Lost Honeymoon

Last updated

Lost Honeymoon
Lost Honeymoon (1947) poster 1.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Leigh Jason
Written by Joseph Fields
Produced by Bryan Foy
Lee S. Marcus
Starring
Cinematography L. William O'Connell
Edited by
Music by Werner R. Heymann
Production
company
Bryan Foy Productions
Distributed by Eagle-Lion Films
Release date
  • March 29, 1947 (1947-03-29)
Running time
71 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budgetat least $1 million [1] [2]
Left to right: Una O'Connor and Ann Richards Lost Honeymoon (1947) still 2.jpg
Left to right: Una O'Connor and Ann Richards
Left to right: Franchot Tone, Frances Rafferty, and Clarence Kolb Lost Honeymoon (1947) still 1.jpg
Left to right: Franchot Tone, Frances Rafferty, and Clarence Kolb

Lost Honeymoon is a 1947 American screwball comedy film directed by Leigh Jason and starring Franchot Tone, Ann Richards and Tom Conway. The working title of the film was Amy Comes Across. [3]

Contents

Plot

Soon after the end of World War II, a young Englishwoman, Amy Atkins, returns to the London flat where she and her best friend, Tillie, once used to live. Tillie died just before she was to leave for America to look for the man she married during the war. Her children, twins Joyce and Johnny Jr., are in the care of housekeeper Mrs. Tubbs. Amy decides to find Tillie's husband, Johnny Gray. She uses Tillie's passport and ticket to travel to America, taking the twins with her.

She is aided by the American Red Cross. An architect named John Gray receives a telegram informing him that his wife and children are coming by boat. He is shocked, since he is about to marry Lois, the daughter of his boss, Mr. Evans, that weekend. Johnny confides to his friend, Dr. Bob Davis, that just before his division left to go into battle on D-Day, he hit his head on a lamppost in London during a bombing raid and lost his memory for six weeks. For all he knows, he might have gotten married.

Johnny has a big bachelor party that night, so he plans to send Bob in his place to meet Tillie, but she calls to let him know she is in the same hotel where he is staying and where the party is being held. By mistake, Amy and the twins are mistaken for a bachelor party gag. One of Johnny's friends has the children run to their father. Johnny takes Amy and the twins away for a private chat. Despite the fact that she correctly identifies his unit, the 18th Airborne Division, Johnny refuses to believe he is the children's father. Amy tells him she will take him to court.

After the party, Johnny goes to a bar and gets further intoxicated. He then deliberately runs into a lamppost and knocks himself out. Amy receives a call from the police that her "husband" is down at the station. When she arrives, he is going on about his amnesia, which makes his behavior more understandable to her. A reporter there finds out that Tillie was a war bride. The next morning, it is all over the news. As a result, Lois breaks off their engagement and he loses his job.

As Amy "reminisces" about their life in England, she tells Johnny that she fell in love at first sight. Problems arise when he wants to exercise his conjugal rights. While he changes, Amy pretends to be asleep in bed with the children, but he is not fooled and angrily leaves.

Then the Red Cross finds out about her masquerade. The authorities question whether Amy has the right Johnny Gray and inform her that she will be deported. Fortunately, Mrs. Tubbs finds some photographs proving that Johnny is the children's father. When word of her deceit spreads, Lois and her father show up, offering to restore the engagement and his job. Johnny agrees to marry Lois the next day.

During the night, however, John concludes that he is in love with Amy. He pretends to have amnesia again to avoid marrying Lois. He rushes off to reach Amy before she leaves the country. In his hurry, he loses control of the car and crashes. Johnny ends up in a hospital. When Amy comes with the children, he tells her they will leave the room together.

Cast

Production

The movie was the second produced by the newly formed Eagle Lion (the first had been It's in the Bag.) [1] The story was purchased in July 1946 and the original stars announced were Dennis O'Keefe and Anne Todd. [4] Eventually Ann Richards replaced Todd and Franchot Tone replaced O'Keefe.

The film was originally known as His Briday Night then His Wedding Night and it was shot as Amy Comes Across. Production started on 7 October 1946 and finished by November. [5] [6]

Bryan Foy withdrew Eagle Lion from the MPAA's title registration scheem due to conflict over the title "Lost Honeymoon". [7]

Reception

Variety called it "a whipped-up bit of broth with entertainment values several rungs above average" which had "some neat pieces of business, cannily designed... strung on a machine-made story." [8]

Related Research Articles

Sweet Valley High is a series of young adult novels attributed to American author Francine Pascal, who presided over a team of ghostwriters to produce the series. The books chronicle the lives of identical twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield, who live in the fictional Sweet Valley, California, a suburb near Los Angeles. The twins and their friends attend Sweet Valley High.

<i>Repeat Performance</i> 1947 film by Alfred L. Werker

Repeat Performance is a 1947 American film noir starring Louis Hayward and Joan Leslie. The film was released by Eagle-Lion Films, directed by Alfred L. Werker, and produced by Aubrey Schenck.

<i>Pete n Tillie</i> 1972 film by Martin Ritt

Pete 'n' Tillie is a 1972 American comedy-drama film directed by Martin Ritt and starring Walter Matthau and Carol Burnett. Its advertising tagline was: "Honeymoon's over. It's time to get married."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann Richards (actress)</span> Australian actress (1917–2006)

Shirley Ann Richards was an Australian actress and author who achieved notability in a series of 1930s Australian films for Ken G. Hall before moving to the United States, where she continued her career as a film actress, mainly as a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starlet. Her best known performances were in It Isn't Done (1937), Dad and Dave Come to Town (1938), An American Romance (1944), and Sorry, Wrong Number (1948). In the 1930s, she was the only Australian actor under a long-term contract to a film studio, Cinesound Productions. She subsequently became a lecturer and poet.

<i>A Summer Place</i> (film) 1959 film by Delmer Daves

A Summer Place is a 1959 American romantic drama film based on Sloan Wilson's 1958 novel of the same name, about teenage lovers from different classes who get back together 20 years later, and then must deal with the passionate love affair of their own teenage children by previous marriages. Delmer Daves directed the movie, which stars Richard Egan and Dorothy McGuire as the middle-aged lovers, and Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue as their respective children. The film contains a memorable instrumental theme composed by Max Steiner, which spent nine weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1960.

<i>Here Comes the Groom</i> (1951 film) 1951 film by Frank Capra

Here Comes the Groom is a 1951 American musical romantic comedy film produced and directed by Frank Capra and starring Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman. Based on a story by Robert Riskin and Liam O'Brien, the film is about a foreign correspondent who has five days to win back his former fiancée, or he'll lose the orphans he adopted. Filmed from late November 1950 to January 29, 1951, the film was released in the United States by Paramount Pictures on September 20, 1951.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorothy Granger</span> American actress (1911–95)

Dorothy Karolyn Granger was an American actress best known for her roles in short subject comedies in Hollywood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lois Smith</span> American actress

Lois Arlene Smith is an American character actress whose career spans eight decades. She made her film debut in the 1955 drama film East of Eden, and later played supporting roles in a number of movies, including Five Easy Pieces (1970), Resurrection (1980), Fatal Attraction (1987), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), Falling Down (1993), How to Make an American Quilt (1995), Dead Man Walking (1995), Twister (1996), Minority Report (2002), The Nice Guys (2016), Lady Bird (2017), and The French Dispatch (2021).

<i>Cheers for Miss Bishop</i> 1941 film by Tay Garnett

Cheers for Miss Bishop is a 1941 American drama film based on the novel Miss Bishop by Bess Streeter Aldrich. It was directed by Tay Garnett and stars Martha Scott in the title role. The other cast members include William Gargan, Edmund Gwenn, Sterling Holloway, Dorothy Peterson, Marsha Hunt, Don Douglas, and Sidney Blackmer. This film marked the debut of Rosemary DeCamp. Cheers for Miss Bishop was produced by Richard A. Rowland and released through United Artists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elisabeth Risdon</span> English film actress (1887–1958)

Elisabeth Risdon was an English film actress. She appeared in more than 140 films from 1913 to 1952. A beauty in her youth, she usually played in society parts. In later years in films she switched to playing character parts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claire Foy</span> British actress (born 1984)

Claire Elizabeth Foy is a British actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the young Queen Elizabeth II in the Netflix drama series The Crown (2016–2023), for which she won a Golden Globe and two Primetime Emmy Awards.

<i>Gentlemen Are Born</i> (1934 film) 1934 film

Gentlemen Are Born is a 1934 American drama film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring Franchot Tone, Jean Muir and Margaret Lindsay. The film's pre-release title was Just Out of College. A news item in Daily Variety notes that Warner Bros. was sued for $250,000 by Ronald Wagoner and James F. Wickizer who contended that the film was based on their story "Yesterday's Heroes."

Sweet Valley Twins was the first spin-off to originate from Sweet Valley High, and was created by Francine Pascal and written by Jamie Suzanne. Published by Bantam Books on 1 July 1986, the series starts with the twins wanting to differ from each other. They begin to dress differently; Elizabeth moves into her own room and starts up a sixth-grade newspaper; and Jessica starts wearing make-up and becomes a member of the Unicorn Club.

<i>Love from a Stranger</i> (1947 film) 1947 film by Richard Whorf

Love from a Stranger is a 1947 American historical film noir directed by Richard Whorf and starring John Hodiak, Sylvia Sidney and Ann Richards. The film is also known as A Stranger Walked In in the United Kingdom. It is based on the play of the same title by Frank Vosper, inspired by a short story by Agatha Christie, which had previously been turned into a 1937 British film Love from a Stranger starring Basil Rathbone.

<i>The Red Stallion</i> 1947 film by Lesley Selander

The Red Stallion is a 1947 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander shot in Cinecolor. It is about a young boy who trains his beloved pet horse to be a racehorse in order to save his grandmother's farm from foreclosure. It was filmed at Mount Shasta and the Shasta Starr Ranch in northern California.

<i>Carnival</i> (1946 film) 1946 film

Carnival is a 1946 British drama film about a ballet dancer of the Edwardian era, directed by Stanley Haynes and starring Sally Gray, Michael Wilding, Stanley Holloway and Jean Kent. It is based on the 1912 novel of the same name by Compton Mackenzie, which had previous been made into a 1932 film version Dance Pretty Lady by Anthony Asquith. It was shot at Denham Studios with sets designed by the art director Carmen Dillon.

<i>Her Husbands Affairs</i> 1947 film by S. Sylvan Simon

Her Husband's Affairs is a 1947 American romantic comedy film directed by S. Sylvan Simon and starring Lucille Ball, Franchot Tone and Edward Everett Horton. It was released by Columbia Pictures.

<i>This World, Then the Fireworks</i> 1997 American film

This World, Then the Fireworks is a 1997 American crime drama film directed by Michael Oblowitz and starring Billy Zane, Gina Gershon, and Sheryl Lee. The screenplay is based on a short story of the same name by Jim Thompson.

<i>Jack OClubs</i> 1924 film directed by Robert F. Hill

Jack O'Clubs is a 1924 American silent crime drama film directed by Robert F. Hill and starring Herbert Rawlinson, Esther Ralston, and Eddie Gribbon.

References

  1. 1 2 "Eagle Lion's First 8 Pictures will cost $12 million to Prod - Krim". Variety. 25 December 1946. p. 11.
  2. ↑ "Eagle-Lion's US Performance Reviewed by Foy in NY", Variety, 19 March 1947 p 13
  3. ↑ AFI Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States, Volume 1 University of California Press, 1971, p. 1412
  4. ↑ "Louella Parsons in Hollywood". Tribune. 16 July 1946. p. 15.
  5. ↑ "EL Reveals Score of First Six Months". Variety. 20 November 1946. p. 19.
  6. ↑ "Eagle Lion axes B product". Variety. 25 September 1946. p. 7.
  7. ↑ "Foy's Abrupt Bow Out". Variety. 26 March 1947. p. 6.
  8. ↑ Review of film at Variety
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.