As Long as They're Happy

Last updated

As Long as They're Happy
As Long as They're Happy FilmPoster.jpeg
Directed by J. Lee Thompson
Written by Alan Melville
Based on As Long as They're Happy by Vernon Sylvaine
Produced by Raymond Stross
Starring Jack Buchanan
Janette Scott
Jeannie Carson
Diana Dors
Cinematography Gilbert Taylor
Edited by John D. Guthridge
Music by Stanley Black
Production
company
Group Film Productions
Distributed by General Film Distributors
Release date
  • 15 March 1955 (1955-03-15)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

As Long as They're Happy is a 1955 British musical comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Jack Buchanan, Susan Stephen and Diana Dors. [1] It was written by Alan Melville based on the 1953 play of the same name by Vernon Sylvaine. It was shot in Eastmancolor at Pinewood Studios near London with sets designed by the art director Michael Stringer.

Contents

Plot

American singer Bobby Denver, known as the "Crying Crooner" (a la Johnnie Ray) stays with a stockbroker's family by mistake when he comes to England. The stockbroker has three very pretty daughters, with the youngest, Gwen, so madly in love with him that she wants to marry him. Eventually, the stodgy stockbroker deals with his wife and daughter as well as his maid Linda, who keeps fainting every time Bobby sings. [2]

Cast

Production

The film was based on the comedy play by the British writer Vernon Sylvaine which was first staged in 1953 starring Jack Buchanan. It ran at the Garrick Theatre in the West End for 370 performances until May 1954. In April 1954 it was announced that Buchanan would appear in the film version; it would be his first starring role in a movie in 14 years. [3] In August it was announced Jeanne Carson would co star. [4]

It was Diana Dors's second film for J. Lee Thompson. [5] She was offered the lead but was unable to do it but agreed to play a guest part at £200 a day. [6]

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This film version of the stage farce has been considerably expanded to accommodate the talents of numerous performers not foreseen by the original play. The result is a sprawling series of "big" scenes, few of which come off. The basic joke (at the expense of American sob-singers), too, has lost much of its edge, and is scarcely in itself sufficient to carry a film of this length. Of the players, Jack Buchanan glides through the whole thing with an assured charm, and Jerry Wayne is capable as the singer. The rest contend somewhat ineffectively with a script deficient in humour, although Diana Dors handsomely brings off one of her familiar roles as a sexy blonde." [7]

Variety called it "a hearty and good-hearted romp, without much attention to storyline." [8]

Picturegoer wrote: "Jack Buchanan fools beautifully. He's as suave and debonair as ever. His take-off of the crooner is superbly funny. Guest stars Diana Dors, Gilbert Harding and Norman Wisdom aren't really necessary." [9]

Picture Show wrote: "The film can't fail to please farce lovers." [10]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "This moderately amusing all-British comedy, with some music, was inspired by the 1950s craze for sob singer Johnnie Ray. The plot has an American crying crooner ... causing havoc in an English family with whom he stays. Jack Buchanan plays the unamused head of the household and the father of three daughters  ... obsessed with the visitor." [11]

British film critic Leslie Halliwell said: "Fractic farce extended from a stage satire of the Johnnie Ray cult; a patchy but sometimes funny star vehicle." [12]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "good", writing: "Good-natured semi-musical romp in good colour, with lots of middle-sized laughs." [13]

Related Research Articles

<i>One Wild Oat</i> 1951 British comedy film by Charles Saunders

One Wild Oat is a 1951 British comedy film directed by Charles Saunders and starring Stanley Holloway, Robertson Hare and Sam Costa with pre-stardom appearances by Audrey Hepburn and Roger Moore as extras. The screenplay was by Vernon Sylvaine and Lawrence Huntington based on Sylvaine's 1948 play of the same title.

<i>Too Many Crooks</i> 1959 British film by Mario Zampi

Too Many Crooks is a 1959 British black comedy film directed by Mario Zampi and starring Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Brenda De Banzie, Sidney James, Bernard Bresslaw and Vera Day. It was written by Michael Pertwee and Christiane Rochefort from a story by Jean Nery.

<i>Grand National Night</i> 1953 film

Grand National Night is a 1953 British second feature ('B') thriller film directed by Bob McNaught and starring Nigel Patrick, Moira Lister and Beatrice Campbell. It was produced by George Minter and Phil C. Samuel, and written by Val Valentine and Bob McNaught based on the 1945 play of the same title written by Campbell and Dorothy Christie.

<i>Not Now, Darling</i> (film) 1973 British film by Ray Cooney and David Croft

Not Now, Darling is a 1973 British comedy film directed by Ray Cooney and David Croft and starring Trudi Van Doorn, Leslie Phillips and Julie Ege. It was adapted from the 1967 play of the same title by John Chapman and Ray Cooney. The film is a farce centred on a shop in London that sells fur coats. A loosely related sequel Not Now, Comrade was released in 1976.

Who Done It? is a 1956 British slapstick black and white comedy crime film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Benny Hill, Belinda Lee, David Kossoff, Garry Marsh, and George Margo. It was wrtten by T. E. B. Clarke.

<i>Dry Rot</i> (film) 1956 British film by Maurice Elvey

Dry Rot is a 1956 British comedy film directed by Maurice Elvey, and starring Ronald Shiner, Brian Rix, Peggy Mount, and Sid James. The screenplay is by John Chapman, adapted from his 1954 Whitehall farce of the same name.

<i>Break in the Circle</i> 1955 British film by Val Guest

Break in the Circle is a 1955 British crime film directed by Val Guest and starring Forrest Tucker, Eva Bartok, Marius Goring and Guy Middleton. It was written by Guest based on the 1951 novel The Break in The Circle by Robin Estridge. Doreen Carwithen composed the score for the film.

<i>Value for Money</i> 1955 British comedy film by Ken Annakin

Value for Money is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Ken Annakin and starring John Gregson, Diana Dors, Susan Stephen and Derek Farr. It is based on the 1953 novel of the same name by Derrick Boothroyd.

<i>Sailor Beware!</i> (1956 film) 1956 British film by Gordon Parry

Sailor Beware! is a 1956 British comedy film directed by Gordon Parry and starring Peggy Mount, Shirley Eaton and Ronald Lewis. It was written by Philip King and Falkland Cary adapted from their 1955 stage play of the same name. It was released in the United States by Distributors Corporation of America in 1957 as Panic in the Parlor.

<i>An Alligator Named Daisy</i> 1955 British film by J. Lee Thompson

An Alligator Named Daisy is a 1955 British comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Donald Sinden, Jeannie Carson, James Robertson Justice, Diana Dors, Roland Culver and Stanley Holloway. It was written by Jack Davies based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Charles Terrot.

<i>Where Theres a Will</i> (1955 film) 1955 British film by Vernon Sewell

Where There's a Will is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Vernon Sewell and starring Kathleen Harrison, George Cole and Leslie Dwyer. The screenplay was by R. F. Delderfield who adapted one of his own plays.

<i>Treasure Hunt</i> (1952 film) 1952 British film by John Paddy Carstairs

Treasure Hunt is a 1952 British comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Martita Hunt, Jimmy Edwards, Naunton Wayne and Athene Seyler. It was written by Rita Davison and Anatole de Grunwald based on the 1949 play Treasure Hunt by Molly Keane and John Perry.

<i>The Twenty Questions Murder Mystery</i> 1950 mystery film by Paul L. Stein

The Twenty Questions Murder Mystery, also known as Murder on the Air, is a 1950 British second feature comedy crime film directed by Paul L. Stein and starring Robert Beatty, Rona Anderson, and Clifford Evans. The screenplay was by Victor Katona and Patrick Kirwan. The film is a hybrid: the Twenty Questions sections take place in a studio recording of the BBC radio programme with the regular panellists and presenter. This is threaded into the plot as the clues trigger a series of murders, each linked to the clue.

<i>Life with the Lyons</i> (film) 1954 film

Life with the Lyons is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon and Barbara Lyon. It was a spin-off from the radio series Life with the Lyons, and the screenplay, by Guest and Robert Dunbar, was based on previous episodes from the show. It was shot at Southall Studios in London with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold.

<i>Girls at Sea</i> (1958 film) 1958 British film by Gilbert Gunn

Girls At Sea is a 1958 British comedy film directed by Gilbert Gunn and starring Guy Rolfe, Ronald Shiner, Alan White, Michael Hordern and Anne Kimbell. It was based on the 1930 play The Middle Watch by Ian Hay and Stephen King-Hall, previously filmed as The Middle Watch in 1930 and under the same title in 1940.

<i>The Gangs All Here</i> (1939 film) 1939 British film

The Gang's All Here is a 1939 British black-and-white comedy-mystery, directed by Thornton Freeland and starring Jack Buchanan and Googie Withers. It was produced by Associated British Picture Corporation and released in the U.S. in 1943 as The Amazing Mr. Forrest.

<i>Hi Gang!</i> (film) 1941 British film by Marcel Varnel

Hi Gang! is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon and Vic Oliver. It was a spin-off from the popular BBC radio series Hi Gang!.

<i>And the Same to You</i> 1960 British film by George Pollock

And the Same to You is a 1960 British boxing-themed comedy film directed by George Pollock and starring Brian Rix and William Hartnell. It was written by John Paddy Carstairs, John Junkin and Terry Nation based on the 1955 stage farce The Chigwell Chicken by A. P. Dearsley.

<i>Talking Feet</i> 1937 film

Talking Feet is a 1937 British musical film directed by John Baxter and starring Hazel Ascot, Enid Stamp-Taylor and Jack Barty.It was written by Geoffrey Orme, Jack Francis and H. Fowler Mear.

<i>As Long as Theyre Happy</i> (play) 1953 play

As Long as They're Happy is a comedy play by the British writer Vernon Sylvaine which was first staged in 1953. A successful hit, it ran at the Garrick Theatre in the West End for 370 performances between July 1953 and May 1954. Veteran entertainer Jack Buchanan directed and starred as a stockbroker trying to cope with the extravagant behaviour of his daughters. Other members of the cast included Dorothy Dickson, Nigel Green, David Hutcheson and Stephen Hancock.

References

  1. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  2. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy". IMDb .
  3. ↑ "THROUGH THE ARTS—-WITH JOHN HAMPEL". Barrier Daily Truth . Vol. XLVI, no. 14, 395. New South Wales, Australia. 5 April 1954. p. 3. Retrieved 28 August 2020– via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ "World-wide Film and Theatre News". The Daily Telegraph . Vol. XV, no. 39. Sydney. 15 August 1954. p. 50. Retrieved 28 August 2020– via National Library of Australia.
  5. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (7 September 2020). "A Tale of Two Blondes: Diana Dors and Belinda Lee". Filmink.
  6. ↑ Dors, Diana (1960). Swingin' Dors. World Distributors. p. 111.
  7. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy". The Monthly Film Bulletin . 22 (252): 56. 1 January 1955. ProQuest   1305818381 – via ProQuest.
  8. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy". Variety : 6. 6 April 1955.
  9. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy" . Picturegoer . 29: 18. 9 April 1955 – via ProQuest.
  10. ↑ "As Long as They're Happy" . Picture Show . 64 (1672): 10. 16 April 1955 – via ProQuest.
  11. ↑ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 51. ISBN   9780992936440.
  12. ↑ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 54. ISBN   0586088946.
  13. ↑ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 279. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.