Cavalcade (1933)

Director:

Frank Lloyd

Writers:

Noel Coward (play)
Reginald Berkeley (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

15 April 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

A love that suffered and rose triumphant above the crushing events of this modern age! The march of time measured by a mother's heart!

Plot:

A cavalcade of English life from New Year's Eve 1899 until 1933 seen through the eyes of well-to-do Londoners Jane and Robert Marryot...

Plot Keywords:

Death | New Year | Titanic | Boer War | New Year's Eve

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Diana Wynyard	...	Jane Marryot
Clive Brook	...	Robert Marryot
Una O'Connor	...	Ellen Bridges
Herbert Mundin	...	Alfred Bridges
Beryl Mercer	...	Cook
Irene Browne	...	Margaret Harris
Tempe Pigott	...	Mrs. Snapper
Merle Tottenham	...	Annie
Frank Lawton	...	Joe Marryot
Ursula Jeans	...	Fanny Bridges
Margaret Lindsay	...	Edith Harris
John Warburton	...	Edward Marryot
Billy Bevan	...	George Grainger
Desmond Roberts	...	Ronnie James
Dickie Henderson	...	Master Edward (as Dick Henderson Jr.)
Douglas Scott	...	Master Joey
Sheila MacGill	...	Young Edith
Bonita Granville	...	Young Fanny
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harry Allen	...	Busker (uncredited)
Frank Atkinson	...	Uncle Dick (uncredited)
Lionel Belmore	...	Uncle George (uncredited)
Ted Billings	...	Newspaper Peddler (uncredited)
Adele Crane	...	Ada - in the Show (uncredited)
Howard Davies	...	Agitator (uncredited)
Mary Forbes	...	Duchess of Churt (uncredited)
Betty Grable	...	Girl on Couch (uncredited) (unconfirmed)
Dannie Mac Grant	...	Boy (uncredited)
Lawrence Grant	...	Man at Microphone (uncredited)
Stuart Hall	...	Lieutenant Edgar - in the Show (uncredited)
Winter Hall	...	Minister on the Pulpit (uncredited)
Brandon Hurst	...	Gilbert & Sullivan Actor (uncredited)
Claude King	...	Speaker (uncredited)
Eric Mayne	...	Doctor on Street (uncredited)
Wilfrid North	...	Man Talking to Colonel (uncredited)
Tom Ricketts	...	Waiter (uncredited)
John Rogers	...	Busker (uncredited)
Ann Shaw	...	Mirabelle - in the Show (uncredited)
C. Montague Shaw	...	Major Domo (uncredited)
Yorke Sherwood	...	Cabby (uncredited)
Pat Somerset	...	Ringsider (uncredited)
Will Stanton	...	Tommy Jolly - in the Show (uncredited)
Mary Stewart	...	Dancer / Singer (uncredited)
Gelal Talata	...	Recruiting Girl Singer (uncredited)
David Torrence	...	Man at Disarmament Conference (uncredited)
Douglas Walton	...	Soldier Friend of Joe (uncredited)
Marguerite Warner	...	Recruiting Girl Singer (uncredited)
Eric Wilton	...	Robert - Marryot's Later Butler (uncredited)

Directed by
Frank Lloyd

Writing credits
Noel Coward		(play)
Reginald Berkeley		(screenplay)
Sonya Levien		(continuity)

Produced by
Frank Lloyd	....	producer
Winfield R. Sheehan	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Peter Brunelli		(uncredited)
Louis De Francesco		(uncredited)
Arthur Lange		(uncredited)
J.S. Zamecnik		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Ernest Palmer

Film Editing by
Margaret Clancey		(uncredited)

Casting by
Phil M. Friedman		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
William S. Darling		(as William Darling)

Costume Design by
Earl Luick

Production Management
Charles Woolstenhulme	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
William Tummel	....	assistant director

Art Department
Al Orenbach	....	set dresser (uncredited)

Sound Department
Joseph E. Aiken	....	sound engineer (as Joseph Aiken)

Special Effects by
William Cameron Menzies	....	special effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Arthur E. Arling	....	second camera operator (uncredited)
Glen MacWilliams	....	camera operator: second unit (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Arnold McDonald	....	wardrobe: men (uncredited)

Music Department
Louis De Francesco	....	musical director
Sammy Lee	....	musical ensembles stager
Peter Brunelli	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Edward Kilenyi	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Arthur Lange	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Doris Silver	....	music researcher (uncredited)
Frank Tresselt	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Frank Tresselt	....	musical director: vocals (uncredited)
J.S. Zamecnik	....	music arranger (uncredited)

Other crew
George Hadden	....	dialogue director
William Cameron Menzies	....	war scenes (as William C. Menzies)
Lance Baxter	....	researcher (uncredited)
Edward Butcher	....	studio manager (uncredited)
Charles E. McCarthy	....	publicity director (uncredited)
R.C. Moore	....	location manager (uncredited)

Thanks
Charles B. Cochran	....	acknowledgment: based on the stage production directed by, British film version

Production Companies

• Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Fox Film Corporation (1933) (USA) (theatrical)
• Fox Film Company (1933) (UK) (theatrical) (as Fox Film Co. Ltd.)
• Epoca (????) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Turner Classic Movies (TCM) (2011) (USA) (TV)

Other Companies

• Western Costume Company  costumes supplied by (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #0585-R, 6 August 1935 for re-release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Argentina:13 | Spain:7 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Fox Movietone City, Westwood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Noel Coward was paid $100,000 for the rights to the play and the songs he wrote for the play.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Titanic's port of registry was Liverpool, not Southampton.

Quotes:

Jane Marryot:There should never be any good reason for neglecting someone that you love.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside

Somewhat Forgotten, But Highly Impressive and Imperative 1933 Best Picture Winner.

Often forgotten, but very excellent 1933 Best Picture Oscar winner that stands up amazingly well after 70 years. "Cavalcade" is the near-epic tale of two British families (one set of aristocrats led by Oscar-nominee Diane Wynyard and Clive Brook and the other a set of servants led by Una O'Connor and Herbert Mundin) and their experiences from New Year's Eve 1899 to the start of 1933. As the film opens, the country is entangled in the bloody Boer War in South Africa. Queen Victoria's death soon follows and naturally the loss hits the entire country very hard. The sinking of the Titanic also effects the richer group as they lose family members on the doomed liner. Of course World War I produces a terrible situation for the two groups' children. The film progresses through the Jazzy 1920s and then we re-visit the couples in the early-1930s as they reflect on eventful, dramatic and tragic years since the start of the century. A new hope seems possible by the end (of course history would continue to be unkind as World War II would soon become a sad reality for the English), but far from certain. Frank Lloyd (Oscar-winning for his direction) crafted a vastly interesting film that is technologically strong for the time period (the Titanic sequence in particular is something to be appreciated) and very intelligent from the start. The editing techniques are revolutionary with impressive fades throughout to show the passing of time and the cinematography still holds up strong even today. One good thing about the Academy Awards is the historical significance it gives to films like "Cavalcade". True the film is not always well-known among movie enthusiasts, but that does not mean that this is not an excellent production and one of the first truly excellent movies that Hollywood would develop for the world. 5 stars out of 5.