''Deep in My Heart'' is a 1954 American

MGM 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 ...

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

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 ...

about the life of operetta composer

Sigmund Romberg Sigmund Romberg (July 29, 1887 – November 9, 1951) was a Hungarian-born American composer. He is best known for his Musical theatre, musicals and operettas, particularly ''The Student Prince'' (1924), ''The Desert Song'' (1926) and ''The New Moo ...

, who wrote the music for ''

The Student Prince ''The Student Prince'' is an operetta in a prologue and four acts with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly. It is based on Wilhelm Meyer-Förster's play ''Old Heidelberg (play), Old Heidelberg''. The piece has a scor ...

'', '' The Desert Song'', and '' The New Moon'', among others. Leonard Spigelgass adapted the film from Elliott Arnold's 1949 biography of the same name. Roger Edens produced,

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 ...

directed and Eugene Loring choreographed.

José Ferrer José Vicente Ferrer de Otero y Cintrón (January 8, 1912 – January 26, 1992) was a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican actor and director of stage, film and television. He was one of the most celebrated and esteemed Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hi ...

played Romberg, with support from soprano Helen Traubel as a fictional character and Merle Oberon as actress, playwright, librettist, producer, and director Dorothy Donnelly. The film, which takes its title from "Deep in My Heart, Dear," a song from ''

'', primarily consists of a series of cameo turns by nearly every significant singer or dancer on the MGM lot at the time. These include dancer Cyd Charisse (dubbed by Carol Richards),

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me (Ba-Ba-Baciami Piccin ...

(Ferrer's wife),

Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop music, pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit "You're Breaking My ...

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 ...

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

and his brother Fred Kelly (their only on-screen appearance together), Tony Martin, Ann Miller, James Mitchell, Jane Powell, Joan Weldon, and the ballerina

Tamara Toumanova Tamara Toumanova ( ka, თამარა თუმანოვა; 2 March 1919 – 29 May 1996) was a Russian-born Georgian-American prima ballerina and actress. A child of exiles in Paris after the Russian Revolution of 1917, she made her ...

(dubbed by Betty Wand). Robert Easton, Russ Tamblyn, Susan Luckey, and

Ludwig Stössel Ludwig Stössel (12 February 1883 – 29 January 1973) was an Austrian actor. He was one of many Jewish actors and actresses who were forced to flee Germany when the Nazis came to power in 1933. Biography Stössel began performing on the stage ...

make uncredited appearances. ''Deep in My Heart'' was the final film in a series of four MGM biopics based on the lives of composers, which included ''

Till the Clouds Roll By ''Till the Clouds Roll By'' is a 1946 American Technicolor musical film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and a fictionalized biopic of composer Jerome Kern, portrayed by Robert Walker (actor, born 1918), Robert Walker. Kern was involved with the ...

'' (

Jerome Kern Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over ...

, 1946), '' Words and Music'' (

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 ...

, 1948), and '' Three Little Words'' ( Kalmar and Ruby, 1950).

Cast

* Merle Oberon as Dorothy Donnelly * Helen Traubel as Anna Mueller * Doe Avedon as Lillian Romberg *

Walter Pidgeon Walter Davis Pidgeon (September 23, 1897 – September 25, 1984) was a Canadian-American actor. A major leading man during the Golden Age of Hollywood, known for his "portrayals of men who prove both sturdy and wise," Pidgeon earned two Academy ...

as J. J. Shubert * Paul Henreid as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. *

Gaby Deslys Gaby Deslys (born Marie-Elise-Gabrielle Caire, 4 November 1881 – 11 February 1920) was a French singer and actress during the early 20th century. She selected her name for her stage career, and it is a contraction of ''Gabrielle of the Lil ...

** Betty Wand as Gaby Deslys (singing voice) * Paul Stewart as Bert Townsend *

Isobel Elsom Isobel Elsom (born Isabelle Reed; 16 March 1893 – 12 January 1981) was an English film, theatre, and television actress. She was often cast as aristocrats or upper-class women. Early years Born in Chesterton, Cambridge, Elsom attend ...

as Mrs. Harris * David Burns as Lazar Berrison, Sr. * Jim Backus as Ben Judson

Musical numbers

* "Overture" — Orchestral and choral medley: * "One Kiss" (from 1928 operetta '' The New Moon'', lyrics by

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...

) * "Desert Song" (from 1926 operetta '' The Desert Song'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto A. Harbach) * "Deep in My Heart, Dear" (from 1924 operetta ''

'', lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly) * "You Will Remember Vienna" (from 1930 film '' Viennese Nights'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * "You Will Remember Vienna" — Helen Traubel (from 1930 film ''Viennese Nights'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * "Leg of Mutton" —

and Helen Traubel (turkey trot with lyrics added by Roger Edens) * " Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" — Betty Wand (dubbing for

) (from 1928 operetta '' The New Moon'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" — Helen Traubel (from 1928 operetta ''The New Moon'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * "Mr. & Mrs." —

and José Ferrer (from 1922 musical ''The Blushing Bride'', lyrics by Cyrus D. Wood) * "I Love to Go Swimmin' with Wimmen" —

and his brother, Fred Kelly (from 1921 musical ''Love Birds'', lyrics by Ballard MacDonald) * "Road to Paradise"/"Will You Remember (Sweetheart)" —

and Jane Powell (from 1917 musical '' Maytime'', lyrics by

Rida Johnson Young Rida Johnson Young (born Rida Louise Johnson; February 28, 1869 Young wrote over 30 plays and musicals and approximately 500 songs. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. Some of her better-known lyrics include " Mother Machr ...

) * "Girls Goodbye" — José Ferrer (lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly) * "Fat Fat Fatima" — José Ferrer (from 1921 musical ''Love Birds'', lyrics by Ballard MacDonald) * "Jazza-Dada-Doo" — José Ferrer (from 1921 musical '' Bombo'', lyrics by Harold Atteridge) * "It" — Ann Miller (from 1926 operetta '' The Desert Song'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto A. Harbach) * "Serenade" — William Olvis (from 1924 operetta ''

'', lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly) * " One Alone" — Carol Richards (dubbing for Cyd Charisse) and James Mitchell (from 1926 operetta '' The Desert Song'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otta A. Harbach) * "Your Land and My Land" —

(from 1927 musical '' My Maryland'', lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly) * "Auf Wiedersehn" — Helen Traubel (from 1915 musical '' The Blue Paradise'', lyrics by Herbert Reynolds) * "

Lover, Come Back to Me "Lover, Come Back to Me" is a popular music, popular song composed by Sigmund Romberg with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II for the Broadway show ''The New Moon'', where the song was introduced by Evelyn Herbert and Robert Halliday (as Robert Misson ...

" — Tony Martin with Joan Weldon (from 1928 operetta '' The New Moon'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * "Stout-Hearted Men" — Helen Traubel (from 1928 operetta ''The New Moon'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) * " When I Grow Too Old to Dream" — José Ferrer (from 1935 film ''The Night Is Young'', lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II)

Box office

According to MGM records the film earned $2,471,000 in the US and Canada and $1,507,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $1,474,000.

Reception and distribution

The film was not a critical success. According to the reviewer for the ''New York Times'', ''Deep in My Heart'' "calls for a strong digestive system and a considerable tolerance for clichés." The film has been released in VHS and laserdisc formats, on DVD and Blu-Ray. The soundtrack, previously released on LP, was made available on

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

in 2006. The film has been shown on

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcas ...

References

External links