Call Me Madam (1953)

Director:

Walter Lang

Writers:

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

Release Date:

April 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Ambassador | U.S. Ambassador | Hostess | Princess | Marriage

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations

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
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Hannelore Axman	...	Telephone Switchboard Operator (uncredited)
Leon Belasco	...	Leader (uncredited)
Oscar Beregi Sr.	...	Chamberlain (uncredited)
Julio Bonini	...	Cabinet Minister (uncredited)
Ralph Brooks	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Barrie Chase	...	Dancer in The Ocarina (uncredited)
Jack Chefe	...	Soldier (uncredited)
James Conaty	...	Guest at Sally's Party (uncredited)
Heinie Conklin	...	Townsman at Fair (uncredited)
Charles J. Conrad	...	Newspaper Reporter (uncredited)
Sayre Dearing	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Helen Dickson	...	Guest at Sally's Party (uncredited)
Don Dillaway	...	Newspaper Reporter (uncredited)
Johnny Downs	...	Cameraman (uncredited)
Fritz Feld	...	Hat Clerk (uncredited)
Eddie Firestone	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Carnival Guest in Box (uncredited)
Richard Garrick	...	Supreme Court Justice (uncredited)
Frank Gerstle	...	Newspaper Reporter (uncredited)
Everett Glass	...	Announcer at Sally's Party (uncredited)
Kit Guard	...	Townsman at Fair (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Townsman at Fair (uncredited)
Stuart Holmes	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Walter Woolf King	...	Secretary of State (uncredited)
Mike Lally	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Sidney Marion	...	Beer Garden Proprietor (uncredited)
Renny McEvoy	...	First G.I. (uncredited)
Lal Chand Mehra	...	Minister from Magrador (uncredited)
Torben Meyer	...	Rudolph (uncredited)
Harold Miller	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Forbes Murray	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Roger Neury	...	Doorman at Ball (uncredited)
William J. O'Brien	...	Doorman at Ball (uncredited)
Nestor Paiva	...	Miccoli (uncredited)
Manuel París	...	Headwaiter at Sally's Party (uncredited)
Gene Roth	...	Captain of Equerries (uncredited)
Jeffrey Sayre	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Olan Soule	...	Clerk (uncredited)
Bert Stevens	...	Ball Extra (uncredited)
Hal Taggart	...	Extra in Newsreel (uncredited)
Charles Tannen	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Dale Van Sickel	...	Extra in Newsreel (uncredited)
Ernö Verebes	...	Music Clerk (uncredited)
John Wengraf	...	Ronchin (uncredited)
Mack Williams	...	Burton - Sally's Butler (uncredited)
Allen Wood	...	Cameraman (uncredited)
William Yetter Sr.	...	Equerry (uncredited)

Directed by
Walter Lang

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Russel Crouse		musical "Call Me Madam"
Howard Lindsay		musical "Call Me Madam"
Arthur Sheekman		screenplay

Produced by
Sol C. Siegel	....	producer

Original Music by
Alfred Newman		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Leon Shamroy		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Robert L. Simpson		(as Robert Simpson)

Art Direction by
John DeCuir		(as John De Cuir)
Lyle R. Wheeler		(as Lyle Wheeler)

Set Decoration by
Walter M. Scott

Costume Design by
Irene Sharaff

Makeup Department
Ben Nye	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Hal Klein	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bernard Freericks	....	sound
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound (as Roger Heman)

Special Effects by
Ray Kellogg	....	special photographic effects

Visual Effects by
Matthew Yuricich	....	visual effects artist (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sam Benson	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Joan Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Lyman Hallowell	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Music Department
Robert Alton	....	dances and musical numbers staged by
Ken Darby	....	vocal director
Earle Hagen	....	orchestrator
Alfred Newman	....	musical director
Herbert W. Spencer	....	orchestrator (as Herbert Spencer)
Alfred Newman	....	music supervisor (uncredited)
Edward B. Powell	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Carol Richards	....	singing voice: Vera-Ellen (uncredited)

Other crew
Leonard Doss	....	technicolor color consultant
Leland Hayward	....	stage producer
Jerry Bryan	....	dialogue coach (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1953) (USA) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1953) (Belgium) (theatrical)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1954) (Austria) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Irving Berlin's Call Me Madam" - USA (complete title)

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #16117) | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | West Germany:12 (nf)

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

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.

Quotes:

August Tantinnin:And if I may be permitted an extremely unofficial remark, off the record, as you say, the American ambassador is very beautiful.
Prime Minister Sebastian:So beautiful.
Sally Adams:Well, thank you.
[aside]
Sally Adams:A good optometrist could clean up around here.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "American Masters: Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About (#23.1)" (2009)

Soundtrack:

Can You Use Any Money Today

O'Connor and Merman Shine

Both Ethel Merman and Donald O'Connor suffered from the same misfortune -- lack of quality movie roles to showcase their extraordinary gifts. In O'Connor's case, it was because from childhood up into his middle twenties he was contracted by Universal Studios which, up 'til that time, produced "B" movies, suitable for coming into an air-cooled movie theater on a hot summer's day, but not much else. He always shone brightly, however, even in those early films, but not 'til Singin' In The Rain -- and Call Me Madam -- did he get the chance to glitter in great "A" material. Ethel Merman, the greatest of the Broadway greats had expansive mannerisms, stereophonic lungs, and irrepressable exhuberance, and was not considered cinema material by the powers that be. See how wrong the powers can be? O'Connor and Merman together in this film make it great -- his dancing, her voice, their personalities blending in just the right way. Great movie with two great leads -- don't miss "Call Me Madam"!