Dancing Lady

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Dancing Lady
Original film poster
Directed by	Robert Z. Leonard
Produced by	John W. Considine Jr. David O. Selznick
Written by	James Warner Bellah Robert Benchley Allen Rivkin Zelda Sears P. J. Wolfson
Starring	Joan Crawford Clark Gable Franchot Tone Fred Astaire Robert Benchley Ted Healy Nelson Eddy Sterling Holloway Moe Howard Curly Howard Larry Fine
Music by	Louis Silvers
Cinematography	Oliver T. Marsh
Editing by	Margaret Booth
Distributed by	MGM
Release date(s)	November 24, 1933
Running time	92 min.
Country	US
Language	English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Dancing Lady is a 1933 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical comedy film starring Joan Crawford, Clark Gable and Franchot Tone, as well as Robert Benchley, Nelson Eddy, Fred Astaire, and Ted Healy and his Stooges (Curly, Moe, and Larry).

1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Background
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Plot

Janie "Duchess" Barlow is a poor, hard-working dancer in a Manhattan burlesque theater who is spotted by a high-society scion, Tod Newton, who falls in love with her. The theater is raided by the police, and Janie is arrested, and Tod pays her bail. However, she resists his gestures and promises to pay him back. Tod then helps her land an audition for a Broadway show. Patch Gallagher (Clark Gable) does not like Janie, but she perseveres and wins his begruding admiration. Eventually, she becomes the star of the show. Tod, who wants Janie to himself, buys the show so that he can close it. Janie and Patch, meanwhile, have fallen in love. They scrape together their savings and produce a show, which becomes a hit.

[edit] Cast

Joan Crawford as Janie "Duchess" Barlow
Clark Gable as Patch Gallagher
Franchot Tone as Tod Newton
May Robson as Dolly Todhunter
Fred Astaire as Himself
Robert Benchley as Ward King
Ted Healy as Steve
Nelson Eddy as Himself
Sterling Holloway as Pinky
Moe Howard as Stagehand
Jerry Howard as Heavyset stagehand
Larry Fine as Stagehand/Pianist

[edit] Background

The film features the screen debut of dancer Fred Astaire, who appears as himself and dances with Crawford, and also presents dancing robots which later appeared in the first Gene Autry serial, The Phantom Empire.

The movie also had a hit song, "Everything I Have Is Yours," by Burton Lane and Harold Adamson.

In the opening credits, Ted Healy, Moe Howard, Jerry Howard and Larry Fine are billed as "Ted Healy and his Stooges." The end credits bill each actor individually, however.

The film was originally to have starred Robert Montgomery in the part of Tod Newton. According to contemporary news items, when Montgomery became unavailable because he had not yet completed Another Language, Franchot Tone took over the role.

Dancing Lady is nevertheless an important film and a cult favorite for reasons which have nothing to do with its story or music. It's a film that came at an important point in the careers of star Joan Crawford and producer David O. Selznick, and gave them both major career boosts.