''Folies Bergère de Paris'' is a 1935 American musical comedy film produced by Darryl Zanuck for 20th Century Films, directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring

Maurice Chevalier Maurice Auguste Chevalier (; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor, and entertainer. He is best known for his signature songs, including " Livin' In The Sunlight", " Valentine", " Louise", " Mimi", and " Thank Heaven f ...

, Merle Oberon and

Ann Sothern Ann Sothern (born Harriette Arlene Lake; January 22, 1909 – March 15, 2001) was an American actress who worked on stage, radio, film, and television, in a career that spanned nearly six decades. Sothern began her career in the late 1920s ...

. At the

8th Academy Awards The 8th Academy Awards to honour films released during 1935 were held on March 5, 1936, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California and hosted by AMPAS president Frank Capra. This was the first year in which the awards were called "Oscars ...

, the “Straw Hat” number, choreographed by Dave Gould, won the short-lived Academy Award for Best Dance Direction, sharing the honor with “I've Got a Feelin' You're Foolin'” from ''

Broadway Melody of 1936 ''Broadway Melody of 1936'' is a musical film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1935. In New York, the film opened at the Capitol Theatre, the site of many prestigious MGM premieres. In New York, the film opened at the Capitol Theatre, the sit ...

''. The film, based on the 1934 play ''The Red Cat'' by Rudolph Lothar and Hans Adler, is a story of mistaken identity, with Maurice Chevalier playing both a music-hall star and a business tycoon who resembles him. This was Chevalier's last film in Hollywood for twenty years, and reprised familiar themes such as the straw hat and a rendering of the French song " Valentine". This is also the last film to be distributed by

Twentieth Century Pictures Twentieth Century Pictures, Inc. was an American independent film, independent Cinema of the United States, Hollywood motion picture production company created in 1933 by Joseph Schenck (the former president of United Artists) and Darryl F. Za ...

before it merged with

Fox Film The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American independent company that produced motion pictures and was formed in 1914 by the theater "chain" pioneer William Fox. It was the corporate successor to his earlier Greater Ne ...

in 1935 to form

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

. Zanuck simultaneously produced a French-language version of the story, also directed by Roy Del Ruth, called
L'homme des Folies Bergère
'. It stars Chevalier and

Natalie Paley Princess Natalia Pavlovna Paley (; 5 December 1905 – 27 December 1981) was a Russian aristocrat who was a non-dynastic member of the Romanov family. A daughter of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia, she was a first cousin of the last Russi ...

and Sim Viva. Because that film was intended for the French market, they shot scenes showing chorus girls bare breasted. When censor

Joseph Breen Joseph Ignatius Breen (October 14, 1888 – December 5, 1965) was an American film censor with the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America who applied the Hays Code to film production.Staff report (December 8, 1965). Joseph I. ...

heard of it, he insisted that the Production Code be enforced even in a film destined for another country. 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 ...

catalog site describes Zanuck's losing battle with the censors. ''The Red Cat'', which was produced for the Broadway stage by Zanuck, ran for only 13 performances, but the studio benefited from four film adaptations. The third and fourth versions were in

Technicolor Technicolor is a family of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes. The first version, Process 1, was introduced in 1916, and improved versions followed over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black-and ...

, these being '' That Night in Rio,'' (1941) directed by

Irving Cummings Irving Cummings (October 9, 1888 – April 18, 1959) was an American movie actor and director. Career Born in New York City, Cummings started his acting career at age 16 in ''Diplomacy (play), Diplomacy''. His Broadway theatre, Broadway, p ...

(and starring

Don Ameche Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, repertory theatre, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 19 ...

, Alice Faye and

Carmen Miranda Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha (9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955), known professionally as Carmen Miranda (), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian singer, dancer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Brazilian Bombshell", she was known for her signature ...

) followed by '' On the Riviera'' (1951), directed by

Walter Lang Walter Lang (August 10, 1896 – February 7, 1972) was an American film director. Early life Walter Lang was born in Tennessee. As a young man he went to New York City where he found clerical work at a film production company. The business p ...

(and starring

Danny Kaye Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky; ; January 18, 1911 – March 3, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, singer, and dancer. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs. Kaye starred ...

Gene Tierney Gene Eliza Tierney (November 19, 1920November 6, 1991) was an American stage and film actress. Acclaimed for her great beauty, Tierney was a prominent Leading actor, leading lady during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. Sh ...

and Corinne Calvet).

Plot

Cast

as Eugene Charlier / Baron Fernand Cassini *

as Mimi * Merle Oberon as Baroness Genevieve Cassini *

Eric Blore Eric Blore Sr. (23 December 1887 – 2 March 1959) was an English actor and writer. His early stage career, mostly in the West End of London, centred on revue and musical comedy, but also included straight plays. He wrote sketches for and appe ...

as Francois * Ferdinand Munier as Morrisot * Walter Byron as Marquis René de Lac * Lumsden Hare as Gustave *

Robert Greig Robert Greig (December 27, 1879 – June 27, 1958) was an Australian-American actor who appeared in more than 100 films between 1930 and 1949, usually as the dutiful butler. Born Arthur Alfred Bede Greig, he was the nephew of Australian pol ...

as Henri *

Ferdinand Gottschalk Ferdinand Gottschalk (28 February 1858 – 10 November 1944) was an English theatre and film actor. He appeared in 76 films between 1917 and 1938. He was born and died in London, England. He made his first appearance on the stage in Toronto ...

as Perishot * Halliwell Hobbes as Monsieur Paulet * Georges Renavent as Premier of France * Phillip Dare as Victor * Frank McGlynn Sr. as Joseph * Barbara Leonard as Toinette * Olin Howland as Stage Manager

References

* Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation page 41

External links

*
Folies Bergère de Paris
at AFI catalog
L'homme des Folies Bergère
at AFI catalog * *
L'homme des Folies Bergère
' at the

TCM.com 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 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Folies Bergere de Paris 1935 musical comedy films 1935 films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films scored by Alfred Newman Films directed by Roy Del Ruth United Artists films Twentieth Century Pictures films American musical comedy films Films produced by Darryl F. Zanuck Films with songs by Burton Lane Films with songs by Harold Adamson American multilingual films 1935 multilingual films 1930s American films English-language musical comedy films

Plot

Cast

See also

References

External links