"Ah, how many times Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie had sex."
— Tom Servo, responding to the title during the MST3K riff
Once Upon a Honeymoon is an odd old short from the 1950s. It's either about a Camp Gay guardian angel who imagines he's helping a newly married couple out of a bind that is further holding up their delayed honeymoon, or possibly it's the other way around. In the way of these two bizarre factions there is some singing and dancing (it was directed by legendary Broadway choreographer Gower Champion), and a lot of plugs for new appliances and phones.
Thus a short about nothing, with no learning but some hugging.note
For the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version, please go to the episode recap page.
Has no connection to the 1942 film of the same name starring Ginger Rogers and Cary Grant.
This short provides examples of:
- Camp Gay: Or possibly Camp Straight; Wilbur is awfully flamboyant either way.
- Gag Dub: It was given this treatment in "Film Dub" on Whose Line Is It Anyway?. The premise was tweaked so that the couple was creating a jingle for corn-on-the-cob.
- Guardian Angel: Wilbur is apparently this for Jeff and Mary.
- The Hays Code: The reason the happily married couple apparently sleep in separate twin beds.
- High-Tech Heaven: as this was a short film sponsored by Ma Bell to show off their new line of colored telephones, naturally, the angels are equipped with the most advanced phones available in the 1950s: early, very bulky cellular phones.
- Imagine Spot: Most of the film is Mary fantasizing about decorating her house with new colored phones.
- Insubstantial Ingredients: Sonya demands more "wishing" in the Wishing Song.
- Mean Boss: Partially. Gordon does stop Jeff's honeymoon but he's not exactly happy about it either.
- Totally Radical: Wilmer.
- What the Hell Is That Accent?: Sonya has a vaguely Russian/Eastern European accent.
- What Were They Selling Again?: The short was by Ma Bell promoting their new colored phones, and all of the appliances and furniture were to show how there was a different color phone to match whatever the style was. The shocking concept of home phones that weren't black would have stood out to contemporary audiences. They even manage to sneak in a speaker phone to show off, too, as well as Wilbur's gigantic cell phone.
- Writer's Block Montage: Most of the short is this.
