Ziegfeld Girl (1941)

Discovery by Flo Ziegfeld changes a girl's life but not necessarily for the better, as three beautiful women find out when they join the spectacle on Broadway: Susan, the singer who must ... See full summary »

Directors:

Robert Z. Leonard, Busby Berkeley

Writers:

Marguerite Roberts (screenplay), Sonya Levien (screenplay)

Stars:

James Stewart, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
James Stewart	...	Gilbert Young
Judy Garland	...	Susan Gallagher
Hedy Lamarr	...	Sandra Kolter
Lana Turner	...	Sheila Regan
Tony Martin	...	Frank Merton
Jackie Cooper	...	Jerry Regan
Ian Hunter	...	Geoffrey Collis
Charles Winninger	...	'Pop' Gallagher
Edward Everett Horton	...	Noble Sage
Philip Dorn	...	Franz Kolter
Paul Kelly	...	John Slayton
Eve Arden	...	Patsy Dixon
Dan Dailey	...	Jimmy Walters (as Dan Dailey Jr.)
Al Shean	...	Al
Fay Holden	...	Mrs. Regan

Storyline

Discovery by Flo Ziegfeld changes a girl's life but not necessarily for the better, as three beautiful women find out when they join the spectacle on Broadway: Susan, the singer who must leave behind her ageing vaudevillian father; vulnerable Sheila, the working girl pursued both by a millionaire and by her loyal boyfriend from Flatbush; and the mysterious European beauty Sandra, whose concert violinist husband cannot endure the thought of their escaping from poverty by promenading her glamor in skimpy costumes.

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Plot Keywords:

millionaire | singer | violinist | manhattan new york city | brooklyn new york city | 

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Taglines:

The triumph that tops "The Great Ziegfeld" is here at last! A pageant of stars and song...girls and grandeur...that opens a world of new show wonders!

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Genres:

Drama | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 April 1941 (USA)

Also Known As:

Enas rolos gia mena

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

132 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Favorite film of Esther Williams.

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Quotes

Mischa: [to Franz] It's a disgrace to your violin to make jazz music.

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Connections

Featured in MGM: When the Lion Roars: The Lion Reigns Supreme (1992)

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Soundtracks

The Wedding March
(1843) (uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 61"
Music by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Played as background music when Susie and Geoffrey talk about his proposing to Sheila

User Reviews

Too Much Soap, Not Enough Glitter

Unless you are a largely uncritical fan of Lamarr, Garland or Turner or of musicals in general, this is not a good film to start with; unlike the zippy, racy, fast-paced films Busby Berkeley did with Warner Brothers in the early 30's (42nd Street, the Gold Diggers films),or the dazzling Technicolor Fox Musicals of the 1940's. this MGM effort suffers from an excess of melodrama and not enough music. MGM ruled musicals in the 1950's with major films like Singin' In Rain and The Bandwagon.

Fortunately, Ziegfeld Girl does feature a bang-up, all-out, dazzling fur and feathers number "You Stepped Out Of A Dream" worth the more than two-hour drudgery of largely humorless soap opera, and it's sung by the late Tony Martin, featuring Hedy Lamarr as dazzling as she was ever going to look; unfortunately this number is early in the film, and there's a great deal of angst with Lana Turner hitting the skids as her truck-driving boyfriend (a miscast Jimmy Stewart, looking more than a little uncomfortable), mopes around the edges until she sobers up; This is not a bad film, merely, as frequently happens with MGM, in need of some judicious cutting; Garland is great fun in the "Minnie From Trinidad" number with dancers dangling dozens of bananas as arm decor, and Dan Dailey impressive as a deadbeat boxer; one wishes for more Eve Arden, as always, and one also wishes for the dazzling color of Ziegfeld Follies a few years later.