''The Art of Love'' is a 1965

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 ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Norman Jewison Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best D ...

and starring

James Garner James Garner (born James Scott Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, including '' The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy Chayefsky's ''The Ameri ...

Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. His award-winning career has spanned seven decades in film, television, and stage. Van Dyke began his career as an entertainer on radio and telev ...

, Elke Sommer, and

Angie Dickinson Angeline Dickinson (née Brown; born September 30, 1931) is an American actress. She began her career on television, appearing in many anthology series during the 1950s, before gaining her breakthrough role in ''Gun the Man Down'' (1956) wit ...

. The film involves an American artist in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

(Van Dyke) who fakes his own death in order to increase the worth of his paintings (new paintings keep "posthumously" hitting the market). His conniving pal (Garner) sells the paintings and withholds the proceeds while the artist toils in a shabby

garret A garret is a habitable attic, a living space at the top of a house or larger residential building, traditionally, small, dismal, and cramped, with sloping ceilings. In the days before elevators this was the least prestigious position in a bu ...

. The picture was written by

Carl Reiner Carl Reiner (March 20, 1922 – June 29, 2020) was an American actor, stand-up comedian, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned seven decades. He was the recipient of many awards and honors, including 11 Primetime Emmy Awards, ...

(from a story by

Richard Alan Simmons Richard Alan Simmons (October 11, 1924 – November 13, 2004) was a Canadian-American screenwriter. Simmons was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. After the war, he graduated from the ...

and William Sackheim). The supporting cast features

and

Ethel Merman Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann, January 16, 1908 – February 15, 1984) was an American actress and singer, known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and for leading roles in musical theatre.Obituary ''Variety'', February 22, 1984. ...

. Jewison noted in his autobiography that the film's flaw was that the script assumes that an artist's death guarantees a huge increase in the sales value of his paintings. That hurt audiences' responses to the movie enormously. All of the paintings that were used in the movie were the work of international artist Don Cincone.

Plot

An aspiring artist, Paul Sloane, struggles in Paris and wants to return home to America to resume his relationship with his rich fiancee, Laurie. His best friend and roommate, Casey Barnett, tries to talk him out of it. When a beautiful woman, Nikki Donay, suddenly leaps into the river Seine to escape a man's attentions, Paul jumps in to save her. They make it to a barge, but Casey and everyone else is under the mistaken impression that neither survived. Casey gets an idea—a dead artist's paintings could now be very valuable, particularly considering the publicity given Paul's heroic attempt to save the damsel in distress. He begins selling Paul's work, but when the artist himself reappears, very much alive, they hatch a scheme. Paul will pretend to still be dead while continuing to produce paintings for Casey to sell. Matters become further complicated when Laurie comes to Paris. Casey falls in love with her. This infuriates his best friend, resulting in Paul seeking revenge by slipping evidence to the police that Casey actually murdered him to profit from the art. Casey is tried, convicted and sentenced to death, by

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

. Paul attempts to save Casey at the last minute.

Cast

.... Casey Barnett *

.... Paul Sloane/Toulouse aka Picasso * Elke Sommer .... Nikki *

.... Laurie Gibson *

.... Madame Coco La Fontaine *

.... Rodin *

Pierre Olaf Pierre Olaf (14 July 1928 – 16 September 1995) was a French actor, cabaret artist, and clown. He first achieved success as a stage actor in Paris in the musical revues of Robert Dhéry. He achieved particular acclaim in Dhéry's ''Jupon Volé'' ...

.... Carnot *

Miiko Taka (born Miiko Shikata July 24, 1925 – January 2023) was an American actress, popular for her film and TV roles from the late 1950s until the early 1980s. Her best known role was as an elegant Japanese dancer starring opposite Marlon Brando in t ...

.... Chou Chou * Roger C. Carmel .... Zorgus * Irving Jacobson .... Mr. Fromkis *

Jay Novello Jay Novello (born Michael Romano, August 22, 1904 – September 2, 1982) was an American radio, film, and television character actor. Early life Novello was born in Chicago to Joseph Romano and Maria (Salemme) Romano. He had three sibling ...

.... Janitor *

Paul Préboist Paul Préboist (21 February 1927 – 4 March 1997) was a French actor. He appeared in more than hundred films, mostly in supporting roles, and is best known as a comic actor. Filmography Theater References External links *Paul Préboist ...

.... Bus Driver

References

External links

* * *
James Garner Interview on the ''Charlie Rose Show''

James Garner interview
at Archive of American Television 1965 films 1965 comedy films American comedy films 1960s English-language films Films about fictional painters Films directed by Norman Jewison Films produced by Ross Hunter Films scored by Cy Coleman Films set in Paris Films with screenplays by Carl Reiner Universal Pictures films 1960s American films {{1960s-comedy-film-stub