Guys and Dolls (film)

Last updated
Guys and Dolls
Guys and dolls movieposter.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Screenplay byJoseph L. Mankiewicz
Based on Guys and Dolls
by Abe Burrows (book)
Jo Swerling (book)
Frank Loesser
(music and lyrics)
Damon Runyon (stories)
Produced by Samuel Goldwyn
Starring
Cinematography Harry Stradling
Edited by Daniel Mandell
Music by Frank Loesser
Production
company
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • November 3, 1955 (1955-11-03)
Running time
150 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5.5 million
Box office$6,874,673 (U.S. and Canada rentals) [1]

Guys and Dolls is a 1955 American musical film starring Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, and Vivian Blaine. The picture was made by Samuel Goldwyn Productions and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). It was directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, who also wrote the screenplay. The film is based on the 1950 Broadway musical by composer and lyricist Frank Loesser, with a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, which, in turn, was loosely based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", two short stories by Damon Runyon. [2] Dances were choreographed by Michael Kidd, who had staged the dances for the Broadway production.

Contents

Plot

Gambler Nathan Detroit seeks to organize an unlicensed craps game, but the police, led by Lieutenant Brannigan, are "putting on the heat." Nathan's usual locations are turning him away due to Brannigan's intimidating pressure. The Biltmore garage will allow Nathan to hold a game, but the owner requires a $1,000 security deposit, which Nathan does not have. Adding to his problems, Nathan's fiancée, Miss Adelaide, a nightclub singer, wants to get married after being engaged for 14 years. She also wants him to go straight, but he only is good at organizing illegal gambling.

Nathan spots an old acquaintance, Sky Masterson, a gambler willing to bet on virtually anything and for high amounts. To win the $1,000 security deposit, Nathan bets Sky that he cannot take a girl of Nathan's choosing to dinner in Havana, Cuba. Nathan then nominates Sergeant Sarah Brown, a sister at the Save a Soul Mission, which opposes gambling.

Sky pretends to be a repentant gambler as a means to meet Sarah. Sky proposes a bargain: He will recruit a dozen sinners into the Mission for her Thursday-night meeting if she will have dinner with him in Havana. With General Matilda Cartwright threatening to close the Mission's Broadway branch due to low attendance, Sarah agrees to the date.

Meanwhile, confident that he will win the bet, Nathan gathers all the gamblers, including a visitor that Harry the Horse has invited: Big Jule, a mobster. When Lieutenant Brannigan appears, Benny Southstreet claims they are celebrating Nathan marrying Adelaide. Nathan is shocked, but is forced to play along. Later, he realizes he has lost his bet and must marry Adelaide.

Over the course of their short stay in Cuba, Sky breaks down Sarah's social inhibitions with Bacardi-spiked "milkshakes." They begin to fall in love. They return to Broadway at dawn and meet the Save a Soul Mission band, which has been parading all night on Sky's advice. Police sirens are heard, and the gamblers, led by Nathan Detroit, flee out through the back room of the empty Mission where they were holding a crap game.

The police arrive too late to make any arrests, but Lieutenant Brannigan finds Sarah and the other Save a Soul members being absent unlikely to be a coincidence and suspects Sky. Sarah is equally suspicious that Sky has had something to do with organizing the crap game at the Mission, and she angrily takes her leave of him, refusing to accept his denials.

Sky still has to make good his arrangement with Sarah to provide sinners to the Mission. Sarah would rather forget the whole thing, but Uncle Arvide Abernathy, who acts as a kind of father figure to her, warns Sky that "If you don't make that marker good, I'm going to buzz it all over town you're a welcher."

Nathan has continued the crap game in a sewer. With his revolver visible in its shoulder holster, Big Jule, who has lost all his money, forces Nathan to play against him while he cheats, cleaning Nathan out. Sky enters and knocks Big Jule down, and removes his pistol. Sky, who has been stung and devastated by Sarah's rejection, lies to Nathan that he lost the bet about taking her to Havana and pays Nathan the $1,000. Nathan tells Big Jule he now has money to play him again, but Harry the Horse says that Big Jule cannot play without cheating because "he cannot make a pass to save his soul." Sky overhears this, and the phrasing inspires him to make a bold bet: He will roll the dice, and if he loses, he will give all the other gamblers $1,000 each; if he wins, they are all to attend a prayer meeting at the Mission.

The Mission is near closing when suddenly the gamblers arrive, filling the room; Sky won the roll. They grudgingly confess their sins, though with little repentance. Nicely-Nicely Johnson however, recalling a dream he had the night before, seems to have an authentic connection to the Mission's aim, and this satisfies everyone.

When Nathan tells Sarah that Sky lost the Cuba bet, which she knows he won, she hurries off to make up with him. It all ends with a double wedding in the middle of Times Square, with Sky marrying Sarah, and Nathan marrying Adelaide.

Cast

Robert Alda had originated the role of Sky Masterson on Broadway in 1950. For the movie, Gene Kelly at first seemed a serious candidate for the part. Ultimately, it went to Marlon Brando, partly because Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer would not loan Kelly for the production, but also because Goldwyn wanted to cast Brando, the world's biggest box office draw by a wide margin at that time. Ironically, the film ended up being distributed by MGM, Kelly's home studio. Frank Sinatra had coveted the role of Sky Masterson and his relations with Brando were strained. Hollywood critic James Bacon quotes Sinatra telling director Joe Mankiewicz, "When Mumbles is through rehearsing, I'll come out." [4] Sinatra had been considered for the role of Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront ; [5] both roles went to Brando.

Initially, Betty Grable was considered to play the role of Miss Adelaide. However, Grable was not available, which led Goldwyn to cast Vivian Blaine, who had originated the role on stage. [6] Marilyn Monroe had wanted the part of Adelaide, but a telephone request from her did not influence Joe Mankiewicz, who wanted Blaine from the original production. [7] In addition to Blaine, Stubby Kaye, B.S. Pully, and Johnny Silver all repeated their Broadway roles in the film. [8]

Goldwyn wanted Grace Kelly for Sarah Brown, the Save-a-Soul sister. When she turned the part down because of other commitments, Goldwyn contacted Deborah Kerr, who was unavailable. The third choice was Jean Simmons, who had played opposite Brando in Désirée . Goldwyn was surprised by Simmons's sweet voice and strong acting and ultimately believed the love story worked better in the film than on stage. "I'm so happy," he said after seeing the rushes one day, "that I couldn't get Grace Kelly." Director Joe Mankiewicz later called Simmons "the dream...a fantastically talented and enormously underestimated girl. In terms of talent, Jean Simmons is so many heads and shoulders above most of her contemporaries, one wonders why she didn't become the great star she could have been." [9]

Musical numbers

At Samuel Goldwyn and Joseph L. Mankiewicz's request, Frank Loesser wrote three new songs for the film: "Pet Me Poppa", "(Your Eyes Are the Eyes of) A Woman in Love", and "Adelaide", the last written specifically for Sinatra. Five songs from the stage show were not included in the movie: "A Bushel and a Peck," "I've Never Been in Love Before," "My Time of Day" (although portions of these three songs are heard instrumentally as background music), "Marry the Man Today," and "More I Cannot Wish You". Critic Peter Filichia wrote, "Those who only know musicals from movies have missed out on some great songs from the Broadway scores."  He cited "A Bushel and a Peck" as an example, replaced in the film with the song "Pet Me, Poppa". [10] Goldwyn did not like "A Bushel and a Peck" and said, "I just wanted a new song in the picture." [11] Another song, "I've Never Been in Love Before," was replaced with "A Woman in Love". [10]   "Adelaide," sung by Sinatra, was added for the movie. [8]   

The musical numbers performed by Jean Simmons and Marlon Brando were sung by the actors themselves, without dubbing by professional singers. [12] [13] [14]

Awards and honors

Award [15] CategoryNominee(s)Result
Academy Awards Best Art Direction – Color Oliver Smith, Joseph C. Wright and Howard Bristol Nominated
Best Cinematography – Color Harry Stradling Nominated
Best Costume Design – Color Irene Sharaff Nominated
Best Scoring of a Musical Picture Jay Blackton and Cyril J. Mockridge Nominated
British Academy Film Awards Best Film from any Source Guys and DollsNominated
Best Foreign Actress Jean Simmons Nominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Guys and DollsWon
Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Jean SimmonsWon
Writers Guild of America Awards Best Written American Musical Joseph L. Mankiewicz Nominated

In 2004, the AFI ranked the song "Luck Be a Lady" at No. 42 on their list of the 100 greatest film songs, AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs. In 2006 Guys and Dolls ranked No. 23 on the American Film Institute's list of best musicals.

Reception

Guys and Dolls opened on November 3, 1955, at the Capitol Theatre in New York City [16] to mostly positive reviews. Rotten Tomatoes reports that 91% out of 33 critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 7.7/10 and the consensus: "An escapist and inventive cinemascope delight, Guys and Dolls glistens thanks to the charm of its ensemble." [17] Casting Marlon Brando has long been somewhat controversial,[ according to whom? ] although Variety wrote "The casting is good all the way." [18] This was the only Samuel Goldwyn film released through MGM since he left Goldwyn Pictures in 1922.[ citation needed ] Its estimated budget was over $5 million.[ citation needed ] It grossed $155,000 at the Capitol in its first week. [19] It expanded to Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia the following week and became the number one film in the US with a gross of $342,000. [20] [19] It remained at number one the following week and stayed at or near the top spot for a month moving back to the top for Christmas week where it stayed for five weeks. [21] [22] It went on to earn over $6.8 million in theatrical rentals from the United States and Canada [1] [23] and Variety ranked it as the number 1 moneymaking film of 1956. [24]

According to MGM records, the film earned $2,262,000 in other markets, resulting in a total rental of $9,063,000. [23]

Planned remake

20th Century Fox acquired the film rights to the musical in early 2013 and was planning a remake. [25] In March 2019, TriStar Pictures acquired the remake rights, with Bill Condon hired as director a year later. [26] [27] As of January 2024, there have been no updates.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damon Runyon</span> American writer (1880–1946)

Alfred Damon Runyon was an American journalist and short-story writer.

<i>On the Waterfront</i> 1954 film by Elia Kazan

On the Waterfront is a 1954 American crime drama film, directed by Elia Kazan and written by Budd Schulberg. It stars Marlon Brando and features Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, Pat Henning, and Eva Marie Saint in her film debut. The musical score was composed by Leonard Bernstein. The black-and-white film was inspired by "Crime on the Waterfront" by Malcolm Johnson, a series of articles published in November–December 1948 in the New York Sun which won the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting, but the screenplay by Budd Schulberg is directly based on his own original story. The film focuses on union violence and corruption amongst longshoremen, while detailing widespread corruption, extortion, and racketeering on the waterfronts of Hoboken, New Jersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Loesser</span> American songwriter (1910–1969)

Frank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals Guys and Dolls and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won a Tony Award for Guys and Dolls and shared the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for How to Succeed. He also wrote songs for over 60 Hollywood films and Tin Pan Alley, many of which have become standards, and was nominated for five Academy Awards for best song, winning once for "Baby, It's Cold Outside".

<i>Guys and Dolls</i> 1950 musical by Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling, and Abe Burrows

Guys and Dolls is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Runyon, and also borrows characters and plot elements from other Runyon stories, such as "Pick the Winner". The show premiered on Broadway in 1950, where it ran for 1,200 performances and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. The musical has had several Broadway and London revivals, as well as a 1955 film adaptation starring Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, and Vivian Blaine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Goldwyn</span> Polish-American film producer (1882–1974)

Samuel Goldwyn, also known as Samuel Goldfish, was a Polish-born American film producer. He was best known for being the founding contributor and executive of several motion picture studios in Hollywood. He was awarded the 1973 Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award, the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award (1947) and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (1958).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph L. Mankiewicz</span> American film director, screenwriter, and producer (1909–1993)

Joseph Leo Mankiewicz was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career, and won both the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in consecutive years for A Letter to Three Wives (1949) and All About Eve (1950), the latter of which was nominated for 14 Academy Awards and won six.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Keith (actor)</span> American actor (1898–1966)

Rolland Keith Richey, known professionally as Robert Keith, was an American stage and film actor who appeared in several dozen films, mostly in the 1950s as a character actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Levene</span> Russian-American actor and director (1905–1980)

Sam Levene was a Russian-American Broadway, films, radio, and television actor and director. In a career spanning over five decades, he appeared in over 50 comedy and drama theatrical stage productions. He also acted in over 50 films across the United States and abroad.

"A Bushel and a Peck" is a popular song written by Frank Loesser and published in 1950. The song was introduced in the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, which opened at the 46th Street Theater on November 24, 1950. It was performed on stage by Vivian Blaine and a women's chorus as a nightclub act at the Hot Box. It is the first of two nightclub performances in the musical. Although Blaine later reprised her role as Miss Adelaide in the 1955 film version of the play, "A Bushel and a Peck" was omitted from the film and replaced by a new song, "Pet Me, Poppa."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vivian Blaine</span> American actress and singer (1921–1995)

Vivian Blaine was an American actress and singer, best known for originating the role of Miss Adelaide in the musical theater production of Guys and Dolls, as well as appearing in the subsequent film version, in which she co-starred with Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons and Frank Sinatra.

"Fugue for Tinhorns" is a song written and composed by Frank Loesser and first performed by Stubby Kaye, Johnny Silver, and Douglas Deane in 1950. The song was featured in the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls.

"If I Were a Bell" is a song composed by Frank Loesser for his 1950 musical Guys and Dolls.

"Luck Be a Lady" is a song written and composed by Frank Loesser in 1950 and first performed by Robert Alda. The song was featured in the musical Guys and Dolls. The lyrics relate the point of view of a gambler, Sky Masterson, who hopes that he will win a bet, the outcome of which will decide whether or not he is able to save his relationship with the girl of his dreams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldwyn Girls</span> Dance campaign

The Goldwyn Girls were a musical stock company of female dancers employed by Samuel Goldwyn. Famous actresses, dancers, and models whose career included a stint in the Goldwyn Girls include Lucille Ball, Virginia Bruce, Claire Dodd, Paulette Goddard, Betty Grable, Virginia Grey, June Kirby, Joi Lansing, Barbara Pepper, Marjorie Reynolds, Pat Sheehan, Gail Sheridan, Ann Sothern, Larri Thomas, Tyra Vaughn, Toby Wing, Vonne Lester, and Jane Wyman.

The 13th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film for 1955 films, were held on February 23, 1956.

"A Woman in Love" is a popular song. It was written by Frank Loesser and published in 1955. It was introduced in Samuel Goldwyn's 1955 cinematic adaptation of the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, for which Loesser contributed three new songs – including "A Woman in Love" – which had not been in the original stage production. In the film, it was sung as a duet between Marlon Brando and Jean Simmons. The cover version by Frankie Laine reached number 1 in the UK Singles Chart in 1956.

June Shirley Kirby was an American actress and model, who spent most of her career as a wardrobe mistress in Hollywood productions' costume departments. She was a showgirl at The Diamond Horseshoe in the late forties and was spotted by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer which offered her a couple of film parts as a Goldwyn Girl such as in Vincente Minnelli's Kismet (1955) and Joseph L. Mankiewicz's Guys and Dolls (1955) featured opposite Marlon Brando, Larri Thomas and Pat Sheehan. Kirby also performed on Broadway in As the Girls Go (1948-1950), and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

"I've Never Been in Love Before" is a song written by Frank Loesser, published in 1950.

"Adelaide's Lament" is a show tune from the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, written by Frank Loesser, which opened at the 46th Street Theatre on November 24, 1950. It was performed on stage by Vivian Blaine, who later reprised her role as Miss Adelaide in the 1955 film version of the play; in its biography of Blaine, the Encyclopædia Britannica describes her as "best remembered for her showstopping rendition of 'Adelaide's Lament' in both the Broadway and film productions of Guys and Dolls.

<i>The Big Street</i> 1942 film by Irving Reis

The Big Street is a 1942 American drama film starring Henry Fonda and Lucille Ball, based on the 1940 short story "Little Pinks" by Damon Runyon, who also produced it. It was directed by Irving Reis from a screenplay by Leonard Spigelgass.

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 Cohn, Lawrence (October 15, 1990). "All Time Film Rental Champs". Variety . p. M-162. ISSN   0042-2738.
  2. "Damon Runyon". Authors. The eBooks-Library. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
  3. Kurtti, Jeff (1996). The Great Hollywood Musical Trivia Book . New York: Applause Books. p.  41. ISBN   1-55783-222-6.
  4. Pictures Will Talk, Kenneth L. Geist, p. 258
  5. On the Waterfront (1954) – Trivia
  6. Goldwyn, A. Scott Berg, p. 472
  7. Pictures Will Talk, Geist, p. 256
  8. 1 2 Adams, Marjory (November 11, 1955). "Goldwyn's "Guys and Dolls" at Astor Great Entertainment". The Boston Globe. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  9. Pictures Will Talk, Geist, p. 258
  10. 1 2 Filichia, Peter (8 April 2014). "What You Miss In Musical Movies". Masterworks Broadway. Sony Music Entertainment. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  11. Wister, Emery (June 16, 1955). "He Built Own Time Square". The Charlotte News. Charlotte, North Carolina. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  12. "Guys and Dolls film to be remade". The Daily Telegraph. Chilton, Martin. April 25, 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  13. Bacon, James (29 May 1955). "Goldwyn Sets Precedents in 'Guys, Dolls'". Reading Eagle (Associated Press). Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  14. "Jean Simmons: Actress who dazzled opposite the likes of Marlon Brando, Kirk Douglas and Laurence Olivier". The Independent. 26 January 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2014.
  15. "Guys and Dolls". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times . 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-10-21. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
  16. "National Boxoffice Survey". Variety . November 9, 1955. p. 3. Retrieved May 13, 2023 via Archive.org.
  17. "Guys and Dolls (1955)". Rotten Tomatoes . 3 November 1955.
  18. "Film Reviews: Guys and Dolls". Variety . November 2, 1955. p. 6. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  19. 1 2 "Picture Grosses". Variety . November 16, 1955. pp. 8–9. Retrieved May 13, 2023 via Archive.org.
  20. "National Boxoffice Survey". Variety . November 16, 1955. p. 3. Retrieved May 13, 2023 via Archive.org.
  21. "National Boxoffice Survey". Variety. December 28, 1955. p. 3. Retrieved May 13, 2023 via Archive.org.
  22. "'Goodman' Big (But Not Up to 'Miller') In Holiday-Hypoed Feb.; 'Picnic,' 'Arm,' 'Troy' Follow Closely". Variety . March 7, 1956. p. 4. Retrieved May 12, 2023.
  23. 1 2 "The Eddie Mannix Ledger". Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help).
  24. "109 Top Money Films of 1956". Variety . January 2, 1957. p. 1. Retrieved April 24, 2019.
  25. Fleming, Mike Jr. "Fox Seals ‘Guys And Dolls’ Rights; Wants Channing Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt To Fill Frank Sinatra And Marlon Brando Shoes." Deadline Hollywood (April 24, 2013).
  26. Brett Lang; Justin Kroll (2019-03-26). "'Guys and Dolls' Getting Remade at TriStar (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  27. Kroll, Justin (July 7, 2021). "'Guys And Dolls' Adaptation At TriStar Taps Bill Condon To Direct". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved July 8, 2021.