My Gal Sal
Encyclopedia
My Gal Sal is a 20th Century Fox
musical starring Rita Hayworth
and Victor Mature
. The film is a biopic of 1890s composer
and songwriter
Paul Dresser
and singer, Sally Elliot. The story it was based on was written by Paul Dresser's brother, novelist Theodore Dreiser
. All of the songs were written by Paul Dresser.
(Richard Day
, Joseph C. Wright
and Thomas Little
). It was nominated for Best Score
was originally supposed to play the lead but got pregnant and had to drop out of the role. Betty Grable
was next in line but she complained that Fox overworked her and so the role was given to Hayworth.
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
musical starring Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
and Victor Mature
Victor Mature
Victor John Mature was an American stage, film and television actor.-Early life:Mature was born in Louisville, Kentucky to an Italian-speaking father from the town Pinzolo, in the Italian part of the former County of Tyrol , Marcello Gelindo Maturi, later Marcellus George Mature, a cutler,...
. The film is a biopic of 1890s composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
Paul Dresser
Paul Dresser
Johann Paul Dresser, Jr. was a popular American songwriter of the late 19th century and early 20th century. As a child and adolescent he was frequently in trouble and spent several months in jail before joining a band of traveling minstrels...
and singer, Sally Elliot. The story it was based on was written by Paul Dresser's brother, novelist Theodore Dreiser
Theodore Dreiser
Theodore Herman Albert Dreiser was an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters who succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of...
. All of the songs were written by Paul Dresser.
Cast
- Rita HayworthRita HayworthRita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
- Sally Elliott - Victor MatureVictor MatureVictor John Mature was an American stage, film and television actor.-Early life:Mature was born in Louisville, Kentucky to an Italian-speaking father from the town Pinzolo, in the Italian part of the former County of Tyrol , Marcello Gelindo Maturi, later Marcellus George Mature, a cutler,...
- Paul Dresser - John SuttonJohn Sutton (actor)John Sutton , who was born in Rawalpindi, British India , was actor of British parentage.-Filmography:*Rawhide as Lord Ashton...
- Fred Haviland - Carole LandisCarole LandisCarole Landis was an American film and stage actress whose break-through role was as the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C.. Landis has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1765 Vine Street....
- Mae Collins - James GleasonJames GleasonJames Austin Gleason was an American actor born in New York City. He was also a playwright and screenwriter.-Career:...
- Pat Hawley - Phil SilversPhil SilversPhil Silvers was an American entertainer and comedy actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah." He is best known for starring in The Phil Silvers Show, a 1950s sitcom set on a U.S...
- Wiley - 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:...
- Col. Truckee - Mona MarisMona MarisMona Maris was an Argentine film actress who was born in Buenos Aires.-Ancestry and education:Her given name was Mona Maria Emita Cap de Vielle. Her mother was a Spanish Basque and her father a French Basque...
- Countess Mariana Rossini - Frank OrthFrank OrthFrank Orth was an American actor born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By 1897, he was performing in vaudeville with his wife, Ann Codee, in an act called "Codee and Orth"...
- McGuinness - Stanley AndrewsStanley AndrewsStanley Andrews was an American actor perhaps best known as the voice of Daddy Warbucks on the radio program Little Orphan Annie and later as "The Old Ranger", the host of Death Valley Days.-Early life:...
- Mr. Dreiser - Margaret Moffatt - Mrs. Dreiser (as Margaret Moffat)
- Libby Taylor - Ida, Sally's Maid
Awards
The film won the Best Art DirectionAcademy Award for Best Art Direction
The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art direction on a film. The films below are listed with their production year, so the Oscar 2000 for best art direction went to a film from 1999...
(Richard Day
Richard Day (art director)
Richard Day was a Canadian art director. He won seven Academy Awards and was nominated for a further 13 in the category Best Art Direction He worked on 265 films between 1923 and 1970....
, Joseph C. Wright
Joseph C. Wright
Joseph C. Wright was an American art director. He won two Academy Awards and was nominated for ten more in the category Best Art Direction...
and Thomas Little
Thomas Little
Thomas Little was a United States set decorator on more than 450 Hollywood movies between 1932 and 1953. He won a total of 6 Oscars for art direction and received 21 nominations in the same category...
). It was nominated for Best Score
Academy Award for Original Music Score
The Academy Award for Original Score is presented to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by the submitting composer.-Superlatives:...
Trivia
Alice FayeAlice Faye
Alice Faye was an American actress and singer, called by The New York Times "one of the few movie stars to walk away from stardom at the peak of her career." She is remembered first for her stardom at 20th Century Fox and, later, as the radio comedy partner of her husband, bandleader and comedian...
was originally supposed to play the lead but got pregnant and had to drop out of the role. Betty Grable
Betty Grable
Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable was an American actress, dancer and singer.Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the LIFE magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World"...
was next in line but she complained that Fox overworked her and so the role was given to Hayworth.