The Barkleys of Broadway (1949)

A successful but constantly-feuding husband and wife musical comedy team threatens to break up when the wife entertains an offer to become a serious actress.

Director:

Charles Walters

Writers:

Betty Comden (original screenplay), Adolph Green (original screenplay)

Stars:

Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Oscar Levant

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Fred Astaire	...	Josh Barkley
Ginger Rogers	...	Dinah Barkley
Oscar Levant	...	Ezra Millar
Billie Burke	...	Mrs. Livingston Belney
Gale Robbins	...	Shirlene May
Jacques François	...	Jacques Pierre Barredout (as Jacques Francois)
George Zucco	...	The Judge
Clinton Sundberg	...	Bert Felsher
Inez Cooper	...	Pamela Driscoll
Carol Brewster	...	Gloria Amboy
Wilson Wood	...	Larry

Storyline

Josh and Dinah Barkley are a successful (though argumentative) musical-comedy team, yet Dinah chafes as Galatea to her husband's Pygmalion. When serious playwright Jacques Barredout envisions her as a great dramatic actress, Dinah is not hard to persuade.

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Plot Keywords:

astaire and rogers | reference to trilby | reference to svengali | telephone call | charity benefit | 

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Taglines:

M·G·M's New Technicolor Musical Hit

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

1 September 1949 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

You Made Me Love You

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$2,325,420 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Fred Astaire had sung "They Can't Take That Away from Me" to Ginger Rogers previously in Shall We Dance (1937), but they had never danced to it. Rogers suggested that they use the song again (this time dancing), and so it was included.

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Goofs

In "Shoes with Wings on" dance, one dancer has his shoes off when trying the tap shoes. When he takes them off and gives them to Fred Astaire's character, the dancer forgets to pick up his shoes when he walks out the door. After that, they are not to be found when the routine continues.

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Quotes

Bert Felsher: Ezra, we've got to get an understudy for Dinah.
Ezra Millar: Don't look at me. I'm knock-kneed.
Bert Felsher: Come on up on the stage. There's a cute kid from the chorus I've had my eye on for some time.

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Connections

References Shall We Dance (1937)

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Soundtracks

Swing Trot
(1949) (uncredited)
Music by Harry Warren
Lyrics by Ira Gershwin
Sung by an off-screen chorus
Danced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers

User Reviews

Fred & Ginger in Color

The couple Josh (Fred Astaire) and Dinah Barkley (Ginger Rogers) are successful musical comedy artists in Broadway and perfect on stage. However, they frequently argue with each other backstage and at home and the perfectionist Josh usually questions the performance of his wife. Their close friend and pianist Ezra Millar (Oscar Levant) usually calms them down.

When Dinah is introduced to the playwright and director Jacques Pierre Barredout (Jacques Francois), he believes that she is a great dramatic actress and offers a lead role in his play to her. After an argument with Josh, Dinah splits up with her husband and decides to pursue the career of actress. The stubborn Josh misses Dinah and secretly helps her in her new career but none of them seems to give in.

"The Barkleys of Broadway" is another musical comedy with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, but in Technicolor. This time, in addition to the beautiful numbers of Fred and Ginger, Oscar Levant wonderfully plays Tchaikovsky. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Ciúme, Sinal de Amor" ("Jealousy, Sign of Love")