''Song of Scheherazade'' is a 1947 American

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), 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 serv ...

directed by

Walter Reisch Walter Reisch (May 23, 1903 – March 28, 1983) was an Austrian-born director and screenwriter. He also wrote lyrics to several songs featured in his films, one popular title is "Flieger, grüß mir die Sonne". He was married to the dancer and ...

. It tells the story of an imaginary episode in the life of the Russian composer

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov. At the time, his name was spelled , which he romanized as Nicolas Rimsky-Korsakow; the BGN/PCGN transliteration of Russian is used for his name here; ALA-LC system: , ISO 9 system: .. (18 March 1844 – 2 ...

(

Jean-Pierre Aumont Jean-Pierre Aumont (born Jean-Pierre Philippe Salomons; 5 January 1911 – 30 January 2001) was a French film and theatre actor. He was a matinée idol and a leading man during the 1930s, but his burgeoning career was interrupted by the Second ...

), in 1865, when he was a young naval officer on shore leave in

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. It also features

Yvonne De Carlo Margaret Yvonne Middleton (September 1, 1922January 8, 2007), known professionally as Yvonne De Carlo, was a Canadian-American actress, dancer and singer. She became a Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film star and sex symbol in the 1940s a ...

as a Spanish dancer named Cara de Talavera,

Eve Arden Eve Arden (born Eunice Mary Quedens, April 30, 1908 – November 12, 1990) was an American film, radio, stage and television actress. She performed in leading and supporting roles for nearly six decades. Beginning her film career in 1929 an ...

as her mother, and

Brian Donlevy Waldo Brian Donlevy (February 9, 1901 – April 6, 1972) was an American actor, who was noted for playing dangerous and tough characters. Usually appearing in supporting roles, among his best-known films are '' Beau Geste'' (1939), '' The Great ...

as the ship's captain.

Charles Kullman Charles Kullman (January 13, 1903February 8, 1983), originally Charles Kullmann, was an American tenor who enjoyed a wide-ranging career, both in Europe and America. Life and career Charles Kullman was born in New Haven, Connecticut, and bega ...

(credited as Charles Kullmann), a tenor with the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

, plays the ship's doctor, Klin, who sings two of Rimsky-Korsakov's melodies.

Plot

Rimsky-Korsakov, a midshipman in the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

, secretly yearns to be a composer, but naval regulations prevent him from doing so. He uses a stopover in

Tangiers Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Morocco. Many c ...

to work on his next composition, ''

Scheherazade Scheherazade () is a major character and the storyteller in the frame story, frame narrative of the Middle Eastern collection of tales known as the ''One Thousand and One Nights''. Name According to modern scholarship, the name ''Scheherazade ...

'' (which is actually a

symphonic suite A suite, in Western classical music, is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral/concert band pieces. It originated in the late 14th century as a pairing of dance tunes; and grew in scope so that by the early 17th century it comprised up to f ...

, but in the film is a

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

), with the tacit support of his captain. There, he meets Cara de Talavera and her mother, and romantic events and complications ensue. He has to leave to return home to Russia, where his ballet is staged, but Cara unexpectedly turns up as one of the dancers, and they are reunited.

Cast

–

– Cara de Talavera *

– Madame de Talavera *

– Captain Vladimir Grigorovich *

– Dr Klin (as Charles Kullmann) *

Elena Verdugo Elena Angela Verdugo (April 20, 1925 – May 30, 2017) was an American actress, who began in films at the age of five in ''Cavalier of the West'' (1931). Her career in radio, television, and film spanned six decades. Early life Elena Angela ...

– Fioretta *

Phillip Reed Phillip Reed (born Milton LeRoy; March 25, 1908 – December 7, 1996) was an American actor. He played Steve Wilson in a series of four films (1947–1948) based on the '' Big Town'' radio series. Early years Reed was a star athlete at Er ...

– Prince Mischetsky *

John Qualen John Qualen (born Johan Mandt Kvalen, December 8, 1899 – September 12, 1987) was a Canadian-American character actor of Norwegian heritage who specialized in Scandinavian roles. Early years Qualen was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, ...

– Lorenzo *

George Dolenz George Dolenz (born Jure Dolenc; akas: Giorgio Dolenz and George Dolentz; January 5, 1908 February 8, 1963) was an American film actor born in Trieste (then part of Austria-Hungary, now Italy), in the city's Slovene community. Biography Un ...

– Pierre, the head waiter *

Terry Kilburn Terence E. Kilburn (born 25 November 1926), known for his acting work prior to 1953 as Terry Kilburn, is an English-American actor. Born in London, he moved to Hollywood in the U.S. at the age of 10, and is best known for his roles as a child a ...

– Midshipman Lorin * William Ching – Midshipman * Molio Sheron – Basso * Robert Kendall – Hassan (uncredited) *

Chester Conklin Chester Cooper Conklin (January 11, 1886 – October 11, 1971) was an early American film comedian who started at Keystone Studios as one of Mack Sennett's Keystone Cops, often paired with Mack Swain. He appeared in a series of films with ...

– sailor (uncredited)

Production

The entry of the United States into World War II meant they were allies of the Soviet Union, and films with Russian themes became fashionable in Hollywood. In April 1942 it was announced that producers S.P. Eagle and

Boris Morros Boris Morros (; January 1, 1891 – January 8, 1963) was an American Communist Party member, Soviet agent, and FBI double agent. He also worked at Paramount Pictures, where he produced films as well as supervising their music department. Life a ...

, who had just made ''

Tales of Manhattan ''Tales of Manhattan'' is a 1942 American anthology film directed by Julien Duvivier. Thirteen writers, including Ben Hecht, Alan Campbell, Ferenc Molnár, Samuel Hoffenstein, and Donald Ogden Stewart, worked on the six stories in this film ...

'' (1942) for

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

, had acquired the film rights to the music of Rimsky-Korsakoff through the Russian government.

would write the story which would cover three days the composer spent on leave in 1860 while touring the world on a Russian naval ship, where he wrote "The Scheherazade Suite". It was going to be called ''Russian Marines''. Morros and Eagle did not wind up producing the film and rights to the music and script reverted to Reisch. Reisch says

Joe Pasternak Joseph Herman Pasternak (born József Paszternák; September 19, 1901 – September 13, 1991) was a Hungarian-American film producer in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood. Pasternak spent the Hollywood Musical film, "Golden Age" of musicals ...

wanted to buy the property for

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

but Reisch says they would not let him direct.

Harry Cohn Harry Cohn (July 23, 1891 – February 27, 1958) was a co-founder, president, and production director of Columbia Pictures, Columbia Pictures Corporation. Life and career Cohn was born to a working-class Jewish family in New York City. His fath ...

was interested in the project for

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

but Reisch's agent,

Charles Feldman Charles K. Feldman (April 26, 1905 – May 25, 1968) was a Hollywood attorney, film producer and talent agent who founded the Famous Artists talent agency. According to one obituary, Feldman disdained publicity. "Feldman was an enigma to Holly ...

, set up the film at Universal. Yvonne in Song of Scheherezade

says that Reisch was offered

Maria Montez María África Gracia Vidal (6 June 1912 – 7 September 1951), known professionally as Maria Móntez, was a Dominican actress who gained fame and popularity in the 1940s starring in a series of filmed-in-Technicolor costume adventure fil ...

and de Carlo for the lead. Reisch says that all but one of his colleagues – including

Billy Wilder Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. His career in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and ver ...

– recommended

for the lead, except

Sam Spiegel Samuel P. Spiegel (November 11, 1901December 31, 1985) was an American independent film producer. Financially responsible for some of the most critically acclaimed motion pictures of the 20th century, Spiegel produced films that won the Academy ...

(Eagle) who told him, "Don't make a picture with this girl, because, while she may be a star, she's not your type. She's much too—let's say plebeian—in her bearing." De Carlo's casting was announced in August 1945.

Miklós Rózsa Miklós Rózsa (; April 18, 1907 – July 27, 1995) was a Hungarian-American composer trained in Germany (1925–1931) and active in France (1931–1935), the United Kingdom (1935–1940), and the United States (1940–1995), with extensi ...

signed to do the music.

was borrowed from MGM to play the male lead; de Carlo says that Reisch was not happy with this casting because he had a French accent while the rest of the cast had American accents, but the studio over-ruled him. Filming began 15 January 1946. During filming the title was changed to ''Shahrazad''. According to Robert Kendall, the actor who played the boy-servant Hassan in this movie,

regretted taking on the role of Madame de Talavera, complaining that she was actually too young for the part. And Jean-Pierre Aumont's wife, former Universal Studios film-queen

, was often present on the set during her husband's passionate scenes with

Soundtrack and choreography

The film contains much colourful music and dancing. The choreography was by

Tilly Losch Ottilie Ethel Leopoldine, Countess of Carnarvon (''née'' Losch; November 15, 1903 – December 24, 1975), known professionally as Tilly Losch, was an Austrian dancer, choreographer, actress, and painter who lived and worked for most of her life ...

. Rimsky-Korsakov's music was orchestrated by

and (uncredited)

Eugene Zador Eugene Zador (born Jenő Zádor; 5 November 1894, Bátaszék, Hungary – 4 April 1977, Hollywood, California) was a Hungarian and American composer. Life Born into a Jewish family, his parents were Paula Biermann and József Zádor (originally ...

. Themes by Rimsky-Korsakov that are used include: "Song of India" from ''

Sadko Sadko () is a principal character in Russian '' byliny'' (oral epic poems). He is an adventurer, merchant, and '' gusli'' musician from Novgorod. The story of Sadko is best known outside Russia in the opera '' Sadko'' by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov ...

'' (sung by

); ''

Flight of the Bumblebee "Flight of the Bumblebee" () is an orchestral interlude written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908) for his opera '' The Tale of Tsar Saltan'', composed in 1899–1900. This perpetuum mobile is intended to musically evoke the seemingl ...

'' from ''

The Tale of Tsar Saltan The Tale of Tsar Saltan, of His Son the Renowned and Mighty Bogatyr Prince Gvidon Saltanovich and of the Beautiful Swan-Princess ( ) is an 1831 fairy tale in verse by Alexander Pushkin. As a folk tale it is classified as Aarne–Thompson type ...

''; "Hymn to the Sun" from ''

The Golden Cockerel ''The Golden Cockerel'' ( ) is an opera in three acts, with a short prologue and an even shorter epilogue, composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, his last complete opera, before his death in 1908. Its libretto written by Vladimir Belsky, is derive ...

''; ''

Capriccio Espagnol ''Capriccio espagnol'', Op. 34, is the common Western title for a five movement orchestral suite, based on Spanish folk melodies, composed by the Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1887. It received its premiere on 31 October 1887, in S ...

'', and ''

''.

Release

The filmmakers expected censorship problems with Yvonne De Carlo's costumes so submitted them all beforehand for approval. However the censor found issue with Eve Arden's costumes, requiring some of her scenes to be re-shot. The film also took a while to be released because of delays at the Technicolor lab.

Reception

The film was a success at the box office earning $2.1 million in rentals in North America. According to Reisch, Universal "had an enormous success with" the film "because I succeeded in making the picture very inexpensively." However it also got terrible reviews and Reisch felt it cost him the chance of directing again. He later said:

If you make a picture called ''Song of Scheherazade'', with " Song of India" in it, and the " Caprice Espagnole" and the "
Flight of the Bumblebee "Flight of the Bumblebee" () is an orchestral interlude written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844–1908) for his opera '' The Tale of Tsar Saltan'', composed in 1899–1900. This perpetuum mobile is intended to musically evoke the seemingl ...
", all by Rimsky-Korsakov, and if Yvonne De Carlo is the inspiration for all of this, you are leaving yourself wide open for criticism. Today I accept it with a certain sense of humor. But the studio people just didn't believe in my direction s a consequence and I never got a picture to direct in Hollywood again.

References

External links

* *{{TCMDb title, 90850
Review of film
at ''Variety'' 1947 films 1947 musical films Films directed by Walter Reisch Films set in Morocco Films set in Russia Films about classical music and musicians Films about composers Universal Pictures films Films set in 1865 American musical films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films English-language musical films