Call Me Madam (1953)

Washington hostess Sally Adams becomes a Truman-era US ambassador to a European grand duchy.

Director:

Walter Lang

Writers:

Russel Crouse (musical "Call Me Madam"), Howard Lindsay (musical "Call Me Madam"),

Stars:

Ethel Merman, Donald O'Connor, Vera-Ellen

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Ethel Merman	...	Sally Adams
Donald O'Connor	...	Kenneth Gibson
Vera-Ellen	...	Princess Maria
George Sanders	...	General Cosmo Constantine
Billy De Wolfe	...	Pemberton Maxwell
Helmut Dantine	...	Prince Hugo
Walter Slezak	...	August Tantinnin
Steven Geray	...	Prime Minister Sebastian
Ludwig Stössel	...	Grand Duke Otto (as Ludwig Stossel)
Lilia Skala	...	Grand Duchess Sophie
Charles Dingle	...	Sen. Brockway
Emory Parnell	...	Sen. Charlie Gallagher
Percy Helton	...	Sen. Wilkins

Storyline

Boisterous, fun-loving, and popular Washington D.C. hostess Sally Adams is appointed U.S. Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Lichtenburg, Europe's smallest country. In Lichtenburg, the Duke and Duchess are negotiating a political marriage for their niece, Princess Maria in exchange for a substantial dowry. However, the country is desperate for funds, and turns to the inexperienced ambassador for a much needed U.S. loan. Sally refuses to talk money, that is, until she meets the ultra charming Gen. Cosmo Constantine. Meanwhile, Sally's press attaché Kenneth Gibson falls head over heels for Princess Maria.

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Plot Keywords:

ambassador | u.s. ambassador | hostess | princess | marriage | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

April 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Irving Berlin's Call Me Madam

Filming Locations:

Stage 5, 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ethel Merman's on-screen rendition of "The Hostess With the Mostes' on the Ball" was shorter than her Broadway version, which had included an encore, and a stage quip warning an ambassador's date "not to leave her panties in the hall" was scrubbed from the picture's lyrics.

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Quotes

Sally Adams: Call Me Madam.
Pemberton Maxwell: Madam...
Sally Adams: When you call me madam, smile.

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Crazy Credits

During the opening credits, as each word in the title appears onscreen, we hear, but do not see, Ethel Merman exclaiming, in a demanding tone of voice: "Call..me..madam!"

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Connections

Referenced in Call Her Madam (1998)

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Soundtracks

"That International Rag"
Written by Irving Berlin
Performed by Ethel Merman

User Reviews

That Hostess With The Mostess

Movie audiences got a treat in Call Me Madam because they got to see Ethel Merman repeat one of two of her Broadway roles for the screen, the other being in the first Anything Goes.

For some reason, movie audiences never really took to Ethel. She did some parts during the Thirties, but in the Forties worked exclusively on Broadway. Mary Martin suffered a similar fate and we never got to see any of her Broadway starring roles with the exception of the famous telecast of Peter Pan.

Irving Berlin wrote the score for Call Me Madam and the book is based on the colorful life of Perle Mesta, famous Washington socialite who Harry Truman made ambassador to Luxembourg.

That's the way of things in Washington. Both parties with a new administration give ambassadorships out to wealthy contributors and Perle Mesta, an oil widow was one of the wealthiest.

Ethel is appointed by President Truman as Ambassador to the mythical duchy of Lichtenburg. Her rather informal style sets some professional State Department teeth rattling and during the course of the film both causes and solves a diplomatic crisis. Her personal assistant, Donald O'Connor is in her corner, but the chief of Protocol Billy DeWolfe is at his wit's end.

Both Ethel and Donald find romance in Lichtenburg, she with Count George Sanders and he with Vera-Ellen. When things aren't looking so good, they console each other with the hit song of Call Me Madam, You're Just In Love. This is what you call a contrapuntal melody with both members of the duet singing different melodies at the same time. At the same time this one was hitting the jukeboxes, another contrapuntal by Berlin, Play A Simple Melody was revived by Bing Crosby and his son Gary. To my knowledge no other major composer has ever had a hit with one of those.

George Sanders surprised quite a few folks with his singing voice. They needn't have been, he in fact had appeared in some musicals on the London stage before going into film. And he drops the sneer that usually accompanies most of us film characters and makes a most dashing and romantic count.

Dropped from the film version was Irving Berlin's tribute to Dwight D. Eisenhower which became his campaign theme song, I Like Ike. I guess it was considered redundant since the American people already had him. There are many references to Harry in the book and how Ethel was going to not let him down in the position he placed her in.

Billy DeWolfe steals every scene he's in as the fussy officious career foreign service employee, Pemberton Maxwell. If there ever was a name for a stuffy career WASP diplomat, that's it. They were a ripe target back then, certain politicians made a living on accusing a whole flock of them as traitors. One of them was Truman's Secretary of State, Dean Acheson. There manner didn't play well in what we would now call red state America.

Call Me Madam is bright and funny with a great score and some fabulous performances. Can't do better than that.