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Anything Goes

  • 19361936
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 32m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
437
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
34,281
10,068
Bing Crosby, Ethel Merman, and Charles Ruggles in Anything Goes (1936)
ComedyMusicalRomance
A young man falls in love with a beautiful blonde. When he sees her being forced onto a luxury liner, he decides to follow and rescue her. However, he discovers that she is an English heires... Read allA young man falls in love with a beautiful blonde. When he sees her being forced onto a luxury liner, he decides to follow and rescue her. However, he discovers that she is an English heiress who ran away from home and is now being returned to England. He also discovers that his ... Read allA young man falls in love with a beautiful blonde. When he sees her being forced onto a luxury liner, he decides to follow and rescue her. However, he discovers that she is an English heiress who ran away from home and is now being returned to England. He also discovers that his boss is on the ship. To avoid discovery, he disguises himself as the gangster accomplice o... Read all
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
437
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
34,281
10,068
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Lewis Milestone
    • Writers
      • P.G. Wodehouse(play)
      • Guy Bolton(play)
      • Howard Lindsay(adaptation)
    • Stars
      • Bing Crosby
      • Ethel Merman
      • Charles Ruggles
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Lewis Milestone
    • Writers
      • P.G. Wodehouse(play)
      • Guy Bolton(play)
      • Howard Lindsay(adaptation)
    • Stars
      • Bing Crosby
      • Ethel Merman
      • Charles Ruggles
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 16User reviews
    • 8Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • Photos16

    Ethel Merman, ANYTHING GOES, Paramount, 1936, **I.V.
    Bonita Barker, Myrla Bratton, Mary Dees, Claudia Fargo, Kay Gordon, Geneva Hall, Dolly Jarvis, Gwynne Shipman, Madeline Talcott, Dorothy Ward, Betty Woods, and Jane Wyman in Anything Goes (1936)
    Ethel Merman and Charles Ruggles in Anything Goes (1936)
    Ida Lupino and Arthur Treacher in Anything Goes (1936)
    Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman in Anything Goes (1936)
    Bing Crosby, Grace Bradley, Margaret Dumont, Ethel Merman, and Charles Ruggles in Anything Goes (1936)
    Ethel Merman in Anything Goes (1936)
    Ida Lupino in Anything Goes (1936)
    Bing Crosby in Anything Goes (1936)
    Gary Cooper, Bing Crosby, Fred MacMurray, and Ethel Merman in Anything Goes (1936)
    Bing Crosby and Charles Ruggles in Anything Goes (1936)
    Bing Crosby, Bonita Barker, Myrla Bratton, Mary Dees, Claudia Fargo, Kay Gordon, Geneva Hall, Dolly Jarvis, Lotus Liu, Ethel Merman, Gwynne Shipman, Louise Stanley, Madeline Talcott, Dorothy Ward, Betty Woods, and Jane Wyman in Anything Goes (1936)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Bing Crosby
    Bing Crosby
    • Billy Crocker
    Ethel Merman
    Ethel Merman
    • Reno Sweeney
    Charles Ruggles
    Charles Ruggles
    • Moonface Martin - Rev. Dr. Moon
    Ida Lupino
    Ida Lupino
    • Hope Harcourt
    Grace Bradley
    Grace Bradley
    • Bonnie Le Tour
    Arthur Treacher
    Arthur Treacher
    • Sir Evelyn Oakleigh
    Robert McWade
    Robert McWade
    • Elisha J. Whitney
    Richard Carle
    Richard Carle
    • Bishop Dobson
    Margaret Dumont
    Margaret Dumont
    • Mrs. Wentworth
    Jerry Tucker
    Jerry Tucker
    • Junior
    Matt Moore
    Matt Moore
    • Capt. McPhail
    Edward Gargan
    Edward Gargan
    • Detective
    Matt McHugh
    Matt McHugh
    • Detective
    Budd Fine
    • Pug-Ugly
    The Avalon Boys
    • Quartet
    Jack Adair
    • Federal Man
    • (uncredited)
    Philip Ahn
    Philip Ahn
    • Ling
    • (uncredited)
    Sam Ash
    Sam Ash
    • Steward
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Lewis Milestone
    • Writers
      • P.G. Wodehouse(play)
      • Guy Bolton(play)
      • Howard Lindsay(adaptation) (screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      W.C. Fields was replaced before filming began with Charles Ruggles.
    • Goofs
      During "Sailor Beware," there is a shot of deckhands strumming guitars at a much faster tempo than the song itself, suggesting that it's stock footage from another film.
    • Quotes

      [first lines]

      Reno Sweeney: [singing] In olden days a glimpse of stocking / Was looked on as something shocking, / Now, Heaven knows, / Anything goes!

      [as she sings the words "anything goes", the title of the film appears onscreen]

    • Connections
      Featured in Paramount Presents (1974)
    • Soundtracks
      Anything Goes
      (partial)

      by Cole Porter

      Sung by Ethel Merman

    User reviews16

    Review
    Top review
    4/10
    Another mediocre filming of a great stage show
    The 1936 "Anything Goes" is another example of Hollywood's mishandling of what could have been a classic film version of a classic Broadway show. All the opportunities were there-Bing Crosby as the male lead, Ethel Merman (who did make her songs famous, even if you can't stand her singing style) repeating her stage role, Charlie Ruggles a perfect and hilarious replacement for Victor Moore, and one of Cole Porter's two greatest scores-the other being "Kiss Me Kate". So what do the filmmakers do?

    They throw out all but four of the original songs and turn the film into a Bing Crosby vehicle by getting a group of songwriters to write several new songs especially for him, one of them reportedly at his request. Then, they rewrite the lyrics to "You're the Top" (one of Porter's most clever songs), retain only the first verse of the title song, "Anything Goes", make a minor change (required by the censors of the time) to the lyrics to "I Get A Kick Out Of You", keep the original plot line (notice that the filmmakers considered the ridiculous plot sacred enough to leave alone, but not Cole Porter's songs), and release this flat, unfunny mess. At least Ethel Merman fans get to see her sing two of her biggest hit songs on film.
    helpful•9
    5
    • critic-2
    • Feb 10, 1999

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 24, 1936 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Tops Is the Limit
    • Filming locations
      • Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production company
      • Paramount Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,100,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 32 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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