''The Great Waltz'' is a 1938

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

based very loosely on the life of

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ove ...

. It starred

Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-American-British film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her ...

Fernand Gravet Fernand Gravey (25 December 1905 in Ixelles ( Belgium) – 2 November 1970 in Paris, France),Death certificate # 8/445/1970 also known as Fernand Gravet in the United States, was the son of actors Georges Mertens and Fernande Depernay, who ...

(Gravey), and Miliza Korjus. Rainer received top billing at the producer's insistence, but her role is comparatively minor as Strauss' wife, Poldi Vogelhuber. It was the only starring role for Korjus, who was a famous

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880& ...

and played one in the film.

Joseph Ruttenberg Joseph Ruttenberg, A.S.C. (July 4, 1889 – May 1, 1983) was a Ukrainian-born American photojournalist and cinematographer. Ruttenberg was accomplished at winning accolades. At MGM, Ruttenberg was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinemat ...

won the

Academy Award for Best Cinematography The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work on one particular motion picture. History In its first film season, 1927–28, this award (like others such as the acting awards) w ...

. Korjus was nominated for

Supporting Actress A supporting actor is an actor who performs a role in a play or film below that of the leading actor(s), and above that of a bit part. In recognition of important nature of this work, the theater and film industries give separate awards to the ...

, and Tom Held for

Film Editing Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film which increasingly involves the use of digital technology. The film edit ...

. The film was popular in Australia, and was distributed largely throughout Sydney and Melbourne for two years after its initial release. The film has no connection with the 1934 Broadway play '' The Great Waltz''.Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation page 85

Plot summary

The highly fictionalised story sees "Schani" dismissed from his job in a bank. He puts together a group of unemployed musicians who wangle a performance at Dommayer's cafe. The audience is minimal, but when two opera singers, Carla Donner ( Miliza Korjus) and Fritz Schiller ( George Houston), visit whilst their carriage is being repaired, the music attracts a wider audience. Strauss is caught up in a student protest; he and Carla Donner avoid arrest and escape to the Vienna Woods, where he is inspired to create the waltz "Tales from the Vienna Woods". Carla asks Strauss for some music to sing at an aristocratic soiree, and this leads to the composer receiving a publishing contract. He's on his way, and he can now marry Poldi Vogelhuber, his sweetheart. But the closeness of Strauss and Carla Donner, during rehearsals of operettas, attracts comment, not least from Count Hohenfried, Donner's admirer. Poldi remains loyal to Strauss, and the marriage is a long one. He is received by the Kaiser

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until ...

(whom he unknowingly insulted in the aftermath of the student protests), and the two stand before cheering crowds on the balcony of Schönbrunn.

Cast

as Poldi Vogelhuber *

* Miliza Korjus as Carla Donner *

Hugh Herbert Hugh Herbert (August 10, 1885 – March 12, 1952) was an American motion picture comedian. He began his career in vaudeville and wrote more than 150 plays and sketches. Career Born in Binghamton, New York, Herbert attended Cornell Univers ...

as Hofbauer *

Lionel Atwill Lionel Alfred William Atwill (1 March 1885 – 22 April 1946) was an English stage and screen actor. He began his acting career at the Garrick Theatre. After coming to the U.S., he subsequently appeared in various Broadway plays and Hollywood f ...

as Count Hohenfried *

Curt Bois Curt Bois (born Kurt Boas; April 5, 1901 – December 25, 1991) was a German actor with a career spanning over 80 years. He is best remembered for his performances as the pickpocket in ''Casablanca'' (1942) and the poet Homer in ''Wings of Desi ...

as Kienzl *

Al Shean Abraham Elieser Adolph Schönberg (May 12, 1868 – August 12, 1949), known as Al Shean, was a comedian and vaudeville performer. Other sources give his birth name variously as Adolf Schönberg, Albert Schönberg, or Alfred Schönberg. He is mos ...

as Cellist * Minna Gombell as Mrs. Hofbauer * Alma Kruger as Mrs. Strauss *

Greta Meyer Greta Meyer (7 August 18838 October 1965) was a German actress in motion pictures beginning in the silent film era. Biography Meyer belonged to a German family that was comparable to the Barrymore family in America. At age 3 she debuted on sta ...

as Mrs. Vogelhuber *

Bert Roach Egbert "Bert" Roach (August 21, 1891 – February 16, 1971) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 320 films between 1914 and 1951. He was born in Washington, D.C., and died in Los Angeles, California, age 79. Selected filmogr ...

as Vogelhuber *

Henry Hull Henry Watterson Hull (October 3, 1890 – March 8, 1977) was an American character actor perhaps best known for playing the lead in Universal Pictures's '' Werewolf of London'' (1935). For most of his career, he was a lead actor on stage and a c ...

Sig Rumann Siegfried Carl Alban Rumann (October 11, 1884 – February 14, 1967), billed as Sig Ruman and Sig Rumann, was a German-American character actor known for his portrayals of pompous and often stereotypically Teutonic officials or villains in ...

as Wertheimer * George Houston as Schiller * Herman Bing as Dommayer *

Christian Rub Christian Rub (pronounced ''Rhoob''; April 13, 1886 – April 14, 1956) was an Austrian-born American character actor. He was known for his work in films of the late 1910s to the early 1950s, and was featured in more than 100 films. Biography ...

as Coachman *

Frank Mayo Frank Mayo may refer to: * Frank M. Mayo (1839–1896), American actor and comedian * Frank Mayo (actor) Frank Lorimer Mayo (June 28, 1889 – July 9, 1963) was an American actor. He appeared in 310 films between 1911 and 1949. Biograp ...

as Ship's Officer (uncredited) *

Larry Steers Lawrence Wells Steers (February 14, 1888 – February 15, 1951) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 550 films between 1917 and 1951. He was born in Indiana, and died in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles. Partial filmography * ...

as Man in Uniform (uncredited)

Box office

According to MGM records, the film earned $918,000 in the US and Canada, and $1,504,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $724,000.

Re-make

The film was re-made in 1972, with

Horst Buchholz Horst Werner Buchholz (4 December 1933 – 3 March 2003) was a German actor who appeared in more than 60 feature films from 1951 to 2002. During his youth, he was sometimes called "the German James Dean". He is perhaps best known in English- ...

playing Strauss, alongside Mary Costa, Nigel Patrick, and

Yvonne Mitchell Yvonne Mitchell (born Yvonne Frances Joseph; 7 July 1915 – 24 March 1979) was an English actress and author. After beginning her acting career in theatre, Mitchell progressed to films in the late 1940s. Her roles include Julia in the 1954 BBC ...

References

External links

* * * * * 1972 remake: {{DEFAULTSORT:Great Waltz, The American historical films American biographical films 1930s historical films 1930s biographical films 1938 films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Films set in the 19th century Films set in Vienna Films about classical music and musicians Films about composers Cultural depictions of Franz Joseph I of Austria Cultural depictions of Johann Strauss II Films whose cinematographer won the Best Cinematography Academy Award Films directed by Julien Duvivier Films directed by Victor Fleming Films directed by Josef von Sternberg Films set in Austria-Hungary 1930s American films