''Holiday for Lovers'' is a 1959 DeLuxe in

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

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 o ...

directed by Henry Levin. Based on a 1957 play of the same title by Ronald Alexander, the film stars

Clifton Webb Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966), known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked extensively and was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, i ...

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

Jill St. John Jill St. John (born Jill Arlyn Oppenheim; August 19, 1940) is a retired American actress. She may be best known for playing Tiffany Case, the first American Bond girl of the 007 franchise, in '' Diamonds Are Forever''. Additional performances i ...

and

Carol Lynley Carol Lynley (born Carole Ann Jones; February 13, 1942 – September 3, 2019) was an American actress known for her roles in the films ''Blue Denim'' (1959) and '' The Poseidon Adventure'' (1972). Lynley was born in Manhattan to an Irish ...

Plot

Robert Dean is an old-fashioned psychologist who reluctantly allows his oldest daughter Meg to join a four-week tour in South America before returning to college. When he learns that she is planning on six more weeks in

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaW ...

, he travels to Brazil, accompanied by his wife Mary and younger daughter Betsy. Upon arriving, Robert is displeased with the changes to Meg's character, as she has begun habits that are shocking to Robert, such as smoking. He mistakenly believes that Meg is interested in her older mentor Eduardo Barroso, but she is engaged to be married to Barroso's son Carlos. Meanwhile, Betsy is enjoying the attention that she is receiving from members of the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

and falls in love with Sgt. Paul Gattling. Back at the hotel, Carlos is reluctant to meet Meg's parents, fearing that they will disapprove of his

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

lifestyle. Carlos makes a horrible impression on Robert, who tries to prohibit Meg from seeing him by booking a flight for the family to

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 ...

and then on to

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

. Feeling betrayed by her father, Meg calls Carlos to tell him goodbye, but he responds by accusing her of leading her father's life. Carlos and Eduardo follow her to Lima, where Carlos and Meg are reunited at a

bullfight Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms wh ...

. Paul, who has also come to Lima as well, proposes to Betsy, but she rejects him, explaining she is not ready to marry. Later that night, Eduardo and Carlos announce that they are returning to São Paulo the following day. Robert reluctantly allows his daughter to accompany Carlos. After bidding Meg farewell, Robert visits a bar, gets drunk and falls unconscious on the street, where he is mistaken for a member of a Spanish tour group. When he awakes, Robert finds himself on a plane bound for

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, and he is eventually dropped off in

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

. There, he phones Meg to offer his sincere blessing to marry Carlos, but she announces that she no longer loves Carlos. Betsy asks Robert for permission to wed Paul, but her father declares that she is old enough to make her own decisions. She then becomes officially engaged to Paul.

Cast

as Robert Dean *

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

as Mrs. Mary Dean *

as Meg Dean *

as Betsy Dean * Paul Henreid as Eduardo Barroso * Gary Crosby as Tech Sgt. Paul Gattling * Nico Minardos as Carlos Barroso *

Wally Brown Wallace Edgar Brown (October 8, 1904 – November 13, 1961) was an American actor and comedian. In the 1940s, he performed as the comic partner of Alan Carney. Early years Wallace Edgar Brown was born in Malden, Massachusetts, the son of Her ...

as Joe McDougal *

Henny Backus Henny Backus (born Henrietta Kaye, March 21, 1911 – December 9, 2004) was a Broadway showgirl in the 1930s whose stage credits include Orson Welles's '' Horse Eats Hat''. She was the wife of actor and comedian Jim Backus. Career Henrietta ...

as Connie McDougal *

José Greco José Greco ( Costanzo Greco; December 23, 1918 – December 31, 2000) was an Italian-born American flamenco dancer and choreographer known for popularizing Spanish dance on the stage and screen in America mostly in the 1950s and 1960s. Backgr ...

as Dancer * Nora O'Mahoney as Mrs. Murphy * Ingrid Goude as Receptionist

Production

In March 1957,

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

bought the rights to the play, which had premiered a month earlier. Gene Tierney was initially set to star as Mrs. Mary Dean, but she withdrew at the last minute because of illness. In February 1959, the studio negotiated with

Joan Fontaine Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland (October 22, 1917 – December 15, 2013), known professionally as Joan Fontaine, was a British-American actress who is best known for her starring roles in Hollywood films during the "Golden Age". Fontaine appeared ...

to replace her, but Fontaine collapsed and

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

was finally assigned the role. In August 1957,

Suzy Parker Suzy Parker (born Cecilia Ann Renee Parker; October 28, 1932 – May 3, 2003) was an American model and actress active from 1947 until 1970. Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s, when she appeared on the covers of dozens of ma ...

was cast in a role, but she eventually withdrew. The role of Meg was originally offered in January 1959 to

Diane Varsi Diane Marie Antonia Varsi (February 23, 1938 – November 19, 1992) was an American film actressHyams, Joe (December 16, 1957)"In Hollywood: Diane Varsi Sees Herself as 'Just an Actor,' Not Star" ''New York Herald Tribune''. p. 15. Retri ...

, but she refused it and abandoned her contract with 20th Century Fox only months later. Diane Baker was announced as her replacement, but the role eventually went to

. Background shots were filmed on location in early 1959. Most of the filming took place in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro,

Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the ...

, Lockheed Airport and

Clover Field Santa Monica Airport (Santa Monica Municipal Airport) is a general aviation airport largely in Santa Monica, California, United States. The airport is about from the Pacific Ocean (Santa Monica Bay) and north of Los Angeles International Ai ...

Reception

In a contemporary review for ''

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

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though his ...

called the character of Robert Dean a "disgustingly old-fashioned creature" and panned the film: "It is a thoroughly silly story, which is not in the least improved by the wishy-washy acting of everyone involved. ... u have to endure a lot of nonsense from this synthetic family and the people they meet. Obviously, it would have been better if these Yanks had stayed at home." The ''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the Alle ...

'' offered lukewarm praise for the film as being "light, frothy and splendidly photographed" but singled out Carol Lynley's performance: " rt little Miss Carol Lynley easily steals the show. Her bright-eyed view of the world around her is utterly infectious. She walks, talks and otherwise behaves like the teenager she is, with a most refreshing lack of artificiality. What is even more remarkable, Miss Lynley manages all this despite the almost incredible obstacle presented by having to play opposite the hopelessly untalented Mr. Gary Crosby impersonating a sergeant."

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Holiday For Lovers 1959 films 1959 comedy films 20th Century Fox films American films based on plays Films set in Boston Films set in São Paulo Films set in Peru Films set in Rio de Janeiro (city) Films shot in Rio de Janeiro (city) Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in Peru Films directed by Henry Levin Films shot in São Paulo Films scored by Leigh Harline 1950s English-language films