''Gaily, Gaily'' (released in the United Kingdom as ''Chicago, Chicago'') is a 1969 American comedy film directed by Norman Jewison. It is a fictionalized adaptation of a 1963 memoir of the same name by

Ben Hecht Ben Hecht (; February 28, 1894 – April 18, 1964) was an American screenwriter, director, producer, playwright, journalist, and novelist. A successful journalist in his youth, he went on to write 35 books and some of the most enjoyed screenplay ...

and stars

Beau Bridges Lloyd Vernet "Beau" Bridges III (born December 9, 1941) is an American actor and director. He is a three-time Emmy, two-time Golden Globe and one-time Grammy Award winner, as well as a two-time Screen Actors Guild Award nominee. Bridges was a ...

, Brian Keith,

George Kennedy George Harris Kennedy Jr. (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" opposite Paul Newman in ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), winning the Academ ...

, Hume Cronyn and

Melina Mercouri Maria Amalia "Melina" Mercouri (, 18 October 1920 – 6 March 1994) was a Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician. She came from a political family that was prominent over multiple generations. She received an Academy Award nomination a ...

. The film featured two songs sung by Mercouri with lyrics by

Alan and Marilyn Bergman Alan Bergman (born September 11, 1925) and Marilyn Keith Bergman (November 10, 1928 – January 8, 2022) were an American songwriting duo. Married from 1958 until Marilyn's death, together they wrote music and lyrics for numerous celebrated telev ...

set to Henry Mancini's music.

Plot

Set in 1910, the film's main character is Ben Harvey (patterned after

): serious about seeing the world, he leaves his home for Chicago, where he meets a woman named Lil, who in reality is the madam of the bordello Ben mistakes for a boarding house. He also is friendly with Adeline, one of the prostitutes. While he tries to find work, Ben encounters other people, including a hard drinking reporter named Sullivan, plus two other men, Grogan and Johanson, who are involved in shady doings in city government. Suspecting corruption, both Harvey and Sullivan decide to investigate.

Cast

as Ben Harvey *

as Lilan * Brian Keith as Sullivan *

as Johanson * Hume Cronyn as Grogan * Margot Kidder as Adeline * Roy Poole as Dunne * Wilfrid Hyde-White as The Governor * Melodie Johnson as Lilah * John Randolph as Father *

Charles Tyner Charles Tyner (June 8, 1923 – November 8, 2017) was an American film, television and stage character actor best known, principally, for his performances in the films ''Harold and Maude'' (1971), ''Emperor of the North Pole'' (1973), '' The Longe ...

as Dr. Lazarus * Joan Huntington as Kitty * Merie Earle as Granny * Claudia Bryar as Mother * Eric Shea as Younger Brother

Production

Director Norman Jewison wanted to film on location in Chicago, but found the city too modern for the film's setting: " Chicago has some nice, old streets, but behind every one of them there’s a 70 story skyscraper," he said. Exteriors instead were shot in Milwaukee, where modern skyscrapers were less prevalent, during June and July 1968. The North American title comes from a poem by the Canadian poet, Bliss Carman: "Oh but life went gayly, gayly,/In the house of Idiedaily!/There were always throats to sing/Down the riverbanks with spring."

Reception

The film holds a score of 60% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 5 reviews. Vincent Canby of '' The New York Times'' called it "a movie of great and exuberant charm, one that pays homage to the classic conventions of American farce by defining them with nostalgia and cinematic wit." '' Variety'' declared it "a lushly staged, handsomely produced, largely unfunny comedy. There are a few bright spots, and a certain segment of the audience may find the film amusing, naughty and risque." Pauline Kael of '' The New Yorker'' wrote, "A good subject, a charming plot, and not too bad a script (by Abram S. Ginnes) have been lost along the way in this overproduced period re-creation that is only moderately entertaining. The director, Norman Jewison, tries hard, but he just doesn't have the feeling for Hecht's Chicago; he uses huge mobs and big locations, but the whole movie seems to be on a musical-comedy stage."

Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune''. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted a series of movie review programs on television from 1975 until his d ...

of the '' Chicago Tribune'' gave the film three stars out of four and wrote that it "is paled by Hecht's writings, but it stands well ahead of many films, as fine entertainment that will have you laughing." Kevin Thomas of the '' Los Angeles Times'' called it "a delightful comedy" with "most persuasive" performances. Gary Arnold of '' The Washington Post'' wrote, "By all rights, the material should be great on film, but Jewison, stymied by either a lack of wit or a desire to be too ingratiating, gets the least interesting effect possible. This 'Gaily, Gaily' is a bumptious family comedy rather than the uninhibited but poignant elegy to youth and recreation of a vanished era that Hecht had in mind." David Pirie of '' The Monthly Film Bulletin'' wrote, "The script here is a fairly predictable period romp, based loosely on Ben Hecht's novel and only very sporadically funny. Even more disappointing, despite a reasonably distinguished cast and Jewison's proven ability with actors, is that there is barely only one really enjoyable performance in the whole film: only Brian Keith, as a shamelessly unscrupulous and sentimental Irish newsman, is fully successful, and he provides nearly all the film's best comedy."

Awards

The film was nominated for three Academy Awards: *

Best Art Direction The Academy Award for Best Production Design recognizes achievement for art direction in film. The category's original name was Best Art Direction, but was changed to its current name in 2012 for the 85th Academy Awards. This change resulted fro ...

(Art Direction: Robert F. Boyle and George B. Chan; Set Decoration:

Edward G. Boyle Edward George Boyle (born Edward Joshua Boyle, 30 January 1899 – 17 February 1977) was an American set decorator and director active between 1925 and 1970. Career Boyle's career began in the early 1930s, when he started working on the firs ...

and Carl Biddiscombe) * Best Costume Design (

Ray Aghayan Gorgen Ray Aghayan (July 28, 1928 – October 10, 2011) was an American fashion designer and costume designer for the United States film industry. He won an Emmy Award and was nominated for an Academy Award for his costume design. From the earl ...

) *

Best Sound This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow List of film awards, film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awa ...

( Robert Martin and Clem Portman)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaily Gaily 1969 films 1969 comedy films 1960s coming-of-age comedy films American coming-of-age comedy films Films about journalists Films based on American novels Films directed by Norman Jewison Films scored by Henry Mancini Films set in 1910 Films set in Chicago United Artists films 1960s English-language films 1960s American films