''Meet Danny Wilson'' is a 1952 American

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

musical film directed by Joseph Pevney and starring Frank Sinatra,

Shelley Winters Shelley Winters (born Shirley Schrift; August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was an American actress whose career spanned seven decades. She appeared in numerous films. She won Academy Awards for ''The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and ''A Patch o ...

and Alex Nicol. Sinatra, during his famous career slump between his bobby-soxer heyday and ''

From Here to Eternity ''From Here to Eternity'' is a 1953 American drama romance war film directed by Fred Zinnemann, and written by Daniel Taradash, based on the 1951 novel of the same name by James Jones. The picture deals with the tribulations of three U.S. A ...

'' (1953), plays a small-time singer, who vaults to the top of his profession, only to be threatened by a gangster (

Raymond Burr Raymond William Stacy Burr (May 21, 1917September 12, 1993) was a Canadian actor known for his lengthy Hollywood film career and his title roles in television dramas ''Perry Mason'' and '' Ironside''. Burr's early acting career included roles ...

). The circumstances of the making of this film are legendary, as Shelley Winters and Frank Sinatra hated each other. Winters, according to Kitty Kelley's "His Way", at one point in a pique of anger slugged Sinatra. He did not retaliate.

Plot

Hot-tempered singer Danny Wilson and easy-going pianist pal Mike Ryan get acquainted with Joy Carroll, also a singer. Danny slugs a cop and is thrown in jail, but Joy arranges his bail and a job at mobster Nick Driscoll's club. Danny's got double trouble because Nick not only demands 50% of all earnings, past and future, but also jealously loves Joy. The cops are keeping an eye on Nick, a suspect in a murder. Joy eventually realizes that she truly loves Mike, but he is reluctant to steal his best friend's girl. Danny brashly announces his engagement to Joy without first consulting her. Danny catches her with Mike, gets drunk, and punches Nick, who pulls a gun. Mike intercepts the bullet meant for his friend. Cops follow Danny to a park, where he intends to get even with Nick. At the last second, the police save him. Danny comes to accept the romance of Joy and Mike, who happily come to see him at his next big engagement on stage.

Cast

* Frank Sinatra as Danny Wilson *

as Joy Carroll * Alex Nicol as Mike Ryan *

as Nick Driscoll alias Joe Martell *

Vaughn Taylor Vaughn Joseph Taylor (born March 9, 1976) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour. Born in Roanoke, Virginia, Taylor was raised in Augusta, Georgia, from infancy. After attending Hephzibah High Sch ...

as T.W. Hatcher * Tommy Farrell as Tommy Wells *

Donald MacBride Donald Hugh MacBride (June 23, 1893 – June 21, 1957) was an American character actor on stage, in films, and on television who launched his career as a teenage singer (making several recordings in 1907) in vaudeville and went on to be an ...

as Police Desk Sergeant * Barbara Knudson as Marie * Carl Sklover as Cab driver

Production

The film features cameos from

Tony Curtis Tony Curtis (born Bernard Schwartz; June 3, 1925September 29, 2010) was an American actor whose career spanned six decades, achieving the height of his popularity in the 1950s (Kansas Raiders, 1950) and early 1960s. He acted in more than 100 f ...

and

Jeff Chandler Jeff Chandler (born Ira Grossel; yi, יראַ גראָססעל; December 15, 1918 – June 17, 1961) was an American actor, film producer, and singer, best remembered for playing Cochise in '' Broken Arrow'' (1950), for which he was no ...

. Sinatra had gone through a painful separation from first wife Nancy Sr. before the filming. Due to a major career slump, money issues and his volatile relationship with

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...

, Sinatra began to lose weight from his already thin frame. Co-star Shelley Winters, already in a contentious feud with the star, began to get concerned because she was looking increasingly bulky by comparison.

Songs

• "You're a Sweetheart" (music by

Jimmy McHugh James Francis McHugh (July 10, 1894 – May 23, 1969) was an American composer. One of the most prolific songwriters from the 1920s to the 1950s, he is credited with over 500 songs. His songs were recorded by many artists, including Chet Baker, Ju ...

; lyrics by

Harold Adamson Harold Campbell Adamson (December 10, 1906 – August 17, 1980) was an American lyricist during the 1930s and 1940s. Early life Adamson, the son of building contractor Harold Adamson and Marion "Minnie" Campbell Adamson, was born and raised in ...

) – Performed by Frank Sinatra • "Lonesome Man Blues" (written by

Sy Oliver Melvin James "Sy" Oliver (December 17, 1910 – May 28, 1988) was an American jazz arranger, trumpeter, composer, singer and bandleader. Life Sy Oliver was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. His mother was a piano teacher, and his ...

) – Performed by Frank Sinatra with Danny Welton on harmonica • "

She's Funny That Way "She's Funny That Way" or "He's Funny That Way" is a popular song, composed by Neil Moret, with lyrics by Richard Whiting. It was composed for the short film ''Gems of MGM'' in 1929 for Marion Harris, but the film was not released until 1931. Harr ...

" (music by

Neil Moret Neil is a masculine name of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an anglicisation of the Irish ''Niall'' which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion".. ...

; lyrics by Richard A. Whiting) – Performed by Frank Sinatra • "

A Good Man Is Hard to Find ''A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories'' (published in the United Kingdom as ''The Artificial Nigger and Other Tales'') is a collection of short stories by American author Flannery O'Connor. The collection was first published in 1955. The ...

" (written by Eddie Green) – Performed by Shelley Winters; Reprised by Frank Sinatra and Shelley Winters • "

That Old Black Magic "That Old Black Magic" is a 1942 popular song written by Harold Arlen (music), with the lyrics by Johnny Mercer. They wrote it for the 1942 film '' Star Spangled Rhythm'', when it was sung by Johnny Johnston and danced by Vera Zorina. The song ...

" (music by Harold Arlen; lyrics by Johnny Mercer – Performed by Frank Sinatra • "

When You're Smiling "When You're Smiling" is a popular song written by Larry Shay, Mark Fisher and Joe Goodwin in 1928. It bears resemblance to the Spanish Canción " Amapola" by José María Lacalle García. Early popular recordings were by Seger Ellis (1928) ...

" (written by

Mark Fisher Mark Fisher (11 July 1968 – 13 January 2017), also known under his blogging alias k-punk, was an English writer, music critic, political and cultural theorist, philosopher, and teacher based in the Department of Visual Cultures at Goldsm ...

, Joe Goodwin and

Larry Shay Larry Shay ''(né'' Lawrence Fredrick Schaetzlein; 10 August 1897 Chicago – 22 February 1988 Newport Beach, California) was an American songwriter. Shay was born in Chicago, Illinois. While still young, he studied the piano at the Bush Conservat ...

) – Performed by Frank Sinatra • " All of Me" (music by

Gerald Marks Gerald Marks (October 13, 1900 – January 27, 1997) was an American composer from Saginaw, Michigan. He was best known for the song " All of Me" which he co-wrote with Seymour Simons and has been recorded about 2,000 times. He also wrote the s ...

; lyrics by

Seymour Simons Seymour Simons (January 14, 1896 – February 12, 1949) was an American pianist, composer, orchestra leader, and radio producer. Biography Simons born in Detroit, Michigan, was originally trained in engineering and went to work as a researc ...

) – Performed by Frank Sinatra • "

I've Got a Crush on You "I've Got a Crush on You" is a song composed by George Gershwin, with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It is unique among Gershwin compositions in that it was used for two different Broadway productions: '' Treasure Girl'' (1928), when it was introduced ...

" (music by

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

; lyrics by Ira Gershwin) – Performed by Frank Sinatra • " How Deep Is the Ocean?" (written by

Irving Berlin Irving Berlin (born Israel Beilin; yi, ישראל ביילין; May 11, 1888 – September 22, 1989) was a Russian-American composer, songwriter and lyricist. His music forms a large part of the Great American Songbook. Born in Imperial Russ ...

) – Performed by Frank Sinatra

References

External links

* * * {{Joseph Pevney 1952 films 1950s musical drama films 1950s romantic musical films American musical drama films American romantic musical films Films about singers Films directed by Joseph Pevney Universal Pictures films 1952 drama films American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films