Merrily We Live

Last updated
Merrily We Live
Merrily We Live poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod
Screenplay byEddie Moran
Jack Jevne
Ed Sullivan (add'l dialog)
Based onThe Dark Chapter
1924 novel
by E.J. Rath
Courtenay Savage (play adaptation, They All Want Something)
Produced by Hal Roach
Milton H. Bren
Starring Constance Bennett
Brian Aherne
Cinematography Norbert Brodine
Edited byWilliam H. Terhune
Music by Marvin Hatley
Production
company
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • February 8, 1938 (1938-02-08)
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Merrily We Live is a 1938 American comedy film directed by Norman Z. McLeod and written by Eddie Moran and Jack Jevne. It stars Constance Bennett and Brian Aherne and features Ann Dvorak, Bonita Granville, Billie Burke, Tom Brown, Alan Mowbray, Clarence Kolb, and Patsy Kelly. The film was produced by Hal Roach for Hal Roach Studios, and was distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Contents

While based on a reworking of the 1930 movie What a Man itself based on the 1924 novel The Dark Chapter: A Comedy of Class Distinctions by E.J. Rath, and its 1926 Broadway adaptation They All Want Something by Courtenay Savage a number of critics find the plot of the film is similar to the 1936 film My Man Godfrey . [1] [2]

Merrily We Live was extremely successful and garnered five Oscar nominations.

Plot

Grosvenor (Alan Mowbray), the Kilbournes' butler, discovers at breakfast that the family silver has been stolen by Ambrose, the latest tramp Emily Kilbourne (Billie Burke) had taken under her wing as the family chauffeur in her obsession to reform fallen and destitute men, much to the exasperation of the rest of the family. A distressed Emily swears off taking in any more tramps, to the delight of the rest of the family. However, later in the morning, Wade Rawlins (Brian Aherne) appears at the Kilbournes' doorstep. His ramshackle car had broken down; when he got out, it rolled off a cliff. He wants to use the telephone, but is instead immediately adopted by Emily Kilbourne and appointed as the replacement chauffeur, despite the rude efforts of Grosvenor and Emily's daughters Geraldine "Jerry" (Constance Bennett) and Marion (Bonita Granville). Further attempts to convince Mrs. Kilbourne to get rid of this latest tramp are blissfully ignored.

Rawlins, as the new chauffeur, is housed in the servant's quarters. He is overheard talking to himself while cleaning up by Grosvenor and suspected to be crazy. Jerry and Marion see the spruced up tramp looking the perfect gentleman and Jerry approves when Rawlins later brushes off Jerry's arrogant would-be suitor, Herbert Wheeler (Phillip Reed). They now have second thoughts when their father, Henry Kilbourne (Clarence Kolb), who has returned from work, tells Emily that he is putting his foot down and orders that they get rid of her latest tramp the next day.

A comedy of errors, nighttime interludes with drunken family behavior, the arrogant Herbert making a move on Jerry, follows with the rescue of the damsel in distress who has also somehow misplaced her keys where some delightful flirting ensues, resulting in Jerry falling in love with Wade. Marion also expresses a crush on Wade. The next day, Emily Kilbourne, despite orders to get rid of Wade, trains him to be a footman at the important dinner party that evening for Senator Harlan (Paul Everton). That evening, through a contrived prank by Marion, Rawlins is accidentally invited to the important dinner party for Senator Harlan, who takes quite a liking to him, as does his daughter Minerva (Ann Dvorak).

The next morning, the family finds Rawlins occupying the guest room. It is impossible to throw him out, as it is discovered that he is now a confidant of Senator Harlan and his daughter's target of affection. Jerry is consumed with jealousy, as she sees Minerva flirting with Rawlins at golf later that morning. After a fudge-making spat with Jerry, Rawlins takes the rest of the day off on an errand. The car he wrecked turns out to be a loan. He goes to pay for it, but the car has been found and the police inform the car's owner that Rawlins is assumed to be dead. The man leaves to identify his car. Thus, when Rawlins arrives, the owner's assistant George (Willie Best) thinks he is a ghost. The Kilbournes believe Rawlins has left for good, much to Jerry's dismay after waiting up to reconcile with him.

The next morning at breakfast, the newspaper reports the death of E. Wade Rawlins, the "noted novelist", from a car crash, much to the shock and dismay of the family, the cook and the maid. When Rawlins reappears, very much alive, utter pandemonium ensues as much of the family assume they are seeing a ghost. Once the confusion dies down the truth becomes clear and Jerry is immensely relieved.

Cast

Cast notes

Production

Merrily We Live was in production from October 27, 1937, to January 10, 1938. Some location filming took place at Arrowhead Hot Spring and Big Bear Lake in the San Bernardino Mountains of southern California. [3] [4]

Titles that were considered for the film included "Take It Easy," "Love Without Reason", and "Dark Chapter", which is the title of the E.J. Rath book the film is in part based on although neither Rath's novel nor Courtenay Savage's play are credited. [3]

Noted Broadway columnist Ed Sullivan provided additional dialogue for the film, his first assignment for Hal Roach Studios.

Awards and honors

Merrily We Live received five Academy Award nominations in total: Best Supporting Actress (Billie Burke), Best Sound Recording (Elmer Raguse), Best Song ("Merrily We Live"), Best Art Direction (Charles D. Hall), and Best Cinematography (Norbert Brodine). [5] [6] Billie Burke's Best Supporting Actress nomination was the only Oscar nomination of her career.

Adaptations

Related Research Articles

<i>The Great Ziegfeld</i> 1936 film by Robert Zigler Leonard

The Great Ziegfeld is a 1936 American musical drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and produced by Hunt Stromberg. It stars William Powell as the theatrical impresario Florenz "Flo" Ziegfeld Jr., Luise Rainer as Anna Held, and Myrna Loy as Billie Burke.

<i>Fargo</i> (1996 film) 1996 film

Fargo is a 1996 black comedy crime film written, directed and produced by Joel and Ethan Coen. Frances McDormand stars as Marge Gunderson, a pregnant Minnesota police chief investigating a triple homicide that takes place after a desperate car salesman hires two criminals to kidnap his wife in order to extort a hefty ransom from her wealthy father. The film was an American and British co-production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billie Burke</span> American stage and film actress (1884–1970)

Mary William Ethelbert Appleton Burke was an American actress who was famous on Broadway and radio, and in silent and sound films. She is best known to modern audiences as Glinda the Good Witch of the North in the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer movie musical The Wizard of Oz (1939).

<i>Topper</i> (film) 1937 film by Norman Z. McLeod

Topper is a 1937 American supernatural comedy film directed by Norman Z. McLeod, starring Constance Bennett and Cary Grant and featuring Roland Young. It tells the story of a stuffy, stuck-in-his-ways man who is haunted by the ghosts of a fun-loving married couple.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Aherne</span> English actor

William Brian de Lacy Aherne was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clarence Kolb</span> American vaudeville comedian (1874–1964)

Clarence William Kolb, sometimes given as C. William Kolb, was an American vaudeville performer and actor known for his comedy routines that featured a Dutch dialect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster</span> British noble (1879–1953)

Hugh Richard Arthur Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster, was a British landowner and one of the wealthiest men in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth Harlan</span> American actor (1895–1967)

Kenneth Daniel Harlan was a popular American actor during the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer roles. His career extended into the sound film era, but during that span he rarely commanded leading-man roles, and became mostly a supporting or character actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremy Kemp</span> English actor (1935–2019)

Edmund Jeremy James Walker, known professionally as Jeremy Kemp, was an English actor. He was known for his significant roles in the miniseries The Winds of War and War and Remembrance, the film The Blue Max, and the TV series Z-Cars.

<i>Merrily We Roll Along</i> (musical) 1981 musical by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth

Merrily We Roll Along is a 1981 American musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by George Furth. It is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart.

<i>Skylark</i> (1941 film) 1941 film directed by Mark Sandrich

Skylark is a 1941 American comedy film starring Claudette Colbert, Ray Milland and Brian Aherne and directed by Mark Sandrich. Film historian James H. Farmer described Skylark as "light-hearted fluff" with the story of a woman on her fifth wedding anniversary, realizing that she is fed up with always coming in second to her husband's advertising business. Just at that moment, she meets a handsome attorney, and their innocent flirtation begins to turn into something more serious.

<i>Topper Returns</i> 1941 film by Roy Del Ruth

Topper Returns is a 1941 American supernatural comedy thriller film directed by Roy Del Ruth and written by Jonathan Latimer. The third and final installment in the initial series of supernatural comedy films inspired by the novels of Thorne Smith, it succeeds Topper (1937) and Topper Takes a Trip (1938).

<i>Topper Takes a Trip</i> 1938 film by Norman Z. McLeod

Topper Takes a Trip is a 1938 supernatural film directed by Norman Z. McLeod. It is a sequel to the 1937 film Topper. Constance Bennett, Roland Young, Billie Burke, and Alan Mowbray reprised their roles from the earlier film; only Cary Grant was missing. A ghost tries to reunite a couple who she had a hand in splitting up in the prior film. It was followed by another sequel, Topper Returns (1941). The movie is in the public domain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warren Hymer</span> American actor (1906–1948)

Edgar Warren Hymer was an American theatre and film actor.

<i>Captain Fury</i> 1939 film

Captain Fury is a 1939 American Western film directed by Hal Roach. It is set in colonial Australia as one of Hollywood's few attempts to depict Australian history.

<i>School for Tramps</i> 1955 Mexican film

School for Tramps is a 1955 Mexican comedy film. It was produced by Fernando de Fuentes. It's considered one of the finest comedies of Mexican cinema, and is adapted from the screenplay for the MGM movie Merrily We Live (1938).

<i>Women Love Diamonds</i> 1927 film

Women Love Diamonds is a 1927 American black and white silent melodrama directed by Edmund Goulding and starring Pauline Starke, Owen Moore, and Lionel Barrymore.

<i>The Beloved Brat</i> 1938 film directed by Arthur Lubin

The Beloved Brat is a 1938 American comedy-drama film directed by Arthur Lubin and starring Bonita Granville, Dolores Costello, and Donald Crisp. The screenplay was written by Lawrence Kimble from an original story by Jean Negulesco.

What a Man is a 1930 American pre-Code romantic comedy film directed by George Crone and starring Reginald Denny, Miriam Seegar and Harvey Clark. It was an adaptation of the play They All Want Something by Courtenay Savage, which was itself based on a novel by E.J. Rath. A separate Spanish language version Thus Is Life was made at the same time. The film was remade in 1938 as Merrily We Live. It is also known by the alternative title The Gentleman Chauffeur.

Wuthering Heights is a 1959 Australian television play adapted from Emily Brontë's 1847 novel Wuthering Heights. It was directed by Alan Burke and based on a script by Nigel Kneale which had been adapted by the BBC in 1953 as a TV play starring Richard Todd. It was made at a time when Australian drama production was rare.

References

  1. Frank Nugent (March 18, 1938). "Godfrey's Ghost Haunts 'Merrily We Live,' at the Capitol". The New York Times .
  2. Hal Erickson. "Merrily We Live Plot Synopsis". AllMovie . Retrieved October 22, 2021., "a blatant copy of My Man Godfrey"
  3. 1 2 3 TCM Notes
  4. IMDB Filming locations
  5. "The 11th Academy Awards (1939) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved August 10, 2011.
  6. "NY Times: Merrily We Live". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times . Archived from the original on October 14, 2008. Retrieved December 12, 2008.