Tea for Two | |
---|---|
Directed by | David Butler |
Screenplay by | Harry Clork |
Produced by | William Jacobs |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Wilfred M. Cline |
Edited by | Irene Morra |
Music by | Vincent Youmans |
Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 98 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $1.1 million [1] |
Box office | $3.6 million [1] $2.4 million (US rentals) [2] |
Tea for Two is a 1950 American musical romantic comedy film starring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae, and directed by David Butler. The screenplay by Harry Clork was inspired by the 1925 stage musical No, No, Nanette , although the plot was changed considerably from the original book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel; and the score by Harbach, Irving Caesar, and Vincent Youmans was augmented with songs by other composers.
Uncle Max (S. Z. Sakall) expresses displeasure to his grandniece and grandnephew, who are making fun of their parents' outdated fashions, and begins telling the story of Nanette Carter (Doris Day), a Westchester County, New York socialite with show business aspirations. In a flashback to the Roaring Twenties, she offers to invest $25,000 in a Broadway show if her boyfriend, producer Larry Blair (Billy De Wolfe), casts her in the starring role. What she doesn't realize is that Larry is two-timing her with ingenue Beatrice Darcy (Patrice Wymore), whom he envisions as the lead. When he accepts Nanette's offer, she imposes upon her wealthy, penny-pinching uncle, J. Maxwell Bloomhaus (Sakall) to lend her the money.
Uncle Max is willing to do so, on one condition. For the next 24 hours, Nanette must answer "no" to every question she's asked. Comic complications ensue when the cast arrives at Nanette's estate to rehearse, as composer and pianist Jimmy Smith (Gordon MacRae), who has romantic designs on Nanette, falls victim to the bet she's made with her uncle. Nanette wins, only to discover that Uncle Max lost all his money in the stock market crash. The only person still solvent is attorney William Early (Bill Goodwin). So, Nanette's assistant Pauline Hastings (Eve Arden) sets out to charm him into backing the show — and succeeds. The show 'No, No, Nanette' opens and is a rousing success.
Back in real-time, Uncle Max finishes his story right before Nanette and Jimmy return home to their two children.
The film was the first in which Doris Day received top billing and marked the first time she danced on-screen. [3]
This was director Butler and leading lady Day's second collaboration, following It's a Great Feeling the previous year. The two went on to work together on Lullaby of Broadway , April in Paris , By the Light of the Silvery Moon , and Calamity Jane .
Ray Heindorf served as musical director for the film, and the musical sequences were choreographed by Gene Nelson, Eddie Prinz, and LeRoy Prinz. Art direction was by Douglas Bacon and the costume designer was Leah Rhodes.
Both Gordon MacRae and Gene Nelson appeared together in the film version of Oklahoma! (1955).
According to accounting records at Warner Bros., the film earned $2,322,000 domestically and $1,330,000 foreign. [1]
In his review in The New York Times , Bosley Crowther called the film "pleasant entertainment," "a sprightly show," and "quite a genial production" and added, "Miss Day and Mr. MacRae . . . complement each other like peanut butter and jelly." [4]
In a review published for Time , the critic expressed sentiments about Tea for Two, highlighting its nostalgic depiction of a bygone era characterized by vibrant colors, the fashion trend of plus fours, the era of prohibition, and the infamous stock-market crash. The storyline of the production was noted for its abundant utilization of well-known tropes commonly found in musical comedies. While acknowledging its predictable nature, the reviewer commended the production's ability to serve as enjoyable entertainment during warm weather. Particularly, the reviewer found the rendition of classic melodies by acclaimed composers Vincent Youmans, George Gershwin, and Roger Wolfe Kahn to be the most captivating aspect of Tea for Two. [5]
Gene Nelson won the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor for his work on Tea for Two.
No, No, Nanette is a musical with a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play My Lady Friends; lyrics by Irving Caesar and Harbach; and music by Vincent Youmans. The farcical story centers on three couples who find themselves together at a cottage in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in the midst of a blackmail scheme focusing on a fun-loving Manhattan heiress who has run off, leaving an unhappy fiancé. Its songs include the well-known "Tea for Two" and "I Want to Be Happy".
Albert Gordon MacRae was an American actor, singer, and television and radio host. He appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Oklahoma! (1955) and Carousel (1956), and played the leading man opposite Doris Day in On Moonlight Bay (1951) and sequel By The Light of the Silvery Moon (1953).
Vincent Millie Youmans was an American Broadway composer and producer.
By the Light of the Silvery Moon is a 1953 American musical film directed by David Butler and starring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae. As with the film's predecessor On Moonlight Bay, the film is based loosely on the Penrod stories by Booth Tarkington.
Gene Nelson was an American actor, dancer, screenwriter, and director.
Szőke Szakáll, known in the English-speaking world as S. Z. Sakall, was a Hungarian-American stage and film character actor. He appeared in many films, including Casablanca (1942), in which he played Carl, the head waiter; Christmas in Connecticut (1945); In the Good Old Summertime (1949); and Lullaby of Broadway (1951). Sakall played numerous supporting roles in Hollywood musicals and comedies in the 1940s and 1950s. His rotund cuteness caused studio head Jack Warner to bestow on Sakall the nickname "Cuddles".
Lullaby of Broadway is a 1951 American musical romantic comedy film released by Warner Bros. starring Doris Day and Gene Nelson, and directed by David Butler. Gladys George, S.Z. Sakall, Billy De Wolfe, Florence Bates, and Anne Triola appear in support.
Tea for Two was a 10" LP album released by Columbia Records on September 4, 1950. It was released under catalog number CL-6149, featuring Doris Day, with Axel Stordahl conducting the orchestra on some pieces, and the Page Cavanaugh Trio as backup musicians on others. It contained songs from the soundtrack of the movie of the same name.
"I Want to Be Happy" is a song with music by Vincent Youmans and lyrics by Irving Caesar written for the 1925 musical No, No, Nanette.
"Crazy Rhythm" is a thirty-two-bar swing show tune written in 1928 by Irving Caesar with music by Joseph Meyer and Roger Wolfe Kahn for the Broadway musical Here's Howe.
William Andrew Jones, better known as Billy De Wolfe, was an American character actor. He was active in films from the mid-1940s until his death in 1974.
No, No, Nanette is a 1930 American pre-Code musical comedy film with Technicolor sequences that was directed by Clarence G. Badger and released by First National Pictures. It was adapted from the play of the same title by Otto A. Harbach and Frank Mandel. No, No, Nanette was a popular show on Broadway, running for 321 performances, and was produced and directed by Harry Frazee.
Patrice Wymore Flynn was an American film, television and stage actress of the 1950s and 1960s, known for her marriage to Errol Flynn.
The West Point Story is a 1950 musical comedy film starring James Cagney, Virginia Mayo and Doris Day, and directed by Roy Del Ruth.
Starlift is a 1951 American musical film released by Warner Bros. starring Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Virginia Mayo, Dick Wesson, and Ruth Roman. It was directed by Roy Del Ruth and written by John D. Klorer and Karl Kamb, from a story by Klorer. The film was made during the beginning of the Korean War and centers on a U.S. Air Force flyer's wish to meet a film star, and her fellow stars' efforts to perform for injured men at the air force base.
No, No, Nanette is a 1940 American film directed by Herbert Wilcox and based on both the 1919 stage play No, No, Nanette and the 1930 film No, No, Nanette. It was one of several films the British producer/director made with Anna Neagle for RKO studios in the U.S.
The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady is a 1950 American musical film directed by David Butler. It stars June Haver and Gordon MacRae. The story is mostly about the lives of musical performers in New York in the closing years of the 19th century. Most of the songs were written for the movie, but "Rose of Tralee" dates from the 19th century, and the song "The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady" dates from 1917.
She's Back on Broadway is a 1953 musical comedy-drama Warnercolor film starring Virginia Mayo in her final musical film, although her singing voice was dubbed by Bonnie Lou Williams. The film was Mayo's unofficial successor to her 1952 musical hit She's Working Her Way Through College.
She's Working Her Way Through College is a 1952 American comedy film produced by Warner Bros. A musical comedy in Technicolor, it is directed by H. Bruce Humberstone, and stars Virginia Mayo and Ronald Reagan. The screenplay is based on the 1940 Broadway play The Male Animal by James Thurber and Elliott Nugent, although the play's title is not mentioned in the screen credits.
Cinderella Jones is a 1946 American musical comedy film directed by Busby Berkeley and written by Charles Hoffman. The film stars Joan Leslie, Robert Alda, Julie Bishop, William Prince, S. Z. Sakall, and Edward Everett Horton. The film was released by Warner Bros. on March 9, 1946.