''Walk, Don't Run'' is a 1966 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film directed by

Charles Walters Charles Powell Walters (November 17, 1911 – August 13, 1982) was an American Hollywood director and choreographer most noted for his work in MGM musicals and comedies from the 1940s to the 1960s. Early years Charles Walters was born in Pasad ...

(his final theatrical release), and 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 o ...

(in his final film role),

Samantha Eggar Victoria Louise Samantha Marie Elizabeth Therese Eggar (born 5 March 1939) is a retired British-American actress. After beginning her career in Shakespearean theatre she rose to fame for her performance in William Wyler's thriller ''The Collect ...

, and

Jim Hutton Dana James Hutton (May 31, 1934 – June 2, 1979) was an American actor in film and television best remembered for his role as Ellery Queen in the 1970s TV series of the same name, and his screen partnership with Paula Prentiss in four films, ...

. The film is set during the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

in Tokyo and is a remake of the 1943 film ''

The More the Merrier ''The More the Merrier'' is a 1943 American comedy film by Columbia Pictures starring Jean Arthur, Joel McCrea and Charles Coburn, and directed by George Stevens. The film script — from "Two's a Crowd", an original screenplay by Garson Kanin (u ...

''. The title stems from the basic rule of

racewalking Racewalking, or race walking, is a long-distance discipline within the sport of athletics. Although a foot race, it is different from running in that one foot must appear to be in contact with the ground at all times. Referee, Race judges careful ...

: that competitors must not run at any point (both feet leaving the ground).

Plot

In 1964, important British businessman Sir William Rutland arrives two days early in Tokyo and encounters a housing shortage caused by the

. While at the British Embassy seeking help, he spots an advertisement for a roommate and soon finds himself at the residence of Christine Easton, who insists it would be improper to take him in as a housemate. Easton had forgotten to advertise that she wanted to sublet to a woman, but eventually, lets Rutland stay. Rutland sublets half of his space to American Olympic competitor Steve Davis, without consulting Easton. While Easton is less than thrilled with the arrangement, she has to put up with it, as she has already spent Rutland's share of the rent. Rutland sets about playing matchmaker for the two young people, in spite of their disparate personalities and Easton's engagement to a boringly dependable British diplomat, Julius D. Haversack. Davis repeatedly dodges questions about his Olympic sport. Rutland meddles in the young couple's romantic troubles. To further his matchmaking, he strips down to his

boxer shorts Boxer shorts (also known as loose boxers or as simply boxers) are a type of undergarment typically worn by men. The term has been used in English since 1944 for all-around-elastic shorts, so named after the shorts worn by boxers, for whom unhinde ...

and a

T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a ''crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are general ...

so he can pretend to be a competitor and talk to Davis during his event, the 50-kilometre

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

, and eventually heals the breach between the young lovers.

Cast

Production

Filming locations were at the

Hotel Okura Tokyo is a luxury hotel opened in 1962 in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It is operated by Okura Hotels and was a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. The historic main wing was demolished in 2015, with a modern replacement on the site opened in 2019, ...

Embassy of the United Kingdom, Tokyo The British Embassy, Tokyo (駐日英国大使館 ''Chūnichi Eikoku Taishikan'') is the chief diplomatic mission of the United Kingdom in Japan, with the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Japan being the chief of mission. The embassy compound m ...

, and

Yoyogi National Gymnasium Yoyogi National Gymnasium, officially is an indoor arena located at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, which is famous for its suspension roof design. It was designed by Kenzo Tange and built between 1961 and 1964 to house swimming and d ...

. Grant retired from acting to focus on raising

his daughter ''His Daughter'' is a 1911 American short silent drama film directed by D. W. Griffith, starring Edwin August and featuring Blanche Sweet. Cast * Edwin August - William Whittier * Florence Barker - Mary * Linda Arvidson * Wilfred Lucas * Mac ...

. He died in 1986.

Score

The film's music was composed by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

, with

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...

contributing to the writing of the songs "Stay with Me" and "Happy Feet".

Personnel

–

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, conductor *

Toots Thielemans Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans (29 April 1922 – 22 August 2016), known professionally as Toots Thielemans, was a Belgian jazz musician. He was mostly known for his chromatic harmonica playing, as well as his guitar and whistl ...

–

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

whistle A whistle is an instrument which produces sound from a stream of gas, most commonly air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means. Whistles vary in size from a small slide whistle or nose flute type to a larg ...

s *

Harry "Sweets" Edison Harry "Sweets" Edison (October 10, 1915 – July 27, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard backi ...

–

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

Bud Shank Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. (May 27, 1926 – April 2, 2009) was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and thro ...

– reeds *

Earl Palmer Earl Cyril Palmer (October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008) was an American drummer. Considered one of the inventors of rock and roll, he is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Palmer was one of the most prolific studio musicians of al ...

–

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Carol Kaye Carol Kaye (née Smith, born March 24, 1935) is an American musician. She is one of the most prolific recorded bass guitarists in rock and pop music, playing on an estimated 10,000 recordings in a career spanning over 50 years. Kaye began play ...

–

electric bass The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck The ...

Emil Richards Emil Richards (born Emilio Joseph Radocchia; September 2, 1932 – December 13, 2019) was an American vibraphonist and percussionist. Biography Musician Richards began playing the xylophone aged six. In High School, he performed with the Hartfor ...

–

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

* Don Elliot Voices –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

on "Happy Feet" * Tony Clementi – vocals on "Stay with Me" * Jack Hayes,

Leo Shuken Leo Shuken (born December 8, 1906, Los Angeles, California - d. July 24, 1976, Santa Monica, California) was an American film music composer, arranger, and musical director. Shuken composed for the music industry from the end of the 1930s until ...

– orchestrations *

Richard Hazard Richard Hazard (March 2, 1921 – December 20, 2000) was an American television composer, orchestrator, conductor and songwriter. He was born in Trenton, New Jersey, and died in Los Angeles, California, of cancer. He was married to Jeanne T ...

– vocal orchestrations

Reception

The film grossed $7,500,000 at the box office, earning $4.5 million in US theatrical rentals."Big Rental Pictures of 1966", ''

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), ...

'', 4 January 1967 pg 8 It was the 29th highest grossing film of 1966.

References

Bibliography

* Reid, John Howard. "''Walk, Don't Run.''" ''Reid's Film Index'', no. 36 (1998): 178–181.

External links

* * * *
Historic reviews, photo gallery
at CaryGrant.net {{Charles Walters 1966 films 1966 romantic comedy films 1960s American films 1960s English-language films 1960s sports comedy films American romantic comedy films American sports comedy films Columbia Pictures films Comedy film remakes English-language romantic comedy films English-language sports comedy films Films about the 1964 Summer Olympics Films about Olympic track and field Films directed by Charles Walters Films produced by Sol C. Siegel Films scored by Quincy Jones Films set in 1964 Films set in Tokyo Japan in non-Japanese culture Remakes of American films Romance film remakes