Blue Skies
(aka "Irving Berlin's Blue Skies")
Paramount, 1946, Color, 104 minutes, ***
Released October, 1946
For what Fred Astaire had announced would be his last film, no expense was spared. This musical extravaganza boasts 30 Irving Berlin songs, 47 sets, sumptuous costumes and a budget of $3,000,000. The result is sensational. (And, fortunately, Astaire did not retire from films!)
Dancing star Jed Potter (Astaire) and singer / nightclub owner Johnny Adams (Bing Crosby) are both in love with songstress Mary O'Hara (Joan Caulfield). She marries Johnny, but his passion for buying and selling nightclubs drives them apart. So Jed steps in, hoping to win Mary's heart - until fate steps in and changes the lives of all three.
The most outstanding number is Astaire's famous "Puttin' On the Ritz," a split-screen gem with a chorus of miniature Astaires tap-dancing behind him. Designed by Astaire, it took five weeks of "back-breaking physical work" to achieve. Other highlights find Astaire and Crosby as "A Couple of Song and Dance Men," and Crosby crooning a wealth of Berlin tunes, including the Oscar-nominated "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song." With its superb stars and sparkling numbers, Blue Skies is one of the all-time great musicals.
Produced by: Sol C. Siegel
Directed by: Stuart Heisler
Screen Play by: Arthur Sheekman
Adaptation by: Allan Scott
Based on an Original Idea by: Irving Berlin
Lyrics and Music by: Irving Berlin
Music Direction: Robert Emmett Dolan
Vocal Arrangements: Joseph J. Lilley
Music Associate: Troy Sanders
Dances Staged by: Hermes Pan
Art Directors: Hans Dreier and Hal Pereira
Set Decoration: Sam Comer and Maurice Goodman
Gowns: Edith Head
Costumes Designed by: Waldo Angelo
Costumes Executed by: Mme. Karinska
Makeup Supervision: Wally Westmore
Sound Recording by: Hugo Grenzbach and John Cope
Directors of Photography: Charles Lang, Jr.; William Snyder
Special Photographic Effects: Gordon Jennings, Paul K. Lerpae
Process Photography: Farciot Edouart
Photographed in Technicolor
Technicolor Color Director: Natalie Kalmus
Associate: Robert Brower
Edited by: LeRoy Stone
Awards: Academy Award nominations for Best Score (Musical) and Best Song ("You Keep Coming Back Like a Song")
Cast: Bing Crosby [Johnny Adams], Fred Astaire [Jed Potter], Joan Caulfield [Mary O'Hara], Billy De Wolfe [Tony], Olga San Juan [Nita Nova], Additional Cast: Mikhail Rasumny [Francois], Frank Faylen [Mack], Victoria Horne [Martha Nurse], Karolyn Grimes [Mary Elizabeth], Robert Benchley [Businessman], Jimmy Conlin [Jeffrey], Carol Andrews [Dolly], Roy Gordon [Charles Dillingham], Cliff Nazarro [Cliff], Mikhail Rasumny [Francois], John M. Sullivan [Junior], Rev. Neal Dodd [Minister], Charles La Torre [Mr. Rakopolis], Will Wright [Dan], Archie Twitchell [Charlie], Barbara Slater [Myrtle], Joan Woodbury [Flo], Clarence Brooks [Valet], John "Skins" Miller [Ed], John Gallaudet [Stage Manager], Roberta Jonay [Hat Check Girl], Mary Jane Hodge [Cigarette Girl], Frances Morris [Nurse], Len Hendry [Electrician], John Kelly [Tough Guy], Dorothy Barrett [Showgirl], Norma Creiger, Vicki Jasmund, Louise Saraydar, Joanne Lybrook [Singers], Albert Ruiz, Joel Friend [Specialty Dancers], Paula Ray, Sam Harris, Larry Steers, Roxanne Collins [Guests], The Guardsmen [Vocals], Betty Russell [Singing Voice of Joan Caulfield]
Musical Program: [0:00] Overture (played by Orchestra behind titles); [0:02] A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody (sung by Chorus, paraded by Show Girls, sung by Fred Astaire, danced by Fred Astaire and Joan Caulfield); [0:11] I've Got My Captain Working for Me Now (sung by Bing Crosby); [0:15] You'd Be Surprised (sung by Olga San Juan); [0:20] All by Myself (sung and danced by Bing Crosby and Joan Caulfield, Betty Russell dubbing for Joan Caulfield); [0:23] Serenade to an Old-Fashioned Girl (sung by Joan Caulfield and The Guardsmen, Joan Caulfield dubbed by Betty Russell); [0:25] Puttin' on the Ritz (sung and danced by Fred Astaire); [0:33] I'll See You in C-U-B-A (sung by Bing Crosby and Olga San Juan); [0:42] A Couple of Song and Dance Men (sung and danced by Fred Astaire and Bing Crosby); [0:51] You Keep Coming Back Like a Song (sung by Bing Crosby and Chorus); [0:53] Always (excerpt sung by Chorus in background); [0:56] Blue Skies (sung by Bing Crosby); [0:59] The Little Things in Life (excerpt sung by Bing Crosby); [1:00] Not for All the Rice in China (excerpt sung by Bing Crosby); [1:00] Russian Lullaby (excerpt sung by Bing Crosby); [1:05] Everybody Step (sung by Bing Crosby, danced by Ensemble); [1:21] How Deep Is the Ocean? (excerpt sung by Bing Crosby and Chorus); [1:24] (Running Around in Circles) Getting Nowhere (sung by Bing Crosby); [1:32] Heat Wave (sung and danced by Fred Astaire and Olga San Juan); [1:39] Any Bonds Today? (sung by Bing Crosby); [1:40] This Is the Army, Mister Jones (sung by Bing Crosby); [1:40] White Christmas (sung by Bing Crosby); [1:41] You Keep Coming Back Like a Song (reprised by Bing Crosby and Chorus)
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