Torch Song (1953 film)
| Torch Song | |
|---|---|
 Original theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Charles Walters |
| Screenplay by | John Michael Hayes Jan Lustig |
| Produced by | Henry Berman Sidney Franklin, Jr. Charles Schnee |
| Starring | Joan Crawford Michael Wilding Gig Young Marjorie Rambeau |
| Cinematography | Robert H. Planck |
| Edited by | Albert Akst |
| Music by | Adolph Deutsch |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date | October 23, 1953 |
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,029,000[1] |
| Box office | $1,668,000[1] |
Torch Song is a 1953 Technicolor romantic musical drama film by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Joan Crawford and Michael Wilding in a story about a Broadway star and her rehearsal pianist. The screenplay by John Michael Hayes and Jan Lustig was based upon the story "Why Should I Cry?" by I. A. R. Wylie in 1949 Saturday Evening Post. The film was directed by Charles Walters and produced by Sidney Franklin, Henry Berman, and Charles Schnee. Joan Crawford's singing voice was dubbed by India Adams.
Torch Song has gained note for the musical number "Two-Faced Woman" from The Band Wagon in which Crawford, in blackface, lip-syncs to the voice of India Adams while writhing with male dancers. The film marked Crawford's return to MGM after a ten-year absence. Her original recordings for the soundtrack, which were not used in the film, have survived and been included in home video releases.
Synopsis
Jenny Stewart (Joan Crawford) is a tough Broadway musical star, alienating her colleagues with her neurotic demands for absolute perfection. Jenny takes offense when her new rehearsal pianist Tye Graham (Michael Wilding) criticizes her song stylings and ruthless ways.
Graham was blinded in WWII but fell in love with Jenny when he was a young reporter. Deep down, Jenny yearns for a real and lasting love but is disenchanted with the men around her such as Broadway parasite Cliff Willard (Gig Young).
At the home of her mother (Marjorie Rambeau), she discovers an old newspaper clipping in which Tye reviewed one of her first shows and made it evident he loved her. Jenny realizes she is loved, goes to Tye, and they embrace.
Cast
- Joan Crawford as Jenny Stewart
- Michael Wilding as Tye Graham
- Gig Young as Cliff Willard
- Marjorie Rambeau as Mrs. Stewart
- Harry Morgan as Joe Denner (as Henry Morgan)
- Dorothy Patrick as Martha
- James Todd as Philip Norton
- Eugene Loring as Gene, the Dance Director
- Paul Guilfoyle as Monty Rolfe
- Benny Rubin as Charles Maylor
- Peter Chong as Peter
- Maidie Norman as Anne
- Nancy Gates as Celia Stewart
- Chris Warfield as Chuck Peters
- Rudy Render as Singer at Party
Song list
1. "You're All the World to Me" - Danced by Joan Crawford and Charles Walters
2. "Follow Me" - Sung by Joan Crawford (dubbed by India Adams)
3. "Two-Faced Woman" (outtake) - Sung by Joan Crawford (dubbed by India Adams)
4. "You Won't Forget Me" - Sung by Joan Crawford (dubbed by India Adams)
5. "Follow Me" (reprise) - Sung by Rudy Render (dubbed by Bill Lee)
6. "Two-Faced Woman" - Sung and Danced by Joan Crawford (dubbed by India Adams) and chorus
7. "Tenderly" - Sung partially by Joan Crawford along to a recording by India Adams
Reception
Otis Guernsey, Jr. in the New York Herald Tribune wrote, "Joan Crawford has another of her star-sized roles...she is vivid and irritable, volcanic and feminine...Here is Joan Crawford all over the screen, in command, in love and in color, a real movie star in what amounts to a carefully produced one-woman show."[3]
Torch Song was regarded as a return for Joan Crawford, who, when the picture was released, was fresh off an Academy Award nod for her performance in Sudden Fear, the previous year.
According to MGM records the film made $1,135,000 in the US and Canada and $533,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $260,000. The film is now regarded as a campy classic, and a possible influence on Faye Dunaway's portrayal of Crawford in Mommie Dearest. [1]
Award nominations
Marjorie Rambeau was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role at the 26th Academy Awards.
References
External links
- Torch Song at IMDb
- Torch Song at the TCM Movie Database
- Torch Song at AllMovie
- Torch Song at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films