''Night and Day'' is a 1946
Technicolor
Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades.
Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
Warner Bros. biographical and musical film starring
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one of ...
, in a fictionalized account of the life of American composer and songwriter
Cole Porter
Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film.
Born to ...
.
The movie was directed by
Michael Curtiz
Michael Curtiz ( ; born Manó Kaminer; since 1905 Mihály Kertész; hu, Kertész Mihály; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed cla ...
and produced by
Arthur Schwartz
Arthur Schwartz (November 25, 1900 – September 3, 1984) was an American composer and film producer, widely noted for his songwriting collaborations with Howard Dietz.
Biography
Early life
Schwartz was born in Brooklyn, New York City, on Nov ...
, with
Jack L. Warner
Jack Leonard Warner (born Jacob Warner; August 2, 1892 – September 9, 1978) was a Canadian-American film executive, who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. Warner's career spanned some ...
as executive producer. The screenplay was written by
Charles Hoffman,
Leo Townsend and
William Bowers.
The music score by
Ray Heindorf and
Max Steiner was nominated for an
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
. The film features several of the best-known Porter songs, including the title song "
Night and Day," "
Begin the Beguine
"Begin the Beguine" is a popular song written by Cole Porter. Porter composed the song between Kalabahi, Indonesia, and Fiji during a 1935 Pacific cruise aboard Cunard's ocean liner ''Franconia''. In October 1935, it was introduced by June Kni ...
," and "
My Heart Belongs to Daddy
"My Heart Belongs to Daddy" is a song written by Cole Porter, for the 1938 musical '' Leave It to Me!'' which premiered on November 9, 1938. It was originally performed by Mary Martin, who played Dolly Winslow, the young " protégée" of a rich ...
."
Alexis Smith
Margaret Alexis Fitzsimmons-Smith (June 8, 1921 – June 9, 1993) was a Canadian-born American actress and singer. She appeared in several major Hollywood films in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Awar ...
plays
Linda Lee Porter, Porter's wife of 35 years.
Monty Woolley
Edgar Montilion "Monty" Woolley (August 17, 1888May 6, 1963) was an American film and theater actor.Obituary '' Variety'', May 8, 1963, page 223. At the age of 50, he achieved a measure of stardom for his role in the 1939 stage play '' The Man ...
and
Mary Martin
Mary Virginia Martin (December 1, 1913 – November 3, 1990) was an American actress and singer. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles on stage over her career, including Nellie Forbush in ''South Pacific'' (194 ...
appear as themselves.
Production
Jack Warner paid $300,000 for the rights to Cole Porter's best known songs, and viewed the film as a "big-budget extravaganza" that would celebrate Warner Brothers' twenty years in sound films. The scriptwriters knew that the film would need to be fictionalized, because he lacked the "rags to riches" quality common to subjects of biographical films, and was gay. Depictions of homosexuality were prohibited by film industry's
Production Code
The Motion Picture Production Code was a set of industry guidelines for the self-censorship of content that was applied to most motion pictures released by major studios in the United States from 1934 to 1968. It is also popularly known as the ...
.
Warner paid Grant $100,000 and bought out his contract at
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
at a considerably greater sum. Grant and Curtiz clashed often, with much of the fighting over a script Grant viewed as weak, with "lousy characterizations." Much of the script was rewritten at his behest. Grant sometimes refused to act in scenes that he felt were poorly written, and was critical of other aspects of production. He later recalled that Curtiz lost his temper so much that the director sometimes lost his train of thought.
Grant sings several of the songs, which made ''Night and Day'' the closest he came to making a musical after the end of his stage career. He was described by his biographer as a "competent though not a very expressive singer."
Production of the film was impeded by a 1945 strike of the Conference of Studio Workers, who represented film
set builders.
Cast
Plot summary
The film is an almost entirely fictionalized
version of the life of Cole Porter from his college days at Yale University, where he is studying law at the encouragement of his grandfather. One of his law professors, Monty Woolley, playing himself, encourages his song-writing.
Porter abandons study of law and Woolley leaves Yale as well. Porter's songwriting is interrupted by
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, cavalry, engineers, airborne troops. It was created in 1831 to allow foreign nationals into the French Army ...
service in the First World War, in which he is wounded. He resumes music after the war, and weds Linda, a longtime family friend. Their marriage suffers due to Porter's dedication to his songwriting, which leaves him little time for a personal life.
At the height of his career, after many successes, Porter suffers a serious accident while horseback riding, fracturing both his legs and remaining crippled. Despite many operations he cannot walk without assistance. In the end, he reunites with Linda, who had left him.
Unsurprisingly, the film completely omits any mention of Porter's homosexuality.
Reception
In a review upon release of the film, ''
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 ...
'' called the film "a generally pleasant and musically exciting show." The Times praised the musical numbers and the performances by Grant and Woolley, but noted the straying from historical fact and the thin and conventional scenario the scenarists concocted about the fabulous Mr. Porter."
In 2004, at the debut of another film on Porter's life, ''
De-Lovely
''De-Lovely'' is a 2004 American musical biopic directed by Irwin Winkler and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The screenplay by Jay Cocks is based on the life and career of Cole Porter, from his first meeting with his wife, Linda Lee Thomas, u ...
'', the ''Times'' called Night and Day "so-bad-it's-almost-good." The newspaper recounted that when Night and Day was being filmed, "Orson Welles cracked: 'What will they use for a climax? The only suspense is: will he or won't he accumulate $10 million?'"
Musical numbers
# "I'm in Love Again" – sung and danced by Jane Wyman
# "Bulldog, Bulldog" – sung by Cary Grant and male chorus
# "
In the Still of the Night" – sung by Dorothy Malone (dubbed by Bobbie Canvin) and chorus
# "Old Fashioned Garden" – sung by Cary Grant and Selena Royle
# "You've Got That Thing" – sung by
Paula Drew Paula Drew (born Tamara Victoria Dubin; ) is an American former actress, singer, and commercial spokesperson.
Early years
Drew was born in Detroit as Tamara Victoria Dubin, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Dubin, a factory superintendent and a nur ...
, Pat Clark and Jane Harker
# "
Let's Do It, Let's Fall in Love
"Let's Do It, Let's Fall in Love" (also known as "Let's Do It (Let's Fall in Love)" or simply "Let's Do It") is a popular song written in 1928 by Cole Porter. It was introduced in Porter's first Broadway success, the musical ''Paris'' (1928) by Fre ...
" – sung by Jane Wyman
# "
You Do Something to Me" – sung and danced by Jane Wyman and chorus
# "I'm Unlucky at Gambling" – sung by Eve Arden
# "
Miss Otis Regrets
"Miss Otis Regrets" is a song about the lynching of a society woman after she murders her unfaithful lover. It was composed by Cole Porter in 1934, and first performed by Douglas Byng in ''Hi Diddle Diddle'', a revue that opened on October 3, 19 ...
" – sung by Monty Woolley (as himself)
# "I Wonder What's Become of Sally" – sung by Ginny Simms
# "
What Is This Thing Called Love?
"What Is This Thing Called Love?" is a 1929 popular song written by Cole Porter, for the musical '' Wake Up and Dream''. It was first performed by Elsie Carlisle in March 1929. The song has become a popular jazz standard and one of Porter's most ...
" – sung by Ginny Simms
# "
I've Got You Under My Skin
"I've Got You Under My Skin" is a song written by American composer Cole Porter in 1936. It was introduced that year in the Eleanor Powell musical film ''Born to Dance'' in which it was performed by Virginia Bruce. It was nominated for the Aca ...
" – sung by Ginny Simms and danced by Adam Di Gatano and Jane Di Gatano
# "
Rosalie" – sung by chorus
# "
Night and Day" – sung by Bill Days
# "
Just One of Those Things" – sung by Ginny Simms and danced by Estelle Sloan with chorus
# "
You're the Top" – sung by Ginny Simms and Cary Grant
# "
I Get a Kick Out of You
"I Get a Kick Out of You" is a song by Cole Porter, which was first sung in the 1934 Broadway musical '' Anything Goes'', and then in the 1936 film version. Originally sung by Ethel Merman, it has been covered by dozens of prominent performers, ...
" – sung by Ginny Simms and danced by chorus
# "
Easy to Love" – sung by chorus
# "
My Heart Belongs to Daddy
"My Heart Belongs to Daddy" is a song written by Cole Porter, for the 1938 musical '' Leave It to Me!'' which premiered on November 9, 1938. It was originally performed by Mary Martin, who played Dolly Winslow, the young " protégée" of a rich ...
" – sung by Mary Martin (as herself, the original 1938 Broadway performer) and chorus
# "
Do I Love You?
"Do I Love You?" is a 1939 popular song written by Cole Porter, for his musical ''Du Barry Was a Lady'', where it was introduced by Ronald Graham and Ethel Merman.
The song was included in the 1943 film adaptation of the musical, where it was ...
" – a few lines, by "rehearsing" background singer
# "
Don't Fence Me In" – a few lines, in short clip from 1944 movie ''
Hollywood Canteen
The Hollywood Canteen operated at 1451 Cahuenga Boulevard in the Los Angeles, California, neighborhood of Hollywood between October 3, 1942, and November 22, 1945 (Thanksgiving Day), as a club offering food, dancing and entertainment for serv ...
'', sung by
Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...
# "
Begin the Beguine
"Begin the Beguine" is a popular song written by Cole Porter. Porter composed the song between Kalabahi, Indonesia, and Fiji during a 1935 Pacific cruise aboard Cunard's ocean liner ''Franconia''. In October 1935, it was introduced by June Kni ...
" – sung by
Carlos Ramírez and danced by
George Zoritch and
Milada Mladova Milada may refer to:
*Milada (name), a feminine given name
* ''Milada'' (fly), a genus of fly of the family Tachinidae
* ''Milada'' (film), a 2017 Czech biographical film
*Lake Milada
Lake Milada ( cs, Jezero Milada, formerly also known as ''Chab ...
with chorus
# "Bulldog, Bulldog" (reprise) – sung by chorus
# "Night and Day" (reprise) – sung by chorus
Box office
The film was a hit, earning
theatrical rental
A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is fre ...
s of $4,990,000 domestically and $2,428,000 in foreign markets.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
Historic reviews, photo gallery at CaryGrant.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Night And Day (1946 Film)
1946 films
American biographical films
Biographical films about musicians
Films about musical theatre
Films about composers
Films scored by Max Steiner
Films scored by Ray Heindorf
Films scored by Cole Porter
Films directed by Michael Curtiz
Warner Bros. films
American romantic musical films
Films set in Connecticut
Films set in London
1940s biographical films
Cultural depictions of Cole Porter
1940s romantic musical films
1940s English-language films
1940s American films