Gypsy (film)

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This article is about the 1962 film. For the Broadway musical, see Gypsy: A Musical Fable.
Gypsy

DVD Cover
Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Produced by Mervyn LeRoy
Written by Leonard Spigelgass
Stephen Sondheim
Arthur Laurents
Starring Rosalind Russell
Natalie Wood
Karl Malden
Music by Jule Styne
Cinematography Harry Stradling
Editing by Philip W. Anderson
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date(s) Flag of the United States 1 November 1962
Running time 143 min
Country USA
Language English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Gypsy is a 1962 musical film made by Warner Bros., about the early life of striptease artist Gypsy Rose Lee. It was produced and directed by Mervyn LeRoy. The screenplay by Leonard Spigelgass was based on the stage musical Gypsy: A Musical Fable with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and book by Arthur Laurents, which was in turn loosely based on Lee's book Gypsy: A Memoir. The cinematography was by Harry Stradling, the costume design by Orry-Kelly, Bill Gaskin and Howard Shoup.

The film stars Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood and Karl Malden.

Contents

[edit] Background and production

Original Kiss Me, Kate cast member Lisa Kirk dubbed Rosalind Russell's singing voice, but Russell's attempts at singing were rediscovered on scratchy acetate discs and recently made available as supplements on the CD reissue of the film soundtrack. Rosalind Russell's own singing voice, however, can be heard in the film, during the "Rose's Turn" number, for at least half of the song, in "Mr. Goldstone" and the cut numbers "You'll Never Get Away From Me (Duet)" and "Together Wherever We Go".

Natalie Wood provided her own singing in this film; in West Side Story, her singing was performed by Marni Nixon.

It had been hoped that the film would star Judy Garland as Mama Rose and Ann-Margret as Gypsy, but they were both involved in other projects.

A rumor exists that Rosalind Russell was rushed to the hospital after she accidentally inserted a hatpin through her head while filming the "Some People" scene.

[edit] Awards and nominations

Rosalind Russell in a scene from the film
Rosalind Russell in a scene from the film

The film was nominated for three Academy Awards, for Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Music Scoring. It was also nominated for six Golden Globe Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Natalie Wood), Best Actor (Karl Malden) and Most Promising Newcomer (Paul Wallace) and won the Best Actress award for Rosalind Russell. Russell had won the same award the previous year for her role in A Majority of One.

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

A rumor persists that Ethel Merman, who originated the role of Rose on Broadway and was bitter at not being cast in the film version, somehow got a copy of the original takes of Rosalind Russell's singing, and played recordings of them at parties.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Films Directed by Mervyn LeRoy
Little Caesar (1931) • Five Star Final (1931) • Tonight or Never (1931) • Two Seconds (1932) • Three on a Match (1932) • I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932) • Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) • Tugboat Annie (1933) • The World Changes (1933) • Anthony Adverse (1936) • Waterloo Bridge (1940) • Escape (1940) • Blossoms in the Dust (1941) • Random Harvest (1942) • Madame Curie (1943) • Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944) • The House I Live In (1945) • Without Reservations (1946) • Little Women (1949) • Quo Vadis (1951) • Million Dollar Mermaid (1952) • Mister Roberts (1955) • The Bad Seed (1956) • Toward the Unknown (1956) • No Time for Sergeants (1958) • The FBI Story (1959) • A Majority of One (1961) • Gypsy (1962)
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