The Girl of the Golden West is a 1938 American musical Western film adapted from the 1905 play of the same name by David Belasco, better known for providing the plot of the opera La fanciulla del West by Giacomo Puccini. A frontier woman falls in love with an outlaw.[3]
| The Girl of the Golden West | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Robert Z. Leonard |
| Written by | Isabel Dawn Boyce DeGaw |
| Based on | The Girl of the Golden West 1905 play by David Belasco |
| Produced by | Robert Z. Leonard William Anthony McGuire |
| Starring | Jeanette MacDonald Nelson Eddy Walter Pidgeon |
| Cinematography | Oliver T. Marsh |
| Edited by | W. Donn Hayes |
| Music by | Herbert Stothart |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Loew's, Inc. |
Release date |
|
Running time | 121 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,680,000[1][2] |
| Box office | $1,597,000 (Domestic earnings)[1] $1,285,000 (Foreign earnings)[1] |
Plot
editIn a remote mining camp in California, a group of miners seeks their fortune during the Gold Rush. The miners frequent a saloon run by Mary, who is known as the "Girl of the Golden West." Mary is beloved by the miners.
Mary's life takes a turn when a notorious bandit and outlaw named Dick Johnson arrives in town under the alias "Ramirez." He is on the run from the law, and when he takes refuge in Mary's saloon, he and Mary quickly fall in love. Mary, unaware of his true identity, shelters and protects him.
Sheriff Jack Rance, who is infatuated with Mary, becomes suspicious of the newcomer and starts investigating Ramirez's background. Rance discovers Ramirez's true identity and plans to capture him. Mary is torn between her love for Ramirez and her loyalty to the miners and her sense of justice. Mary must make a difficult choice that will determine the fate of the man she loves. When Jack shoots him, Mary hides him in the loft of her cabin. Blood dripping through the ceiling alerts Jack to Dick's presence. While Dick lies unconscious on the floor. Mary and Jack play cards for Dick's life against her staying with Jack. She wins by cheating, but Jack discovers it. He lets Dick go and embraces a weeping Mary.
The boys throw a farewell party for Mary and Jack, who leave for Monterey to be married there by the padre. Planning to start a new life, Dick visits the padre. Mary and Jack arrive to be married. She hears Dick humming and tells him to flee. Jack overhears her confession of love and goes back to Cloudy. Dissolve to Dick and Mary in a covered wagon, singing “Señorita” and ending with a kiss.
Cast
edit- Jeanette MacDonald as Mary Robbins
- Nelson Eddy as Ramirez
- Walter Pidgeon as Sheriff Jack Rance
- Leo Carrillo as Mosquito
- Buddy Ebsen as Alabama
- Leonard Penn as Pedro
- Priscilla Lawson as Nina Martinez
- Bob Murphy as Sonora Slim
- Olin Howland as Trinidad Joe
- Cliff Edwards as Minstrel Joe
- Billy Bevan as Nick
- Brandon Tynan as The Professor
- H.B. Warner as Father Sienna
- Monty Woolley as The Governor
- Charley Grapewin as Uncle Davy (in prologue)
- Noah Beery Sr. as The General – in prologue (as Noah Beery Sr.)
- Bill Cody Jr. as Gringo (young Ramirez; in prologue)
- Jeanne Ellis as Young Mary Robbins (in prologue)
- Ynez Seabury as Wowkle
Soundtrack
edit- Sun-Up to Sun Down; Played during the opening credits
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Jeanne Ellis and the pioneers in the prologue
- Shadows On The Moon
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Jeanne Ellis at a campfire in the prologue
- Reprised by Jeanette MacDonald
- Whistled and hummed by Nelson Eddy
- Soldiers Of Fortune
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Noah Beery and his men in the prologue, Bill Cody Jr. (dubbed by Raymond Chace) in the prologue
- Reprised by Nelson Eddy and his men
- The Wind In The Trees
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Jeanette MacDonald
- Played on a fife by Buddy Ebsen
- Gwine to Rune All Night (1850); (De Camptown Races)
- Written by Stephen Foster
- Played as background music in the saloon
- Polly Wolly Doodle
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Played on piano by Brandon Tynan
- Sung by Jeanette MacDonald
- Ave Maria
- Music by Charles Gounod
- Adopted from the First Prelude in The Well-Termpered Clavier
- By Johann Sebastian Bach
- Played on an organ by H.B. Warner
- Sung by Jeanette MacDonald and chorus
- Señorita
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Nelson Eddy and party guests
- Reprised by Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
- Mariache
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Additional lyrics by Carlos Ruffino
- Translation for Spanish lyrics by Zacharias Yaconelli (uncredited)
- Sung by Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy and chorus
- Danced to by the party guests
- The West Ain't Wild Anymore
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Buddy Ebsen
- Who Are We To Say
- Music by Sigmund Romberg
- Lyrics by Gus Kahn
- Sung by Nelson Eddy
- Hummed by Jeanette MacDonald
- Reprised on piano by Brandon Tynan and sung by Jeanette MacDonald
- The Wedding March
- from A Midsummer Night's Dream, Op.61
- Written by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
- Played on a banjo and hummed by Cliff Edwards
- Señorita
- Reprise by Jeannette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
Box office
editAccording to MGM records the film earned $2,882,000 resulting in a profit of $243,000.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b c Turk, Edward Baron "Hollywood Diva: A Biography of Jeanette MacDonald" (University of California Press, 1998)
- ^ a b The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
- ^ The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films: 1931–40 published by The American Film Institute, c.1993
