Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943)

Director:

David Butler

Writers:

Norman Panama (screenplay) &
Melvin Frank (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

1 October 1943 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Plot:

Two producers are putting together a wartime charity show with an all-star cast but the egotism of radio personality Eddie Cantor disrupts their plans.

Plot Keywords:

Native American | Autograph | Beautiful Woman | Charity Event | Song And Dance

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Himself
Eddie Cantor	...	Himself / Joe Simpson
Bette Davis	...	Herself
Olivia de Havilland	...	Herself
Errol Flynn	...	Himself (segment "That's What You Jolly Well Get")
John Garfield	...	Himself
Joan Leslie	...	Pat Dixon
Ida Lupino	...	Herself
Dennis Morgan	...	Tommy Randolph
Ann Sheridan	...	Herself
Dinah Shore	...	Herself
Alexis Smith	...	Herself
Jack Carson	...	Himself
Alan Hale	...	Himself
George Tobias	...	Himself

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Probably Errol Flynn most uncharacteristic screen appearance occurred in Thank Your Lucky Stars (1943) when he sang and danced his way through a pub number entitled "That's What You Jolly Well Get".

Quotes:

Dr. Schlenna: Farnsworth, I got you into this complication, and it's up to me to make a mess out of it.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Roaring Twenties: The World Moves On (2005) (V)

Soundtrack:

Now's the Time to Fall in Love

Discovering Eddie Cantor

Cantor was one of the biggest stars of his time. And this WW-II extravaganza showcases his comedy talents playing himself and a look-alike cab driver. Dennis Morgan and Joan Leslie are the lovers, Dinah Shore gets a big buildup but her songs are drippy and awful. Edward Everett Horton and S.Z. Sakall are fun as the guys running the Cavalcade that Cantor forces himself into. Humphrey Bogart does a limp cameo, and big Warners stars appear in a series of funny stage numbers. Bette Davis, Ann Sheridan, and Errol Flynn sing; Olivia de Havilland and Ida Lupino do a jive number; Hattie McDaniel sings in a Harlem number; Jack Carson and Alan Hale do an old-time Vaudeville number; Alexis Smith dances; Spike Jones does a novelty number; John Garfield sings on Cantor's radio show, etc. But aside from seeing these big stars, it's Eddie Cantor who makes this worthwhile. A HUGE stage, movie, and radio star, Cantor is wonderful lampooning himself (a la Bob Hope) and playing the nebbish cabbie (a la Woody Allen). While many of his Broadway contemporaries never quite made it in films (Sophie Tucker, Fannie Brice, George Jessell, Al Jolson, Marilyn Miller), Cantor's starring film career lasted almost 20 years, dating from the smash hit Whoopie! in 1930; his radio career lasted 30 years. Cantor is sadly forgotten now, but he was such a big star he won a special Oscar for his film work and his humanitarian efforts.