''Good News'' is a 1947

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as brea ...

based on the 1927 stage production of the same name. It starred

June Allyson June Allyson (born Eleanor Geisman; October 7, 1917 – July 8, 2006) was an American stage, film, and television actress, dancer, and singer. Allyson began her career in 1937 as a dancer in short subject films and on Broadway in 1938. She sig ...

, Peter Lawford,

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

, and

Joan McCracken Joan Hume McCracken (December 31, 1917 – November 1, 1961) was an American dancer and actress who became famous for her role as Sylvie ("The Girl Who Falls Down") in the original 1943 production of ''Oklahoma!'' She also was noted for her per ...

. The

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, f ...

by Betty Comden and Adolph Green was directed by

Charles Walters Charles Powell Walters (November 17, 1911 – August 13, 1982) was an American Hollywood director and choreographer most noted for his work in MGM musicals and comedies from the 1940s to the 1960s. Early years Charles Walters was born in Pasade ...

in Technicolor. Three additional songs were written for the film: "The French Lesson", "Pass That Peace Pipe", and "An Easier Way", the last of which was cut from the released film. ''Good News'' was the second adaptation of the stage musical, after the 1930 film '' Good News''. The 1947 film was a more sanitized version of the musical; the 1930 version included Pre-Code content, such as sexual innuendo and lewd suggestive humor.

Production

The Film was originally planned for

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

and

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...

as a follow up to their success in " Babes in Arms". ''Good News'' and '' Summer Stock'' was also originally planned to become part of the backyard musical series. ''Summer Stock'' was released three years later.

Plot

The film is set in 1927 at

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a tradi ...

al Tait College, where

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

is all the rage ("Tait Song"/"Good News"). Tait's football star Tommy Marlowe ( Peter Lawford) is a prime catch for the college girls. Tommy tells his friend and non-playing teammate Bobby Turner (McDonald) that the trick to attracting girls is to show no interest ("Be a Ladies' Man"). New student Pat McClellan (Marshall) resists his advances, cutting Tommy down to size at a party ("Lucky in Love"). Pat insults Tommy in French, so Tommy enlists part-time school

librarian A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users. The role of the librarian has changed much over time ...

Connie Lane (

) to help him study the language ("The French Lesson"). He gradually falls for Connie, who comes from a poor background, which does not bother her ("The Best Things in Life are Free"). Meanwhile, Babe Doolittle (McCracken) is seeking to leave a relationship with jealous football player Beef (Tindall) so she can get involved with Bobby Turner. At a local soda shop, Babe advises Pat not to lose her temper ("Pass the Peace Pipe"). Tommy's newly learned French fails to impress Pat and he leaves dejectedly. Babe, concerned that Tommy's frame of mind will cause him to lose the big game, revives Pat's interest by (untruthfully) telling her Tommy comes from a wealthy family. Connie grows attracted to Tommy. Tommy asks Connie to the prom, but reneges when Pat shows interest. Connie is heartbroken ("Just Imagine"). Tommy is failing French and begs for help from a reluctant Connie - he belatedly realizes his true feelings for her although Pat has pressured him into proposing. In the end, Tait wins the big game, Tommy pairs off with Connie, Beef pairs off with Pat, and Babe pairs off with Bobby Turner. The college bursts out into song in a production number ("Varsity Drag").

Cast

as Connie Lane * Peter Lawford as Tommy Marlowe * Patricia Marshall as Pat McClellan *

as Babe Doolittle *

Ray McDonald Raymondo Antoine McDonald (born September 2, 1984) is a former American football defensive end. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Florida, where he was a member o ...

as Bobby Turner *

as Danny * Robert Strickland as Peter Van Dyne III * Donald MacBride as Coach Johnson * Tom Dugan as Pooch * Clinton Sundberg as Professor Burton Kennyon * Loren Tindall as Beef *

Connie Gilchrist Rose Constance Gilchrist (July 17, 1895 – March 3, 1985) was an American stage, film, and television actress. Among her screen credits are her roles in the Hollywood productions '' Cry 'Havoc (1943), ''A Letter to Three Wives'' (1949), ...

as Cora the cook * Morris Ankrum as Dean Griswold * Georgia Lee as Flo * Jane Green as Mrs. Drexel

Soundtrack

* "Good News" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Sung by

and chorus * "Tait Song" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Performed by Joan McCracken and chorus * "Be a Ladies' Man" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Performed by Peter Lawford, Ray McDonald,

, and Lon Tindal * "Lucky in Love" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Performed by Patricia Marshall, Joan McCracken, Mel Tormé, June Allyson, and Peter Lawford * "The French Lesson" ** Written by Roger Edens, Betty Comden, and Adolph Green ** Performed by June Allyson and Peter Lawford * " The Best Things in Life Are Free" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Performed by June Allyson ** Performed also by Mel Tormé * "Pass That Peace Pipe" ** Written by Roger Edens, Hugh Martin, and Ralph Blane ** Performed by Joan McCracken, Ray McDonald, and chorus * "Just Imagine" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Sung by June Allyson * "Varsity Drag" ** Music by Ray Henderson ** Lyrics by Lew Brown and Buddy G. DeSylva ** Performed by June Allyson, Peter Lawford, and chorus

Deleted song

"An Easier Way", sung by June Allyson and Patricia Marshall, was filmed but cut from the released version. This musical number survives and is included as an "extra" on the DVD.''Good News'' at DVD Verdict

Reception

Box office

The film was a

box office disappointment A box-office bomb, or box-office disaster, is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the production, marketing, and distribution costs combined exceed the revenue after ...

, earning $2,545,000 in the US and Canada and $411,000 elsewhere, recording a loss of $7,000."Top Grossers of 1948", ''Variety'' 5 January 1949 p 46
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Awards

Edens, Martin and Blane were nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed ...

for "Pass That Peace Pipe".

References

External links

* * * *
DVD information about the 1947 film version
{{Authority control 1947 films 1947 musical comedy films 1940s sports comedy films American football films American musical comedy films Films based on musicals Films directed by Charles Walters Films produced by Arthur Freed Films set in 1927 Films set in the Roaring Twenties Films set in universities and colleges Films with screenplays by Betty Comden and Adolph Green Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films