Carousel (1956)

Director:

Henry King

Writers:

Phoebe Ephron (screenplay)
Henry Ephron (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

16 February 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Musical | Romance

Tagline:

20th-Century Fox proudly presents [Rodgers and Hammerstein's CAROUSEL]

Plot:

Billy Bigelow asks for permission to be sent down "from above" for one day to try and make amends for mistakes he made in life...

Plot Keywords:

Carousel | Carnival | Barker | Scavenger Hunt | Famous Song

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Gordon MacRae	...	Billy Bigelow
Shirley Jones	...	Julie Jordan
Cameron Mitchell	...	Jigger Craigin
Barbara Ruick	...	Carrie Pipperidge
Claramae Turner	...	Cousin Nettie
Robert Rounseville	...	Mr. Enoch Snow
Gene Lockhart	...	Starkeeper / Dr. Selden
Audrey Christie	...	Mrs. Mullin
Susan Luckey	...	Louise Bigelow
William LeMassena	...	Heavenly Friend
John Dehner	...	Mr. Bascombe
Jacques d'Amboise	...	Louise's 'Starlight Carnival' Dancing Partner
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Robert Banas	...	Ruffian in Louise's ballet (uncredited)
Harry Carter	...	Third Policeman (uncredited)
Richard Deacon	...	First Policeman (uncredited)
Marion Dempsey	...	Sword Swallower (uncredited)
Robert Foulk	...	Second Policeman (uncredited)
Lili Gentle	...	Young Girl #1 (uncredited)
Marie Greene	...	Louise Bigelow (singing voice) (uncredited)
Cheryl Holdridge	...	Young Girl #2 (uncredited)
Harry Johnson	...	Juggler (uncredited)
Tor Johnson	...	Strong Man (uncredited)
Edward Mundy	...	Fire Eater (uncredited)
Mary Orozco	...	Fat Woman (uncredited)
Dee Pollock	...	Enoch Snow, Jr. (uncredited)
Angelo Rossitto	...	Midget (uncredited)
Sylvia Stanton	...	Contortionist (uncredited)
Frank Tweddell	...	Capt. Watson (uncredited)

Directed by
Henry King

Writing credits
Phoebe Ephron		(screenplay)
Henry Ephron		(screenplay)
Oscar Hammerstein II		(book of stage musical)
Ferenc Molnár		(play "Liliom")
Benjamin Glazer		(English translation and adaptation of Liliom) (as Benjamin F. Glazer)

Produced by
Henry Ephron	....	producer

Cinematography by
Charles G. Clarke

Film Editing by
William Reynolds

Art Direction by
Jack Martin Smith
Lyle R. Wheeler

Set Decoration by
Chester L. Bayhi		(as Chester Bayhi)
Walter M. Scott

Costume Design by
Mary Wills

Makeup Department
Ben Nye	....	makeup artist
Helen Turpin	....	hair stylist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Stanley Hough	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bernard Freericks	....	sound
Harry M. Leonard	....	sound

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

Camera and Electrical Department
Bob Rose	....	additional grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Charles Le Maire	....	wardrobe (as Charle Le Maire)
Sam Benson	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Leonard Doss	....	color consultant

Music Department
Ken Darby	....	vocal supervisor
Earle Hagen	....	orchestrator
Gus Levene	....	orchestrator
Bernard Mayers	....	orchestrator
Alfred Newman	....	conductor
Alfred Newman	....	music supervisor
Edward B. Powell	....	orchestrator
Nelson Riddle	....	orchestrator
Herbert W. Spencer	....	orchestrator (as Herbert Spencer)

Other crew
Rod Alexander	....	choreographer
Agnes de Mille	....	choreographer: original Louise's Ballet

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1956) (USA) (theatrical)
• Centfox (1956) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1966) (USA) (TV) (pan/scan) (edited)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Fox Video (????) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (2008) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Angel Records  soundtrack released by (1990's CD edition) (uncredited)
• Angel Records  soundtrack released by (2001 expanded CD edition) (uncredited)
• Bausch & Lomb  CinemaScope lenses by
• Capitol Records  soundtrack released by (1956 LP and first CD edition) (uncredited)
• Theatre Guild  stage production

Also Known As:

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) | 6-Track Stereo (premiere only) | 4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) | USA:Approved (PCA #17724) | Australia:G (original rating) | Australia:PG (cable rating) | Canada:G | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:15 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Augusta, Maine, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Frank Sinatra was cast as Billy, but backed out because each scene had to be shot twice (once in 35mm, once in 55mm). Three weeks after he left, they found a way to film the scene once on 55mm, then transfer it onto 35mm.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Mockingbird calls are heard in a scene between Billy and Louise near the end. At the time the film is set (between the early 1870s and the late 1880s), the mockingbird range was entirely in the American South. There were no mockingbirds in Maine - not even in the year the film was made (by which time the mockingbird's range had extended to New York and New Jersey).

Quotes:

[first lines]
Heavenly Friend: Bigelow...
Billy Bigelow: [impatiently] Well, what'd I do now?
Heavenly Friend: Nothing. I just thought you'd wanna know - there's trouble.
Billy Bigelow: Huh! Thought you said I didn't do nothin'.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 20th Century-Fox: The First 50 Years (1997) (TV)

Soundtrack:

You'll Never Walk Alone

excellent Rodgers and Hammerstein musical

This is the musical which gave Gordon MacRae his greatest solo song, namely the 7 minutes long "Soliloquy", in which Billy the circus barker speculates about his unborn child, first with bluster and pride if it is a boy, and then with insecurity and despair if it is a girl he can't buy things for. Billy, as we have seen in the opening sequence of the film, is telling his story to one of the angels in heaven, where he has gone after a violent and premature death. So we see his tale unfold, as he meets pretty little Julie Jordan (Shirley Jones, excellent), marries her, and through fate and bad luck, gets separated from her.

The subject matter is darker than Oklahoma (the film version of which also starred MacRae and Jones) but the sheer exuberance of songs such as "June is Bustin' Out All Over"; "A Real Nice Clambake"; "When The Children Are Asleep" and "If I Loved You", plus of course the best-known song from the show, "You'll Never Walk Alone" takes the story to another level and makes this film enjoyable to watch. Robert Rounsville makes a fine bombastic Mr Snow and has a fabulous voice; MacRae and Jones have their memorable duet to the lovely melody of Rodgers' score. There is also an excellent dance sequence, not as extensive as on stage, but still effective, where the daughter of Billy and Julie imagines an escape from her lonely and ostracised life.