First Love (1939 film)
Encyclopedia
First Love is a 1939
Oscar nominated
Universal
musical film
directed by Henry Koster
. The film is a rewriting of the fairy tale
Cinderella
. It was released on both VHS and DVD (as a part of a Deanna Durbin
collection box).
One afternoon, her cousin Barbara Clinton orders Connie to stop Ted Drake from going riding without her. Connie tries the best she can, which results into embarrassing herself. She has secretly fallen in love with him and is full with joy when she learns the Drake family is organizing a ball. The servants raise money to buy her a fashionable dress. However, Barbara spreads a lie and Connie is eventually prohibited from attending the ball.
Connie is heartbroken, until the servants arrange a limousine she can use until midnight. At the ball, everyone is impressed with her singing talents. Ted notices her and tries to charm her. They eventually kiss, when Connie realizes it is midnight. She runs off, but accidentally leaves one of her slippers behind. Ted finds the slipper and tries to locate the owner.
Meanwhile, Barbara has found out Connie was at the ball. Infuriated, she tries to break Connie's confidence and fires all the servants. The next day, Connie is missing as well. She returns to Miss Wiggins' school in the hope of becoming a music teacher. Ted follows her and they reunite in the end.
1939 in film
The year 1939 in motion pictures can be justified as being called the most outstanding one ever, when it comes to the high quality and high attendance at the large set of the best films that premiered in the year .- Events :Motion picture historians and film often rate...
Oscar nominated
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
Universal
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
musical film
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
directed by Henry Koster
Henry Koster
Henry Koster was born Hermann Kosterlitz in Berlin, Germany. He became a film director and later moved to Hollywood. Koster's father, a salesman, left home when Henry was a young man...
. The film is a rewriting of the fairy tale
Fairy tale
A fairy tale is a type of short story that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. However, only a small number of the stories refer to fairies...
Cinderella
Cinderella
"Cinderella; or, The Little Glass Slipper" is a folk tale embodying a myth-element of unjust oppression/triumphant reward. Thousands of variants are known throughout the world. The title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed to remarkable fortune...
. It was released on both VHS and DVD (as a part of a Deanna Durbin
Deanna Durbin
Deanna Durbin is a Canadian-born, Southern California-raised retired singer and actress, who appeared in a number of musical films in the 1930s and 1940s singing standards as well as operatic arias....
collection box).
Plot
Constance Harding is an unhappy orphan who will soon graduate from Miss Wiggins' school for girls. Her only real relatives are members from the James Clinton family, but they show little interest in the teenager. She is brought to New York by one of their butlers, where she moves in with a bunch of snobs. The upperclass people are not impressed with her, but Connie is able to befriend the servants.One afternoon, her cousin Barbara Clinton orders Connie to stop Ted Drake from going riding without her. Connie tries the best she can, which results into embarrassing herself. She has secretly fallen in love with him and is full with joy when she learns the Drake family is organizing a ball. The servants raise money to buy her a fashionable dress. However, Barbara spreads a lie and Connie is eventually prohibited from attending the ball.
Connie is heartbroken, until the servants arrange a limousine she can use until midnight. At the ball, everyone is impressed with her singing talents. Ted notices her and tries to charm her. They eventually kiss, when Connie realizes it is midnight. She runs off, but accidentally leaves one of her slippers behind. Ted finds the slipper and tries to locate the owner.
Meanwhile, Barbara has found out Connie was at the ball. Infuriated, she tries to break Connie's confidence and fires all the servants. The next day, Connie is missing as well. She returns to Miss Wiggins' school in the hope of becoming a music teacher. Ted follows her and they reunite in the end.
Cast
- Deanna DurbinDeanna DurbinDeanna Durbin is a Canadian-born, Southern California-raised retired singer and actress, who appeared in a number of musical films in the 1930s and 1940s singing standards as well as operatic arias....
as Constance (Connie) Harding - Robert StackRobert StackRobert Stack was an American actor. In addition to acting in more than 40 films, he was the star of the 1959-1963 ABC television series The Untouchables and later served as the host of Unsolved Mysteries.-Early life:...
as Ted Drake - Eugene PalletteEugene PalletteEugene William Pallette was an American actor. He appeared in over 240 silent era and sound era motion pictures between 1913 and 1946....
as James F. Clinton - Helen ParrishHelen ParrishHelen Parrish was an American movie actress, the daughter of stage and bit film actress Laura Parrish.-Career:...
as Barbara Clinton - Lewis Howard as Walter Clinton
- Leatrice JoyLeatrice JoyLeatrice Joy was an American actress most prolific during the early silent film era.-Early life and career:...
as Grace Shute Clinton - June StoreyJune StoreyJune Storey June Storey June Storey (born Mary June Storey, (April 20, 1918 – December 18, 1991) was a Canadian-born American film actress during the mid-late 1930s and into the 1940s, who most often appeared in B-movies as the heroine of westerns....
as Wilma van Everett