Swing Time (1936)

Director:

George Stevens

Writers:

Howard Lindsay (screen play) and
Allan Scott (screen play) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 October 1936 (Brazil)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

A glorious songburst of gaiety and laughter!

Plot:

A performer and gambler travels to New York City to raise the $25,000 he needs to marry his fiancée, only to become entangled with a beautiful aspiring dancer.

Plot Keywords:

Dance | Dancing | Gambler | Wedding | Dancer

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Fred Astaire	...	Lucky Garnett
Ginger Rogers	...	Penny Carroll
Victor Moore	...	Pop Cardetti
Helen Broderick	...	Mabel Anderson
Eric Blore	...	Gordon
Betty Furness	...	Margaret Watson
Georges Metaxa	...	Ricky Romero
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harry Bernard	...	Second Stagehand (uncredited)
Harry Bowen	...	First Stagehand (uncredited)
Bill Brande	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Ralph Brooks	...	Dance Extra in 'The Way You Look Tonight' Number (uncredited)
Ralph Byrd	...	Hotel Clerk (uncredited)
Martin Cichy	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Thomas A. Curran	...	Man in New York Street (uncredited)
Alan Curtis	...	Bit (uncredited)
Edgar Dearing	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Frank Edmunds	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Fern Emmett	...	Watsons' Maid (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Dance Extra in 'The Way You Look Tonight' Number (uncredited)
Olin Francis	...	Muggsy (uncredited)
Jack Good	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Charlie Hall	...	Taxi Driver (uncredited)
Gerald Hamer	...	Eric Lacanistram (uncredited)
Frank Hammond	...	Train Ticket Seller (uncredited)
John Harrington	...	Dice Raymond (uncredited)
Howard C. Hickman	...	First Minister (uncredited)
Frank Jenks	...	Red - Dancer (uncredited)
Donald Kerr	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Sam Lufkin	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
David Mcdonald	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Frank Mills	...	Roulette Stickman (uncredited)
Ferdinand Munier	...	Second Minister (uncredited)
Bob O'Connor	...	Henchman (uncredited)
Dennis O'Keefe	...	Dance Extra in 'The Way You Look Tonight' Number (uncredited)
Ted O'Shea	...	Dancer (uncredited)
Marie Osborne	...	Undetermined Role (unconfirmed) (uncredited)
Jean Perry	...	Roulette Croupier (uncredited)
Joey Ray	...	Announcer (uncredited)
Abe Reynolds	...	Schmidt - the Tailor (uncredited)
Jack Rice	...	Wedding Guest (uncredited)
Floyd Shackelford	...	Romero's Butler (uncredited)
John Shelton	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Landers Stevens	...	Judge Watson (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	...	Diner (uncredited)
Sailor Vincent	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Blanca Vischer	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Pierre Watkin	...	Al Simpson (uncredited)

Directed by
George Stevens

Writing credits
Howard Lindsay		(screen play) and
Allan Scott		(screen play)
Erwin S. Gelsey		(from a story by) (as Erwin Gelsey)
Ben Holmes		contributing writer (uncredited)
Rian James		contributing writer (uncredited)
Anthony Veiller		contributing writer (uncredited)
Dorothy Yost		contributing writer (uncredited)

Produced by
Pandro S. Berman	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Jerome Kern		(music by)
Robert Russell Bennett		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
David Abel		(photographed by)

Film Editing by
Henry Berman		(edited by)

Art Direction by
Van Nest Polglase

Costume Design by
Bernard Newman		(gowns by)

Makeup Department
Mel Berns	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Louis Hippe	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Louise Sloane	....	hair stylist (uncredited)

Production Management
J.R. Crone	....	production manager (uncredited)
Fred Fleck	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sydney M. Fogel	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Argyle Nelson	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Carroll Clark	....	associate art director
John W. Harkrider	....	"Silver Sandal" set by (as John Harkrider)
Darrell Silvera	....	set dressing
Harry D'Arcy	....	props (uncredited)
Kenneth J. Marstella	....	assistant property master (uncredited)

Sound Department
George Marsh	....	sound cutter
Hugh McDowell Jr.	....	recordist
Eddie Harman	....	assistant sound recordist (uncredited)
Clem Portman	....	sound recordist (uncredited)
John E. Tribby	....	sound recordist (uncredited)
Richard Van Hessen	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Vernon L. Walker	....	photographic effects (as Vernon Walker)

Camera and Electrical Department
Willard Barth	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
S.H. Barton	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Joseph F. Biroc	....	second camera operator (uncredited)
Shorty Burton	....	assistant grip (uncredited)
Jim Kirley	....	grip (uncredited)
John Miehle	....	still photographer (uncredited)
George Neff	....	best boy (uncredited)
Cliff Shirpser	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Morris West	....	assistant grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
John W. Harkrider	....	"Bojangles" costumes by (as John Harkrider)
Ray Camp	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Edith Clark	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Dorothy Fields	....	lyrics by
Nathaniel Shilkret	....	musical director
Robert Russell Bennett	....	music arranger (uncredited)
Hal Borne	....	additional music arranger (uncredited)
Fletcher Henderson	....	arranger (uncredited)

Other crew
Hermes Pan	....	dance director
Ann Coleman	....	script clerk (uncredited)
Harry Cornbleth	....	stand-in: Fred Astaire (uncredited)
Maurice Elliott	....	stand-in (uncredited)
Ben Holmes	....	dialogue director (uncredited)
Marie Osborne	....	stand-in: Ginger Rogers (uncredited)
Helen Weber	....	stand-in (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Radio Pictures (presents) (A Pandro S. Berman Production)

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1936) (USA) (theatrical) (as A Radio Picture)
• RKO Radio Films (1936) (Austria) (theatrical)
• RKO Radio Pictures Argentina (1937) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• RKO Radio Films (1937) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• C&C Television Corporation (1955) (USA) (TV)
• Image Entertainment (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Turner Home Video (1999) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Chapel Distribution (2009) (Australia) (theatrical) (35mm print)
• Warner Home Video (2010) (Canada) (DVD) (4 film collection)
• Warner Home Video (2010) (USA) (DVD) (4 film collection)
• Criterion Collection, The (19??) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Epoca (????) (Argentina) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Certification:

Finland:S | Portugal:M/6 | South Korea:All | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Australia:G | Sweden:Btl | Netherlands:AL (original rating) (1937) | Argentina:Atp | UK:U | USA:Approved (PCA #2273)

Filming Locations:

Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Radio Pictures

Trivia:

The film originally began with a musical number, "It's Not in the Cards," which was cut due the film's length and because the number was judged as not very good. Only a bit remains in the final version. The music is also used in the background during the first few scenes.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene at the New Amsterdam, when Lucky first gets out of the car, there is a large white mark on the seat of his coat. This is possibly because no-one brushed off his coat after a previous take of the same scene, in which he sits down on a "snow" covered bench.

Quotes:

Mabel Anderson:Beautiful, isn't it?
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti:What is?
Mabel Anderson:The music.
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti:What music?
Mabel Anderson:The music they're playing.
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti:Oh, yeah.
[pause]
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti:What made you think of it?
Mabel Anderson:Think of what?
Everett 'Pop' Cardetti:The music.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Moguls & Movie Stars: A History of Hollywood: Peepshow Pioneers (#1.1)" (2010)

Soundtrack:

Never Gonna Dance

Easy to see why it was Ginger's personal favorite...

SWING TIME just misses being the best of all the Astaire-Rogers musicals because of one factor--too much Victor Moore and too little Eric Blore. I tend to favor TOP HAT as their best collaboration because among the supporting players in that one was Edward Everett Horton and, of course, the Irving Berlin tunes were great.

This time, in SWING TIME, we're at least spared the mistaken identity theme which ran through so many Astaire-Rogers plots. It's a simple boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy wins girl sort of thing without wearing the patience thin and sprinkling some nice Gershwin tunes throughout.

My own favorites are "A Fine Romance", staged among the snowflakes in a country setting, and "Never Gonna Dance" which is the most dramatic of the duo's dancing numbers and takes place in an art deco setting that is strikingly photographed in great B&W photography.

Ginger's eye make-up looks a little heavy but she's pretty as a picture as the dancing instructor Eric Blore almost fires. Fred Astaire not only acquits himself with finesse on the dance floor but in the acting department as well.

Victor Moore soon gets tiresome (in a way that Edward Everett Horton did not). The plot is paper thin and Betty Furness has next to nothing to do--but in this kind of film, all fans really wanted was to watch Astaire and Rogers glide across the dance floor in intricate style--and this they do.

Ginger Rogers was told that SWING TIME did even better business at Radio City Music Hall than TOP HAT--and has declared that among all her films with Astaire, this is her own personal favorite. It's easy to see why. Her big dance numbers with Astaire were filmed in one long, unbroken take--but since she complained of bleeding in her dance shoes you have to wonder how many takes it took to get the perfection seen here.