| Joan Crawford | ... | Helen Wright | |
| John Garfield | ... | Paul Boray | |
| Oscar Levant | ... | Sid Jeffers | |
| J. Carrol Naish | ... | Rudy Boray | |
| Joan Chandler | ... | Gina Romney | |
| Tom D'Andrea | ... | Phil Boray | |
| Peggy Knudsen | ... | Florence Boray | |
| Ruth Nelson | ... | Esther Boray | |
| Craig Stevens | ... | Monte Loeffler | |
| Paul Cavanagh | ... | Victor Wright | |
| Richard Gaines | ... | Bauer | |
| John Abbott | ... | Rozner | |
| Robert Blake | ... | Paul Boray as a Child (as Bobby Blake) | |
| Tommy Cook | ... | Phil Boray as a Child | |
| Don McGuire | ... | Eddie | |
| Fritz Leiber | ... | Hagerstrom | |
| Peg La Centra | ... | Night Club Singer (as Peg LaCentra) | |
| Nestor Paiva | ... | Orchestra Leader | |
| rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
| Sylvia Arslan | ... | Gina as a Girl (uncredited) | |
| Patricia Barry | ... | Fritzie - Bauer's Secretary (uncredited) | |
| Monte Blue | ... | Moving Man (uncredited) | |
| Harlan Briggs | ... | Jeffers - Toy Shop Proprietor (uncredited) | |
| Eric DeLamarter | ... | Orchestra Conductor (uncredited) | |
| Bess Flowers | ... | Boray Fan (uncredited) | |
| Angela Greene | ... | Tipsy Blonde at Party (uncredited) | |
| Creighton Hale | ... | Professor (uncredited) | |
| Jane Harker | ... | Redhead Snob with Sid at Party (uncredited) | |
| Ann Lawrence | ... | Florence as a Girl (uncredited) | |
| Esther Michelson | ... | Mrs. Klein (uncredited) | |
| Paul Panzer | ... | Theater Worker (uncredited) | |
| Don Turner | ... | Man with Dog (uncredited) | |
| Richard Walsh | ... | Teddy (uncredited) | |
Directed by | |||
| Jean Negulesco | |||
Writing credits | ||
| Clifford Odets | (screenplay) and | |
| Zachary Gold | (screenplay) | |
| Fannie Hurst | (short story "Humoresque") | |
Produced by | |||
| Jerry Wald | .... | producer | |
| Jack L. Warner | .... | executive producer | |
Cinematography by | |||
| Ernest Haller | (director of photography) | ||
Film Editing by | |||
| Rudi Fehr | |||
Art Direction by | |||
| Hugh Reticker | |||
Set Decoration by | |||
| Clarence Steensen | |||
Makeup Department | |||
| Perc Westmore | .... | makeup artist | |
| Edwin Allen | .... | makeup artist (uncredited) | |
| Della Barnes | .... | hair stylist (uncredited) | |
| Gertrude Wheeler | .... | hair stylist (uncredited) | |
Production Management | |||
| Louis Baum | .... | unit manager (uncredited) | |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | |||
| Herbert S. Greene | .... | second assistant director (uncredited) | |
| Philip Quinn | .... | assistant director (uncredited) | |
Art Department | |||
| William Wallace | .... | props (uncredited) | |
| Levi C. Williams | .... | props (uncredited) | |
Sound Department | |||
| Charles David Forrest | .... | sound (as David Forrest) | |
| Robert B. Lee | .... | sound | |
Special Effects by | |||
| Roy Davidson | .... | special effects director | |
| Willard Van Enger | .... | special effects | |
Camera and Electrical Department | |||
| Ralph Burbank | .... | gaffer: stills (uncredited) | |
| Paul Butler | .... | best boy (uncredited) | |
| James Geldenhar | .... | gaffer (uncredited) | |
| William Schurr | .... | second camera (uncredited) | |
| Jack Woods | .... | still photographer (uncredited) | |
| Stanley Young | .... | grip (uncredited) | |
Costume and Wardrobe Department | |||
| Adrian | .... | wardrobe: Miss Crawford | |
| Bernard Newman | .... | wardrobe | |
| Mary Dery | .... | wardrobe (uncredited) | |
| Ralph Hibbs | .... | wardrobe (uncredited) | |
| Eugene Joseff | .... | costume jeweller (uncredited) | |
| Jeanette Storck | .... | wardrobe (uncredited) | |
| Vic Vallejo | .... | wardrobe (uncredited) | |
Music Department | |||
| Leo F. Forbstein | .... | musical director | |
| Isaac Stern | .... | music advisor | |
| Franz Waxman | .... | conductor | |
| Leonid Raab | .... | orchestrator (uncredited) | |
| Isaac Stern | .... | musician (solo violin: John Garfield ) (uncredited) | |
| Franz Waxman | .... | composer: additional music (uncredited) | |
Other crew | |||
| Herschel Daugherty | .... | dialogue director | |
| James Leicester | .... | montages | |
| Alma Dwight | .... | script clerk (uncredited) | |
| Oscar Levant | .... | technical adviser (uncredited) | |
| John Mitchell | .... | unit publicist (uncredited) | |
| John Strauss | .... | publicist (uncredited) | |
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| August Rush | Mildred Pierce | Limelight | Birth | Good |
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| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb USA section |
In New York, the performance of the virtuoso violinist Paul Boray (John Garfield) is cancelled. In his apartment, Paul recalls when he was a boy and chooses a violin as a birthday gift from his working class parents. Paul dedicates his youth playing violin studying in the National Institute Orchestra with Professor Rozner and dreams on becoming a concert violinist. During the Great Depression, Paul overhears a conversation of his father and his older brother about his dedication to the violin and seeks out his best friend Sidney Jeffers (Oscar Levant) asking for a job.
Sid introduces Paul to the wealthy Helen Wright (Joan Crawford) and her husband Victor Wright (Paul Cavanagh) in a party. Helen is an unhappy alcoholic woman that sees that Paul is a talented violinist and brings him to work with the influent agent Bauer (Richard Gaines). His career starts to take off and Paul becomes her protégée. Sooner they have a love affair and they fall in love with each other. But Helen is jealous of the love of Paul for his violin and her insecurity ends in a tragedy.
"Humoresque" is a timeless romance for cinema and music lovers. The screenplay has awesome dialogs with unforgettable lines. When Helen gives a note in the theater to Paul, he is playing Carmen of Bizet and she feels like Don José and learns that she would never have the exclusive love of Paul since he is in love with his violin (and music). In the end, he is playing the tragic Tristan and Iseult of Wagner. Therefore, the film has many layers associated to the classical music. My vote is nine.
Title (Brazil): "Acordes do Coração" ("Chords of the Heart")