A Damsel in Distress (film)
Encyclopedia
A Damsel in Distress is a 1937
English-themed Hollywood musical
comedy film
starring Fred Astaire
, Joan Fontaine
, George Burns
, and Gracie Allen
. With a screenplay by P. G. Wodehouse
, loosely based on his novel of the same name
, music and lyrics by George
and Ira Gershwin
, it is directed by George Stevens
.
Lady Alyce secretly has a romantic interest in an American no one from her family has yet met. She leaves the castle one day to venture into London, where by chance she encounters Jerry Halliday. He is an American entertainer, accompanied by press agent George and secretary Gracie, but not well enough known to be recognized by Lady Alyce.
Jerry is incorrectly led to believe that the American this young lady is in love with is him. He goes to the castle, encouraged by Albert but discouraged by Keggs, a scheming butler whose money is on another beau. The closest Jerry can get to Lady Alyce is a castle tour, at least until Albert can sneak him upstairs.
False impressions abound, as Jerry also fails to recognize Lady Alyce's father, the lord of the manor. He gets slapped in the face in a Tunnel of Love, misunderstanding the young lady's intentions entirely. In the end, however, he and Lady Alyce do find a fine romance.
died of a brain tumour while the film was in production.
The first Astaire RKO film not to feature Ginger Rogers
, the nineteen year-old Fontaine was chosen, with Burns and Allen
drafted in to provide the comedy. It soon emerged that Fontaine couldn't dance, but Stevens persuaded Astaire not to replace her with Ruby Keeler
. The film was the first Astaire picture to lose money, costing $1,305,000 to produce and losing $65,000. The "Stiff Upper Lip" routine garnered co-choreographer Hermes Pan
the 1937 Academy Award
for Best Dance Direction
.
1937 in film
The year 1937 in film involved some significant events, including the Walt Disney production of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.- Events :*April 16 - Way Out West premieres in the US....
English-themed Hollywood musical
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
comedy film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
starring Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
, Joan Fontaine
Joan Fontaine
Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland , known professionally as Joan Fontaine, is a British American actress. She and her elder sister Olivia de Havilland are two of the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s....
, George Burns
George Burns
George Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
, and Gracie Allen
Gracie Allen
Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen , known as Gracie Allen, was an American comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns...
. With a screenplay by P. G. Wodehouse
P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE was an English humorist, whose body of work includes novels, short stories, plays, poems, song lyrics, and numerous pieces of journalism. He enjoyed enormous popular success during a career that lasted more than seventy years and his many writings continue to be...
, loosely based on his novel of the same name
A Damsel in Distress (novel)
A Damsel in Distress is a novel by P. G. Wodehouse, first published in the United States on 4 October 1919 by George H. Doran, New York, and in the United Kingdom by Herbert Jenkins, London, on 17 October 1919...
, music and lyrics by George
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
and Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin
Ira Gershwin was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs of the 20th century....
, it is directed by George Stevens
George Stevens
George Stevens was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer.Among his most notable films were Diary of Anne Frank , nominated for Best Director, Giant , winner of Oscar for Best Director, Shane , Oscar nominated, and A Place in the Sun , winner of Oscar for Best...
.
Plot
Everyone on staff at Tottney Castle knows that the lovely Lady Alyce Marshmorton must marry soon, so a wager is proposed as to the identity of the lucky man. With all the likely candidates already claimed, young footman Albert places a bet on a "Mr. X," someone totally out of the blue.Lady Alyce secretly has a romantic interest in an American no one from her family has yet met. She leaves the castle one day to venture into London, where by chance she encounters Jerry Halliday. He is an American entertainer, accompanied by press agent George and secretary Gracie, but not well enough known to be recognized by Lady Alyce.
Jerry is incorrectly led to believe that the American this young lady is in love with is him. He goes to the castle, encouraged by Albert but discouraged by Keggs, a scheming butler whose money is on another beau. The closest Jerry can get to Lady Alyce is a castle tour, at least until Albert can sneak him upstairs.
False impressions abound, as Jerry also fails to recognize Lady Alyce's father, the lord of the manor. He gets slapped in the face in a Tunnel of Love, misunderstanding the young lady's intentions entirely. In the end, however, he and Lady Alyce do find a fine romance.
Overview
The film was made at George Gershwin's instigation, an enthusiasm that Wodehouse mischievously attributed to the fact that his novel was about a successful American songwriter named George Bevan. George GershwinGeorge Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
died of a brain tumour while the film was in production.
The first Astaire RKO film not to feature Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
, the nineteen year-old Fontaine was chosen, with Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen, an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen, worked together as a comedy team in vaudeville, films, radio and television and achieved great success over four decades.-Vaudeville:...
drafted in to provide the comedy. It soon emerged that Fontaine couldn't dance, but Stevens persuaded Astaire not to replace her with Ruby Keeler
Ruby Keeler
Ruby Keeler, born Ethel Hilda Keeler, was an actress, singer, and dancer most famous for her on-screen coupling with Dick Powell in a string of successful early musicals at Warner Brothers, particularly 42nd Street . From 1928 to 1940, she was married to singer Al Jolson...
. The film was the first Astaire picture to lose money, costing $1,305,000 to produce and losing $65,000. The "Stiff Upper Lip" routine garnered co-choreographer Hermes Pan
Hermes Pan (choreographer)
Hermes Pan was an American dancer and choreographer, principally celebrated as Fred Astaire's choreographic collaborator on the famous 1930s movie musicals starring Astaire and Ginger Rogers.-Early life:...
the 1937 Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
for Best Dance Direction
Academy Award for Best Dance Direction
-1930s:*1935: Dave Gould - Broadway Melody of 1936 and Folies Bergere ** Busby Berkeley - Gold Diggers of 1935 and...
.
Key songs and dance routines
The choreography explores dancing around, past, and through obstacles, and in confined spaces.- "I Can't Be Bothered NowI Can't Be Bothered Now"I Can't Be Bothered Now" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, written for the 1937 film A Damsel In Distress, where it was introduced by Fred Astaire.-Notable recordings:...
": sung by Astaire while executing a tap solo with cane in the middle of a LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
street and escaping on a bus. - "Put Me to the Test": Astaire, Burns, and Allen comic tap dance with whisk brooms, a routine inspired by vaudeville duo Evans and Evans and introduced to Astaire by Burns, who quipped: "Gracie and I ended up teaching Astaire how to dance".
- "Stiff Upper LipStiff Upper Lip (Gershwin song)"Stiff Upper Lip" is a 1937 song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It references the British expression 'Stiff upper lip'.It was introduced by Gracie Allen in the 1937 film A Damsel in Distress.-Notable recordings:...
": sung by Gracie Allen and followed by an innovative extended comic dance by Astaire, Burns, and Allen through a fairground funhouseFunhouseA funhouse or fun house is an amusement facility found on amusement park and funfair midways in which patrons encounter and actively interact with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, and amuse the visitor. Unlike thrill rides, funhouses are participatory attractions, where visitors...
, complete with hall of mirrorsHouse of mirrorsA house of mirrors or hall of mirrors is a traditional attraction at funfairs and amusement parks. The basic concept behind a house of mirrors is to be a maze-like puzzle. In addition to the maze, participants are also given mirrors as obstacles, and glass panes to parts of the maze they cannot...
. - "Things Are Looking UpThings Are Looking Up"Things Are Looking Up" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Fred Astaire in the 1937 film A Damsel in Distress.-Notable recordings:...
": Astaire sings one of Gershwin's "most beautiful, yet underappreciated ballads", followed by a romantic dance through the woods with Fontaine, where George Stevens artfully uses trees to hide Fontaine's terpsichorean shortcomings. - "A Foggy Day (in London Town)A Foggy Day"A Foggy Day" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, introduced by Fred Astaire in the 1937 film A Damsel in Distress...
": Astaire introduces what has become a standard in the Great American SongbookGreat American SongbookThe Great American Songbook is a hypothetical construct that seeks to represent the best American songs of the 20th century principally from Broadway theatre, musical theatre, and Hollywood musicals, from the 1920s to 1960, including dozens of songs of enduring popularity...
, sung while alternately walking and dancing solo through a wooded landscape. - "Nice Work If You Can Get ItNice Work If You Can Get It (song)"Nice Work If You Can Get It" is a popular song.The music was written by George Gershwin, the lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was one of nine songs George Gershwin wrote for the movie A Damsel in Distress, in which it was performed by Fred Astaire with backing vocals provided by The Stafford Sisters...
": the film's second Gershwin standard is introduced by Astaire and chorus, followed by an Astaire tap solo, executed while confined by and playing a set of drums. It was shot in one continuous take and makes use of a very early version of the zoom lensZoom lensA zoom lens is a mechanical assembly of lens elements for which the focal length can be varied, as opposed to a fixed focal length lens...
. - The movie also features two faux madrigalMadrigal (music)A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six....
s written by the Gershwins: "Sing of Spring" and "The Jolly Tar and the Milkmaid". These are performed by a group of madrigal singers, with Astaire joining in on the latter song.
Cast
- Fred AstaireFred AstaireFred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
as Jerry Halliday - Joan FontaineJoan FontaineJoan de Beauvoir de Havilland , known professionally as Joan Fontaine, is a British American actress. She and her elder sister Olivia de Havilland are two of the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s....
as Lady Alyce - George BurnsGeorge BurnsGeorge Burns , born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became...
as George - Gracie AllenGracie AllenGrace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen , known as Gracie Allen, was an American comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns...
as Gracie - Reginald GardinerReginald GardinerReginald Gardiner was an English-born actor in film and television and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in Britain. His parents wanted him to be an architect and he studied at it but he wanted to be an actor and eventually got his way.He started as a super on stage and eventually...
as Keggs - Constance CollierConstance CollierConstance Collier was an English film actress and acting coach.-Life and career:Born Laura Constance Hardie, in Windsor, Berkshire, Collier made her stage debut at the age of 3, when she played Fairy Peasblossom in A Midsummer's Night Dream...
as Lady Caroline - Montagu LoveMontagu LoveMontagu Love , also known as Montague Love, was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor.Born Harry Montague Love in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and educated in Great Britain, Love began his career as an artist and military correspondent. His first important job was as a London newspaper...
as Lord Marshmorton - Harry R. WatsonHarry R. WatsonHarry R. Watson was an American actor, a Coast Guard combat photographer in World War II, and a pioneer in television journalism.-Biography:...
as Albert
External links
- Illustrated review (1999) by Michael Skupin at Wodehouse.org