''The Opposite Sex'' is a 1956 American musical

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film shot in

Metrocolor Metrocolor is the trade name used by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) for films processed at their laboratory. Virtually all of these films were shot on Kodak's Eastmancolor film. Although MGM used Kodak film products, MGM did not use all of Kodak's proc ...

and CinemaScope. The film was directed by David Miller and stars June Allyson,

Joan Collins Dame Joan Henrietta Collins (born 23 May 1933) is an English actress, author and columnist. Collins is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, a People's Choice Award, two Soap Opera Digest Awards and a Primeti ...

Dolores Gray Dolores Gray (born Sylvia Dolores Finkelstein; June 7, 1924 – June 26, 2002) was an American actress and singer. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical twice, winning once. Early life She was born as Sylvia ...

, Ann Sheridan, and Ann Miller, with

Leslie Nielsen Leslie William Nielsen (11 February 192628 November 2010) was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters. Nielsen was bo ...

, Jeff Richards,

Agnes Moorehead Agnes Robertson Moorehead (December 6, 1900April 30, 1974) was an American actress. In a career spanning four decades, her credits included work in radio, stage, film, and television.Obituary ''Variety'', May 8, 1974, page 286. Moorehead was th ...

Charlotte Greenwood Frances Charlotte Greenwood (June 25, 1890 – December 28, 1977) was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing almost six feet tall (some sour ...

Joan Blondell Joan Blondell (born Rose Joan Bluestein; August 30, 1906 – December 25, 1979) was an American actress who performed in film and television for 50 years. Blondell began her career in vaudeville. After winning a beauty pageant, she embarked on ...

, and

Sam Levene Sam Levene (born Scholem Lewin; August 28, 1905 – December 28, 1980) was a Russian Empire-born American Broadway, film, radio, and television actor and director. In a career spanning over five decades, he appeared in over 50 comedy and dr ...

. ''The Opposite Sex'' is a remake of the 1939 comedy film '' The Women''. Both films are based on

Clare Boothe Luce Clare Boothe Luce ( Ann Clare Boothe; March 10, 1903 – October 9, 1987) was an American writer, politician, U.S. ambassador, and public conservative figure. A versatile author, she is best known for her 1936 hit play '' The Women'', which ha ...

's original 1936 play.

Premise

Kay Hilliard, a former nightclub singer, discovers that her husband, theater producer Steven, is having an affair with showgirl Crystal Allen. Kay is the last to find out among her circle of gossiping girlfriends. Kay travels to

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

to divorce from Steve who then marries Crystal, but when Kay learns that Crystal is not faithful to Steve, she starts fighting to win her ex-husband back.

Cast

Production

Unlike the 1936 play and the 1939 film adaptation, ''The Opposite Sex'' includes musical numbers and features male actors who portray the husbands and boyfriends, whose characters were only referred to in the previous film and stage versions. This alters the structure and tone of the base storyline significantly. Fay Kanin who cowrote the script with her husband Michael said the studio's argument was "you can't play a love scene alone." Michael said the studio "felt the movie audience would somehow be disappointed at not seeing men in it. After all, a man is a fact."'Opposite Sex' Being Filmed to Include the Opposite Sex, Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times 19 Feb 1956: D2. Fay Kanin thought the "manless world" of the play "was a stunt, an artificial trick, but it was accepted. But in a movie, which has the freedom to go out, the device would seem constrained and self conscious." Michael claimed "we only put in men to relieve the strain - and only when they are called for." The Kanins gave the story a show business background to help justify it being turned into a musical, but "there are no big production numbers," according to Fay Kanin. Elaine Stewart was promised Joan Collins' role before filming.

Grace Kelly Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982) was an American actress who, after starring in several significant films in the early to mid-1950s, became Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in April 1956. Kelly ...

was supposed to have June Allyson's role, but she retired from acting before filming.

MGM 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 through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

studio head

Dore Schary Isadore "Dore" Schary (August 31, 1905 – July 7, 1980) was an American playwright, director, and producer for the stage and a prolific screenwriter and producer of motion pictures. He directed just one feature film, '' Act One'', the film bio ...

envisioned Esther Williams in Allyson's role. According to her 2000 autobiography ''The Million Dollar Mermaid'', Williams objected to Schary's casting suggestion, resulting in her suspension from the studio. Shortly after, on agent

Lew Wasserman Lewis Robert Wasserman (March 22, 1913 – June 3, 2002) was an American talent agent and studio executive, described as "the last of the legendary movie moguls" and "arguably the most powerful and influential Hollywood titan in the four decades ...

's advice, she left Metro after 14 years.

Eleanor Parker Eleanor Jean Parker (June 26, 1922 – December 9, 2013) was an American actress. She was nominated for three Academy Awards for her roles in the films ''Caged'' (1950), ''Detective Story'' (1951), and ''Interrupted Melody'' (1955), the first ...

was cast as Kay Hilliard but replaced by Allyson.

Jo Ann Greer Katherine Joan Greer (April 3, 1927 – May 24, 2001), known professionally as Jo Ann Greer, was an American singer. Career Her career spanned nearly 50 years, and she primarily worked in the fields of movie dubbing and band-singing. She init ...

dubbed Allyson's ballad "A Perfect Love". In November 1955, Joe Pasternak was pursuing Marlene Dietrich and Miriam Hopkins. In December 1955, MGM announced the lead roles would be played by Allyson, Dolores Gray, Ann Miller (as the husband stealer), and Leslie Nielsen with filming to begin January 16, 1956. Jeff Richards was cast as Buck Winston in an effort by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to build on his success after starring in ''

Seven Brides For Seven Brothers ''Seven Brides for Seven Brothers'' is a 1954 American musical film, directed by Stanley Donen, with music by Gene de Paul, lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and choreography by Michael Kidd. The screenplay, by Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich, and Do ...

''.Clemens, Samuel. "Born Reckless: The Story of Jeff Richards", ''Western Clippings''. September 2022 In the 1939 version of ''The Women'', actress Lucile Watson was featured in the cast as Mrs. Morehead, the loving, wise, and supportive mother of Norma Shearer's character Mary Haines. For the 1956 version, the role was eliminated, and a new character was created instead - Amanda Penrose, a playwright who served as Kay Hilliard's kind friend confidante. Ann Sheridan was cast in this part. Barbara Jo Allen had the distinction of being in both the 1939 and 1956 versions—in the first film, she had a small, uncredited part as a receptionist; in the second, she played gossip columnist Dolly DeHaven. This was Allyson's final film for MGM after having worked at the studio for nearly 15 years.

Reception

According to MGM records, the film earned $1,735,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $1,025,000 in other markets, resulting in a loss of $1,513,000.

Accolades

The film was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Musical or Comedy Picture in 1957.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Opposite Sex 1956 films 1956 musical comedy films 1956 romantic comedy films 1950s American films 1950s buddy comedy films 1950s English-language films 1950s female buddy films 1950s romantic musical films American buddy comedy films American female buddy films American films based on plays American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films CinemaScope films Comedy film remakes Films about adultery in the United States Films directed by David Miller Films produced by Joe Pasternak Films scored by Georgie Stoll Films set in New York City Films set in Reno, Nevada Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Musical film remakes Remakes of American films Romance film remakes