Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)

A wealthy composer rescues unemployed Broadway performers with a new play.

Director:

Mervyn LeRoy

Writers:

Erwin S. Gelsey (screenplay) (as Erwin Gelsey), James Seymour (screenplay)

Stars:

Warren William, Joan Blondell, Aline MacMahon

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Warren William	...	J. Lawrence Bradford
Joan Blondell	...	Carol King
Aline MacMahon	...	Trixie Lorraine
Ruby Keeler	...	Polly Parker
Dick Powell	...	Brad Roberts
Guy Kibbee	...	Faneul H. Peabody
Ned Sparks	...	Barney Hopkins
Ginger Rogers	...	Fay Fortune

Storyline

Chorus girls Polly, Carol and Trixie are ecstatic when they learn that Broadway producer Barney Hopkins is putting on a new show. He promises all of the girls parts in the new show and even hires their neighbor Brad Roberts, an unknown composer, to write some of the music. There's only one problem: he doesn't have the money to bankroll it all. That problem is solved when Brad turns out to be quite rich but he insists that he not perform. When opening night comes, the juvenile lead can't go on forcing Brad to take the stage. He's recognized of course and his upper crust family wants him to quit. When he refuses, they tell him to end his relationship with Polly or face having his income cut off. When Brad's snobbish brother Lawrence mistakes Carol for Polly, the girls decide to have a bit of fun and teach him a lesson.

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Plot Keywords:

dancing | chorus girl | composer | neighbor | dance | 

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Taglines:

The Biggest Show On Earth!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 May 1933 (USA)

Also Known As:

Golddiggers of 1933

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$433,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Cut from the release print was Ginger Rogers' version of "I've Got to Sing a Torch Song" (music by Harry Warren, lyrics by Al Dubin), warbled atop a white piano in a nightclub, where she can be spotted briefly in a long shot of the orchestra. Ginger's prerecording still exists.

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Goofs

At 1:18 into film Lawrence (Warren William) is on his bed with an ice pack, Peabody (Guy Kibbee) sitting next to him. Lawrence gets up and undoes the sash of his robe, but in the very next shot the sash is completely tied, as it had been before.

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Quotes

Trixie Lorraine: I'm going to take him like Grant took Waterloo.

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Connections

Referenced in Fainaru fantajî XV (2016)

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Soundtracks

Untitled
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Harry Warren
Played after Barney asks Brad if he has any other song

User Reviews

Superb--one of the 3 best 30s musicals....

with 42nd Street and Footlight Parade... Snappy, risqué, funny, great cast, great music. What more could you ask for? Joan Blondell, Aline McMahon, and Ruby Keeler are the gold diggers. Warren William, Dick Powell, and Guy Kibbee are their targets. Ginger Rogers is swell singing "We're in the Money" in Pig Latin. Ned Sparks, Sterling Holloway, Charles Lane, and Billy Barty are good. Great musical numbers including the opening "We're in the Money," the terrific finale "Forgotten Man" with Blondell and Etta Moten (singing in the window); "Petting in the Park" and "In a Shadow"---Powell and Keeler.... all classics. Fun all the way......

Look for Hobart Cavanaugh, Grace Hayle, Busby Berkley, Clarence Nordstrom, and one of the roller skating cops sure looks like Jack Carson.

Aline McMahon steals the show, and what a show it is!