Thrill of a Romance (1945)

Director:

Richard Thorpe

Writers:

Richard Connell (original screenplay) and
Gladys Lehman (original screenplay)

Release Date:

12 November 1945 (Sweden)

Genre:

Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Musical bliss with every kiss!

Plot:

A swim teacher and a wealthy businessman are married after a brief courtship. A charming war hero falls in love with this newly-married woman, after her husband abandons her on their honeymoon for the sake of a business meeting.

Plot Keywords:

Businessman | Swimmer | Wedding | Instructor | Newlywed

Cast

Van Johnson	...	Maj. Thomas Milvaine
Esther Williams	...	Cynthia Glenn
Frances Gifford	...	Maude Bancroft
Henry Travers	...	Hobart Glenn
Spring Byington	...	Nona Glenn
Lauritz Melchior	...	Mr. Nils Knudsen
Carleton G. Young	...	Robert G. Delbar
Ethel Griffies	...	Mrs. Fenway
Donald Curtis	...	K.O. Karny
Jerry Scott	...	Lyonel
Fernando Alvarado	...	Julio
Helene Stanley	...	Susan
Vince Barnett	...	Oscar
Billy House	...	Dr. Tovve
Joan Fay Macaboy	...	Betty
Tommy Dorsey	...	Tommy Dorsey
Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra	...	Tommy Dorsey Orchestra (as Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Allen	...	Member Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (uncredited)
Jessie Arnold	...	Cleaning Woman (uncredited)
Jack Baxley	...	Detective at Wedding Reception (uncredited)
Wally Boag	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Eugene Borden	...	Gene (uncredited)
Tom Brannigan	...	Johnny (uncredited)
Virginia Brissac	...	Ms. McKenzie (uncredited)
Art Buehler	...	Chauffeur (uncredited)
Fulton Burley	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Lucille Casey	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Mimi Cassell	...	Giggling Girl (uncredited)
Jeff Chandler	...	Singer (uncredited)
James Conaty	...	Nightclub Patron / Hotel Lounge Patron (uncredited)
Tony Coppala	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Douglas Cowan	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Elizabeth Dailey	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Henry H. Daniels Jr.	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Buddy De Franco	...	Member Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (uncredited)
Rudy De Saxe	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Evelyn Del Rio	...	Girl (uncredited)
Frances Donelan	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Dick Earle	...	Mr. Carter (uncredited)
Carli Elinor	...	Gypsy Orchestra Leader (uncredited)
Frank Ferguson	...	1st Hotel Monte Belva Clerk (uncredited)
Dorothy Ford	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Grace Ford	...	Cleaning Woman (uncredited)
Mary Jane French	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Arno Frey	...	Hotel Headwaiter (uncredited)
Winifred Glyn	...	Girl (uncredited)
Albert Godderis	...	Waiter (uncredited)
Ray Goulding	...	Nightclub Patron (uncredited)
Aileen Haley	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Dolores Hall	...	Girl (uncredited)
Thurston Hall	...	J.P. Bancroft (uncredited)
Phil Hanna	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Stuart Holmes	...	Chess Player (uncredited)
Jane Isbell	...	Giggling Girl (uncredited)
Selmer Jackson	...	2nd Hotel Monte Belva Clerk (uncredited)
Robert Emmett Keane	...	Austin Vemmering (uncredited)
The King Sisters	...	Specialty Act (uncredited)
Peggy Leon	...	Wedding Guest (uncredited)
Carl M. Leviness	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Irv Lewis	...	Member Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (uncredited)
Ann Lundeen	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Wilbur Mack	...	Hotel Lounge Patron (uncredited)
Gerald Mackey	...	Boy (uncredited)
Hugh Maguire	...	Boy (uncredited)
Dodo Marmarosa	...	Member Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (uncredited)
Frank Mayo	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Frank McClure	...	Hotel Lounge Patron (uncredited)
Beryl McCutcheon	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Danna McGraw	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Harold Miller	...	Wedding Guest (uncredited)
Warren Mills	...	Page Boy (uncredited)
Bert Moorhouse	...	Poolside Dance Floor Guest (uncredited)
Tim Murdock	...	Naval Ensign (uncredited)
Alex Novinsky	...	Chess-Player (uncredited)
Dagmar Oakland	...	Guest at Reception (uncredited)
Jack Perrin	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Alexander Pollard	...	Hotel Lounge Waiter (uncredited)
Jean Porter	...	Ga-Ga Bride (uncredited)
Buddy Rich	...	Member Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra (uncredited)
Erin Selwyn	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Ethel Smith	...	Ethel Smith - Organ Player (uncredited)
Joseph Sullivan	...	Canadian Flier (uncredited)
Bobby Walberg	...	Boy (uncredited)
Alice Wallace	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)
Pierre Watkin	...	Tycoon (uncredited)
Eve Whitney	...	Hotel Guest (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Thorpe

Writing credits
Richard Connell		(original screenplay) and
Gladys Lehman		(original screenplay)

Produced by
Joe Pasternak	....	producer

Original Music by
Calvin Jackson		(uncredited)
George Stoll		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Harry Stradling Sr.

Film Editing by
George Boemler

Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons
Hans Peters

Set Decoration by
Jack Bonar
Edwin B. Willis

Costume Design by
Kay Dean
Irene

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Marvin Stuart	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Joe Edmondson	....	sound technician
Robert Shirley	....	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
Newell Sparks	....	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
William Steinkamp	....	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
Michael Steinore	....	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
John A. Williams	....	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Mark Davis	....	matte paintings camera (uncredited)
Warren Newcombe	....	matte paintings (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Sam Leavitt	....	second camera (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Eugene Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department
Ted Duncan	....	orchestrator
Calvin Jackson	....	orchestrator
Fred Norman	....	orchestrator
Joseph Nussbaum	....	orchestrator
George Stoll	....	music adaptor (as Georgie Stoll)
George Stoll	....	musical director (as Georgie Stoll)
Hugo Winterhalter	....	orchestrator
Pete Decker	....	music mixer (uncredited)
Conrad Salinger	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
William Saracino	....	music mixer (uncredited)

Other crew
Henri Jaffa	....	associate technicolor color director
Natalie Kalmus	....	technicolor color director
Charles Walters	....	dance director
Ruth Nurmi	....	diving double: Esther Williams (uncredited)
Jack Shea	....	diving double: Donald Curtis (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (controlled by Loew's Incorporated)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1945) (USA) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1945) (UK) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra  group cast members

Also Known As:

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Arrowhead Springs Hotel, San Bernardino, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The featured song "Please Don't Say No (Say Maybe)" was recorded by numerous singers in the late 1940s.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Chosen (1981)

Soundtrack:

I Should Care

Typical Esther Williams movie is easy on the eyes...

MGM could always depend on an ESTHER WILLIAMS movie to be breezy fun for movie fans who wanted escapism during the '40s in the form of light entertainment. And that's what they get here. VAN JOHNSON, a war hero she meets at a mountain resort, is her romantic interest and occasional swimming partner while her husband, CARLTON G. YOUNG, is neglecting her by performing his business duties.

And, of course, you have to have music in an Esther Williams movie. So, they have LAURITZ MELCHIOR, the chubby tenor from the Met, serving as a sort of S.Z. Sakall type providing gentle humor and suave charm in between some robust songs. Then they have TOMMY DORSEY and his Orchestra for fans of contemporary music with Buddy Rich beating on the drums.

The other standard ingredient is lush Technicolor that makes the most of some stunning scenery as well as some gorgeous shots of Esther in various swimming suits doing her thing in a pool of Olympic proportions. She also looks good on land in a series of smart outfits.

The weakness is a thin story that needs all the padding it gets. But for Esther Williams/Van Johnson fans, this had all the standard ingredients they looked for in this sort of musical.