Show Boat

The Cotton Blossom arrives in a Mississippi town for a performance, and the atmosphere is uneasy from the start. A fistfight erupts between leading man Steve Baker and Pete, the boat's engineer who has been making passes at Julie La Verne. Pete reveals Julie's mixed-race heritage, making their marriage illegal, and he brings the sheriff to the scene, forcing Cap'n Andy to dismiss the Bakers along with Pete from the show.

Magnolia becomes the new leading lady on the Cotton Blossom, and Gaylord Ravenal is hired as her leading man. The two instantly form a professional rapport that slowly blossoms into something more. The tense secret from the earlier confrontation shadows their growing partnership.

Magnolia and Ravenal marry and decide to leave the boat for a life ashore. They move to Chicago, hoping to build a future on Ravenal's gambling winnings. The happiness is bright at first, but the lure of gambling soon threatens their plans.

The couple lives in Chicago, surviving on Ravenal's gambling winnings until the money runs out. Financial strain tests their relationship and Magnolia's faith in their shared dream. The romance endures even as uncertainty grows.

Ellie Shipley and Frank Schultz take Magnolia to audition at the Trocadero nightclub, unaware Julie already performs there. Julie overhears Magnolia's audition and learns from the manager that Ravenal deserted Magnolia. She quits so that Ravenal will have no choice but to hire Magnolia.

Cap'n Andy attends Magnolia's opening night at the Trocadero and helps her conquer her stage fright. Magnolia reveals that she is pregnant with Ravenal's child, and she returns to the Cotton Blossom with Cap'n Andy. There, she gives birth to a daughter named Kim.

About five years pass, and Ravenal is gambling aboard a packet boat while a drunken Julie tries to sing. The atmosphere on board is tense with unspoken history and the ongoing consequences of Ravenal's choices. The distance between the couple and their family grows.

Julie, who has been keeping track of Magnolia, notes Ravenal's presence and confronts him on board. She reveals Ravenal's identity to him but does not realize he knows nothing about Magnolia's pregnancy. Her confrontation plants seeds of guilt in Ravenal and sets up his eventual return.

Ravenal returns to the Cotton Blossom the next day, meeting his daughter Kim for the first time. The sight of his child with Magnolia moves him to reconcile with Magnolia. They recommit to building a life together for the sake of their family.

With the reconciliation, the family steadies itself against the odds and the ship continues its voyage down the river. Magnolia keeps performing, Julie remains part of the cast but with a strained history behind her, and Ravenal tries to stay steady for his wife and child. The community on the boat endures.