Orchestra Wives (1942)

Director:

Archie Mayo

Writers:

Karl Tunberg (screenplay) and
Darrell Ware (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

4 September 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Music

Tagline:

It's Hep! It's Hot! It's Hilarious!

Plot:

Connie Ward is in seventh heaven when Gene Morrison's band rolls into town. She is swept off her feet by trumpeter Bill Abbot...

Plot Keywords:

Musical Acts | Beautiful Woman | Musician | Husband Wife Relationship | Sequel

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

George Montgomery	...	Bill Abbot
Ann Rutherford	...	Connie Ward / Abbot
Glenn Miller	...	Gene Morrison
The Glenn Miller Orchestra	...	Gene Morrison's Orchestra (as The Glenn Miller Band)
Lynn Bari	...	Jaynie Stevens
Carole Landis	...	Natalie Mercer
Cesar Romero	...	St. John 'Sinjin' Smith
Virginia Gilmore	...	Elsie
Mary Beth Hughes	...	Caroline Steele
The Nicholas Brothers	...	Themselves (as Nicholas Brothers)
Tamara Geva	...	Mrs. Beck
Frank Orth	...	Rex Willet

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Canada:G (video rating) | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

John Brahm was originally assigned to direct the film.

Quotes:

Mrs. Beck: How about you, Sinjin, when are you getting married?
Sinjin: What for? I got a lot of girls that are just pulling their hair waiting for me to call them.
Ben Beck: Why don't you call 'em?
Sinjin: Are you kidding? I'm sick of running around with bald dames.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Take It or Leave It (1944)

Soundtrack:

Moonlight Serenade

On the road and behind the scenes with Glenn Miller.

On Australian television, this movie has always been shown as the second half of a double bill, following 'Sun Valley Serenade'. It's a neat balancing act, the upbeat nature of 'Sun Valley Serenade' being brought back to earth by the semi-documentary flavour of 'Orchestra Wives'. The latter is a compelling movie and as another reviewer pointed out, it didn't do well in the USA. At a guess I'd put this down to the non-melodramatic but seemingly realistic performances - unusual at the time. Having been a fan of Ann Rutherford since enjoying her in the 'Andy Hardy' movies, I was struck by her excellent but out of character performance. Once again the Nicholas Brothers provide the most memorable scene but all in all, it's a fine screenplay with great production values.