both:] Can turn a kitchen chair into a Chippendale.
[Calam:] Even make a lamp appear,
Like a crystal chandelier.

[Katie:] With a tack-tack here,
And a tack-tack there,
And a hand around a hammer.
With a mop-mop here,
And a mop-mop there,
You can give a cabin glamour.

[musical interlude]

[Calam:] Then gosh-o-mighty...
All at once...
The cabin that we knew...!!
Becomes a shiny castle built for two!
[Both:] Me and you!

[Katie:] The pies and cakes,
A woman bakes,
Can make a fella tell her...
That he loves her very much...
[Calamity whispers:] It can?
[Both:] So never underestimate a woman's touch!!


**Note: The content of this video belongs exclusively to Paramount Studios and all the people involved in its construction and distribution.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• Woman's
• Calamity
• Jane
• Doris
• Day
• Allyn
• Ann
• McLerie
• Musical
• cleanliness
• housework
• housewife

[ArwenPendragon]

I always loved how the yellow paint was magical and somehow managed to fill all the holes in the wood as well as making it look yellow, hehehe.

[evporretta]

Wasn't Doris Day just the cutest ever? Bring back wholesomeness. I miss it.

[ryanartist88]

lol wouldnt it be cool i offend think if in life sometimes lol a catchy tune would appear in the background and you and your friends already know the words to a song you'v just made up and all with full dance routine. lol life set to music Pleases! :)

[ryanartist88]

dose any one get the vide that Amy Adams is slowy becoming a wholesome 21 century version of doris day

[daneejo2010]

where did the paint bucket come from? o.o i love this movie ♥

[bluecloudswhitesky1]

@mymusicalsoul941 This is probably one of my favourite films of all time, I mean doris day is a legend and my idol. I was just pointing out that this song is very 50's housewifeish and therefore ridiculous and quite dated, but then it was made in the 50's and peoples perceptions of women have changed since then.

[MyMusicalSoul941]

@bluecloudswhitesky1 Ridiculous? I think your comment is ridiculous, this song and musical is awesome!

[NagemSeivad]

@smuwakil im 18 now but when i was like 7-10 years old she was my fav singer :)

[bluecloudswhitesky1]

This song is absolutely ridiculous 

[tija1012]

winder :P

[tarot40]

Must buy my girlfriend an apron like the one worn by Katie Brown and show her this sequence!

[smuwakil]

2 people just don't know good music, I am only 29 and I love her, I ran across her music about 2yrs ago and now I am hooked.