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A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935 film)
Encyclopedia
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a 1935 film directed by Max Reinhardt
and William Dieterle
, produced by Henry Blanke
and Hal Wallis, and adapted by Charles Kenyon
and Mary C. McCall Jr.
from the play
by William Shakespeare
.
Many of the actors in this version had never performed Shakespeare before and never would do so again, notably Cagney and Brown, who were nevertheless highly acclaimed for their performances. All critics agreed that Dick Powell was miscast as Lysander, and Powell himself concurred with the critics' verdict.
Olivia de Havilland originally auditioned for the role of Puck in Reinhardt's stage production of the play at the Hollywood Bowl
. Although the cast of the stage play was mostly replaced by Warner Brothers contract players, de Havilland and Mickey Rooney were chosen to reprise their original roles.
Avant-garde director Kenneth Anger
claimed in his book Hollywood Babylon II
to have played the changeling prince in this film when he was a child, but in fact the role was played by child star Sheila Brown.
did not speak English at the time of this film. He gave orders to the actors and crew in German
with William Dieterle
acting as his interpreter. The film was banned in Nazi Germany
because of the Jewish backgrounds of Reinhardt and composer Felix Mendelssohn
.
The shooting schedule had to be rearranged after Mickey Rooney broke his leg while skiing. According to Rooney's memoirs, Jack Warner
was furious and threatened to kill him and then break his other leg.
This was the film debut of Olivia de Havilland
.
's music was used, but re-orchestrated by Erich Wolfgang Korngold
. Not all of it was from the incidental music
that Mendelssohn had composed for A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1843. Other pieces used were excerpts from the Symphony No. 3 Scottish
, the Symphony No. 4 Italian
, and the Songs without Words
, among others. The ballet sequences featuring the fairies were choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska
.
It was nominated for:
Hal Mohr was not nominated for his work on the movie; he won the Oscar thanks to a grass-roots write-in campaign. It was Mohr who decided that the trees should be sprayed with orange paint, giving them the eerie glow which added to the "fairyland" effect in the film. The next year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
declared that it would no longer accept write-in votes for the awards.
have restored the film's pre-credits Overture, and its Exit Music, neither of which had been heard since its 1935 road show presentations. In August, 2007, it was released on DVD
for the first time, both individually and as part of a box set known as "The Shakespeare Collection."
Max Reinhardt
----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
and William Dieterle
William Dieterle
William Dieterle was a German actor and film director, who worked in Hollywood for much of his career. His best known films include The Devil and Daniel Webster, The Story of Louis Pasteur and The Hunchback of Notre Dame...
, produced by Henry Blanke
Henry Blanke
Henry Blanke was a German-born film producer who also worked as an assistant director, supervisor, writer, and production manager. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for The Nun's Story ....
and Hal Wallis, and adapted by Charles Kenyon
Charles Kenyon
Charles Kenyon was an American screenwriter, who wrote or co-wrote the screenplays for 114 films between 1915 and 1946...
and Mary C. McCall Jr.
Mary C. McCall, Jr.
Mary C. McCall, Jr. was a writer best known for her screenwriting. She was the first woman president of the Writers Guild of America, serving from 1942-44 and 1951-52....
from the play
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
.
Cast
- Ian HunterIan Hunter (actor)Ian Hunter was a British character actor.Among dozens of film roles, his best-remembered appearances include That Certain Woman with Bette Davis, The Adventures of Robin Hood , The Little Princess and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde...
as TheseusTheseusFor other uses, see Theseus Theseus was the mythical founder-king of Athens, son of Aethra, and fathered by Aegeus and Poseidon, both of whom Aethra had slept with in one night. Theseus was a founder-hero, like Perseus, Cadmus, or Heracles, all of whom battled and overcame foes that were...
, Duke of Athens - Verree TeasdaleVerree TeasdaleVerree Teasdale was an American actress born in Spokane, Washington.A second cousin of Edith Wharton, Teasdale attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn and trained as a stage actress at the New York School of Expression...
as HippolytaHippolytaIn Greek mythology, Hippolyta or Hippolyte is the Amazonian queen who possessed a magical girdle she was given by her father Ares, the god of war. The girdle was a waist belt that signified her authority as queen of the Amazons....
, Queen of the Amazons, betrothed to Theseus - Hobart CavanaughHobart CavanaughHobart Cavanaugh was an American character actor in films and on stage.Born in Virginia City, Nevada, Cavanaugh made his film debut in San Francisco Nights...
as Philostrate, Master of Revels to Theseus - Dick PowellDick PowellRichard Ewing "Dick" Powell was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.Despite the same last name he was not related to William Powell, Eleanor Powell or Jane Powell.-Biography:...
as LysanderLysander (Shakespeare)Lysander is one of the iconic lovers in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream. A handsome young man of Athens, Lysander is in love with Hermia and plans to run away from her father with her to escape Athenian law and wed. But his plans are disrupted when Oberon decides to have some...
, In love with Hermia - Ross AlexanderRoss AlexanderRoss Alexander was an American stage and film actor.- Early life :Born Alexander Ross Smith in Brooklyn, New York, Alexander began his acting career in Broadway productions during the 1920s. By 1926 he was regarded as a promising leading man, with good looks and an easy and charming style and...
as Demetrius, In love with Hermia - Olivia de HavillandOlivia de HavillandOlivia Mary de Havilland is a British American film and stage actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1946 and 1949. She is the elder sister of actress Joan Fontaine. The sisters are among the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s.-Early life:Olivia de Havilland...
as HermiaHermiaHermia is a science park near Tampere University of Technology . Hermia is located in Hervanta, a suburb of Tampere, Finland. Hermia is also acting as a technology centre for its region....
, In love with Lysander (as Olivia de Haviland) - Jean MuirJean Muir (actress)Jean Muir was an American stage and film actress.-Career:Born in Suffern, New York as Jean Muir Fullarton, she first appeared on Broadway in 1930, and was signed by Warner Brothers Studios three years later. She played opposite several famous actors - Warren William, Paul Muni, Richard...
as Helena, In love with Demetrius - Grant MitchellGrant Mitchell (actor)Grant Mitchell was an American stage actor on Broadway and character actor in many Hollywood films of the 1930s and 1940s...
as Egeus, Father to Hermia - Frank McHughFrank McHughFrancis Curray "Frank" McHugh was an American film and television actor.Born in Homestead, Pennsylvania, McHugh came from a theatrical family. His parents ran a stock theatre company and as a young child he performed on stage...
as Quince, the Carpenter - Dewey Robinson as Snug, the Joiner
- James CagneyJames CagneyJames Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
as BottomNick BottomNick Bottom is a character in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream who provides comic relief throughout the play, and is famously known for getting his head transformed into that of an ass by the elusive Puck within the play.- Overview :...
, the Weaver - Joe E. BrownJoe E. Brown (comedian)Joseph Evans Brown was an American actor and comedian, remembered for his amiable screen persona, comic timing, and enormous smile. In 1902 at the age of nine, he joined a troupe of circus tumblers known as the Five Marvelous Ashtons which toured the country on both the circus and vaudeville...
as FluteFrancis FluteFrancis Flute is a character in the play A Midsummer Night's Dream. His occupation is a bellows-mender. He is forced to play the female role of Thisbe in "Pyramus and Thisbe", a play within the play which is performed for Theseus' marriage celebration....
, the Bellows-mender - Hugh HerbertHugh HerbertHugh Herbert was a motion picture comedian. He began his career in vaudeville, and wrote more than 150 plays and sketches.-Career:...
as Snout, the Tinker - Otis HarlanOtis Harlan-Biography:Harlan was born in Zanesville, Ohio in 1865. He married Nellie Harvey and had a daughter named Marion. Harlan was the uncle of silent actor Kenneth Harlan.-Career:...
as Starveling, the Tailor - Arthur TreacherArthur TreacherArthur Veary Treacher was an English actor born in Brighton, East Sussex, England.Treacher was a veteran of World War I. After the war, he established a stage career and in 1928, he went to America as part of a musical-comedy revue called Great Temptations...
as Epilogue - Victor JoryVictor JoryVictor Jory was a Canadian actor.-Biography:Born in Dawson City, Yukon, Jory was the boxing and wrestling champion of the Coast Guard during his military service, and he kept his burly physique. He toured with theater troupes and appeared on Broadway, before making his Hollywood debut in 1930...
as OberonOberonOberon is a legendary king of the fairies.Oberon may also refer to:-People:* Merle Oberon , British actress* Oberon Zell-Ravenheart , Neopagan activist-Media and entertainment:* Oberon...
, King of the Fairies - Anita LouiseAnita Louise-Life and career:Born Anita Louise Fremault in New York, New York, she made her acting debut on Broadway at the age of six, and within a year was appearing regularly in Hollywood films...
as Titania, Queen of the Fairies - Nini Theilade as Fairie, Attending Titania (as Nina Theilade)
- Mickey RooneyMickey RooneyMickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
as PuckPuck (Shakespeare)Puck, also known as Robin Goodfellow, is a character in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream that was based on the ancient figure in English mythology, also called Puck. Puck is a clever and mischievous elf and personifies the trickster or the wise knave...
or Robin Goodfellow, a Fairy - Katherine Frey as Pease-Blossom
- Helen WestcottHelen WestcottHelen Westcott was an American stage and screen actor and former child actor....
as Cobweb - Fred Sale as Moth
- Billy BartyBilly BartyBilly Barty was an American film actor.-Biography:Barty, an Italian American, was born William John Bertanzetti in Millsboro, Pennsylvania...
as Mustard-Seed
Many of the actors in this version had never performed Shakespeare before and never would do so again, notably Cagney and Brown, who were nevertheless highly acclaimed for their performances. All critics agreed that Dick Powell was miscast as Lysander, and Powell himself concurred with the critics' verdict.
Olivia de Havilland originally auditioned for the role of Puck in Reinhardt's stage production of the play at the Hollywood Bowl
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is a modern amphitheater in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, United States that is used primarily for music performances...
. Although the cast of the stage play was mostly replaced by Warner Brothers contract players, de Havilland and Mickey Rooney were chosen to reprise their original roles.
Avant-garde director Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger is an American underground experimental filmmaker, occasional actor and author...
claimed in his book Hollywood Babylon II
Hollywood Babylon
Hollywood Babylon is a book by avant-garde filmmaker Kenneth Anger which details the sordid scandals of many famous and infamous Hollywood denizens from the 1900s to the 1950s. First published in the US in 1965, it was banned ten days later and would not be republished until 1975...
to have played the changeling prince in this film when he was a child, but in fact the role was played by child star Sheila Brown.
Production notes
Director Max ReinhardtMax Reinhardt
----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
did not speak English at the time of this film. He gave orders to the actors and crew in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
with William Dieterle
William Dieterle
William Dieterle was a German actor and film director, who worked in Hollywood for much of his career. His best known films include The Devil and Daniel Webster, The Story of Louis Pasteur and The Hunchback of Notre Dame...
acting as his interpreter. The film was banned in Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
because of the Jewish backgrounds of Reinhardt and composer Felix Mendelssohn
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
.
The shooting schedule had to be rearranged after Mickey Rooney broke his leg while skiing. According to Rooney's memoirs, Jack Warner
Jack Warner
Jack Leonard "J. L." Warner , born Jacob Warner in London, Ontario, was a Canadian American film executive who was the president and driving force behind the Warner Bros. Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California...
was furious and threatened to kill him and then break his other leg.
This was the film debut of Olivia de Havilland
Olivia de Havilland
Olivia Mary de Havilland is a British American film and stage actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1946 and 1949. She is the elder sister of actress Joan Fontaine. The sisters are among the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s.-Early life:Olivia de Havilland...
.
Music
Felix MendelssohnFelix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...
's music was used, but re-orchestrated by Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Erich Wolfgang Korngold was an Austro-Hungarian film and romantic music composer. While his compositional style was considered well out of vogue at the time he died, his music has more recently undergone a reevaluation and a gradual reawakening of interest...
. Not all of it was from the incidental music
Incidental music
Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, film or some other form not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as the "film score" or "soundtrack"....
that Mendelssohn had composed for A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1843. Other pieces used were excerpts from the Symphony No. 3 Scottish
Symphony No. 3 (Mendelssohn)
The Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56, known as the Scottish Symphony, is a work by Felix Mendelssohn. It is thought that a painting on a Scottish trip made by Mendelssohn had inspired the 33-year-old composer, especially the opening theme of the first movement.The emotional scope of the work is...
, the Symphony No. 4 Italian
Symphony No. 4 (Mendelssohn)
The Symphony No. 4 in A major, Op. 90, commonly known as the Italian, is an orchestral symphony written by German composer Felix Mendelssohn ....
, and the Songs without Words
Songs without Words
Songs Without Words is a series of short, lyrical piano pieces by the Romantic composer Felix Mendelssohn.-Composition and reception:...
, among others. The ballet sequences featuring the fairies were choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska
Bronislava Nijinska
Bronislava Nijinska - February 22, 1972)) was a Russian dancer, choreographer, and teacher of Polish descent.Nijinska was born in Minsk, the third child of the Polish dancers Tomasz and Eleonora Nijinska . Her brother was Vaslav Nijinsky...
.
Awards
The film won two Academy Awards:- Best Cinematography - Hal MohrHal MohrHal Mohr, A.S.C. was a famed movie cinematographer.-Career:In 1915, in an early example of an exploitation film peddled directly to theater owners, Mohr and Sol Lesser produced and directed a film The Last Night of the Barbary Coast...
- Best Film Editing - Ralph DawsonRalph DawsonRalph Dawson was a film editor who also did some acting, directing, and screenwriting...
It was nominated for:
- Best Picture - Henry BlankeHenry BlankeHenry Blanke was a German-born film producer who also worked as an assistant director, supervisor, writer, and production manager. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for The Nun's Story ....
, producer - Best Assistant Director - Sherry Shourds
Hal Mohr was not nominated for his work on the movie; he won the Oscar thanks to a grass-roots write-in campaign. It was Mohr who decided that the trees should be sprayed with orange paint, giving them the eerie glow which added to the "fairyland" effect in the film. The next year, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures...
declared that it would no longer accept write-in votes for the awards.
Rejections
At the time, cinemas entered into a contract to show the film, but had the right to pull out within a specified period of time. Cancellations usually ran between 20 and 50. The film established a new record with 2,971 cancellations. Booking agents had failed to correctly identify the film.Run times
The film was first released at 132 minutes, but was edited to 117 minutes for its general release run. The full 132 minute version was not seen again until it turned up on cable television in 1994. The film was then re-issued at its full length on VHS (its first video release was of the edited version). Later showings on Turner Classic MoviesTurner Classic Movies
Turner Classic Movies is a movie-oriented cable television channel, owned by the Turner Broadcasting System subsidiary of Time Warner, featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and MGM, United Artists, RKO and Warner Bros. film libraries...
have restored the film's pre-credits Overture, and its Exit Music, neither of which had been heard since its 1935 road show presentations. In August, 2007, it was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
for the first time, both individually and as part of a box set known as "The Shakespeare Collection."