Naughty Marietta (film)

Last updated

Naughty Marietta
Naughty Marietta (1935 poster).jpeg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by
Screenplay by
Based on Naughty Marietta
1910 operetta
by Victor Herbert and Rida Johnson Young
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography William H. Daniels
Edited by Blanche Sewell
Music byVictor Herbert
Production
company
Distributed by Loew's, Inc.
Release dates
  • March 8, 1935 (1935-03-08)(Premiere)
  • March 29, 1935 (1935-03-29)
Running time
103 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$782,000 [2]
Box office$2.1 million [2]
Elsa Lanchester as Madame d'Annard Elsa Lanchester.jpg
Elsa Lanchester as Madame d'Annard

Naughty Marietta is a 1935 American romantic musical film based on the 1910 operetta of the same name by Victor Herbert. Jeanette MacDonald stars as a princess who flees an arranged marriage. She sails for New Orleans and is rescued from pirates by Captain Richard Warrington (Nelson Eddy). Five of Herbert's most famous songs come from the score of Naughty Marietta, with words by lyricist Rida Johnson Young: "Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life", "Italian Street Song", "Neath the Southern Moon", "I'm Falling in Love with Someone" and "Tramp! Tramp! Tramp! (Along the Highway)". Additional lyrics for several of Herbert's songs were penned for the film by Gus Kahn. The film was written by Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett, John Lee Mahin and Rida Johnson Young.

Contents

Plot

To avoid an arranged marriage to Don Carlos, an elderly Spanish duke, Princess Marie masquerades as her uncle's former servant, Marietta, and escapes from France on a ship with casquette girls who are traveling to New Orleans to marry colonists. On board, Marietta befriends Julie.

En route, the women discuss what type of man they want to marry. "Marietta" shocks the other girls by stating that she does not intend to marry anyone. Shortly after, the ship is boarded by pirates, who kill the entire crew and take the girls ashore.

After the pirates divide the loot, they turn their attention to the girls. Just then, singing is heard ("Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!"). The pirates extinguish their torches and fire to try to avoid detection, but Marietta takes one of the torches and runs towards the sound of the singing, crying out "help, help". Mercenaries rout the pirates and rescue the women.

The mercenaries' leader, Captain Richard Warrington, sings "Neath a Southern Moon" to Marietta. Despite his attraction to her, however, Warrington declares that he does not intend to marry.

Warrington and his men take the casquette girls to New Orleans, where they are welcomed by the governor. The women are housed in the convent while they get to know their potential husbands. When some men approach Marietta, she declares that she does not want to marry any of them. The governor feels that he has seen Marietta before in Paris, but she denies it. When she pretends to have a disreputable past, the governor orders a pair of soldiers to escort her away in disgrace. Warrington relieves them of their duty and finds her a place to stay, even paying the first month's rent. Though Marietta tries to rid herself of Warrington, he is undaunted. Just then, a group of gypsies stroll by, advertising their Marionette Theater. The gypsy leader, Rodolpho, has his daughter sing, and Warrington joins in ("Italian Street Song"). Stung by Warrington's remark that she might not be able to sing as well as the gypsy, Marietta surprises him by doing so beautifully. While he is distracted getting rid of three would-be suitors, she slips away.

The following day, Warrington discovers that Marietta is working at the Marionette Theater. When he visits her after the performance, he receives a warmer reception. Soon after, however, a large award is offered for information about her whereabouts. Warrington persuades her to trust him, and takes her away by boat. During this time together, they discover that they are falling in love with each other ("I'm Falling in Love with Someone"). Later, however, they are found by French soldiers, and her true identity is revealed. Her uncle and Don Carlos are expected on the next ship to take her back.

Marietta is to attend a ball arranged by the governor in her honor. Julie comes to see her; she tells Marietta that Warrington had been ordered to leave New Orleans that day, but intends to come to the ball. Her uncle warns her that "if Warrington attempted to see her again, he would be arrested for treason and shot". Marietta asks Julie to stop Warrington from coming, but they realize it is too late when they hear him and his men singing ("Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!").

When Warrington enters the ballroom, the governor tries to get him to leave in order to save his life. Marietta pretends to have been toying with him to deceive her uncle. As Warrington is leaving, Marietta sings "Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life", joined by Warrington. The lovers then flee to the wild frontier.

Cast

Reception

Box office

Naughty Marietta grossed a total (domestic and foreign) of US$2,057,000 (equivalent to US$ 45,713,330in 2023): $1,058,000 from the US and Canada and $999,000 elsewhere. It made a profit of $407,000. [2]

Accolades

The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Douglas Shearer won the Academy Award for Best Sound Recording for his work on the picture. [3] In 2003, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Hoyt</span> American actor (1874–1953)

Arthur Hoyt was an American film character actor who appeared in more than 275 films in his 34-year film career, about a third of them silent films.

<i>Naughty Marietta</i> (operetta) 1910 comic opera by Rida Johnson Young and Victor Herbert

Naughty Marietta is an operetta in two acts, with libretto by Rida Johnson Young and music by Victor Herbert. Set in New Orleans in 1780, it tells how Captain Richard Warrington is commissioned to unmask and capture a notorious French pirate calling himself "Bras Pique" – and how he is helped and hindered by a high-spirited runaway, Contessa Marietta. The score includes many well-known songs, including "Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life".

<i>Little Mary Sunshine</i> 1959 musical

Little Mary Sunshine is a musical that parodies old-fashioned operettas and musicals. The book, music, and lyrics are by Rick Besoyan. The original Off-Broadway production premiered November 18, 1959 at the Orpheum Theatre in New York City's East Village. Staying in the neighborhood, it moved to the Player's Theatre on June 21, 1961, then, finally, to the Cherry Lane Theatre on March 21, 1962. Closing was Sept. 2, 1962. Combined run was 1,143 performances. It was seen briefly in a West End production in 1962 and has become a popular show for amateur and semi-professional groups in the United States and elsewhere.

Music Theater Works is a resident professional not-for-profit musical theatre company in Evanston, Illinois. It was founded in 1980 by Philip Kraus, Bridget McDonough, and Ellen Dubinsky.

<i>Mlle. Modiste</i> 1905 musical

Mlle. Modiste is an operetta in two acts composed by Victor Herbert with a libretto by Henry Blossom. It concerns hat shop girl Fifi, who longs to be an opera singer, but who is such a good hat seller that her employer, Mme. Cecil, discourages her in her ambitions and exploits her commercial talents. Also, Fifi loves Etienne de Bouvray, who returns her love, but his uncle, Count Henri, opposes their union. The operetta features the song "Kiss Me Again".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casquette girl</span> French woman brought to Louisiana for marriage

A casquette girl but also known historically as a casket girl or a Pelican girl, was a woman brought from France to the French colonies of Louisiana to marry. The name derives from the small chests, known as casquettes, in which they carried their clothes.

<i>The Bohemian Girl</i> (1936 film) 1936 film

The Bohemian Girl is a 1936 comedic feature film version of the opera The Bohemian Girl by Michael William Balfe. Directed by James W. Horne and Charles Rogers, and it was produced at the Hal Roach Studios, and stars Laurel and Hardy, and Thelma Todd in her final film role. This was also the only appearance of Darla Hood in a full-length feature produced by Hal Roach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marion Martin</span> American actress (1909–1985)

Marion Suplee, known professionally as Marion Martin, was an American film and stage actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugenie Besserer</span> American actress

Eugenie Besserer was a French-American actress who starred in silent films and features of the early sound motion-picture era, beginning in 1910. Her most prominent role is that of the title character's mother in the first talkie film, The Jazz Singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucien Littlefield</span> American actor (1895–1960)

Lucien Littlefield was an American actor who achieved a long career from silent films to the television era. He was noted for his versatility, playing a wide range of roles and already portraying old men before he was of voting age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minta Durfee</span> American actress (1889–1975)

Araminta Estelle "Minta" Durfee was an American silent film actress from Los Angeles, California, possibly best known for her role in Mickey (1918).

<i>Franz Kafkas Its a Wonderful Life</i> 1993 British short comedy film

Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life is a 1993 British short comedy film written and directed by Peter Capaldi. It stars Richard E. Grant as Franz Kafka and co-stars Ken Stott. The title refers to the name of the writer Franz Kafka and the 1946 film It's a Wonderful Life, directed by Frank Capra, and the plot takes the concept of the two to absurd depths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patricia Medina</span> British actress (1919–2012)

Patricia Paz Maria Medina was a British actress. She is perhaps best known for her roles in the films Phantom of the Rue Morgue (1954) and Mr. Arkadin (1955).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olin Howland</span> American actor (1886–1959)

Olin Ross Howland was an American film and theatre actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rida Johnson Young</span> American dramatist

Rida Johnson Young was an American playwright, songwriter and librettist. In her career, Young wrote over 30 plays and musicals and approximately 500 songs. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. Some of her better-known lyrics include "Mother Machree" from the 1910 show Barry of Ballymore, "Italian Street Song", "I'm Falling in Love with Someone" and "Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life" from Naughty Marietta, and "Will You Remember?" from Maytime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nell O'Day</span> American actress (1909–1989)

Nell O'Day was an accomplished American equestrian and B-movie actress of the 1930s and 1940s.

<i>The Princess and the Pirate</i> 1944 film by Samuel Goldwyn, Allen Boretz, Sidney Lanfield, David Butler

The Princess and the Pirate is a 1944 American comedy film directed by David Butler, and starring Bob Hope and Virginia Mayo. Based on a story by Sy Bartlett, the film is about a princess who travels incognito to elope with her true love instead of marrying the man to whom she is betrothed. On the high seas, her ship is attacked by pirates who plan to kidnap her and hold her for ransom, unaware that she will be rescued by the unlikeliest of knights errant. Produced by Samuel Goldwyn, The Princess and the Pirate received Academy Award nominations for Best Art Direction and Best Music Score.

"Naughty Marietta" is an American television episode of the 1910 operetta Naughty Marietta. The music for the operetta was composed by Victor Herbert. The book and the lyrics were written by Rida Johnson Young. First telecast live in the United States on January 15, 1955, the conductor for the production was Charles Sanford. The television version, which is slightly different from the operetta, as well as different from the film, was made twenty years after the film version with Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. "Naughty Marietta" marked the first musical television appearance by Alfred Drake.

Operetta films are a genre of musical films associated with, but not exclusive to, German language cinema. The genre began in the late 1920s, but its roots stretch back into the tradition of nineteenth century Viennese operettas.

References

  1. ↑ "NAUGHTY MARIETTA". British Board of Film Classification. March 26, 1935.
  2. 1 2 3 The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
  3. ↑ "The 8th Academy Awards (1936) Nominees and Winners". oscars.org. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
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.