''Rosalie'' is a 1937 American

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 ...

directed by

W.S. Van Dyke Woodbridge Strong Van Dyke II (Woody) (March 21, 1889 – February 5, 1943) was an American film director and writer who made several successful early sound films, including ''Tarzan the Ape Man'' in 1932, ''The Thin Man'' in 1934, ''San Francis ...

and starring

Eleanor Powell Eleanor Torrey Powell (November 21, 1912 – February 11, 1982) was an American dancer and actress. Best remembered for her tap dance numbers in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s, she was one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's top dancing stars du ...

Nelson Eddy Nelson Ackerman Eddy (June 29, 1901 – March 6, 1967) was an American actor and baritone singer who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclub ...

and Frank Morgan. An

adaptation In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...

of the 1928 stage musical of the same name, the film was released in December 1937."'Rosalie', Film Production, Cast, Synopsis"
sondheimguide.com, accessed January 14, 2011 The film follows the story of the musical, but replaces most of the Broadway score with new songs by

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

. The story involves the romantic entanglements of a princess in disguise and a

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

cadet.

Plot

Dick Thorpe (

) is a football star for the Army, and Rosalie (

), a Vassar student who is also a princess (Princess Rosalie of Romanza) in disguise, watches a football game. They are attracted to each other and agree to meet in her country in Europe. When Dick flies into her country, he is greeted as a hero by the king ( Frank Morgan) and finds Rosalie is engaged to marry Prince Paul (Tom Rutherford), who actually is in love with Brenda ( Ilona Massey). Dick, not knowing of Prince Paul's affections, leaves the country. The king and his family are forced to leave their troubled country, and Dick and Rosalie are finally reunited at

Cast

as Dick Thorpe *

as Rosalie * Frank Morgan as King *

Edna May Oliver Edna May Oliver (born Edna May Nutter, November 9, 1883 – November 9, 1942) was an American stage and film actress. During the 1930s, she was one of the better-known character actresses in American films, often playing tart-tongued spinsters. ...

as Queen *

Ray Bolger Raymond Wallace Bolger (January 10, 1904 – January 15, 1987) was an American actor, dancer, singer, vaudevillian and stage performer (particularly musical theatre) who started in the silent-film era. Bolger was a major Broadway performer in ...

as Bill Delroy * Ilona Massey as Brenda *

Billy Gilbert William Gilbert Barron (September 12, 1894 – September 23, 1971), known professionally as Billy Gilbert, was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his comic sneeze routines. He appeared in over 200 feature films, short subjects ...

as Oloff *

Reginald Owen John Reginald Owen (5 August 1887 – 5 November 1972) was a British actor. He was known for his many roles in British and American films and television programs. Career The son of Joseph and Frances Owen, Reginald Owen studied at Sir Herbert ...

as Chancellor * Tom Rutherford as Prince Paul *

Clay Clement Clay Clement (May 19, 1888 – October 20, 1956) was an American stage, film, and TV actor. He appeared in more than 80 films between 1918 and 1947. Clement was one of the earliest members of the Screen Actors Guild.Virginia Grey Virginia Grey (March 22, 1917 – July 31, 2004) was an American actress who appeared in over 100 films and a number of radio and television shows from the 1930s to the early 1980s. Biography Grey was born on March 22, 1917, in Edendale, Calif ...

as Mary Callahan *

George Zucco George Zucco (11 January 1886 – 27 May 1960) was a British character actor who appeared in plays and 96 films, mostly American-made, during a career spanning over two decades, from the 1920s to 1951. In his films, he often played a suave ...

as General Maroff *

Oscar O'Shea Oscar O'Shea (8 October 1881 – 6 April 1960) was a Canadian-American character actor with over 100 film appearances from 1937 to 1953. Early years O'Shea was born in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Acting O'Shea was a comic actor who earne ...

as Mr. Callahan * Jerry Colonna as Joseph *

Janet Beecher Janet Beecher (born Janet Meysenberg; October 21, 1884 – August 6, 1955) was an American stage and screen actress. Early years The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. E. A. Von Meysenburg, Beecher was born in Jefferson City, Missouri. Her sister was ...

as Miss Baker * Tommy Bond as Mickey the Mascot

Production

MGM's top tap dancer at the time, Eleanor Powell, was cast as the princess opposite Nelson Eddy as cadet Dick Thorpe (Lieutenant Richard Fay in the stage musical). Frank Morgan reprised his Broadway role as King Fredrick (King Cyril in the stage version). Also appearing in the film were Ray Bolger (Bill Delroy), Edna May Oliver (the queen), Ilona Massey (Brenda), Tom Rutherford (Prince Paul), and

(Chancellor).Green, Stanley; Schmidt, Elaine.
"'Rosalie'"
''Hollywood Musicals Year By Year'', Hal Leonard Corporation, 2000, , p. 77, accessed January 14, 2011"'Rosalie' Cast, Crew, Production and Plot"
tcm.com, accessed January 15, 2011 William Anthony McGuire was the producer, with direction by W. S. Van Dyke, cinematography by Oliver Marsh, art direction by

Cedric Gibbons Austin Cedric Gibbons (March 23, 1890 – July 26, 1960) was an Irish-American art director for the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed the ...

, and choreography by

Albertina Rasch Albertina Rasch (January 19, 1891 – October 2, 1967) was a naturalized American dancer, company director, and choreographer. Early life Rasch was born in 1891 (although she would later shave five years off her age), in Vienna (in what was ...

. Marjorie Lane dubbed the singing voice for Powell. The dance director for the "Cadet routines" was Dave Gould. To capitalize upon Powell's renown as a dancer, the film was retooled to allow her several showcase musical numbers, one of which is the title number with Powell dancing on top of a giant drum, one of the largest musical sequences ever filmed. Songs included "Who Knows?", "I've a Strange New Rhythm in My Heart", "Rosalie", " In the Still of the Night", and "Spring Love Is in the Air." An excerpt from this scene is included in ''

That's Entertainment! ''That's Entertainment!'' is a 1974 American compilation film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to celebrate the studio's 50th anniversary. The success of the retrospective prompted a 1976 sequel, the related 1985 film ''That's Dancing!'', and a ...

'' (1974). The film "resembles the frothy operettas then so much in vogue, which means that ''Rosalie'' lacks much of a plot ... he ortermanaged to compose the memorable 'In the Still of the Night' and 'Who Knows?'." The reviewer at allmovie.com called the film an "overproduced musical extravaganza", and noted, "The flimsy plot all but collapses under the weight of Gibbons' enormous sets and dance director David Gould's ditto choreography."Wollstein, Hans J
"'Rosalie'"
allmovie.com, accessed January 15, 2011

Songs

#"Who Knows?" - Dick #"I've a Strange New Rhythm in My Heart" - Rosalie #"Rosalie" - Dick #"Why Should I Care?" - King Frederic #"Spring Love is in the Air" - Brenda #"Close" nstrumental#"In the Still of the Night" - Dick #"It's All Over But the Shouting" - Dick #"To Love or Not to Love" - Dick

References

*Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation page 77

External links

* * * * {{W. S. Van Dyke 1937 films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films American black-and-white films Films scored by Cole Porter Films based on musicals American films based on plays 1937 musical comedy films 1937 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films Films based on works by P. G. Wodehouse Films set in Europe Films set in the United States Military Academy 1930s English-language films 1930s American films