Carefree (1938)

Dr. Tony Flagg's friend, Steven, has problems in the relationship with his fiancee, Amanda, so he persuades her to visit Dr. Flagg. After some minor misunderstandings, she falls in love ... See full summary »

Director:

Mark Sandrich

Writers:

Allan Scott (screen play), Ernest Pagano (screen play),

Stars:

Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Ralph Bellamy

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Fred Astaire	...	Tony Flagg
Ginger Rogers	...	Amanda Cooper
Ralph Bellamy	...	Stephen Arden
Luella Gear	...	Aunt Cora
Jack Carson	...	Connors
Clarence Kolb	...	Judge Travers
Franklin Pangborn	...	Roland Hunter
Walter Kingsford	...	Dr. Powers
Kay Sutton	...	Miss Adams
The Robert Mitchell Boy Choir	...	(as Robert B. Mitchell and his St. Brendan's Boys)

Storyline

Dr. Tony Flagg's friend, Steven, has problems in the relationship with his fiancee, Amanda, so he persuades her to visit Dr. Flagg. After some minor misunderstandings, she falls in love with Dr. Flagg. When he tries to use hypnosis to strengthen her feelings for Steven, things get complicated.

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Plot Keywords:

singer | fiancee | psychiatrist | hypnotism | 1930s | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amanda

Filming Locations:

Busch Gardens - S. Grove Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,253,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In her 1991 autobiography, "Ginger: My Story," Miss Rogers related that the entire film originally was planned for Technicolor. However, other sources, including Arlene Croce's "The Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers Book," a lauded study published in 1972, maintained that just one Irving Berlin song, "I Used to Be Color Blind," would have bust into Technicolor during the dance. Miss Croce explained that color tests were shot, but their quality was poor, so the scheme was dropped.

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Goofs

At breakfast after the dream sequence, the position of Amanda's hand holding the glass changes between shots.

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Quotes

Amanda Cooper: [under hypnosis] Dr. Flagg is a horrible monster! Men like him should be shot down like dogs! Shot down like dogs! Shot down like dogs!

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Crazy Credits

During opening credits, a pair of hands writes the names, pauses, wipes them out, and writes the next set of names several times.

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Connections

Referenced in The Saint in New York (1938)

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Soundtracks

"Change Partners"
(1938) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Sung by Fred Astaire
Danced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

User Reviews

It's The Yam for me.

Hilarious and very stylish, this spellbinding art moderne musical is a real experiment in RKO craftsmanship. Did you know the dream sequences to the song "I used to be color blind" were originally filmed in color but the release abandoned because RKO couldn't get the tech specs right and the cost was going to be too high for the budget already set. It was a great idea and today might have made CAREFREE a more enduring success as there is no color footage of them as a dancing pair until 1949 at MGM.. Apart from the snazzy look of the art direction, Ginger's fantastic 'hearts and arrows' outfit and big black bewitching hat and the RKO world of the stone and timber country club, the music here is just terrific. The swing antics of the golf club bagpipe sequence had one audience I saw it with in rapturous applause. But I defy anyone to stay seated during THE YAM as they wing and swing their way all over the BIG SET Country club. CAREFREE is just great.