''The Love Parade'' is a 1929 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

film, directed by

Ernst Lubitsch Ernst Lubitsch (; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as ...

and starring Maurice Chevalier and

Jeanette MacDonald Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American singer and Actor, actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', ''Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow (1934 ...

, involving the marital difficulties of Queen Louise of Sylvania (MacDonald) and her consort, Count Alfred Renard (Chevalier). Despite his love for Louise and his promise to be an obedient husband, Count Alfred finds his role as a figurehead unbearable. The supporting cast features

Lupino Lane Henry William George Lupino (16 June 1892 – 10 November 1959) professionally Lupino Lane, was an English actor and theatre manager, and a member of the famous Lupino family, which eventually included his cousin, the screenwriter/director/actr ...

Lillian Roth Lillian Roth (December 13, 1910 – May 12, 1980) was an American singer and actress. Her life story was told in the 1955 film ''I'll Cry Tomorrow'', in which she was portrayed by Susan Hayward, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best ...

and

Eugene Pallette Eugene William Pallette (July 8, 1889 – September 3, 1954) was an American actor who worked in both the silent and sound eras, performing in more than 240 productions between 1913 and 1946. After an early career as a slender leading man, ...

. The film was directed by Lubitsch from a screenplay by

Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred ...

and

Ernest Vajda Ernest Vajda (born Ernő Vajda; 27 May 1886 in Komárno, Austria-Hungary, today Slovakia – 3 April 1954 in Woodland Hills, California) was a Hungarian actor, playwright, and novelist, but is more famous today for his screenplays. He co-wrote t ...

adapted from the French play ''Le Prince Consort'', written by Jules Chancel and

Leon Xanrof Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...

. The play had previously been adapted for Broadway in 1905 by William Boosey and Cosmo Gordon Lennox. ''The Love Parade'' is notable for being both the film debut of Jeanette MacDonald and the first "talkie" film made by Ernst Lubitsch. The picture was also released in a French-language version called ''Parade d'amour''. Chevalier had thought that he would never be capable of acting as a Royal courtier, and had to be persuaded by Lubitsch. This huge box-office hit appeared just after the

Wall Street crash The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...

, and did much to save the fortunes of

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...

Plot

Count Alfred ( Maurice Chevalier), military attaché to the Sylvanian Embassy in Paris, is ordered back to Sylvania to report to Queen Louise for a reprimand following a string of scandals, including an affair with the ambassador's wife. In the meantime Queen Louise (

), ruler of Sylvania in her own right, is royally fed-up with her subjects' preoccupation with whom she will marry (particularly since they would only be a prince consort) Intrigued rather than offended by Count Alfred's dossier, Queen Louise invites him to dinner when she tries to find a suitable "punishment" for him. Their romance progresses to the point of marriage when, despite his qualms, for love of Louise Alfred agrees to obey the Queen.Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation page 10 However, he soon chafes at the standards of living as a consort, which mainly consist of little to do (where even trying to make suggestions to affairs of state) that forces him to take action.

Cast

* Maurice Chevalier as Count Alfred Renard *

as Queen Louise *

as Jacques *

as Lulu *

as Minister of War *

E. H. Calvert Elisha Helm Calvert (born William Helm; June 27, 1863 – October 5, 1941) was an American film actor and director. He appeared in more than 170 films, as well as directing a further 60 titles. Biography He was born William Helm in Madison, Wi ...

as Sylvanian Ambassador *

Edgar Norton Edgar Norton (born Harry Edgar Mills; August 11, 1868 – February 6, 1953) was an English-born American character actor. Early years Norton was born in Islington in London, England, on August 11, 1868, as Harry Edgar Mills, one of eight childr ...

as Master of Ceremonies *

Lionel Belmore Lionel Belmore (12 May 1867 – 30 January 1953) was an English character actor and director on stage for more than a quarter of a century. Life and career Onstage, Belmore appeared with Wilson Barrett, Sir Henry Irving, William Faversham, ...

as Prime Minister

Production

Although ''The Love Parade'' was Lubitsch's first sound film, he already displayed a mastery of the technical requirements of the day. In one scene, two couples sing the same song alternately. To do this with the available technology, Lubitsch had two sets built, with an off-camera orchestra between them, and directed both scenes simultaneously. This enabled him to cut back and forth from one scene to the other in editing, something unheard of at the time.Kalat, David.
"The Love Parade"
on

TCM.com Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of Atl ...

Music

All songs are by

Victor Schertzinger Victor L. Schertzinger (April 8, 1888 – October 26, 1941) was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include ''Paramount on Parade'' (co-director, 1930 in film, 1930), ''Something to Sing About (1937 fil ...

(music) and Clifford Grey (lyrics): * "Ooh, La La" – sung by Lupino Lane * "Paris, Stay the Same" – sung by Maurice Chevalier and Lupino Lane * "Dream Lover" – sung by Jeanette MacDonald and chorus, reprise sung by Jeanette MacDonald * "Anything to Please the Queen" – sung by Jeanette MacDonald and Maurice Chevalier * "My Love Parade" – sung by Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald * "Let's Be Common" – sung by Lupino Lane and Lillian Roth * "March of the Grenadiers" – sung by Jeanette MacDonald and chorus, reprise sung by chorus * "Nobody's Using It Now" – sung by Maurice Chevalier * "The Queen Is Always Right" – sung by Lupino Lane, Lillian Roth and chorus

Awards and honors

''The Love Parade'' was nominated for six

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

s: 1929–1930 Academy Awards

References

Notes

External links

* * * * *
Criterion Collection essay
Michael Koresky at criterion.com; accessed November 29, 2023.

jeanettemacdonaldandnelsoneddy.com; accessed August 6, 2015.
''The Love Parade''
virtual-history.com; accessed August 6, 2015. {{DEFAULTSORT:Love Parade, The 1929 films 1929 musical comedy films American musical comedy films American black-and-white films 1920s English-language films Films directed by Ernst Lubitsch Films scored by John Leipold Films set in Europe American multilingual films Paramount Pictures films 1920s multilingual films 1920s American films