fbpx
Wikipedia

Melba (film)

January 31, 2023

Melba is a 1953 musical biopic drama film of the life of Australian-born soprano Nellie Melba, written by Harry Kurnitz and directed by Lewis Milestone for Horizon Pictures,[1][2] marking the film debut of the Metropolitan Opera's Patrice Munsel.[3][4][5]

Melba
Theatrical poster
Directed byLewis Milestone
Screenplay byHarry Kurnitz
Story byHarry Kurnitz
Produced bySam Spiegel
StarringPatrice Munsel
Robert Morley
John McCallum
CinematographyArthur Ibbetson
Edward Scaife
Edited byBill Lewthwaite
Music byMuir Mathieson
Mischa Spoliansky
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • 24 June 1953 (1953-06-24) (US theatrical)
Running time
112 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Plot

Based on the life of Dame Nellie Melba, the film traces the career of Melba (Patrice Munsel) from the time she left Australia, traveling to Paris to receive vocal training, meets a new suitor, and debuts her talent in Brussels. As her success grows, her former suitor from Australia arrives in Monte Carlo, convinces her to marry him, but then finds himself placed in the position of being "Mr. Melba". When he leaves her to return to Australia, Melba remains in Europe to continue singing.

Cast

Production

Development

In January 1952, upon completion of the Melba story treatment by Harry Kurnitz, producer Sam Spiegel and his attorney flew to London with the script in-hand to acquire film rights for her story from Melba's estate.[6]

In May 1952, Spiegel reported that the film was to be shot on locations in Australia and Britain with Patrice Munsel cast as Nellie Melba.

Upon release of the information, representatives of the J. Arthur Rank organization expressed surprise, as they had themselves been planning a film about Melba. They had hoped to get Marjorie Lawrence for their own film and, when unable to do so, had even considered using actual recordings Melba's voice dubbed over that of an actress. They decided to put their plans on hold until they could find a suitable singer/actress for the lead role.[7]

In June 1952 Spiegel announced the film would be made as the first in a four picture deal he had with United Artists.[8] Munsel's casting was announced in July.[9]

One of Spiegel's early choices for director was Charles Vidor. In July 1952, Spiegel flew to Paris to speak with him.[10]

Spiegel then hired Edmund Goulding as director. Pre-production for the film was being done in Paris, and Patrice Munsel and her husband arranged a second honeymoon in that city.

At one stage Lewis Gilbert was going to direct.[11]

When problems arose with Goulding, Spiegel fired him and hired Lewis Milestone to direct.[12]

The change of directors disheartened Munsel, as she had been looking forward to working with Goulding, and she found Milestone to be "more traffic cop than auteur". She had also anticipated a script that would allow her to play Melba as the "gutsy, difficult, strong-minded" person she really was, and was disappointed that the Kurnitz script "was essentially a plot-less, soft-centered love story built around a long string of opera sequences."[2]

Shooting

Filming started in August 1952.[13]

By September 1952, Patrice Munsel had recorded all her songs for the film, and plans were being made to construct "Australian" sets on the Wiltshire plains. While Munsel's voice impressed critics, she did not resemble Dame Melba, with the biggest contrast being her American accent. When asked of her role, Munsel stated [sic] "We are not attempting to re-create Melba. We are simply paying tribute to her as a great singer in a way that will bring popular entertainment to the masses."[3]

Theodore Bikel wrote in his autobiography that because of Milestone's background, this was a felicitous choice by Sam Spiegel, as Milestone was an award-winning director with a great touch. There was however, a growing frustration between Spiegel and Milestone, both on set and off. After months of filming with growing tensions, and three days before the last scene was to be shot, a confrontation between the two caused Milestone to walk of the set and not return.[14]

Critical response

The New York Times reported that the film was essentially one song after another and, listing the numerous works that were shared in the film, wrote "Even though jumbled together in an excessive, haphazard way, this massive mélange of mighty music is the meager salvation of the film." The reviewer, Bosley Crowther, offered that, while the task of portraying the life of Nellie Melba was laudable as a concept, the "storybook tale of an opera singer that Harry Kurnitz has put together is a mere offense to the taste and credulity of an average numskull, and it is assembled and played with little more sense." They disapproved of the plot which portrayed Melba as "silly and vapid", whose character then "comes out flat and gauche". They offered the storyline was "sticky and banal" and "overloaded with such obvious twaddle about ambition and success."[1]

Conversely, The Spokesman-Review felt the film was a "worthy climax to her [Patrice Munsel] spectacular opera and concert career." They wrote that of the many films that attempted to adapt opera to the film media, this one is the best. They acknowledged that while the film was "broadly sentimental", it was appealing. And that even though the storyline did not factually follow the life of Nellie Melba, "it suggests its glory and glamour and completely enthralls the audience." They write that "Munsel is magnificent", and that even while not being photogenic in the Australian shot scenes depicting Melba's life as a cowgirl, once Melba is brought to Europe, "she is most attractive." Listing the many songs sung by Munsel, they made note of the attending audience applauding each, and wrote "Her singing is magnificent, and she is an actress of sufficient poise to carry complete conviction." The praised the supporting cast and Lewis Milestone's craftmanship as a director.[15]

Munsel later joked "If I had seen me in Melba, I never would have hired me to do anything."[16]

Soundtrack

References

  1. ^ a b Bosley Crowther (25 June 1953). "review: Melba (1953)". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  2. ^ a b Brian Kellow. "Stars of Stage and Screen: Opera on Stage and on Film". Opera News. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Melba with an accent". The Sydney Morning Herald. 14 September 1952. p. 3. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  4. ^ "Munsel is Melba". Val-d'Or Star. 4 December 1953. p. 8. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  5. ^ "Film at Foster Traces Life of Brilliant Star". Youngstown Vindicator. 26 May 1954. p. 14. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  6. ^ Louella O. Parsons (22 January 1952). "Annette Kellerman sees life story set". Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 3. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  7. ^ "A New York Soprano will be Filmed in the Mantle of Melba". The Age. 5 May 1952. p. 2. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  8. ^ "Shock Play, Thieves, in Final Week". Los Angeles Times. 1 June 1952. p. E2.
  9. ^ "Melba? Role", The Washington Post, 13 July 1952: L5.
  10. ^ "Bearded Scot to be Monarch". The Spokesman-Review. 29 July 1952. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  11. ^ Schallert, Edwin (18 August 1952). "Drama: Dieterle Will Direct 'King Saul' in Israel; McCrea, Keyes to Costar". Los Angeles Times. p. B11.
  12. ^ Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni (2003). Sam Spiegel. Simon and Schuster. pp. 141–142. ISBN 0-684-83619-X. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  13. ^ Schallert, Edwin (14 August 1952). "Drama: Stevenson Story Hovers for Glenn Ford, Grahame; Russell Gets Top Lead". Los Angeles Times. p. B9.
  14. ^ Theodore Bikel (2002). Theo: The Autobiography of Theodore Bikel. University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 121–122. ISBN 0-299-18284-3.
  15. ^ Margaret Bean (16 September 1953). "Patrice Superb in Lavish Film". The Spokesman-Review. p. 14. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
  16. ^ Bernheimer, Martin (July 2006). "Reunion: Patrice Munsel". Opera News. Vol. 71, no. 1. New York. pp. 12–15.

External links

January 31, 2023
melba, film, melba, 1953, musical, biopic, drama, film, life, australian, born, soprano, nellie, melba, written, harry, kurnitz, directed, lewis, milestone, horizon, pictures, marking, film, debut, metropolitan, opera, patrice, munsel, melbatheatrical, posterd. Melba is a 1953 musical biopic drama film of the life of Australian born soprano Nellie Melba written by Harry Kurnitz and directed by Lewis Milestone for Horizon Pictures 1 2 marking the film debut of the Metropolitan Opera s Patrice Munsel 3 4 5 MelbaTheatrical posterDirected byLewis MilestoneScreenplay byHarry KurnitzStory byHarry KurnitzProduced bySam SpiegelStarringPatrice MunselRobert MorleyJohn McCallumCinematographyArthur IbbetsonEdward ScaifeEdited byBill LewthwaiteMusic byMuir MathiesonMischa SpolianskyProductioncompanyHorizon PicturesDistributed byUnited ArtistsRelease date24 June 1953 1953 06 24 US theatrical Running time112 minutesCountryUnited KingdomLanguageEnglish Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Production 3 1 Development 3 2 Shooting 4 Critical response 5 Soundtrack 6 References 7 External linksPlot EditBased on the life of Dame Nellie Melba the film traces the career of Melba Patrice Munsel from the time she left Australia traveling to Paris to receive vocal training meets a new suitor and debuts her talent in Brussels As her success grows her former suitor from Australia arrives in Monte Carlo convinces her to marry him but then finds himself placed in the position of being Mr Melba When he leaves her to return to Australia Melba remains in Europe to continue singing Cast EditPatrice Munsel as Nellie Melba Robert Morley as Oscar Hammerstein I John McCallum as Charles Armstrong John Justin as Eric Walton Alec Clunes as Cesar Carlton Martita Hunt as Mathilde Marchesi Sybil Thorndike as Queen Victoria Joseph Tomelty as Thomas Mitchell Beatrice Varley as Aunt Catherine Theodore Bikel as Paul BrothaProduction EditDevelopment Edit In January 1952 upon completion of the Melba story treatment by Harry Kurnitz producer Sam Spiegel and his attorney flew to London with the script in hand to acquire film rights for her story from Melba s estate 6 In May 1952 Spiegel reported that the film was to be shot on locations in Australia and Britain with Patrice Munsel cast as Nellie Melba Upon release of the information representatives of the J Arthur Rank organization expressed surprise as they had themselves been planning a film about Melba They had hoped to get Marjorie Lawrence for their own film and when unable to do so had even considered using actual recordings Melba s voice dubbed over that of an actress They decided to put their plans on hold until they could find a suitable singer actress for the lead role 7 In June 1952 Spiegel announced the film would be made as the first in a four picture deal he had with United Artists 8 Munsel s casting was announced in July 9 One of Spiegel s early choices for director was Charles Vidor In July 1952 Spiegel flew to Paris to speak with him 10 Spiegel then hired Edmund Goulding as director Pre production for the film was being done in Paris and Patrice Munsel and her husband arranged a second honeymoon in that city At one stage Lewis Gilbert was going to direct 11 When problems arose with Goulding Spiegel fired him and hired Lewis Milestone to direct 12 The change of directors disheartened Munsel as she had been looking forward to working with Goulding and she found Milestone to be more traffic cop than auteur She had also anticipated a script that would allow her to play Melba as the gutsy difficult strong minded person she really was and was disappointed that the Kurnitz script was essentially a plot less soft centered love story built around a long string of opera sequences 2 Shooting Edit Filming started in August 1952 13 By September 1952 Patrice Munsel had recorded all her songs for the film and plans were being made to construct Australian sets on the Wiltshire plains While Munsel s voice impressed critics she did not resemble Dame Melba with the biggest contrast being her American accent When asked of her role Munsel stated sic We are not attempting to re create Melba We are simply paying tribute to her as a great singer in a way that will bring popular entertainment to the masses 3 Theodore Bikel wrote in his autobiography that because of Milestone s background this was a felicitous choice by Sam Spiegel as Milestone was an award winning director with a great touch There was however a growing frustration between Spiegel and Milestone both on set and off After months of filming with growing tensions and three days before the last scene was to be shot a confrontation between the two caused Milestone to walk of the set and not return 14 Critical response EditThe New York Times reported that the film was essentially one song after another and listing the numerous works that were shared in the film wrote Even though jumbled together in an excessive haphazard way this massive melange of mighty music is the meager salvation of the film The reviewer Bosley Crowther offered that while the task of portraying the life of Nellie Melba was laudable as a concept the storybook tale of an opera singer that Harry Kurnitz has put together is a mere offense to the taste and credulity of an average numskull and it is assembled and played with little more sense They disapproved of the plot which portrayed Melba as silly and vapid whose character then comes out flat and gauche They offered the storyline was sticky and banal and overloaded with such obvious twaddle about ambition and success 1 Conversely The Spokesman Review felt the film was a worthy climax to her Patrice Munsel spectacular opera and concert career They wrote that of the many films that attempted to adapt opera to the film media this one is the best They acknowledged that while the film was broadly sentimental it was appealing And that even though the storyline did not factually follow the life of Nellie Melba it suggests its glory and glamour and completely enthralls the audience They write that Munsel is magnificent and that even while not being photogenic in the Australian shot scenes depicting Melba s life as a cowgirl once Melba is brought to Europe she is most attractive Listing the many songs sung by Munsel they made note of the attending audience applauding each and wrote Her singing is magnificent and she is an actress of sufficient poise to carry complete conviction The praised the supporting cast and Lewis Milestone s craftmanship as a director 15 Munsel later joked If I had seen me in Melba I never would have hired me to do anything 16 Soundtrack Edit Ballet music from the opera Robert le diable by Giacomo Meyerbeer Comin Through the Rye words by Robert Burns Ave Maria composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and Charles Gounod O luce di quest anima from Linda di Chamounix composed by Gaetano Donizetti libretto by Gaetano Rossi Serenade composed by Charles Gounod Caro nome from Rigoletto composed by Giuseppe Verdi libretto by Francesco Maria Piave The Mad Scene from Lucia di Lammermoor composed by Gaetano Donizetti libretto by Salvadore Cammarano Chacun le sait from La fille du regiment composed by Gaetano Donizetti libretto by Jules Henri Vernoy de Saint Georges and Jean Francois Bayard Una voce poco fa from Il barbiere di Siviglia composed by Gioachino Rossini libretto by Cesare Sterbini O soave fanciulla from La boheme composed by Giacomo Puccini libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica Voi che sapete from Le nozze di Figaro composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte Aria from Faust composed by Charles Gounod libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carre Vissi d arte from Tosca composed by Giacomo Puccini libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica Brindisi from La traviata composed by Giuseppe Verdi libretto by Francesco Maria Piave O pur bonheur from Romeo et Juliette composed by Charles Gounod libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carre On Wings of Song composed by Felix Mendelssohn Dreamtime composed by Mischa Spoliansky lyrics by Norman Newell Is This the Beginning of Love written by Mischa SpolianskyReferences Edit a b Bosley Crowther 25 June 1953 review Melba 1953 The New York Times Retrieved 4 May 2011 a b Brian Kellow Stars of Stage and Screen Opera on Stage and on Film Opera News Retrieved 4 May 2011 a b Melba with an accent The Sydney Morning Herald 14 September 1952 p 3 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Munsel is Melba Val d Or Star 4 December 1953 p 8 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Film at Foster Traces Life of Brilliant Star Youngstown Vindicator 26 May 1954 p 14 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Louella O Parsons 22 January 1952 Annette Kellerman sees life story set Milwaukee Sentinel p 3 Retrieved 4 May 2011 A New York Soprano will be Filmed in the Mantle of Melba The Age 5 May 1952 p 2 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Shock Play Thieves in Final Week Los Angeles Times 1 June 1952 p E2 Melba Role The Washington Post 13 July 1952 L5 Bearded Scot to be Monarch The Spokesman Review 29 July 1952 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Schallert Edwin 18 August 1952 Drama Dieterle Will Direct King Saul in Israel McCrea Keyes to Costar Los Angeles Times p B11 Natasha Fraser Cavassoni 2003 Sam Spiegel Simon and Schuster pp 141 142 ISBN 0 684 83619 X Retrieved 4 May 2011 Schallert Edwin 14 August 1952 Drama Stevenson Story Hovers for Glenn Ford Grahame Russell Gets Top Lead Los Angeles Times p B9 Theodore Bikel 2002 Theo The Autobiography of Theodore Bikel University of Wisconsin Press pp 121 122 ISBN 0 299 18284 3 Margaret Bean 16 September 1953 Patrice Superb in Lavish Film The Spokesman Review p 14 Retrieved 4 May 2011 Bernheimer Martin July 2006 Reunion Patrice Munsel Opera News Vol 71 no 1 New York pp 12 15 External links EditMelba at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Melba film amp oldid 1108310362, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.