Tonight or Never (1931)

A young opera singer finds her career stalled because of her cold and passionless performances, until she finds romance with a handsome admirer.

Director:

Mervyn LeRoy

Writers:

Fanny Hatton (adaptation), Frederic Hatton (adaptation),

Stars:

Gloria Swanson, Melvyn Douglas, Alison Skipworth

Cast

Cast overview:
Gloria Swanson	...	Nella Vago
Melvyn Douglas	...	Jim Fletcher
Alison Skipworth	...	Marchesa Bianca San Giovanni
Ferdinand Gottschalk	...	Rudig
Robert Greig	...	Conrad
Warburton Gamble	...	Count Albert von Gronac
Greta Meyer	...	Emma
Boris Karloff	...	Waiter

Storyline

A young opera singer finds her career stalled because of her cold and passionless performances, until she finds romance with a handsome admirer.

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Plot Keywords:

based on play | based on novel

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 February 1934 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Cette nuit ou jamais

Filming Locations:

United Artists Studios - 7200 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Samuel Goldwyn Company, The, Feature Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Lux Radio Theater" broadcast a 60-minute radio adaptation of the movie on January 25, 1937 with Melvyn Douglas reprising his film role.

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Connections

Referenced in Hollywood Hist-o-Rama: Gloria Swanson (1961)

User Reviews

Superb Swanson

Gloria Swanson was a great star and her talkie films of the early 1930s were vastly underrated. Tonight or Never is a nice comedy that pits opera star Swanson against maybe gigolo Melvyn Douglas. She's a great singer but she lacks passion because she has never been in love. Douglas is the protégé of a countess (Alison Skipworth), but is secretly in love with Swanson.

Swanson is wonderful, even though she does not sing--a major fault of the film--as the naive opera star. Douglas is suave; Skipworth is (as always) hilarious. And Ferdinand Gottschalk is wonderful as Swanson's teacher.

Swanson should have had a major talkie career. She made the transition in the smash hit The Trespasser and made a series of delightful talkies before she hung it up in 1934. Her voice is so wonderful. It's ironic that a silent star would have such a terrific voice. As in Indiscreet, Swanson proves to be a star actress----one of the greats.

Robert Greig, Greta Meyer and J. Carroll Naish co-star. And remember the motto: our spaghetti is longer than our name!