''Flying Down to Rio'' is a 1933 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

RKO

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 brea ...

famous for being the first screen pairing of

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...

and

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

, although

Dolores del Río María de los Dolores Asúnsolo y López Negrete (3 August 1904 – 11 April 1983), known professionally as Dolores del Río (), was a Mexican actress. With a career spanning more than 50 years, she is regarded as the first major female Latin Am ...

and Gene Raymond received top billing and the leading roles. Among the featured players are

Franklin Pangborn Franklin Pangborn (January 23, 1889 – July 20, 1958) was an American comedic character actor famous for playing small but memorable roles with comic flair. He appeared in many Preston Sturges movies as well as the W. C. Fields films '' Interna ...

and

Eric Blore Eric Blore Sr. (23 December 1887 – 2 March 1959) was an English actor and writer. His early stage career, mostly in the West End of London, centred on revue and musical comedy, but also included straight plays. He wrote sketches for and appe ...

. The songs in the film were written by

Vincent Youmans Vincent Millie Youmans (September 27, 1898 – April 5, 1946) was an American Broadway composer and producer. A leading Broadway composer of his day, Youmans collaborated with virtually all the greatest lyricists on Broadway: Ira Gershwin, ...

(music),

Gus Kahn Gustav Gerson Kahn (November 6, 1886October 8, 1941) was an American lyricist who contributed a number of songs to the Great American Songbook, including " Pretty Baby", " Ain't We Got Fun?", " Carolina in the Morning", " Toot, Toot, Tootsie (Goo ...

and

Edward Eliscu Edward Eliscu (April 2, 1902 – June 18, 1998) was an American lyricist, playwright, producer and actor, and a successful writer of songs for films. Life Eliscu was born in Manhattan, New York City. He attended DeWitt Clinton High School i ...

(lyrics), with musical direction and additional music by Max Steiner. During the initial year that a Best Original Song was given during

7th Academy Awards The 7th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 1934, was held on February 27, 1935, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California. They were hosted by Irvin S. Cobb. As of this ceremony, the Academy's award eligibility period coin ...

, the film obtained a nomination for MUSIC (Song) – "

Carioca Carioca ( or ) is a demonym used to refer to anything related to the City of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil. The original meaning of the term is controversial, maybe from Tupi language "''kari' oka''", meaning "white house" as the whitewashed stone ...

," Music by

; Lyrics by

and

ame in 3rd Ironically, the song lost to "

The Continental The Continental may refer to: * ''The Continental'' (1952 TV series), a 1952–53 television series on CBS * ''The Continental'' (miniseries), an upcoming television series on Peacock * "The Continental" (''Saturday Night Live''), a recurring sk ...

" from ''

The Gay Divorcee ''The Gay Divorcee'' is a 1934 American musical film directed by Mark Sandrich and starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. It also features Alice Brady, Edward Everett Horton, Eric Blore, and Erik Rhodes. The screenplay was written by ...

'', the subsequent film of

and

(the duo now top-billed) after ''Flying Down to Rio''. The black-and-white film (later computer- colorized) with, according to Arlene Croce's ''The Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers Book,'' a color-tinted sequence, was directed by Thornton Freeland and produced by Merian C. Cooper and

Lou Brock Louis Clark Brock (June 18, 1939September 6, 2020) was an American professional baseball outfielder. He began his 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the 1961 Chicago Cubs but spent most of it as a left fielder for the St. Louis ...

. The screenplay was written by Erwin S. Gelsey, H. W. Hanemann and Cyril Hume, based on a story by Lou Brock and a play by Anne Caldwell. Linwood Dunn did the

special effects Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual wo ...

for the celebrated airplane-wing dance sequence at the end of the film. In this film,

became the first major actress to wear a two-piece women's bathing suit onscreen. Astaire and Rogers made nine musical films at RKO from 1933 to 1939: ''Flying Down to Rio'' (1933), ''

'' (1934), '' Roberta'' (1935), ''

Top Hat A top hat (also called a high hat, a cylinder hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat for men traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditional ...

'' (1935), ''

Follow the Fleet ''Follow the Fleet'' is a 1936 American RKO musical comedy film with a nautical theme starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in their fifth collaboration as dance partners. It also features Randolph Scott, Harriet Hilliard, and Astrid Allwyn, ...

'' (1936), '' Swing Time'' (1936), ''

Shall We Dance Shall We Dance may refer to: Films * ''Shall We Dance'' (1937 film), a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers musical * ''Shall We Dance?'' (1996 film), a Japanese film about ballroom dancing * ''Shall We Dance?'' (2004 film), an American remake of the ...

'' (1937), '' Carefree'' (1938), and '' The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle'' (1939). '' The Barkleys of Broadway'', their only color film, was produced later at MGM, in 1949.

Plot

Composer Roger Bond ( Gene Raymond) and his orchestra are appearing in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, with vocalist Honey Hales (

). Despite the warnings of accordionist and assistant bandleader Fred Ayres (

), Roger is attracted to the beautiful and flirtatious Belinha (

) in the audience. He leaves the bandstand to pursue her. Dona Elena (

Blanche Friderici Blanche L. Friderici (January 21, 1878 – December 23, 1933) was an American film and stage actress, sometimes credited as Blanche Frederici. Early years Friderici was a native of Brooklyn, New York. Her parents were William E. Friderici ...

), Belinha's chaperone, is informed of this, and arranges for Roger and the band to be fired. But Roger pursues Belinha to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, and organizes an engagement for the band at the Hotel Atlântico in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, unaware that the hotel is owned by Belinha's father ( Walter Walker). Roger persuades Belinha to allow him to fly her there in his private plane, which runs into trouble inflight, forcing a landing on an apparently deserted island. Under the moonlight, she falls into his arms, while admitting to him that she is already engaged. In Rio, Roger informs his good friend Julio (

Raul Roulien Raul Roulien (born Raul Salvador Intini Pepe; October 8, 1905 – October 8, 2000) was a Brazilian actor, singer, screenwriter and film director.Solomon p.331 He is widely considered the first male Brazilian star in Hollywood. He worked briefly ...

) that he has fallen in love, but finds out that Belinha is engaged to Julio. During rehearsals for the Hotel's opening (a brief bit of Astaire tap), Fred is told by police that the hotel lacks an entertainment license. When Roger spots a plane overhead, he comes up with the idea of strapping dancing girls to planes, with Fred leading the band and Honey and Julio leading the planes. The show is a great success and the hotel's future guaranteed. Julio gives Belinha up to Roger while Fred and Honey celebrate.

Cast

as Belinha De Rezende * Gene Raymond as Roger Bond *

as Julio Ribeiro *

as Honey Hales *

as Fred Ayres *

as Dona Elena * Walter Walker, as Belinha's father *

Etta Moten Etta Moten Barnett (November 5, 1901 – January 2, 2004) was an American actress and contralto vocalist, who was identified with her signature role of "Bess" in ''Porgy and Bess''. She created new roles for African-American women on stage ...

as The Carioca Singer *

Roy D'Arcy Roy D'Arcy (born Roy Francis Giusti; February 10, 1894 – November 15, 1969) was an American film actor of the silent film and early sound period of the 1930s noted for his portrayal of flamboyant villains. He appeared in 50 different films ...

as Member Greek Gambling Syndicate * Maurice Black as Member Greek Gambling Syndicate * Armand Kaliz as Member Greek Gambling Syndicate * Paul Porcasi as The Mayor * Reginald Barlow as Alfredo Vianna (the banker) *

as Mr. Butterbass, Assistant Hotel Manager *

as Hammerstein, Hotel Manager

Music

All the songs in ''Flying Down to Rio'' were written by

(music) and

and

(lyrics). The dance director was Dave Gould, assisted by Hermes Pan, who went on to become Astaire's primary collaborator. * "Flying Down to Rio" – sung by Fred Astaire, danced by Ginger Rogers and the chorus * "Music Makes Me" – sung by Ginger Rogers, some general dancing * "Orchids in Moonlight" – sung by Raul Roulien, danced (a bit) by Fred Astaire and Dolores del Rio; this became a popular

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

song * "

" – sung by

Alice Gentle Alice Gentle (June 30, 1885 – February 28, 1958) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano. Biography She was reportedly born on June 30, 1885, in Chatsworth, Illinois, but Alice appears as a 2 year-old child in the 1880 US Census for her fa ...

, Movita Castaneda and

, danced by Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers and the chorus; this is notable for being Astaire and Rogers' first dance together; they dance with their foreheads touching.

Reception

Mordaunt Hall Mordaunt Hall (1 November 1878 – 2 July 1973) was the first regularly assigned motion picture critic for ''The New York Times'', working from October 1924 to September 1934.The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' critic, praised the lavish production and called it (along with the Walt Disney short ''

The Night Before Christmas ''A Visit from St. Nicholas'', more commonly known as ''The Night Before Christmas'' and ''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously under the title ''Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas'' i ...

'') "a thoroughly enjoyable entertainment." The ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' magazine review was less enthused, complaining that "...Rio's story ... lets it down. It’s slow and lacks laughs to the point where average business seems its groove." However, Astaire was singled out for acclaim, asserting "He's distinctly likeable on the screen, the mike is kind to his voice and as a dancer he remains in a class by himself." According to RKO records, the film made $923,000 in the United States and Canada and $622,000 elsewhere, resulting in an estimated profit of $480,000. The film was nominated for the 2006

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

list AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals, and "Carioca" was nominated for AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs. The film title was referenced by

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry—who became the band's lead vocalist and principal songwriter—and bassist Graham Simpson. The other longtime members are Phil Manzanera (guitar), Andy Mackay (saxophone ...

in their 1972 hit single " Virginia Plain" - " Baby Jane's in

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has ...

/ We are flying down to Rio".

Notes

External links

* * * * *
Airplanes Represented in the film Flying Down to Rio
{{Authority control 1933 films 1933 musical comedy films 1933 romantic comedy films American black-and-white films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films Films scored by Max Steiner Films about aviation accidents or incidents Films about composers American films based on plays Films directed by Thornton Freeland Films set in Miami Films set in Rio de Janeiro (city) RKO Pictures films Films with screenplays by Cyril Hume 1930s American films