''Tonight or Never'' is a 1931 American

pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Mervyn LeRoy Mervyn LeRoy (; October 15, 1900 – September 13, 1987) was an American film director and producer. During the 1930s, he was one of the two great practitioners of economical and effective film directing at Warner Bros., Warner Brothers studios, ...

and starring

Gloria Swanson Gloria Mae Josephine Swanson (March 27, 1899April 4, 1983) was an American actress. She first achieved fame acting in dozens of silent films in the 1920s and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, most famously for h ...

Melvyn Douglas Melvyn Douglas (born Melvyn Edouard Hesselberg, April 5, 1901 – August 4, 1981) was an American actor. Douglas came to prominence in 1929 as a suave leading man, perhaps best typified by his performance in the romantic comedy '' Ninotchka'' ( ...

(in his screen debut) and

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstei ...

. The film is inspired by the Hungarian play of the same name, written by Lili Hatvany and performed on Broadway between November 1930 and June 1931. The title is derived from the name of a perfume by Offenthal, released in 1927.

Plot

Nella Vargo is a Hungarian

prima donna In opera or ''commedia dell'arte'', a prima donna (; Italian for 'first lady'; : ''prime donne'') is the leading female singer in the company, the person to whom the ''prime'' roles would be given. ''Prime donne'' often had grand off-stage pe ...

whose latest performances include singing ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'' in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

. Although she is praised by the audience, her music teacher Rudig feels that she cannot be the greatest

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

singer in history until she performs in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. When she is criticized for not putting her soul into the song, she gets mad, until she suddenly notices a mysterious man walking on the street. She becomes smitten with the man, until Rudig claims that he is a

gigolo A gigolo ( ) is a male escort, call boy or social companion who is supported by a person in a continuing relationship. The term ''gigolo'' usually implies a man who adopts a lifestyle consisting of a number of such relationships serially rat ...

whose latest client is Marchesa Bianca San Giovanni, a former diva with a notorious past. Later that night, Nella heads to

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, accompanied by Rudig, her butler Conrad, her maid Emma and her fiancé Count Albert von Gronac, whom she does not love. She is shocked to discover that the mysterious man is on board as well, with the marchesa as his company. Rudig again suggests that she will never be a great singer if she does not experience love. The next day, Rudig announces that Fletcher, an agent for New York's prestigious

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 ...

, is in town to sign European artists. Later that afternoon, she learns that her fiancé is having an affair with one of her enemies. Furious and upset with her love life, she hires the mysterious man, Jim, hoping to experience love and thereby impress Fletcher. She is attracted to Jim, but is afraid to have her as his admirer. Jim, who is actually Fletcher, soon learns that Nella believes that he is a

. Instead of revealing the truth, he pretends to be a gigolo and forces her to make a decision: spend the night with him or leave within three minutes. Nella decides to spend the night with Jim, but leaves the next morning before he awakes. That night, she again gives a performance of ''Tosca'', which is acclaimed as the greatest in her entire career. After returning home, she is overcome by joy to learn that she has landed a contract with the Metropolitan Opera, but feels guilty for what she had done the night before. The same day, Jim visits her, returning the necklace that she had left him to pay for his services and demanding that she choose between him and the contract. When she tears apart the contract, he realizes that she is in love with him and he reveals himself to be a nephew of the marchesa and the famous talent scout. Now, Nella can have the successful New York career of her dreams.

Cast

as Nella Vargo *

as Jim Fletcher *

Alison Skipworth Alison Skipworth (born Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom; 25 July 18635 July 1952) was an English stage and screen actress. Early years Skipworth was born in London. She was the daughter of Dr. Richard Ebenezer Groom and Elizabeth Rodgers, an ...

as Marchesa Bianca San Giovanni * Ferdinand Gottschalk as Rudig *

Robert Greig Robert Greig (December 27, 1879 – June 27, 1958) was an Australian-American actor who appeared in more than 100 films between 1930 and 1949, usually as the dutiful butler. Born Arthur Alfred Bede Greig, he was the nephew of Australian pol ...

as Conrad * Warburton Gamble as Count Albert von Gronac * Greta Meyer as Emma *

as a comical waiter

Production

The film is based on the Hungarian play of the same name, written by Lili Hatvany, which was performed on Broadway between November 18, 1930 and June 1931. In the film,

, Ferdinand Gottschalk,

, Greta Meyer and Warburton Gamble re-created their stage roles. In June 1931, Adela Rogers St. Johns was assigned to write the screenplay. A month later, she was replaced with Sheridan Gibney, who was eventually replaced as well. According to a January 1931 news article,

George Fitzmaurice George Fitzmaurice (13 February 1885 – 13 June 1940) was a French-born film director and Film producer, producer. Career Fitzmaurice's career first started as a set designer on stage. Beginning in 1914, and continuing until his death in 1940 ...

was initially set to direct, but he was replaced by

, who as a young unknown had appeared uncredited as a newsboy in Swanson's 1923 silent societal drama ''

Prodigal Daughters ''Prodigal Daughters'' is a 1923 American silent film, silent societal drama film produced by Famous Players–Lasky and distributed through Paramount Pictures. The film stars Gloria Swanson and was directed by Sam Wood. It is based on a novel of ...

''.

Joseph Schenck Joseph Michael Schenck (; December 25, 1876 – October 22, 1961) was a Russian-born American film studio executive. Life and career Schenck was born to a Jewish family in Rybinsk, Yaroslavl Oblast, Russian Empire. He emigrated to New York Cit ...

cast

to play the lead role, believing it would help her recover from a career slump. The film was the only one of Swanson's early sound films in which she did not sing, despite playing an opera singer. The film marked Douglas' screen debut. The Hays Office strongly objected to the film and demanded several cuts. The scene thought to be the most vulgar was the love scene between Nella and Jim. A staff member commented: "This scene was one of the most offensive, if not the most offensive—in my recollection." The film was permitted a release in 1931, but as enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code commenced in 1934, requests for re-releases in 1935 and 1937 were rejected.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links