State Fair (1945)

Director:

Walter Lang

Writers:

Paul Green (adaptation)
Oscar Hammerstein II (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

30 August 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Musical | Romance

Tagline:

For the young in heart! And romantic oldsters, too!

Plot:

Farm family Frake, with discontented daughter Margy, head for the Iowa State Fair. On the first day...

Plot Keywords:

Fair | Iowa | Farm | State Fair | Beautiful Woman

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Jeanne Crain	...	Margy Frake
Dana Andrews	...	Pat Gilbert
Dick Haymes	...	Wayne Frake
Vivian Blaine	...	Emily Edwards
Charles Winninger	...	Abel Frake
Fay Bainter	...	Melissa Frake
Donald Meek	...	Hippenstahl
Frank McHugh	...	McGee
Percy Kilbride	...	Dave Miller
Harry Morgan	...	Barker (as Henry Morgan)
Jane Nigh	...	Eleanor
William Marshall	...	Marty
Phil Brown	...	Harry Ware
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Paul Harvey	...	Simpson (managing editor)
Walter Baldwin	...	Farmer (uncredited)
Brooks Benedict	...	Hammer contest spectator (uncredited)
Eddie Borden	...	Follies spectator (uncredited)
Harlan Briggs	...	Food judge (uncredited)
Virginia Brissac	...	Farmer's wife (uncredited)
Paul E. Burns	...	Hank (uncredited)
Wheaton Chambers	...	Assistant hog judge (uncredited)
John Dehner	...	Hog contest announcer (uncredited)
Jo-Carroll Dennison	...	Girl (uncredited)
Harry Depp	...	Judge's secretary (uncredited)
Earle S. Dewey	...	Assistant hog judge (uncredited)
Cathy Downs	...	Girl on carousel (uncredited)
Eddie Dunn	...	Man on Rollercoaster (uncredited)
Tom Fadden	...	Eph (uncredited)
Jim Farley	...	Ticket Taker (uncredited)
Alice Fleming	...	Food judge (uncredited)
Diane Florentine	...	Police chief's daughter (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Horse race spectator (uncredited)
Francis Ford	...	Whirlwind's owner (uncredited)
William Frambes	...	Pappy (uncredited)
Coleen Gray	...	Girl with Pappy (uncredited)
Neal Hart	...	Farmer (uncredited)
Louanne Hogan	...	Margy Frake (uncredited) (singing voice)
Reed Howes	...	Horse race spectator (uncredited)
Adele Jergens	...	Girl on rollercoaster (uncredited)
Frank Mayo	...	Man Margy bumps (uncredited)
Steve Olson	...	Follies Barker (uncredited)
Emory Parnell	...	Congressman James A. Goodheart (uncredited)
Ralph Sanford	...	Police Chief (uncredited)
Harry Semels	...	Follies spectator (uncredited)
Almira Sessions	...	Farmer's wife (uncredited)
Mary Stewart	...	Girl (uncredited)
Minerva Urecal	...	Woman Congratulating Mrs. Metcalf (uncredited)
Josephine Whittell	...	Mrs. Metcalf (uncredited)
Margo Woode	...	Girl (uncredited)
Will Wright	...	Hog judge (uncredited)

Directed by
Walter Lang

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Paul Green		adaptation
Oscar Hammerstein II		screenplay
Sonya Levien		adaptation
Philip Stong		novel

Produced by
William Perlberg	....	producer

Original Music by
Cyril J. Mockridge		(uncredited)
Alfred Newman		(uncredited)
Edward B. Powell		(uncredited)
Gene Rose		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Leon Shamroy

Film Editing by
J. Watson Webb Jr.		(as J. Watson Webb)

Art Direction by
Lewis H. Creber		(as Lewis Creber)
Lyle R. Wheeler		(as Lyle Wheeler)

Set Decoration by
Thomas Little
Al Orenbach

Costume Design by
René Hubert

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gaston Glass	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Bernard Freericks	....	sound
Roger Heman Sr.	....	sound (as Roger Heman)

Special Effects by
Fred Sersen	....	special photographic effects

Camera and Electrical Department
E. Truman Joiner	....	key grip (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Sam Benson	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Charles Henderson	....	musical director
Alfred Newman	....	musical director
Edward B. Powell	....	orchestrator (as Edward Powell)

Other crew
Natalie Kalmus	....	technicolor director
Richard Mueller	....	associate technicolor director
Hermes Pan	....	choreographer

Production Companies

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (DVD)
• CBS/Fox (USA) (laserdisc)
• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Also Known As:

It Happened One Summer (USA) (TV title)
Rodgers and Hammerstein's State Fair (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

New Zealand:G | New Zealand:PG (Special Edition DVD) | Australia:G | Canada:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | UK:U | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Russell Ranch - Triunfo Canyon Road, Thousand Oaks, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

A reprise of the song "Isn't It Kind Of Fun?" was sung by Dick Haymes in the movie as his character takes a shower. The number was cut before the film was released, however, the footage still survives intact to this day.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the roller-coaster scene, the cars that go into the tunnel are a different set than those that come out. The lead car is green with a cage-like device going in and red with no cage coming out.

Quotes:

Melissa Frake: I don't know what's gotten into you lately. All you do is sit around and mope.
Margy Frake: I don't sit around and mope.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies (#9.12)" (1997)

Soundtrack:

IT MIGHT AS WELL BE SPRING

A lovely film

I first saw this film in 1945, when I was completing 5 years in the Royal Navy. I was stationed in Kure , Japan, (5 miles from Hiroshima). We were the first British naval personnel to land in the area after the end of WW2, and services and accommodation were very primitive. When things started improving, we got our first film, "State Fair" with the gorgeous Jeanne Crain 'singing the Oscar winning song "It might as well be spring" The wonderful Rodgers and Hammerstein also provides opportunities for Dick Haymes and Vivian Blaine to exercise their tonsils.This happy film never flags; if its the mincemeat or Hampshire Boar competitions, the family have a ball.Look out for a wonderful cameo performance from Donald Meek as the aforementioned @mincemeat' judge. I have watched this film at least a dozen times, the last time last week on DVD and it never bores.