Going My Way (1944)

Director:

Leo McCarey

Writers:

Frank Butler (screenplay) and
Frank Cavett (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

2 October 1944 (Brazil)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Music | Musical

Tagline:

Sing, Bing . . . . You're A Grand, Gay Guy In Your Greatest Picture !

Plot:

Youthful Father Chuck O'Malley led a colorful life of sports, song, and romance before joining the Roman Catholic clergy...

Plot Keywords:

Catholic | New York City | Mother Child Reunion | Fire | Blockbuster

Awards:

Won 7 Oscars. Another 11 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Bing Crosby	...	Father Chuck O'Malley
Barry Fitzgerald	...	Father Fitzgibbon
Frank McHugh	...	Father Timothy O'Dowd
James Brown	...	Ted Haines Jr.
Gene Lockhart	...	Ted Haines Sr.
Jean Heather	...	Carol James
Porter Hall	...	Mr. Belknap
Fortunio Bonanova	...	Tomaso Bozanni
Eily Malyon	...	Mrs. Carmody
The Robert Mitchell Boy Choir	...	Choir (as Robert Mitchell Boychoir)
Risë Stevens	...	Genevieve Linden
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Stanley Clements	...	Tony Scaponi (uncredited)
Adeline De Walt Reynolds	...	Mrs. Molly Fitzgibbon (uncredited)
Tom Dillon	...	Police Officer Pat McCarthy (uncredited)
Bobby Dolan Jr.	...	Joseph (uncredited)
Jimmie Dundee	...	Fireman (uncredited)
Virginia Farmer	...	Parishioner (uncredited)
Franklyn Farnum	...	Church Usher (uncredited)
William Frawley	...	Max Dolan - the Publisher (uncredited)
Don Gallaher	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Martin Garralaga	...	Zuñiga (uncredited)
Julie Gibson	...	Cab Driver (uncredited)
Gibson Gowland	...	Parishioner (uncredited)
William Henry	...	Doctor (uncredited)
Connie Leon	...	Mrs. Quimp's Neighbor (uncredited)
Sybil Lewis	...	Effie - Genevieve's Maid (uncredited)
Hugh Maguire	...	Pitch Pipe (uncredited)
Joe Mangum	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
George McKay	...	Mr.Van Heusen (uncredited)
Freddie Mercer	...	Boys Choir Member (uncredited)
Georgie Nokes	...	Pee Wee (uncredited)
Jack Norton	...	Mr. Lilly (uncredited)
Constance Purdy	...	Mrs. Quimp's Neighbor at Window (uncredited)
Anita Sharp-Bolster	...	Mrs. Hattie Quimp (uncredited)
John Smith	...	Choir Member (uncredited)
William Smith	...	Choir Member (uncredited)
Carl 'Alfalfa' Switzer	...	Herman Langerhanke (uncredited)
Robert Tafur	...	Don Jose in 'Carmen' (uncredited)
Cecil Weston	...	Minor Role (uncredited)

Directed by
Leo McCarey

Writing credits
Frank Butler		(screenplay) and
Frank Cavett		(screenplay)
Leo McCarey		(story) (as Leo Mc Carey)

Produced by
Leo McCarey	....	producer
Buddy G. DeSylva	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Robert Emmett Dolan		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Lionel Lindon		(director of photography)
John F. Seitz		(uncredited)

Film Editing by
LeRoy Stone		(as Leroy Stone)

Art Direction by
Hans Dreier
William Flannery

Set Decoration by
Stephen Seymour		(as Steve Seymour)

Costume Design by
Edith Head		(costumes)

Makeup Department
Wally Westmore	....	makeup artist
Leonora Sabine	....	hair supervisor (uncredited)

Production Management
H. Brown	....	assistant unit manager (uncredited)
Ed Ralph	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Alvin Ganzer	....	assistant director (uncredited)
Howard Joslin	....	assistant director (uncredited)
D. Keene	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Sam Comer	....	set dressing supervisor (uncredited)

Sound Department
John Cope	....	sound recording
Gene Merritt	....	sound recording

Visual Effects by
Gordon Jennings	....	special photographic effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Whitey Schafer	....	still photographer (uncredited)

Music Department
Robert Emmett Dolan	....	musical director
Joseph J. Lilley	....	vocal arranger
Robb Navrides	....	music editor: TV version
Troy Sanders	....	music associate
Joseph J. Lilley	....	composer: additional music (uncredited)
George Parrish	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Armando Agnini	....	technical advisor: opera (uncredited)
Nesta Charles	....	script clerk (uncredited)
Daniel Dare	....	dance director (uncredited)
John Devlin	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Josephine Earl	....	dance director (uncredited)
Julie Gibson	....	double: Risë Stevens (uncredited)
Al Mann	....	assistant dance director (uncredited)
John 'Skins' Miller	....	double: Bing Crosby (uncredited)
Fred Stanley	....	double: Frank McHugh (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Paramount Pictures

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1944) (USA) (theatrical)
• MCA/Universal Pictures (1958) (USA) (TV)
• MCA Home Video (1986) (USA) (video)
• Universal Pictures Benelux (2005) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Central Motion Picture Exchange (1946) (Japan) (theatrical)
• MCA/Universal Home Video (199?) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Metropolitan Opera Association  acknowledgement: Risë Stevens ia a famous contralto of

Also Known As:

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | UK:U (DVD rating) | USA:TV-G | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Finland:S | Germany:o.Al. | USA:Approved (PCA #9613)

Filming Locations:

Lakeside Country Club - 4500 W. Lakeside Drive, Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Bing Crosby sang "Swinging on a Star" by Jimmy Van Heusen, which went on to win an Academy Award for Best Song. Crosby sang four different Oscar-winning songs in his films.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: Directly after the first rendition of "Going My Way", the shadow of the boom mic can be seen moving on the church wall behind father Fitzgibbon and Miss Linden.

Quotes:

Father Fitzgibbons:I gave them both my blessing.
Father Chuck O'Malley:And they gave you the bird.
Father Fitzgibbons:Yeah.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "M*A*S*H: Rally 'Round the Flagg, Boys (#7.21)" (1979)

Soundtrack:

Going My Way

One of the best loved of all Oscar movies

One of the best loved of all Oscar winners, Leo McCarey's deeply sentimental film makes no great claims to seriousness nor is it particularly cinematic, (the studio sets are clearly studio sets), but it's well-written and has a deeply likable performance from Bing Crosby as Father Chuck O'Malley, (the Academy liked him enough to give him the Best Actor Oscar and to nominate him the following year for playing the same role). He's the young priest sent to St. Dominic's, a parish down on its luck, to whip it back into shape and to replace the curmudgeonly old priest responsible for its present state. The older priest is the leprechaun-like Barry Fitzgerald and he plays the part shamelessly. The Academy gave him an Oscar, too, and it marked the only time when an actor, (Fitzgerald), was nominated for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor for playing the same role in the same film in the same year. (The rules were subsequently changed so it wouldn't happen again). The Mickey Rooney role of the street-wise older kid who makes good is played here by Stanley Clements. If the film has a fault it's that it gave us one of the most annoying of all Oscar-winning songs in 'Swingin on a Star'.