Dancing In the Dark (1949 film)
Encyclopedia
Dancing In the Dark is a 1949 Technicolor
musical
comedy film
directed by Irving Reis, starring William Powell
and Mark Stevens
.
as Emery Slade, an unlikeable actor who was once a major film star, but who has not worked in ten years. Slade tries to convince studio chief Melville Crossman (Adolphe Menjou
) to give the female lead in the film version of a Broadway musical to an unknown, rather than the actress he was sent to New York to sign.
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
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
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Irving Reis, starring William Powell
William Powell
William Horatio Powell was an American actor.A major star at MGM, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the popular Thin Man series in which Powell and Loy played Nick and Nora Charles...
and Mark Stevens
Mark Stevens (actor)
-Career:Born Richard William Stevens in Cleveland, Ohio, he first studied to become a painter before becoming active in theater work. He then launched a radio career as an announcer in Akron, Ohio....
.
Plot
This musical comedy stars William PowellWilliam Powell
William Horatio Powell was an American actor.A major star at MGM, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the popular Thin Man series in which Powell and Loy played Nick and Nora Charles...
as Emery Slade, an unlikeable actor who was once a major film star, but who has not worked in ten years. Slade tries to convince studio chief Melville Crossman (Adolphe Menjou
Adolphe Menjou
Adolphe Jean Menjou was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies, appearing in such films as The Sheik, A Woman of Paris, Morocco, and A Star is Born...
) to give the female lead in the film version of a Broadway musical to an unknown, rather than the actress he was sent to New York to sign.
Cast
- William PowellWilliam PowellWilliam Horatio Powell was an American actor.A major star at MGM, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the popular Thin Man series in which Powell and Loy played Nick and Nora Charles...
as Emery Slade - Mark StevensMark Stevens (actor)-Career:Born Richard William Stevens in Cleveland, Ohio, he first studied to become a painter before becoming active in theater work. He then launched a radio career as an announcer in Akron, Ohio....
as Bill Davis - Betsy DrakeBetsy DrakeBetsy Drake is an American actress, psychotherapist and writer. She was the third wife of actor Cary Grant.-Early life and education:Drake, the eldest child of two American expatriates, was born in Paris, France...
as Julie Clarke - Adolphe MenjouAdolphe MenjouAdolphe Jean Menjou was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies, appearing in such films as The Sheik, A Woman of Paris, Morocco, and A Star is Born...
as Melville Crossman - Randy StuartRandy StuartRandy Stuart, born as Elizabeth Shaubell , was an American actress whose longest running role was as Louise Baker, the wife of the Cold War spy in the 26-episode adventure television series, Biff Baker, U.S.A., which aired on CBS, with Alan Hale, Jr., as the title character...
as Rosalie Brooks - Lloyd CorriganLloyd CorriganLloyd Corrigan was an American film actor, producer, screenwriter and director who began working in films in the 1920s...
as John Barker - Hope EmersonHope Emerson-Early life:Emerson was born in Hawarden, Iowa. Following her graduation from West High School in Des Moines in 1916, she moved to New York City where she performed in vaudeville.-Career:...
as Mrs. Schlaghammer - Walter CatlettWalter CatlettWalter Catlett was an American actor. As a San Francisco citizen, he started out in vaudeville with a detour for a while in opera before breaking into films.-Early career:...
as Joe Brooks - Don BeddoeDon Beddoe-Career:Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Beddoe made his Broadway acting debut in 1929, receiving top billing in Nigger Rich....
as Barney Bassett - Jean HersholtJean HersholtJean Pierre Hersholt was a Danish-born actor who lived in the United States, where he was a leading film and radio talent, best known for his 17 years starring on radio in Dr. Christian and for playing Shirley Temple's grandfather in Heidi...
as Jean Hersholt