Easter Parade (1948)

A nightclub performer hires a naive chorus girl to become his new dance partner to make his former partner jealous and to prove he can make any partner a star.

Director:

Charles Walters

Writers:

Sidney Sheldon (screenplay), Frances Goodrich (screenplay)

Stars:

Judy Garland, Fred Astaire, Peter Lawford

Won 1 Oscar. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Judy Garland	...	Hannah Brown
Fred Astaire	...	Don Hewes
Peter Lawford	...	Jonathan Harrow III
Ann Miller	...	Nadine Hale
Jules Munshin	...	Headwaiter François
Clinton Sundberg	...	Mike the Bartender
Richard Beavers	...	Singer ("The Girl on the Magazine Cover")

Storyline

Don Hewes and Nadine Hale are a dancing team, but she decides to start a career on her own. So he takes the next dancer he meets, Hannah Brown, as a new partner. After a while this new team is so successful, that Florenz Ziegfeld is interested in them, but due to the fact that Nadine Hale dances also in the Ziegfeld Follies Don says no. In spite of the fact that he is in love with Hannah, he keeps the relation to her strictly business. So Hannah is of the opinion that he is still in love with Nadine, and her suspicion grows when he dances with Nadine in a Night Club Floor Show.

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Plot Keywords:

dance | dancing | easter | performer | dancer | 

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Taglines:

The Happiest Musical Ever Made is Irving Berlin's Easter Parade

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Genres:

Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ann Miller had to perform her biggest numbers in a back brace. In an interview with Robert Osborne, she revealed that she had been thrown down the stairs by her then husband Reese Milner. She was also pregnant at the time and was in a lot of pain.

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Goofs

While Fred Astaire's slo-mo dance routine to "Steppin' Out with My Baby" is an impressive technological feat, he is seen performing it in a live stage show, where it would not be possible to do slow motion.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Don Hewes: [as he enters the apartment] Hat please.
Essie, Nadine's Maid: Oh, Mr. Hewes.
Don Hewes: [to Nadine] Hello darling! Where are you?
Nadine Hale: Oh Don, I've been trying to call you.
Don Hewes: Uh, Essie, will you help me with these things please?
[laughs while struggling with several stacked boxes]
Don Hewes: Thank you. Well, I got all tied up with an Easter rabbit. Hello sweetheart.
[kisses Nadine]
Don Hewes: Here.
[...]

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Alternate Versions

Judy Garland sings "Mr. Monotony" in a sequence cut from the film. An excerpt from the number was included in That's Entertainment Part III (1994). The 2004 DVD box set release of all three That's Entertainment films includes a bonus DVD that includes the complete performance of this number.

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Connections

Featured in Glorious Technicolor (1998)

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Soundtracks

I Want to Go Back to Michigan
(uncredited)
Written by Irving Berlin
Sung by Judy Garland

User Reviews

Doesn't quite add up

Any film starring Judy Garland, Fred Astaire and Ann Miller already has more going for it than most, but "Easter Parade" never manages to combine its many excellent parts into a particularly memorable whole.

Astaire was not supposed to make this film at all; Garland's expected co-star was Gene Kelly. The two had just scored a big hit with "The Pirate," a wonderfully over-the-top comedy featuring one of Garland's most hysterical performances, and the studio was hoping to create the same magic again. Unfortunately, Kelly was injured during rehearsals and Astaire came out of retirement to fill in.

Astaire would always be Astaire, but he was almost twice Garland's age (she was 26, I believe, and he in his early 50s). The difference shows--frankly, it's a little hard to believe that Garland's character would fall in love with this man, especially with the handsome, elegant Peter Lawford nearby. When Astaire dances, his age fades away, but many of his scenes with Garland are necessarily non-dancing, and Garland was a far superior actress and comedian. Observe them in "A Couple of Swells" near the end; she draws nearly all the attention. At times, you have to remind yourself that Astaire is also on the stage.

Nevertheless, the film is worth seeing, especially for such highlights as Ann Miller's dazzling solo, "Shaking the Blues Away." Other must-see elements: Garland's imitation of a blowfish on a busy street and the marvelously overblown production number, "The Girl I Love (is on a Magazine Cover)." Find me the restaurant large enough for a production like that!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French Italian

Release Date:

8 July 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

Irving Berlin's Easter Parade

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$2,503,654 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1