Search results
Nov 13, 2017 · M-G-M finally won the rights by buying both Du Barry Was a Lady and Panama Hattie, another Merman-Porter musical, which the studio made into a film in 1942 (See Entry). Comedian Zero Mostel made his screen debut in the picture, having been "discovered" by producer Arthur Freed while performing in a New York nightclub.
Originally, Du Barry Was a Lady was a 1939 Broadway musical, with music and lyrics written by Cole Porter, and its book by Herbert Fields and Buddy DeSylva. The musical starred Bert Lahr , Ethel Merman, and Betty Grable, and Porter’s song “Friendship” was one of the highlights. With the Broadway musical being a hit, it was soon reimagined ...
New York opening: 19 Aug 1943. Production Company. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Corp. Distribution Company. Loew's Inc. Country. United States. Screenplay Information. Based on the musical DuBarry Was a Lady , book by Herbert Fields and B. G. DeSylva, music and lyrics by Cole Porter, as produced by B. G. DeSylva (New York, 6 Dec 1939).
“DuBarry Was a Lady” is lavish and colorful, as befits a 1943 MGM musical, but the studio threw out most of Cole Porter’s saucy theater score for tamer tunes. The movie version is strictly for Red Skelton fans, as Lucille Ball and Gene Kelly have relatively little to do.
Jul 25, 2023 · Before Du Barry Was a Lady, audiences had seen Kelly in just one other movie, the far more entertaining and substantive For Me and My Gal with Judy Garland. Du Barry gives him far less to do and just one dance number choreographed by future director Charles Walters, who ironically played Kelly's part in the original Broadway production.
Hat check man Louis Blore is in love with nightclub star May Daly. May, however, is in love with a poor dancer but wants to marry for money. When Louis wins the Irish Sweepstakes, he asks May to marry him and she accepts even though she doesn't love him. Soon after, Louis has an accident and gets knocked on the head, where he dreams that he's King Louis XV pursuing the infamous Madame Du Barry.
SHOW ALL QUESTIONS. Du Barry Was a Lady is a 1943 American musical comedy film directed by Roy Del Ruth, starring Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Gene Kelly, and Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra. It is based on the 1939 stage musical of the same name. Shot in Technicolor, the film was produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Du Barry Was a Lady.
