| With a Song in My Heart | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Walter Lang |
| Written by | Lamar Trotti |
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Leon Shamroy |
| Edited by | J. Watson Webb Jr. |
| Music by | Alfred Newman |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 117 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $3.2 million[1][2] |
With a Song in My Heart is a 1952 Americanbiographicalmusicaldrama film that tells the story of actress and singerJane Froman, who was crippled by an airplane crash on February 22, 1943, when theBoeing 314Pan American Clipper flying boat she was on suffered a crash landing in theTagus River nearLisbon, Portugal. She entertained the troops in World War II despite having to walk with crutches. The film starsSusan Hayward,Rory Calhoun,David Wayne,Thelma Ritter,Robert Wagner,Helen Westcott, andUna Merkel. Froman herself supplied Hayward's singing voice.
The film was written and produced byLamar Trotti and directed byWalter Lang. The title song, "With a Song in My Heart" (Rodgers and Hart, 1929), became famous in the United Kingdom as the theme to the long-runningBBC radio showFamily Favourites.
Jane Froman (Susan Hayward) is a humble staff singer at aCincinnati radio station, but in no time she rises to the uppermost rungs of network radio fame. Jane gratefully marries her agent Don Ross (David Wayne), but soon both realize they're not truly in love. Jane's popularity soars, and she leaves on a European tour. When her plane crashes, she is partially crippled. Unable to walk without crutches, she nonetheless goes on to entertain U.S. troops during World War II.
Singing groups the Four Girl Friends, theModernaires, the Melody Men, the Skylarks, and theStarlighters appear in the film.[3]
The rights to Jane Froman's life story were sought by a variety of production companies, including MGM, Warner Bros, Sam Goldwyn, 20th Century Fox, and Wald-Krasna (atRKO).[4] In September 1950 Fox announced that Lamar Trotti would write and produceThe Jane Froman Story.[5][6] Froman says she decided to go with Fox after talking to Trotti even though MGM offered $25,000 more. She says the price paid was "mid six figures".[4]
In March 1951 Fox announced that the male leads would be played by David Wayne andDale Robertson and that the film would be calledI'll See You in My Dreams.[7] In April 1951,Jean Peters was announced as the star.[8] In May, the lead went to Susan Hayward.[9]
The title was changed toYou, the Night and the Music.[10] Rory Calhoun replaced Robertson in June.[11]
In July 1951 Robert Wagner was added to the cast.[12]
Joyce MacKenzie was cast as the woman (in reality singer and actressTamara Drasin, who died in the crash) who took Froman's seat.[13]
Froman acted as technical adviser, but refused to watch the sequence involving the airplane crash.[14]
As per the times, the soundtrack album forWith a Song in My Heart was a studio recording[citation needed], and it initially included eight songs and a shorter version of the "American Medley" sung byJane Froman, with a short orchestral introduction byGeorge Greeley, who conducted the orchestra and chorus. TheCapitol Records album was released in multiple formats: Capitol L-309 (LP), DDN-309 (4 record 78rpm-Box Set); KDF-309 (4 record 45rpm singles Box-Set); and FBF-309 (2 EP Box-set). This album was the best-selling album of 1952 and spent 25 weeks at the top of theBillboard chart. Jane Froman also released a single of the title song with Capitol Records.
The film was a box office success. Wagner's small role received a lot of acclaim, resulting in 3,000 fan letters a week arriving at the studio – this encouraged Fox to build him up as a star.[15]
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Actress | Susan Hayward | Nominated | [16] |
| Best Supporting Actress | Thelma Ritter | Nominated | ||
| Best Costume Design – Color | Charles LeMaire | Nominated | ||
| Best Scoring of a Musical Picture | Alfred Newman | Won | ||
| Best Sound Recording | Thomas T. Moulton | Nominated | ||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Won | [17] | |
| Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Susan Hayward | Won | ||
| Photoplay Awards | Gold Medal | Won | ||
| Most Popular Female Star | Susan Hayward | Won | ||
| Picturegoer Awards | Best Actress | Won | ||
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Written American Musical | Lamar Trotti | Nominated | [18] |
Although the film won the Academy Award for the Best Original Score, there were a number of American standards represented. All except three songs featured the voice ofJane Froman, and were performed bySusan Hayward.
Songs included in an "American Medley"