The Great Ziegfeld
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| The Great Ziegfeld | |
|---|---|
| Image:36A.gif original movie poster | |
| Directed by | Robert Z. Leonard |
| Produced by | Hunt Stromberg |
| Written by | William Anthony McGuire |
| Starring | William Powell Myrna Loy Luise Rainer |
| Music by | Walter Donaldson |
| Distributed by | MGM |
| Release date(s) | April 8, 1936 (USA) |
| Running time | 176 min. |
| Country | Image:Flag of the United States.svg United States |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Great Ziegfeld (1936) is a musical film produced by MGM. Although Florenz Ziegfeld provides a plot thread for this movie, it's really meant to showcase a series of spectacular musical productions. It takes many key liberties with Ziegfeld's life. The film includes original music by Walter Donaldson and Irving Berlin. Berlin's work was featured in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1918, 1919, and 1920.
The film makes another historical goof: Rhapsody in Blue is heard as part of the 1907 Follies (so dated by fictional cameos of Will Rogers and Eddie Cantor, who first appeared in the 1917 Follies). Rhapsody in Blue was written in 1924, and was never featured in the Follies.
Featured in the film are William Powell (as Ziegfeld), Myrna Loy (as Billie Burke), Luise Rainer (as Anna Held), Nat Pendleton (as Eugen Sandow), Frank Morgan and Virginia Bruce. Ziegfeld performers Fanny Brice and Ray Bolger play themselves. Dennis Morgan, in an uncredited role, performed "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" (dubbed by Allan Jones). Yet another goof appears in the famed production number. "Pretty Girl" was written for the 1919 Follies, yet the picture depicts the number being in the first edition of the revue.
The movie won three Oscars:
- Academy Award for Best Picture - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (Hunt Stromberg, producer)
- Academy Award for Best Actress - Luise Rainer
- Academy Award for Best Dance Direction - Seymour Felix - For "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody".
It was nominated for an additional four:
- Academy Award for Best Art Direction - Cedric Gibbons, Eddie Imazu and Edwin B. Willis
- Academy Award for Directing - Robert Z. Leonard
- Academy Award for Film Editing - William S. Gray
- Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay - William Anthony McGuire
[edit] Cast
- William Powell as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr.
- Myrna Loy as Billie Burke
- Luise Rainer as Anna Held
- Frank Morgan as Jack Billings
- Fanny Brice as Herself
- Virginia Bruce as Audrey Dane
- Ray Bolger as Himself
- Nat Pendleton as Eugen Sandow
[edit] Trivia
- Also appearing uncredited is future First Lady Pat Nixon (as a Ziegfeld Girl).
[edit] External links
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mutiny on the Bounty | Academy Award for Best Picture 1936 | Succeeded by The Life of Emile Zola |
Academy Award for Best Picture: Winners (1927-1940)† |
|---|
1927–28: Wings, Sunrise · 1928–29: The Broadway Melody · 1929–30: All Quiet on the Western Front · 1930–31: Cimarron · 1931–32: Grand Hotel · 1932–33: Cavalcade · 1934: It Happened One Night · 1935: Mutiny on the Bounty · 1936: The Great Ziegfeld · 1937: The Life of Emile Zola · 1938: You Can't Take It with You · 1939: Gone with the Wind · 1940: Rebecca †From 1927 to 1933, the Academy Awards did not follow a calendar year. Complete List · Winners (1941–1960) · Winners (1961–1980) · Winners (1981–2000) · Winners (2001– ) |
fr:Le Grand Ziegfeld it:Il paradiso delle fanciulle nl:The Great Ziegfeld no:The Great Ziegfeld pt:The Great Ziegfeld
