Life with the Lyons (film)

Last updated

Life with the Lyons
"Life with the Lyons" (1954).jpg
Directed by Val Guest
Written byVal Guest
Robert Dunbar
Based on Life with the Lyons by Bebe Daniels
Bob Block
Bill Harding
Produced by Michael Carreras
Robert Dunbar
Starring Ben Lyon
Bebe Daniels
Barbara Lyon
Cinematography Walter J. Harvey
Edited by Douglas Myers
Music by Arthur Wilkinson
Jack Beaver
Production
company
Distributed by Exclusive Films
Lippert Pictures (US)
Release date
  • 25 May 1954 (1954-05-25)
Running time
81 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£28,000 [1]
Box officeOver £70,000 [2]

Life with the Lyons is a 1954 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon and Barbara Lyon. It was a spin-off from the radio series Life with the Lyons , and the screenplay was based on previous episodes from the show. [3] It was shot at Southall Studios in London with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold.

Contents

It was followed in 1955 by The Lyons in Paris .

Premise

The Lyon family attempt to acquire a new house in Marble Arch.

Cast

Production

The Lyons' contract called for them to receive a percentage of the film's profits.

Val Guest had worked with the Lyons writing stage revues and says he got the job directing by walking past Ben Lyons in the street. Lyons told Guest that Hammer wanted to make a film of Life with the Lyon and asked Guest to direct. Guest went into meet James Carreras who "Said to me 'I don’t know anything about comedy. I’m no good with comedy so I’ll leave it to you.' I said 'Well you don’t have to leave it to me, the three people you’ve got, Bebe [Daniels], Ben [Lyons] and Vic Oliver know more about comedy than I’ll ever know.' So that’s why they lurched into comedy. They’d never done anything that wasn’t – that was – comedy." [4]

It was the second time Belinda Lee had worked for Val Guest, the first being her debut in The Runaway Bus. [5]

"Bebe was the driving force of that team," recalled Guest. "She was a very clever business woman, she drove that whole family, she drove the machine, she wrote the scripts – I’m talking about the radio thing, the TV things. She had files and files she’d brought from Hollywood, of old programmes she’d bought the scripts from – I’d never seen such a file of gags and routines... She was the driving force, very stimulating lady. Eventually I think she drove so much it eventually gave her the heart attack – she had a stroke. Because she was always very tense. Great sense of fun, very professional... Ben had a terrifying temper. He had the shortest fuse of anybody I knew." [4]

"We had a lot of fun," said Guest. "There were no problems except if Ben lost his temper about something." [4]

Reception

Box Office

After the film's successful release, the Lyons began a long-running, BBC television series, also titled Life with the Lyons. The film was made at Southall Studios. [6]

Guest said the film and its sequel were popular but "I shouldn’t have thought they did much [business] abroad. They were curiosity pieces, very cheap to make and quick to make and we had a lot of fun making them." [4]

Critical reception

Britmovie called it "a cheap but cheerful romp." [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bebe Daniels</span> American actress, singer, dancer, writer, producer (1901–1971)

Phyllis Virginia "Bebe" Daniels was an American actress, singer, dancer, writer, and producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Val Guest</span> British director and screenwriter (1911–2006)

Val Guest was an English film director and screenwriter. Beginning as a writer of comedy films, he is best known for his work for Hammer, for whom he directed 14 films, and for his science fiction films. He enjoyed a long career in the film industry from the early 1930s until the early 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Lyon</span> American actor

Ben Lyon was an American film actor and a studio executive at 20th Century-Fox who later acted in British radio, films and TV.

Life with the Lyons was a British radio and television sitcom franchise that ran between 1950 and 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belinda Lee</span> English actress (1935–1961)

Belinda Lee was an English actress.

<i>Yield to the Night</i> 1956 film

Yield to the Night is a 1956 British crime drama film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Diana Dors. The film is based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Joan Henry. The storyline bears a superficial and coincidental resemblance to the Ruth Ellis case, which had occurred the previous year but subsequent to the release of Henry's novel. The film received much positive critical attention, particularly for the unexpectedly skilled acting of Dors, who had previously been cast solely as a British version of the typical "blonde bombshell". The movie was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival.

<i>The Runaway Bus</i> 1954 film

The Runaway Bus is a 1954 British comedy film produced, written and directed by Val Guest. It stars Frankie Howerd, Margaret Rutherford and Petula Clark and an ensemble cast of character actors in a story about a bus caught in fog while a gang of crooks tries to carry off a heist. The film was shot at Southall Studios in London with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold. It was the film debut of Belinda Lee. The film is referenced in an episode of Frankie Howerd's 1970s radio series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Lyon</span> American singer

Barbara Bebe Lyon was a singer of popular songs and an actress, born in the United States but primarily active in the United Kingdom.

<i>Give Us the Moon</i> 1944 British film

Give Us the Moon is a 1944 British comedy film directed and written by Val Guest and starring Vic Oliver, Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves.

<i>No Smoking</i> (1955 film) 1955 British film by Henry Cass

No Smoking is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Henry Cass and starring Reg Dixon, Peter Martyn, Belinda Lee and Lionel Jeffries. It was produced by Tempean Films as a second feature. The film was shot at Southall Studios with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold. Shortly after the production Lee was signed up for a contract with the Rank Organisation.

<i>West 11</i> 1963 British film by Michael Winner

West 11 is a 1963 British crime film directed by Michael Winner and starring Alfred Lynch, Kathleen Breck, Eric Portman, Diana Dors, and Kathleen Harrison. It is based on The Furnished Room (1961), Laura Del-Rivo's debut novel, adapted for the screen by Willis Hall and Keith Waterhouse. Set in west London, the title is taken from the postcode W11.

<i>The Lyons in Paris</i> 1955 film by Val Guest

The Lyons in Paris is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Ben Lyon, Bebe Daniels and Reginald Beckwith. It was a sequel to the 1954 film Life with the Lyons, and was shot at Southall Studios, though some genuine Paris location shots were used.

<i>Mister Drakes Duck</i> 1951 British film

Mister Drake's Duck is a 1951 British science-fiction comedy film directed by Val Guest and starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Yolande Donlan, Jon Pertwee, Wilfrid Hyde-White and Reginald Beckwith. The screenplay concerns a farmer who discovers that one of his ducks has started laying radioactive eggs.

<i>Hi Gang!</i> (film) 1941 British film by Marcel Varnel

Hi Gang! is a 1941 British comedy film directed by Marcel Varnel and starring Bebe Daniels, Ben Lyon and Vic Oliver. It was a spin-off from the popular BBC radio series Hi Gang!.

<i>The Big Money</i> (film) 1958 film

The Big Money is a 1958 British comedy film directed by John Paddy Carstairs and starring Ian Carmichael, Belinda Lee and Kathleen Harrison.

<i>Shes a Sheik</i> 1927 film

She's a Sheik is a 1927 American silent comedy adventure film produced and distributed by Paramount Pictures and starring Bebe Daniels. A 16mm print of the film was rediscovered in 2017 by Kevin Brownlow.

Hi Gang! was a BBC radio series that ran from Sunday 26 May 1940 until 1949, featuring Vic Oliver, Ben Lyon and Bebe Daniels.

In addition to published work, this article also includes Denis Gifford's radio and television credits.

<i>Miss Bluebeard</i> 1925 film by Frank Tuttle

Miss Bluebeard is a 1925 American silent comedy film directed by Frank Tuttle and starring Bebe Daniels. It is based on a play, Little Miss Bluebeard, by Avery Hopwood.

I Spy is a 1934 British film. Ben Lyon made it at the same time as his wife, Bebe Daniels, was making a film at the same studio, BIP. It was the first British film for both Lyon and Sally Eilers.

References

  1. "Mute role for actor's return". The Mail . Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 8 May 1954. p. 8 Supplement: SUNDAY MAGAZINE. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  2. Tom Johnson and Deborah Del Vecchio, Hammer Films: An Exhaustive Filmography, McFarland, 1996 p93
  3. "Life with the Lyons". BFI. Archived from the original on 14 January 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Fowler, Roy (1988). "Interview with Val Guest". British Entertainment History Project.
  5. Vagg, Stephen (7 September 2020). "A Tale of Two Blondes: Diana Dors and Belinda Lee". Filmink.
  6. "Life with the Lyons (1956) – Notes – TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
  7. "Life with the Lyons". Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2014.