There have been two different film versions of this show, and I haven't actually seen either of them yet. :-) But here's a little more information on them:


Apparently this is actually the second movie version of this story - a 1929 film (mostly silent, with a few songs from the stage show added) starring Laura LaPlante and Joseph Schildkraut is not readily available. So this is the first one that most people think of. This one, the 1936 film version, starred Irene Dunne, Allan Jones, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, Charles Winninger and was directed by James Whale. It was added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry in 1996. Three new songs were included in the film version that were not seen in the original stage production: "Gallivantin' Around," "I Have the Room Above Her," and "Ah Still Suits Me."


The 1951 film version starred Kathryn Grayson, Ava Gardner, Howard Keel, Joe E. Brown, Gower Champion, and was directed by George Sidney. Interestingly enough, although Annette Warren dubbed Ava Gardner's singing voice in the movie, on the soundtrack, it is Ava Gardner's voice. It was nominated for two Oscars, for Best Cinematography, and Best Music. This version was released on DVD in 1997.


Back to Show Boat Index