''Bells Are Ringing'' is a 1960 American
romantic comedy-
musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...
directed by
Vincente Minnelli and starring
Judy Holliday and
Dean Martin
Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
. Based on the successful 1956
Broadway production of the same name by
Betty Comden,
Adolph Green and
Jule Styne
Jule Styne (; born Julius Kerwin Stein; December 31, 1905 – September 20, 1994) was an English-American songwriter and composer best known for a series of Broadway musicals, including several famous frequently-revived shows that also became s ...
, the film focuses on Ella Peterson, based on the life of
Mary Printz
Mary Printz (April 8, 1923 – February 21, 2009) was an answering service operator who catered to many of the New York theater and business A-list in the 1950s. ''Bells Are Ringing (musical), Bells Are Ringing'', a Broadway theatre, Broadway ...
,
who works in the basement office of a telephone answering service.
Plot
Ella Peterson works as a
switchboard operator
In the early days of telephony, companies used manual telephone switchboards, and switchboard operators connected calls by inserting a pair of phone plugs into the appropriate jacks. They were gradually phased out and replaced by automated system ...
at the Susanswerphone
answering service
A call centre ( Commonwealth spelling) or call center (American spelling; see spelling differences) is a managed capability that can be centralised or remote that is used for receiving or transmitting a large volume of enquiries by telephone. ...
. She can't help breaking the rules by becoming overly involved in the lives of the subscribers. Some of the more peculiar ones include a dentist who exuberantly composes song lyrics on an air hose, an actor who emulates Marlon Brando and a little boy for whom she pretends to be
Santa Claus
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
.
Ella has a secret crush on the voice of subscriber Jeffrey Moss, a playwright for whom she plays a comforting motherly character. She finally meets him in person when she brings him a message under a false name, and romantic sparks and some confusion begin.
A humorous subplot involves the courtly Otto, who convinces Susanswerphone to take orders for his "mail-order classical record business" known as Titanic Records. However, Otto is actually a
bookie whose orders are a coded system for betting on horses. Unwittingly, Ella changes orders for the supposedly incorrect Beethoven's Tenth Symphony, Opus 6, not realizing she is changing bets.
Although the police begin to assume that Susanswerphone might be a front for an escort service, the plot ends happily, with Jeff proposing and Ella's wacky subscribers coming to thank her.
Cast
Character names are not indicated in on-screen cast credits.
*
Judy Holliday as Ella Peterson
*
Dean Martin
Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
as Jeffrey Moss
*
Fred Clark as Larry Hastings
*
Eddie Foy, Jr.
Edwin Fitzgerald Jr. (February 4, 1905 – July 15, 1983), known professionally as Eddie Foy Jr., was an American stage, film, and television actor.
Early life
Edwin Fitzgerald Jr. was born on February 4, 1905, in New Rochelle, New York, the ...
as J. Otto Prantz
*
Jean Stapleton as Sue
* Ruth Storey as Gwynne
* Dort Clark as Inspector Barnes
*
Frank Gorshin
Frank John Gorshin Jr. (April 5, 1933 – May 17, 2005) was an American actor, comedian and impressionist. He made many guest appearances on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' and ''Tonight Starring Steve Allen''.
As an actor, he played the Riddler on the ...
as Blake Barton
* Ralph Roberts as Francis
* Valerie Allen as Olga
*
Bernie West as Dr. Joe Kitchell
* Steven Peck as Gangster
*
Gerry Mulligan as Ella's blind date
*
Jean Moorhead
Alma Jean Moorhead (born February 4, 1935) is an American retired actress and model. Billed under an alternatively spelled surname, Jean Moorehead, she was ''Playboy'' magazine's Playmate of the Month for the October 1955 issue. Her centerfold ...
Songs
Music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
* "It's a Perfect Relationship"
* "Do it Yourself"
* "It's a Simple Little System"
* "Better Than a Dream"
* "I Met a Girl"
* "
Just in Time”
* "Drop That Name"
* "
The Party’s Over”
* "I'm Going Back"
Production
Judy Holliday and
Jean Stapleton reprised their stage roles for the film. Jazz musician
Gerry Mulligan, Holliday's real-life ex-lover, plays her disastrous blind date in a cameo role. ''Bells Are Ringing'' was Holliday's final film.
''Bells Are Ringing'' was also the final musical produced by the
MGM "Freed Unit" headed by producer
Arthur Freed, which had been responsible for many of the studio's greatest successes, including ''
Meet Me in St. Louis'' (1944), ''
Easter Parade'' (1948), ''
On the Town'' (1949), ''
An American in Paris'' (1951), ''
Singin' in the Rain
''Singin' in the Rain'' is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell and Cyd Charis ...
'' (1952) and ''
Gigi'' (1958). The film marked the 13th and final collaboration between Freed and director Vincente Minnelli.
Several songs from the Broadway production were dropped or replaced, including "Salzburg", "Hello, Hello There", "On My Own" (replaced by "Do It Yourself"), "Long Before I Knew You" (replaced by "Better Than a Dream"), "Mu Cha Cha" (filmed but shortened) and "Is it a Crime?" (filmed, but cut before release). A new song for Dean Martin, "My Guiding Star", was also filmed but cut. The latter two songs have been released as extras on the Warner Home Video DVD. The soundtrack album was released by
Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
.
Reception
In a contemporary review, critic
Bosley Crowther of ''
The New York Times'' was critical of the script but praised Holliday's performance: "
e jangled romance they have prepared for her to play is a poor thing, made up of one slight gimmick and a lot of surrounding gags. What Miss Holliday does with the latter is the measure of the quality of the show. ... You can take our word for it: 'Bells Are Ringing' owes more to Miss Holliday than to its authors, its director (Vincent Minnelli), or even to Alexander Graham Bell."
Awards and nominations
Comden and Green won the
Writers Guild of America award for Best American Musical. Together with Styne, they shared a
Grammy Award nomination for Best Soundtrack Album or Recording of Original Cast from a Motion Picture or TV. Minnelli earned a Best Director nomination from the
Directors Guild of America.
André Previn
André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...
was nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture. At the
18th Annual Golden Globe Awards, the film was nominated for Best Film - Musical, and Holliday was nominated for Best Actress - Musical.
Box-office
According to MGM records, the film earned $2,825,000 in the U.S. and Canada but only $800,000 elsewhere, losing a total of $1,720,000.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bells Are Ringing (Film)
1960 films
1960s musical films
American musical films
Films based on musicals
Films directed by Vincente Minnelli
Films produced by Arthur Freed
Films set in New York City
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films
Films about telephony
CinemaScope films
1960s English-language films
1960s American films