''Billy Rose's Jumbo'' is a 1962 American

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...

released by

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

and starring

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey ...

, Stephen Boyd,

Jimmy Durante James Francis Durante ( , ; February 10, 1893 – January 29, 1980) was an American comedian, actor, singer, and pianist. His distinctive gravelly speech, Lower East Side New York accent, accent, comic language-butchery, jazz-influenced son ...

, and

Martha Raye Martha Raye (born Margy Reed; August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994), nicknamed The Big Mouth, was an American comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including on Broadway. She was hono ...

. An adaptation of the stage musical ''

Jumbo Jumbo (December 25, 1860 – September 15, 1885), also known as Jumbo the Elephant and Jumbo the Circus Elephant, was a 19th-century male African bush elephant born in Sudan. Jumbo was exported to Jardin des Plantes, a zoo in Paris, and then tr ...

'' produced by

Billy Rose Billy Rose (born William Samuel Rosenberg; September 6, 1899 – February 10, 1966) was an American impresario, theatrical showman, lyricist and columnist. For years both before and after World War II, Billy Rose was a major force in entertainm ...

, the film was directed by

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

, written by

Sidney Sheldon Sidney Sheldon (February 11, 1917 – January 30, 2007) was an American writer. He was prominent in the 1930s, first working on Broadway plays, and then in motion pictures, notably writing the successful comedy '' The Bachelor and the Bobby-Sox ...

, and featured

Busby Berkeley Berkeley William Enos, (November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976) known professionally as Busby Berkeley, was an American film director and musical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geo ...

's choreography. It was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for the adaptation of its

Rodgers and Hart Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart's ...

score. The

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

show ''Jumbo'' opened on November 16, 1935, and was the last musical produced at the

New York Hippodrome The Hippodrome Theatre, also called the New York Hippodrome, was a theater located on Sixth Avenue between West 43rd and West 44th Streets in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The theater operated from 1905 to 1939 ...

before it was demolished in 1939. Original producer Billy Rose stipulated that if a film version was ever made, he must be credited in the title, even if he were not personally involved. Both play and film feature songs by

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...

and

Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include "Blue Moon"; " The Lady Is a Tramp"; "Manhattan"; " Bewitched, Bo ...

, although the film borrows two songs from Rodgers and Hart shows other than ''

'' (including " This Can't Be Love", from ''

The Boys from Syracuse ''The Boys from Syracuse'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Lorenz Hart, based on William Shakespeare's play '' The Comedy of Errors'', as adapted by librettist George Abbott. The score includes swing and other contemp ...

''). Despite featuring such Rodgers and Hart standards as " My Romance" and " The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", neither the original play nor the film was especially successful. The film was Doris Day's last screen musical. Stephen Boyd's singing voice was dubbed by Los Angeles studio singer, Jimmy Joyce. On April 2, 2007,

Robert Osborne Robert Jolin Osborne (; May 3, 1932 – March 6, 2017) was an American film historian, author, actor and the primary television host for the premium cable channel Turner Classic Movies (TCM) for over twenty years. Prior to hosting at TCM, Os ...

of TCM, introducing the MGM film '' Fearless Fagan'' (1952) directed by

Stanley Donen Stanley Donen ( ; April 13, 1924 – February 21, 2019) was an American film director and choreographer. He received the Honorary Academy Award in 70th Academy Awards, 1998, and the Golden Lion#Golden Lion – Honorary Award, Career Golden Lion ...

, said that Donen was due to direct ''Jumbo'' right after ''

Singin' in the Rain ''Singin' in the Rain'' is a 1952 American musical romantic comedy film directed and choreographed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, starring Kelly, Donald O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds, and featuring Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Rita Moreno a ...

'' in 1952. However, MGM decided the script was not ready, so ''Jumbo'' was not filmed until 1962 with a different director and stars. Both play and film feature Durante leading a live elephant and being stopped by a police officer, who asks him, "What are you doing with that elephant?" Durante's reply, "What elephant?", was a show-stopper in 1935. This comedy bit was reprised in his role in ''Billy Rose's Jumbo'' and is likely to have contributed to the popularity of the idiom, the " elephant in the room".

Plot

The Wonder Circus comes to a town in the Midwest with its featured attraction, Jumbo the elephant. Pop Wonder owns the circus, but his continued gambling losses in crap games leaves him (and the circus) with an ever-growing number of IOUs. His daughter, Kitty Wonder, hires a newcomer, Sam Rawlins, as both a performer and tent hand. She is unaware that Sam is the son of circus mogul John Noble, whose ambition is to buy the Wonder Circus for himself. Noble has been quietly buying up the IOUs with Sam's help and abruptly takes control of the family's business, leaving the Wonders without a show. Kitty, Pop and his longtime fiancée Lulu go off on their own, forming a traveling carnival, but it isn't quite the same. Sam, however, has fallen in love with Kitty and has a guilty conscience about what he has done. Sam splits from his father and rejoins the Wonders, bringing with him an old friend of theirs, Jumbo.

Cast

as Kitty Wonder * Stephen Boyd as Sam Rawlins ** Jimmy Joyce as Sam's singing voice *

as 'Pop' Wonder *

as Lulu *

Dean Jagger Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) was an American film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King's '' Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949). Early life Dean Jeffri ...

as John Noble * Joseph Waring as Harry * Lynn Wood as Tina * Charles Watts as Ellis * James Chandler as Parsons * Robert Burton as Madison * Wilson Wood as Hank *

Norman Leavitt Norman Turner Leavitt (December 1, 1913 – December 11, 2005) was an American film and television actor. Life and career Leavitt was born in Lansing, Michigan. He began his stage career in 1935, appearing as a wedding guest in the Broa ...

as Eddie *

Grady Sutton Grady Harwell Sutton (April 5, 1906 – September 17, 1995) was an American film and television character actor from the 1920s to the 1970s. He appeared in more than 180 films. Early years Sutton was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the son ...

as Driver *

Janos Prohaska Janos Prohaska (born János Prohászka; October 10, 1919 – March 13, 1974) was a Hungarian-born American actor and stunt performer. He appeared on American television from the 1960s and usually played the roles of animals (mostly bears and gori ...

as Circus Performer *

John Astin John Allen Astin (born March 30, 1930) is an American actor and director who has appeared in numerous stage, television and film roles, primarily in character roles. He is widely known for his role as patriarch Gomez Addams in ''The Addams Famil ...

as Pilot (uncredited) *

Billy Barty Billy Barty (born William John Bertanzetti; October 25, 1924 – December 23, 2000) was an American actor and activist. In adult life, he stood tall, due to cartilage–hair hypoplasia dwarfism. Because of his short stature, he was often cast i ...

as Joey the Circus Clown (uncredited) * Chuck Haren as Lennie (uncredited) * Paul Wexler as Sharpie (uncredited)

Production

MGM bought the rights to the musical soon after it reached the stage. In 1947 Charles Walters requested he make the film of the musical as his first assignment; the studio agreed. In 1950 it was announced

Arthur Freed Arthur Freed (September 9, 1894 – April 12, 1973) was an American lyricist and a Hollywood film producer. He won the Academy Award for Best Picture twice, in 1951 for ''An American in Paris'' and in 1958 for '' Gigi''. Both films were musicals ...

would produce and

Howard Keel Harold Clifford Keel (April 13, 1919November 7, 2004), professionally Howard Keel, was an American actor and singer known for his rich bass-baritone singing voice. He starred in a number of MGM musicals in the 1950s, including ''Show Boat'' (195 ...

and Jimmy Durante would star. Production was delayed due to litigation. Years later MGM made the movie, with

and her husband

Martin Melcher Martin Melcher (August 1, 1915 – April 20, 1968) was an American motion picture and music executive. He was married to popular singer and actress Doris Day, with whom he owned a series of business ventures named Arwin. Melcher produced severa ...

as producers.

came out of retirement to work on the film, which was his last. In May 1962, its cost was reported as $4.8 million.

Soundtrack

A soundtrack album '' Billy Rose's Jumbo'' of the film was issued by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

in 1962.

Reception

According to MGM accounts, the film earned $2.5 million in the U.S. and Canada and $1.5 million in other markets, but because of its high cost, it recorded a loss of $3,956,000. It was the last film producer Joe Pasternak made at MGM.

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 some ...

opened his December 7, 1962 pan in '' The Nee York Times'' by observing: “The only thing vastly wrong, with "Jumbo," …”is that it is hitting the screen about 25 years late…” He credits the picture with “a certain graphic glamor and innocent nostalgic charm..and occasional rowdy humor …otherwise it is unoriginal, solemn, sluggish and slow.”. The film is recognized by the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...

in the 2006: AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals – Nominated

Home media

''Billy Rose's Jumbo'' was released to DVD in a Region 1 DVD by Warner Bros. on April 26, 2005, and as part of Volumes 1 and 2 of ''The Doris Day Collection'' on April 10, 2007.

References

External links

* * * {{Ben Hecht 1962 films 1962 musical comedy films 1962 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films Circus films Films about elephants Films based on musicals Films directed by Charles Walters Films produced by Joe Pasternak Films scored by Georgie Stoll Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films with screenplays by Ben Hecht Films with screenplays by Sidney Sheldon 1960s English-language films 1960s American films English-language romantic comedy films English-language musical comedy films English-language romantic musical films