"Put the Blame on Mame" is a song by Allan Roberts and Doris Fisher, originally written for the classic

film noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American ' ...

'' Gilda'' (1946) in which it was sung by the title character, played by Rita Hayworth with the singing voice of

Anita Kert Ellis Anita Ellis (née Kert, later Shapiro; April 12, 1920 – October 28, 2015) was a Canadian-born American singer and actress. She famously dubbed Rita Hayworth's songs in ''Gilda''. Early years Anita Kert was born in Montreal, Quebec, the eldest ...

dubbed in. In keeping with the film character Gilda being "the ultimate

femme fatale A ''femme fatale'' ( or ; ), sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of ...

", the song sung by her in two scenes facetiously credits the amorous activities of a woman named "Mame" as the true cause of three well-known cataclysmic events in American history:

The Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

of 1871, the

Great Blizzard of 1888 The Great Blizzard of 1888, also known as the Great Blizzard of '88 or the Great White Hurricane (March 11–14, 1888), was one of the most severe recorded blizzards in American history. The storm paralyzed the East Coast from the Chesapeake Ba ...

in New York City and the

1906 San Francisco earthquake At 05:12 Pacific Standard Time on Wednesday, April 18, 1906, the coast of Northern California was struck by a major earthquake with an estimated moment magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). High-intensity sha ...

. Mame is also credited with causing the fictional shooting of Dan McGrew during the Yukon Gold Rush, an event derived from a short narrative poem published in 1907 by Robert W. Service. The song was later reprised as an instrumental version in another quintessential noir film, 1953's '' The Big Heat'', when ''Gilda'' star Glenn Ford first meets Lee Marvin's character in a bar. It is again played in 1954's '' Human Desire'', also starring Glenn Ford. It was later also recorded by: *

Gypsy Rose Lee Gypsy Rose Lee (born Rose Louise Hovick, January 8, 1911 – April 26, 1970) was an American burlesque entertainer, stripper and vedette famous for her striptease act. Also an actress, author, and playwright, her 1957 memoir was adapted into ...

in the movie '' Screaming Mimi'' * Gale Robbins in the movie '' The Fuller Brush Girl'' *

Nat Gonella & His Georgians Nathaniel Charles Gonella (7 March 1908 – 6 August 1998) was an English jazz trumpeter, bandleader, vocalist, and mellophonist. He founded the big band The Georgians, during the British dance band era. Early life and career Gonella was bo ...

* Barbara Hale in the movie '' The Houston Story'' * Liane Foly * John Williams and His Orchestra *

Milt Herth Milton "Milt" Herth (November 3, 1902 – June 18, 1969) was an American jazz organist, known for his work on the Hammond organ soon after it was introduced in 1935. Herth's work is available from his recordings of the 1930s and 1940s. Bi ...

Trio * Somethin' Smith and the Redheads *

Tapio Rautavaara Kaj Tapio Rautavaara (8 March 1915 – 25 September 1979) was a Finnish singer (bass-baritone), athlete and film actor. Life Early years Tapio Rautavaara was born in the municipality of Pirkkala (now Nokia), a suburb of the industrial city o ...

(in Finnish) *

Viktor Lazlo The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * Victor (1951 film), ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * Victor (1993 film), ...

(for her debut album, ''

She She most commonly refers to: *She (pronoun), the third person singular, feminine, nominative case pronoun in modern English. She or S.H.E. may also refer to: Literature and films *'' She: A History of Adventure'', an 1887 novel by H. Rider Hagga ...

'') * Mark Murphy *

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Lynda Carter Lynda Jean Cordova Carter (born July 24, 1951) is an American actress, singer, and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss World USA 1972 and finished in the top 15 at the Miss World 1972 pageant. Carter is best known as the star of th ...

performed the song while playing the title role in '' Rita Hayworth: The Love Goddess''. * Marjorie Lord in '' The Danny Thomas Show'', season 5, episode 19 * Patsy Kensit in the film ''

Prince of Shadows ''Beltenebros'', also known as ''Prince of Shadows'', is a 1991 Spanish crime- thriller mystery film co-written and directed by Pilar Miró and starring Terence Stamp, Patsy Kensit, José Luis Gómez, Geraldine James and Simón Andreu. It was ...

'' A clip of Hayworth singing the song in ''Gilda'' was to be included in Michael Jackson's performance of " Smooth Criminal" in the planned show '' This Is It''; the song was included in the posthumously released

film version A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...

. In 2004, "Put the Blame on Mame" finished #84 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of the top tunes in American cinema.

References

External links

Hebrew version of the song at Zemereshet.co.il
{{Authority control Songs about fictional female characters Film theme songs 1946 songs Songs written for films Songs written by Doris Fisher (songwriter) Songs about Chicago Songs written by Allan Roberts (songwriter)