The Man that Got Away
Encyclopedia
"The Man that Got Away" is a popular
song
, published in 1953
and was written for the 1954
version of the movie A Star Is Born
. The music was written by Harold Arlen
, and the lyrics by Ira Gershwin
. In 1955 it was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song
.
Arlen had originally collaborated with Johnny Mercer
, who wrote lyrics that began "I've seen Sequoia, it's really very pretty, the art of Goya, and Rockefeller City, but since I saw you, I can't believe my eyes." The Gershwin Collection at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin contains a typescript draft of the lyrics with Ira Gershwin's handwritten changes.
with the Warner Bros.
orchestra under the direction of Ray Heindorf
using an arrangement by Skip Martin
. Judy's performance of the song in A Star is Born
is unusual for being filmed in one continuous shot. In the finished take, Garland (as Esther Blodgett) performs the song during an after hours rehearsal session in a smoky nightclub.
"The Man That Got Away" is arguably the most important single musical sequence in the entire film. As one of the first things filmed for the movie, it was photographed in three different costumes on three different occasions, in over forty different partial or complete takes. Judy Garland prerecorded the song on September 3, 1953 and the number was first filmed on Wednesday, October 21, 1953.
Due to technical limitations of the medium at the time, the cameraman could not give director George Cukor
what he wanted: "low light levels, the impressionistic feeling of the musical instruments, Garland moving in and out of pools of light," so he was fired. Of course, Cukor realized later that the film stock itself was the problem, not the cinematographer and used him in a number of other films later on.
Changes were then made to the costume and set and the number was filmed a second time the following Thursday, October 29th. Art director Gene Allen
said, "The first time it looked as if we had painted a set to look like a bar. So to give it a slightly impressionistic look I...put a scrim between the musicians and the back bar. If you look very carefully at that scene you can see the scrim nailed down on the floor..."
According to soundman Earl Bellamy: "When Judy sang to playback, you could never hear anything...She wanted me to start off at a full blast and then she topped that...her huge voice carrying out over the rafters. You could hear Judy clear as a bell, and she sang right with it..."
Garland did 27 takes of the number over three days, both partial and complete, but according to Allen, "Cukor had her doing all sorts of different bits of business before the song. All of that action didn't really fit the song though — it was just too busy. Plus, she didn't look good — her costume was wrinkled, and didn't fit right...." If that weren't enough, the color was too brown for her complexion as well.
Four months later it was filmed for a third time in February 1954, with new hairstyle and costume and a totally brand new set. Cukor felt this time they had finally gotten it right: "I think we've generated a lot of sex...She looks perfectly charming in a new Jean-Louis dress, and I know that this too is an enormous improvement over the way we first did it — it has fun and spirit."
The fact that Garland had lost over twenty pounds over the ensuing winter helped matters considerably as well. Costumes and makeup problems notwithstanding, she no longer had that frumpy, dowdy look apparent in the earlier takes and shone in the moment.
Main principal photography for the film began in earnest around the first week of February, 1954. Ten days later, the number was filmed in both widescreen Technicolor and in CinemaScope as well. As a result of the fabulous color renditions and faithful representations of the sweeping views, Jack L. Warner and Producer Sid Luft agreed to scrap nearly two weeks of footage to date and began the film again in CinemaScope. The original takes are added as a special feature on the currently available DVD.
Garland later sang this song as a regular part of her concert repertoire for the rest of her career as well as on the Sammy Davis Jr. Show in 1966.
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
, published in 1953
1953 in music
-Events:*February 6 – Contralto Kathleen Ferrier, already terminally ill with cancer, leaves Covent Garden Opera House on a stretcher after being taken ill on the second night of her run in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice....
and was written for the 1954
1954 in film
The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones.-Events:*May 12 - The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces wife Marion Benda...
version of the movie A Star Is Born
A Star Is Born (1954 film)
A Star Is Born is a 1954 American musical film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay written by Moss Hart was an adaptation of the original 1937 film, which was based on the original screenplay by Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker, and Alan Campbell...
. The music was written by Harold Arlen
Harold Arlen
Harold Arlen was an American composer of popular music, having written over 500 songs, a number of which have become known the world over. In addition to composing the songs for The Wizard of Oz, including the classic 1938 song, "Over the Rainbow,” Arlen is a highly regarded contributor to the...
, and the lyrics by 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....
. In 1955 it was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
.
Arlen had originally collaborated with Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
, who wrote lyrics that began "I've seen Sequoia, it's really very pretty, the art of Goya, and Rockefeller City, but since I saw you, I can't believe my eyes." The Gershwin Collection at the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin contains a typescript draft of the lyrics with Ira Gershwin's handwritten changes.
Original Garland rendition
The best-known recording of this song was made by Judy GarlandJudy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
with the Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
orchestra under the direction of Ray Heindorf
Ray Heindorf
Ray Heindorf was an American songwriter, composer, conductor, and arranger.-Early life:Born in Haverstraw, New York, Heindorf worked as a pianist in a movie house in Mechanicville in his early teens. In 1928, he moved to New York City, where he worked as a musical arranger before heading to...
using an arrangement by Skip Martin
Skip Martin
Lloyd "Skip" Martin was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and music arranger....
. Judy's performance of the song in A Star is Born
A Star Is Born (1954 film)
A Star Is Born is a 1954 American musical film directed by George Cukor. The screenplay written by Moss Hart was an adaptation of the original 1937 film, which was based on the original screenplay by Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker, and Alan Campbell...
is unusual for being filmed in one continuous shot. In the finished take, Garland (as Esther Blodgett) performs the song during an after hours rehearsal session in a smoky nightclub.
"The Man That Got Away" is arguably the most important single musical sequence in the entire film. As one of the first things filmed for the movie, it was photographed in three different costumes on three different occasions, in over forty different partial or complete takes. Judy Garland prerecorded the song on September 3, 1953 and the number was first filmed on Wednesday, October 21, 1953.
Due to technical limitations of the medium at the time, the cameraman could not give director George Cukor
George Cukor
George Dewey Cukor was an American film director. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO and later MGM, where he directed What Price Hollywood? , A Bill of Divorcement , Dinner at Eight , Little Women , David Copperfield , Romeo and Juliet and...
what he wanted: "low light levels, the impressionistic feeling of the musical instruments, Garland moving in and out of pools of light," so he was fired. Of course, Cukor realized later that the film stock itself was the problem, not the cinematographer and used him in a number of other films later on.
Changes were then made to the costume and set and the number was filmed a second time the following Thursday, October 29th. Art director Gene Allen
Gene Allen
Eugene Allen is an American art director.He followed his father, and became a Los Angeles Police officer after he was laid off from his first job as a sketch artist. After serving in the United States Navy during World War II, Allen went to art school to pursue his career...
said, "The first time it looked as if we had painted a set to look like a bar. So to give it a slightly impressionistic look I...put a scrim between the musicians and the back bar. If you look very carefully at that scene you can see the scrim nailed down on the floor..."
According to soundman Earl Bellamy: "When Judy sang to playback, you could never hear anything...She wanted me to start off at a full blast and then she topped that...her huge voice carrying out over the rafters. You could hear Judy clear as a bell, and she sang right with it..."
Garland did 27 takes of the number over three days, both partial and complete, but according to Allen, "Cukor had her doing all sorts of different bits of business before the song. All of that action didn't really fit the song though — it was just too busy. Plus, she didn't look good — her costume was wrinkled, and didn't fit right...." If that weren't enough, the color was too brown for her complexion as well.
Four months later it was filmed for a third time in February 1954, with new hairstyle and costume and a totally brand new set. Cukor felt this time they had finally gotten it right: "I think we've generated a lot of sex...She looks perfectly charming in a new Jean-Louis dress, and I know that this too is an enormous improvement over the way we first did it — it has fun and spirit."
The fact that Garland had lost over twenty pounds over the ensuing winter helped matters considerably as well. Costumes and makeup problems notwithstanding, she no longer had that frumpy, dowdy look apparent in the earlier takes and shone in the moment.
Main principal photography for the film began in earnest around the first week of February, 1954. Ten days later, the number was filmed in both widescreen Technicolor and in CinemaScope as well. As a result of the fabulous color renditions and faithful representations of the sweeping views, Jack L. Warner and Producer Sid Luft agreed to scrap nearly two weeks of footage to date and began the film again in CinemaScope. The original takes are added as a special feature on the currently available DVD.
Garland later sang this song as a regular part of her concert repertoire for the rest of her career as well as on the Sammy Davis Jr. Show in 1966.
Covers
- The song has occasionally been sung as "The Gal that Got Away" by male singers such as Frank SinatraFrank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
and Bobby DarinBobby DarinBobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...
. - Jeff BuckleyJeff BuckleyJeffrey Scott "Jeff" Buckley , raised as Scotty Moorhead, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was the son of Tim Buckley, also a musician...
frequently performed the song (under its original title) on his last tour before his death in 1997. His live performance of the song at Great American Music Hall in San Francisco made it on to his posthumous album "Mystery White Boy" in 2000. - Audra McDonaldAudra McDonaldAudra Ann McDonald is an American actress and singer. She currently stars in the ABC television drama Private Practice as Dr. Naomi Bennett. She has appeared on the stage in both musicals and dramas, such as Ragtime and A Raisin in the Sun...
also sang a version, which is on her album How Glory GoesHow Glory GoesHow Glory Goes is the second album from Audra McDonald, released in 2000. Unlike her debut album Way Back to Paradise, which featured songs from younger composers, this album contains a mixture of new and old songs, mostly from musical theatre...
. - Barbra StreisandBarbra StreisandBarbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
sang a version on her 1993 concert tour, publicly dedicating her rendition to Garland's memory. - The song was covered by Ella FitzgeraldElla FitzgeraldElla Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
on her album Jazz at the Philharmonic, The Ella Fitzgerald Set, in a recording featuring Ray BrownRay Brown (musician)Raymond Matthews Brown was an American jazz double bassist.-Biography:Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one...
on bass. She recorded it again for VerveVerve RecordsVerve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
on her double-album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen SongbookElla Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook is a 1961 album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, with a studio orchestra conducted and arranged by Billy May...
(1961). - Tony BennettTony BennettTony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
covered the song from the best male friend perspective. Jim BaileyJim Bailey (entertainer)James William Bailey is an American singer, film, television and stage actor, and female impersonator.-Early years:...
sang the song as Garland on The Ed Sullivan ShowThe Ed Sullivan ShowThe Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
in 1970 and is still singing it today. - Rufus WainwrightRufus WainwrightRufus McGarrigle Wainwright is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter. He has recorded six albums of original music, EPs, and tracks on compilations and film soundtracks.-Early years:...
performed it in his tribute revues of Garland's best known songs, recorded on the live album Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie HallRufus Does Judy at Carnegie HallRufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall is the sixth album by the Canadian-American singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, released through Geffen Records in December 2007. The album consists of live recordings from his sold-out June 14–15, 2006 tribute concerts at Carnegie Hall to the legendary American...
(2007). - Maria FriedmanMaria FriedmanMaria Friedman is an English actress working in television, musical theatre, and concerts. She has won three Olivier Awards for her stage work.-Early years:...
covered the song on her self-titled album, which was reissued in the U.S. under the title Now & Then. - CherCherCher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
recorded the song for her album Bittersweet White LightBittersweet White LightBittersweet White Light was the ninth studio album by American singer-actress Cher. The album was released on April 1973 by MCA. It was the last solo Cher album produced by then-performing partner and husband Sonny Bono...
(1973). - Sheena EastonSheena EastonSheena Easton is a Scottish recording artist. Easton became famous for being the focus of an episode in the British television programme The Big Time, which recorded her attempts to gain a record contract and her eventual signing with EMI Records.Easton rose to fame in the early 1980s with the pop...
also included a rather freeform rendition of the song on her album No StringsNo Strings (Sheena Easton album)No Strings is Sheena Easton's 11th album and a departure from the Pop and R&B style of her earlier records. With jazz-tinged arrangements by Patrice Rushen, Easton sings standards but without any string instruments performing. The album was released August 3, 1993. The album was critically...
(2008). - Hilary SwankHilary SwankHilary Ann Swank is an American actress. Swank's film career began with a small part in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and then a major part in The Next Karate Kid , as Julie Pierce, the first female protégé of sensei Mr. Miyagi...
sings along with Garland while watching a DVD of the original movie during her lonely 30th birthday in the 2007 romantic comedy P.S. I Love YouP.S. I Love You (film)P.S. I Love You is a 2007 American drama film directed by Richard LaGravenese. The screenplay by LaGravenese and Steven Rogers is based on the 2004 novel of the same name by Cecelia Ahern. The film is dedicated to the memory of producer Molly Smith's sister Windland Smith Rice.-Plot:Holly and Gerry...
. - In 2008 on the BBC-TV show I'd Do AnythingI'd Do Anything (BBC TV series)I'd Do Anything is a 2008 talent show-themed television series produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom and broadcast on BBC One. It premièred on 15 March 2008...
, Jessie BuckleyJessie BuckleyJessie Buckley is an Irish singer and actress who came second place in the BBC talent show-themed television series I'd Do Anything, and subsequently played Anne Egermann in the West End revival of Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music.-Background:The eldest of five children, Buckley comes from...
sang this song. Andrew Lloyd-WebberAndrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
described it as "the best performance by a girl your age I have ever heard". - Lorna LuftLorna LuftLorna Luft is an American television, stage, and film actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and Sid Luft, and the half-sister of singer and actress Liza Minnelli.-Biography:...
(Garland's daughter via her marriage with Sid Luft) also sings the song on her album Songs My Mother Taught Me. She also sings it in concert from time to time. - Sylvia BrooksSylvia BrooksSylvia Brooks is an American jazz adult contemporary vocalist and song stylist. Her debut album, Dangerous Liaisons, features songs from the Great American Songbook and Jazz Standards Songbook, and was in rotation on over 500 radio stations throughout the United States and Canada.Born into a...
recorded this song on her album Dangerous LiaisonsDangerous LiaisonsDangerous Liaisons is a 1988 drama film based upon Christopher Hampton's play, Les liaisons dangereuses, which in turn was a theatrical adaptation of the 18th-century French novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos....
(2009). - Idina MenzelIdina MenzelIdina Kim Menzel is an American actress, singer and songwriter. She is widely known for originating the roles of Maureen in Rent and Elphaba in Wicked.-Early life:...
sang this song during her Spring 2009 tour promoting her album "I Stand". - Raul EsparzaRaúl EsparzaRaúl Eduardo Esparza is an American stage actor, singer, and voice artist noted for his award winning performances in Broadway shows...
sings a moving rendition without changing the gender, leaving the lyric as man, at the February 22, 2010 Broadway Backwards 5 benefit for NYC's Lesbian & Gay Community Center AND Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDSBroadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDSBroadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is the theatre community’s response to the AIDS crisis. By drawing upon the talents, resources and generosity of the theatre community, on Broadway, Off-Broadway and across the country, BC/EFA raises funds for AIDS-related causes across the United States...
. - On May 1, 2010, on the BBC TV show Over the RainbowOver the Rainbow (2010 TV series)Over the Rainbow is a British television talent series which aired on BBC One from March to May 2010. It documents the search for a new, undiscovered musical theatre performer to play the role of Dorothy in the forthcoming Andrew Lloyd Webber stage production of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and a...
, Lauren SamuelsLauren SamuelsLauren Samuels is an English singer/actress and was a contestant on the 2010 BBC UK TV series Over the Rainbow. Since appearing on the show she has gone on to appear in West End theatre, including playing the lead role of Sandy in Grease.-Background:Samuels was born Lauren Bonner...
sang this song. Andrew Lloyd-WebberAndrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
said she made the song her own.