The Notorious Landlady (1962)

An American junior diplomat in London rents a house from, and falls in love with, a woman suspected of murder.

Director:

Richard Quine

Writers:

Larry Gelbart (screenplay), Blake Edwards (screenplay)

Stars:

Kim Novak, Jack Lemmon, Fred Astaire

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Kim Novak	...	Mrs. Carlyle 'Carly' Hardwicke
Jack Lemmon	...	William 'Bill' Gridley
Fred Astaire	...	Franklyn Ambruster
Lionel Jeffries	...	Inspector Oliphant
Estelle Winwood	...	Mrs. Dunhill
Maxwell Reed	...	Miles Hardwicke
Philippa Bevans	...	Mrs. Agatha Brown
Henry Daniell	...	Stranger
Ronald Long	...	Coroner
Richard Peel	...	Police Sgt. Dillings
Doris Lloyd	...	Lady Fallott

Storyline

When William Gridley arrives from the US in London, he rents part of Carly Hardwicke's house from her and promptly begins to fall in love. Gridley doesn't know that many people think she killed her husband but his boss, on the American embassy staff, knows and doesn't take this "lapse of judgment" lightly. Since Carly is also American, Gridley saves his job by introducing her to his boss, who is promptly smitten and promises to help her. So when a Scotland Yard detective arrives, wanting to get to the truth one way or another, they say they'll help him. And then the comedic complications really begin.

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Plot Keywords:

woman in a wheelchair | dragged along the ground | shot with a toy gun | renting a room | climbing over a fence | 

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Taglines:

Did she...or did she?

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Genres:

Comedy | Mystery

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Richard Quine, who got his start as a performer in movie musicals, makes clever use of Fred Astaire's legendary, distinctive walk by having Astaire stride directly toward the camera every time the scene shifts to the embassy.

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Goofs

In the murder trial, Police Sgt. Dillings testifies that he saw Gridley and Hardwicke standing together with their arms around each other, and that she had the gun in her left hand. In the first scene flashback, they are standing together and her right hand is down along her side with the gun in it. In her flashback scene later, she has the gun in her left hand after Miles is shot.

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Quotes

Franklyn Ambruster: He just started work today.
Police Sgt. Dillings: Well, let's hope he shows up tomorrow.

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Crazy Credits

Miss Novak's gowns designed by... Herself

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Connections

Referenced in Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962)

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Soundtracks

I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General
(uncredited)
from "The Pirates of Penzance"
Music by Arthur Sullivan
Played by band at Wessex Hotel

User Reviews

Brief description of film

Pleasant mystery/comedy with a young energetic Jack Lemmon and an attractive Kim Novak developing a love interest (as expected) while trying to solve the problem of the apparent murder of her husband. Some intriguing plot twists and surprising jumps. Light film provides a nice diversion for an hour and a half especially with the presence of Fred Astaire and Lionel Jefferies.

Unfortunately it does not appear to be available on video tape at the present time.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

April 1962 (Austria)

Also Known As:

The Notorious Landlady

Filming Locations:

Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch - 411 North Hollywood Way, Burbank, California, USA

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$11,040

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1