My Sister Eileen (1955)

Ruth and her beautiful sister Eileen come to New York's Greenwich Village looking for "fame, fortune and a 'For Rent' sign on Barrow Street". They find an apartment (such as it is!), but ... See full summary »

Director:

Richard Quine

Writers:

Blake Edwards (screenplay), Richard Quine (screenplay),

Stars:

Janet Leigh, Jack Lemmon, Betty Garrett

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Janet Leigh	...	Eileen Sherwood
Jack Lemmon	...	Robert 'Bob' Baker
Betty Garrett	...	Ruth Sherwood
Bob Fosse	...	Frank Lippincott (as Robert Fosse)
Kurt Kasznar	...	'Papa' Appopolous
Dick York	...	Ted 'Wreck' Loomis (as Richard York)
Lucy Marlow	...	Helen
Tommy Rall	...	Chick Clark
Barbara Brown	...	Helen's Mother
Horace McMahon	...	Police Officer Lonigan
Henry Slate	...	Second Drunk
Hal March	...	Pete - First Drunk

Storyline

Ruth and her beautiful sister Eileen come to New York's Greenwich Village looking for "fame, fortune and a 'For Rent' sign on Barrow Street". They find an apartment (such as it is!), but fame and fortune are a lot more elusive. Ruth gets the attention of playboy publisher Bob Baker when she submits a story about her gorgeous sister Eileen. She tries to keep his attention by convincing him that she, (a "spinsterish old-maid writer") and the gorgeous, man-getting Eileen are one and the same person.

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Plot Keywords:

apartment | writer | female stockinged legs | soda jerk | editor | 

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Taglines:

That Joyous New Musical !

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Genres:

Musical | Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Portuguese

Release Date:

22 September 1955 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Gay Girls

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 North Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (magnetic prints) Mono (optical prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Instead of using the score of "Wonderful Town," the 1953 Broadway musical based on the "My Sister Eileen" stories by Ruth McKinney, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, Columbia commissioned a brand new score with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Leo Robin.

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Goofs

When Eileen is dancing at El Morocco, she is wearing shoes with small heels. Later on that night when they dance at the bandstand, Eileen is wearing flat shoes.

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Quotes

Ruth Sherwood: Just what kind of work are you out of, Wreck?

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Connections

Version of My Sister Eileen (1942)

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Soundtracks

"Conga"
Performed by Betty Garrett, Janet Leigh, Kurt Kasznar and sailors

User Reviews

A neglected gem

This is one of the most entertaining musicals to ever come out of Hollywood. Light and witty, sweet and subtle, it's almost as if Lubitsch made it. The songs are a joy, the dancing a treat and the story deliciously simple. Janet Leigh and Jack Lemmon shine, but the true star is the glorious Betty Garret, who should have been much bigger than she was. Please check this out, it's a charmer