One Night of Love

Last updated
One Night of Love
Onenightoflove.JPG
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Victor Schertzinger
Written by Charles Beahan (story)
Dorothy Speare (story)
James Gow
S.K. Lauren
Edmund H. North
Produced by Harry Cohn
Starring Grace Moore
Tullio Carminati
Lyle Talbot
Cinematography Joseph Walker
Edited by Gene Milford
Music by Alfred Newman
Victor Schertzinger
Louis Silvers
Howard Jackson
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • September 5, 1934 (1934-09-05)
Running time
83 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguagesEnglish
Italian
Budget$500,000 [1]
Box office$2,500,000 (worldwide rentals) [1]

One Night of Love is a 1934 American Columbia Pictures romantic musical film set in the opera world, starring Grace Moore and Tullio Carminati. The film was directed by Victor Schertzinger and adapted from the story Don't Fall in Love, by Charles Beahan and Dorothy Speare.

Contents

In the relatively new use of sound recordings for film, One Night of Love was noted at the time for its innovative use of vertical cut recording, for which Columbia Pictures received an Academy Scientific and Technical Award. It also won the Academy's first Award for Best Original Score.

Plot

Opera singer Mary Barrett (Grace Moore) leaves to study music in Milan, Italy to the disappointment of her family in New York City. Mary gets a job at the Cafe Roma, where Giulio Monteverdi (Tullio Carminati), a famous vocal coach, hears her sing. Giulio promises to make Mary a star if she will allow him to control her life. He also tells her that there cannot be any romance between the two of them, as that would distract from the process of growing her talent. Mary discovers she has stagefright as she prepares for a tour of provincial opera houses, however Giulio helps her overcome it.

Years later, still under Giulio's tutelage, Mary begins to tire of his dominance and discipline. The two meet one of Giulio's old pupils, Lally (Mona Barrie), while in Vienna. Lally once tried to be romantic with Giulio, but was rejected. This past history renders Mary jealous and she pretends to have laryngitis. Mary thinks Giulio has gone to Lally to rekindle a romance, and so visits Bill Houston (Lyle Talbot), a longtime friend who has proposed marriage. In a jealous huff, Mary decides not to sing that night in order to punish Giulio. Giulio realizes what is going on and tells Mary that Lally will replace her on stage, but then proposes to Mary.

She decides to go on, and Mary's performance of Bizet's Carmen wins her an invitation to the Metropolitan Opera, her dream venue. Giulio, however, still does not believe that she is ready for such a venue. Later at dinner, Lally lies to Mary by telling her that she is still involved with Giulio. On the night of her debut in Madame Butterfly , Mary is too nervous to go on stage until she sees Giulio in his usual place in the prompter's box. [2]

Cast

Lobby card One Night of Love.jpg
Lobby card

Production

The complete proscenium and part of the wings and seating plan of the Metropolitan Opera House were duplicated for this production and occupied the whole of Columbia's largest sound stage. [3]

Moore's recording and performance of the Un bel di aria from Madame Butterfly did not go smoothly, as she had trouble hitting the high notes. According to a later biography, she flew into a rage and blamed the orchestra. However, when studio boss Harry Cohn asked Columbia music director, Morris Stoloff, what the problem was, Stoloff replied, "There's nothing wrong with the orchestra. These are the original Puccini orchestrations." Moore was then told that either she went back to the recording stage or she would be responsible for paying the day's salary for the entire orchestra, and she returned and recorded the aria. [4]

Grace Moore's title song "One Night of Love" was composed by Victor Schertzinger himself, with lyrics by Gus Kahn. The lyrics began "One Night Of Love, When two hearts are one". It was later recorded by Anna Moffo as the title track of a 1965 crossover album.

Reception

One Night of Love was selected as one of the ten best pictures of 1934 by Film Daily's annual poll of critics. [5]

Through October 1936 One Night of Love had theater rentals in the U.S. and Canada of over $733,000 according to Variety magazine surveys of the time. [6] The film earned an estimated $2.5 million worldwide. [1] Although it did not do well in rural areas and small towns, One Night of Love was the first Columbia film to gain important bookings in the powerful Loews chain of theaters, which was a milestone in Columbia's progress. [4]

Awards and nominations

At the Academy Awards, the film won two out of six nominations, as well as a Technical Award.

Wins [7]
Nominations

The film was also recognized by the American Film Institute:

Related Research Articles

<i>Lost Horizon</i> (1937 film) 1937 film by Frank Capra

Lost Horizon is a 1937 American adventure drama fantasy film directed by Frank Capra. The screenplay by Robert Riskin is based on the 1933 novel of the same name by James Hilton.

<i>The Jolson Story</i> 1946 film by Alfred E. Green

The Jolson Story is a 1946 American biographical musical film, a highly fictionalized account of the life of singer Al Jolson. It stars Larry Parks as Jolson, Evelyn Keyes as Julie Benson, William Demarest as his performing partner and manager, Ludwig Donath and Tamara Shayne as his parents, and Scotty Beckett as the young Jolson. Some of the film's episodes are based on fact but the story is extremely simplified, with people disguised or combined into single characters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grace Moore</span> American operatic soprano and actress (1898–1947)

Mary Willie Grace Moore was an American operatic lyric soprano and actress in musical theatre and film. She was nicknamed the "Tennessee Nightingale." Her films helped to popularize opera by bringing it to a larger audience. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in One Night of Love.

The Great Caruso is a 1951 biographical film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and starring Mario Lanza as famous operatic tenor Enrico Caruso. The movie was directed by Richard Thorpe and produced by Joe Pasternak with Jesse L. Lasky as associate producer. The screenplay, by Sonya Levien and William Ludwig, was suggested by the biography Enrico Caruso His Life and Death by Dorothy Caruso, the tenor's widow. The original music was composed and arranged by Johnny Green and the cinematography by Joseph Ruttenberg. Costume design was by Helen Rose and Gile Steele.

<i>The Eddy Duchin Story</i> 1956 film by George Sidney

The Eddy Duchin Story is a 1956 American biopic film of band leader and pianist Eddy Duchin starring Tyrone Power and Kim Novak. Filmed in CinemaScope, the Technicolor production was directed by George Sidney and written by Samuel A. Taylor. Harry Stradling received an Academy Award nomination for his cinematography. The picture received four nominations in total and was one of the highest-grossing films of 1956. Incorporating signature elements of Duchin's style into his own, Carmen Cavallaro performed the piano music for the film.

<i>The Patriot</i> (1928 film) 1928 film

The Patriot is a 1928 semi-biographical sound film (Part-Talkie) directed by Ernst Lubitsch and released by Paramount Pictures. It features synchronized music and sound effects, with some talking sequences, depicting the story of Emperor Paul I of Russia. The plot revolves around Count Pahlen's plot to remove the mad Tsar from the throne, eventually leading to the Tsar's death. The film stars Emil Jannings, Florence Vidor, and Lewis Stone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morris Stoloff</span> American composer

Morris W. Stoloff was a musical composer. Stoloff worked with Sammy Davis Jr., Dinah Shore, Al Jolson and Frank Sinatra.

<i>Carefree</i> (film) 1938 American musical film by Mark Sandrich

Carefree is a 1938 American musical comedy film directed by Mark Sandrich and starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers and Ralph Bellamy. With a plot similar to screwball comedies of the period, Carefree is the shortest of the Astaire-Rogers films, featuring only four musical numbers. Carefree is often remembered as the film in which Astaire and Rogers shared a long on-screen kiss at the conclusion of their dance to "I Used to Be Color Blind," all previous kisses having been either quick pecks or simply implied.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor Schertzinger</span> American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter

Victor L. Schertzinger was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include Paramount on Parade, Something to Sing About (1937) with James Cagney, and the first two "Road" pictures Road to Singapore (1940) and Road to Zanzibar (1941). His two best-known songs are "I Remember You" and "Tangerine", both with lyrics by Johnny Mercer and both featured in Schertzinger's final film, The Fleet's In (1942).

<i>Song Without End</i> 1960 film by Charles Vidor, George Cukor

Song Without End, subtitled The Story of Franz Liszt, is a 1960 biographical film romance about Franz Liszt made by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Charles Vidor, who died during the shooting of the film and was replaced by George Cukor. The film stars Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, and Geneviève Page.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tullio Carminati</span> Dalmatian Italian actor

Tullio Carminati was a Dalmatian Italian actor.

<i>Higher and Higher</i> (film) 1944 film by Tim Whelan

Higher and Higher is a 1944 musical film starring Michèle Morgan, Jack Haley, and Frank Sinatra, loosely based on a 1940 Broadway musical written by Gladys Hurlbut and Joshua Logan. The film version, written by Jay Dratler and Ralph Spence with additional dialogue by William Bowers and Howard Harris, diverges significantly from its source.

<i>Moulin Rouge</i> (1934 film) 1934 film by Sidney Lanfield

Moulin Rouge is an American pre-Code musical film released on January 19, 1934, by United Artists, starring Constance Bennett and Franchot Tone. It contained the songs "Coffee in the Morning and Kisses in the Night", and "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" with music by Harry Warren and lyrics by Al Dubin. Lucille Ball appears in an uncredited role as a show girl in the film. It has no relation to any other films of/with the same name. The cast also includes Tullio Carminati, Helen Westley, Russ Brown, Hobart Cavanaugh and Georges Renavent.

<i>That Certain Age</i> 1938 film by Edward Ludwig

That Certain Age is a 1938 American musical film directed by Edward Ludwig and starring Deanna Durbin and Melvyn Douglas. Based on a story by Aleen Leslie (Wetstein) that was adapted by F. Hugh Herbert, the film is about a dashing reporter who returns from covering the Spanish Civil War and is invited to spend time at his publisher's home, where his adolescent daughter develops a crush on him. The family does their best to sway the young girl's feelings away from the reporter, but it is a challenge, as she is at "that certain age". Distributed by Universal Pictures, the film received Academy Award nominations for Best Music and Best Sound Recording.

<i>Paris in Spring</i> 1935 film by Lewis Milestone

Paris in Spring is a 1935 black and white musical comedy film directed by Lewis Milestone for Paramount Pictures. It is based on a play by Dwight Taylor, with a screen play by Samuel Hoffenstein and Franz Schulz.

<i>Love Me Forever</i> (film) 1935 film

Love Me Forever is a 1935 American drama film directed by Victor Schertzinger. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Sound Recording.

<i>So This Is Love</i> (film) 1953 film by Gordon Douglas

So This Is Love is a 1953 American musical drama film directed by Gordon Douglas, based on the life of singer Grace Moore. The film stars Kathryn Grayson as Moore, and Merv Griffin. The story chronicles Moore's rise to stardom from 1918 to February 7, 1928 when she made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera.

<i>Lets Live Tonight</i> 1935 film

Let's Live Tonight is a 1935 American musical comedy film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Lilian Harvey, Tullio Carminati and Janet Beecher. The film was made as part of an unsuccessful attempt to establish Harvey, who was a top box office draw in Germany, as a major star in Hollywood. Harvey was under contract to Fox Film, but was loaned out to Columbia Pictures for the production. After making it, Harvey returned to Europe, first to Britain to appear in Invitation to the Waltz and then to Germany, where she starred in Black Roses, which relaunched her German career.

<i>Quicksand</i> (1918 film) 1918 American film

Quicksand is a lost 1918 American silent drama film directed by Victor Schertzinger and written by John Lynch and R. Cecil Smith. The film stars Henry A. Barrows, Edward Coxen, Dorothy Dalton, Frankie Lee, and Philo McCullough. The film was released on December 22, 1918, by Paramount Pictures.

<i>Fatal Symphony</i> 1946 film

Fatal Symphony is a 1947 Italian war-melodrama film directed by Victor Stoloff and starring Douglass Montgomery, Marina Berti and Sarah Churchill. It was screened and awarded a prize at the Lugano Festival.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Wall St. Researchers' Cheery Tone". Variety . November 7, 1962. p. 7. Retrieved 2022-06-08– via Archive.org.
  2. ↑ Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation ISBN   0-634-00765-3 page 32
  3. ↑ "One Night of Love". American Film Institute. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
  4. 1 2 "One Night of Love". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
  5. ↑ Alicoate, Jack (1935). The 1935 Film Daily Year Book of Motion Pictures, 17th Annual Edition. The Film Daily. p. 59. Retrieved 2022-07-23– via Archive.org.
  6. ↑ Sedgwick, John; Pokorny, Michael (2005). "The Film Business in the United States and Britain during the 1930s". The Economic History Review. New Series. 58 (1): 79–112. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0289.2005.00299.x. JSTOR   3698918. S2CID   152896495 . Retrieved 2022-07-05.
  7. ↑ "The 7th Academy Awards (1934) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . Retrieved 2014-02-27.
  8. ↑ "AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals Nominees" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-06-24. Retrieved 2016-08-13.
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.