Sixteen-year-old Marjorie Morgenstern lives a quiet life in New York City. Her mother hopes for a glittering marriage to a good man, but Marjorie has other ideas.
When she falls desperately in love with Noel Airman, a musician as reckless as he is talented, Marjorie dreams of defying her destiny as a wife and mother to become a star of the stage. Why should she settle with being just another Mrs Morgenstern if she can succeed as Marjorie Morningstar?