Kathryn Grayson spanked & mishandled - Kiss Me Kate (1953)

Kathryn Grayson certainly goes through a lot in the film Kiss Me Kate (1953), the third of her films with Howard Keel. Playing ex husband and wife who are reunited to appear in a musical of The Taming of the Shrew, Kathryn mistakenly receives flowers from Keel meant for co-star Ann Miller declaring his love. But when she discovers the card with Ann's name on it, she makes Keel pay for it on stage - until he has enough and spanks her in front of the audience, who think it's all part of the show.

Vowing to quit, Keel then receives a visit from two gangsters (Keenan Wynn and James Whitmore) wanting a debt repaid - something Miller's boyfriend has run up but written the IOU in Keel's name. However, instead of denying it, Keel tells them he can only pay the debt with a successful run of the show and that his leading actress (Grayson) is planning on walking out. Cue hoods visiting Kathryn to persuade her to stay on - with Whitmore particularly happy to brush her up while they do so - before she then suffers the indignities of being plonked over a donkey on stage (while Whitmore gets more to grips with Kathryn's posterior) before then having her bum slapped again by Keel after being denied food and sent off to her bedchamber. Talk about been given the bum's rush!