You Were Never Lovelier (1942)

Director:

William A. Seiter

Writers:

Carlos A. Olivari (story) and
Sixto Pondal Ríos (story) ...

Release Date:

19 November 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Hayworth's glowing beauty! Astaire's glorious rhythm! Kern's greatest score since "Show Boat"!

Plot:

The Acunas, a rich Argentine family, have the tradition that the daughters have to get married in order...

Plot Keywords:

Sister | Love Letter | Singer | Horse Race | Confession

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars.

Cast

Fred Astaire	...	Robert 'Bob' Davis
Rita Hayworth	...	Maria Acuña
Adolphe Menjou	...	Eduardo Acuña
Isobel Elsom	...	Mrs. Maria Castro
Leslie Brooks	...	Cecy Acuña
Adele Mara	...	Lita Acuña
Gus Schilling	...	Fernando 'Fernie', Acuña's Secretary
Barbara Brown	...	Mrs. Delfina Acuña
Douglas Leavitt	...	Juan Castro
Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra	...	Themselves
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Xavier Cugat	...	Himself - 'Cugie'

Also Known As:

Tuesday's Orchids (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

97 min | Argentina:100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (PCA #8633)

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Rita Hayworth's singing was dubbed by Nan Wynn.

Goofs:

Continuity: Four boys enter in the Mr. Acuña's house with flowers and notes from Robert to Maria. The second to enter has his left arm hanging. In the next shot, when they are seen side by side, all of them are holding the flowers with their both hands.

Quotes:

Robert 'Bob' Davis: When do I start dancing?
Eduardo Acuña: You do not start dancing.
Robert 'Bob' Davis: But didn't you come to see me about?
Eduardo Acuña: About one of my daughters. The one you so gallantly referred to as "the inside of a refrigerator"?
Robert 'Bob' Davis: Oh... but, I'm afraid I don't follow you.
Eduardo Acuña: She thinks you're in love with her.
Robert 'Bob' Davis: Would it be rude of me to inquire if there is any insanity in your family?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "American Masters: Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About" (2009)

Soundtrack:

You Were Never Lovelier

A charming and romantic movie musical.

Having seen this when I was a naive teenager, I was curious to see how it stood up after the years in between. As a teen, I enjoyed it for the funny situation and comical lines, as well as the singing and dancing of Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth, and Xavier Cugat and his orchestra. Seeing it 14 years later, I can say that it pleasantly stands the test of time. The story surrounds an American dancer (Astaire) who runs out of cash while on vacation in Buenos Aires, and tries to get a job with grouchy hotel owner Adolph Menjou. In the process, he meets Menjou's beautiful but frosty daughter Hayworth, and compares her to the inside of a refrigerator. Determined to chill her out, Menjou starts sending his daughter orchids, and in a strange turn of events, it is Astaire whom Hayworth believes has sent her the orchids. Romance errupts in spite of Menjou's interference, and love ends up conquering all.

Romantic films like this just aren't made anymore, at least not with the class and style of this film. While Fred Astaire may not be much in the looker department, he makes up for that with his grace and charm, so it is not hard to believe that Hayworth would fall for him. Hayworth, one of the screen's great beauties, was also a very talented actress, dancer, and comedian, although her singing was dubbed. As a team, I find Hayworth and Astaire to be even better than Astaire and Rogers. They only did two films together (the other was the more traditional World War II musical "You'll Never Get Rich") as Astaire did not want to limit himself to one partner. As the irrascable Acuna, Adolph Menjou is likable in spite of his grouchiness and manipulative nature; His scenes with secretary Gus Schilling (who must have taken the parts that Franklin Pangborn was unavailable for) were hysterical. Jerome Kern's score is simple and lovely; It includes the title song and "I'm Old Fashioned" (one of the most romantic dance numbers ever performed) as well as the snappy "Shorty George". Well worth a look.