Laughter in Paradise
Encyclopedia
Laughter in Paradise is the title of a British
comedy film released in 1951
. The film stars Alastair Sim
, Fay Compton
, George Cole, and Guy Middleton
. The film was remade in 1970 as Some Will, Some Won't
.
), who deduces that his new servant has to keep her job for some reason and proceeds to make her life difficult. Simon Russell (Guy Middleton) is a womanizing cad; his task is to marry the first single woman he meets. Timid Herbert Russell (George Cole) is assigned to hold up the bank where he works, with a toy pistol.
A very young Audrey Hepburn
makes a brief appearance, playing a cigarette girl. This was Hepburn's first professional appearance on film (save for a brief role in a 1948 Dutch film entitled Dutch in Seven Lessons
). The filming of the scene in which Hepburn appears (somewhat against her later "type") was later recreated in the 2000 biopic The Audrey Hepburn Story
starring Jennifer Love Hewitt
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comedy film released in 1951
1951 in film
The year 1951 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Sweden - May Britt is scouted by Italian film-makers Carlo Ponti and Mario Soldati-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:...
. The film stars Alastair Sim
Alastair Sim
Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE was a Scottish character actor who appeared in a string of classic British films. He is best remembered in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film Scrooge, and for his portrayal of Miss Fritton, the headmistress in two St. Trinian's films...
, Fay Compton
Fay Compton
Fay Compton was an English actress from a notable acting lineage; her father was actor/manager Edward Compton; her mother, Virginia Bateman, was a distinguished member of the profession, as were her sister, the actress Viola Compton, and her uncles and aunts. Her grandfather was the 19th-century...
, George Cole, and Guy Middleton
Guy Middleton
Guy Middleton Powell, usually credited as Guy Middleton, was an English film character actor.Middleton was born in Hove, England and originally worked in the London Stock Exchange, before turning to acting in the 1930s...
. The film was remade in 1970 as Some Will, Some Won't
Some Will, Some Won't
Some Will, Some Won't was a 1970 British comedy film directed by Duncan Wood. It was a remake of Laughter in Paradise. It starred an ensemble British cast, including Michael Hordern, Ronnie Corbett, Dennis Price, Leslie Phillips and Arthur Lowe....
.
Plot
When wealthy, well-known practical joker Henry Russell (Hugh Griffith) dies, four relatives find out that they stand to inherit considerable sums...provided they commit acts that are completely contrary to their natures. Law-abiding Deniston Russell (Alastair Sim) has to get himself arrested and jailed for 28 days. Difficult, snobbish Agnes Russell (Fay Compton) has to find work as a maid and keep her job long enough to qualify. She ends up with irascible Gordon Webb (John LaurieJohn Laurie
John Paton Laurie was a British actor born in Dumfries, Scotland. Although he is now probably most recognised for his role as Private James Frazer in the sitcom Dad's Army , he appeared in hundreds of feature films, including films by Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Powell and Laurence Olivier...
), who deduces that his new servant has to keep her job for some reason and proceeds to make her life difficult. Simon Russell (Guy Middleton) is a womanizing cad; his task is to marry the first single woman he meets. Timid Herbert Russell (George Cole) is assigned to hold up the bank where he works, with a toy pistol.
Cast
- Alastair SimAlastair SimAlastair George Bell Sim, CBE was a Scottish character actor who appeared in a string of classic British films. He is best remembered in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film Scrooge, and for his portrayal of Miss Fritton, the headmistress in two St. Trinian's films...
as Deniston Russell - Fay ComptonFay ComptonFay Compton was an English actress from a notable acting lineage; her father was actor/manager Edward Compton; her mother, Virginia Bateman, was a distinguished member of the profession, as were her sister, the actress Viola Compton, and her uncles and aunts. Her grandfather was the 19th-century...
as Agnes Russell - Guy MiddletonGuy MiddletonGuy Middleton Powell, usually credited as Guy Middleton, was an English film character actor.Middleton was born in Hove, England and originally worked in the London Stock Exchange, before turning to acting in the 1930s...
as Simon Russell - George Cole as Herbert Russell
- Hugh GriffithHugh GriffithHugh Emrys Griffith was a Welsh film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Griffith was born in Marianglas, Anglesey, Wales, the son of Mary and William Griffith. He was educated at Llangefni County School and attempted to gain entrance to university, but failed the English examination...
as Henry Russell - Ernest ThesigerErnest ThesigerErnest Frederic Graham Thesiger CBE was an English stage and film actor. He is best known for his performance as Dr...
as Endicott - Beatrice CampbellBeatrice CampbellBeatrice Campbell was a British stage and film actress. She was born in County Down, Northern Ireland.-Career:After a distinguished London stage career, Campbell entered film in the mid-1940s...
as Lucille Grayson, the woman Simon marries - Mackenzie Ward as Benson, Simon's butler
- Joyce GrenfellJoyce GrenfellJoyce Irene Grenfell, OBE was an English actress, comedienne, diseuse and singer-songwriter.-Early life:...
as Elizabeth Robson, Deniston's fiancée - A. E. MatthewsA. E. MatthewsA.E. Matthews OBE was an English actor who played numerous character roles on the stage and in film for eight decades, and who became known for his longevity.-Biography:...
as Sir Charles Robson, Elizabeth's father - John LaurieJohn LaurieJohn Paton Laurie was a British actor born in Dumfries, Scotland. Although he is now probably most recognised for his role as Private James Frazer in the sitcom Dad's Army , he appeared in hundreds of feature films, including films by Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Powell and Laurence Olivier...
as Gordon Webb - Veronica HurstVeronica HurstVeronica Hurst is an English motion picture, stageand television actress who was born in Malta. She was raised in Tooting, South London, England...
as Joan Webb, Gordon's daughter - Eleanor SummerfieldEleanor SummerfieldEleanor Summerfield was a British actress.Summerfield was born in London in 1921. She received her acting training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. In the mid-1960s, she played P. G. Wodehouse' character Aunt Dahlia in the BBC One's World of Wooster. She was a team member on BBC Radio 4's...
as Sheila Wilcott, Deniston's secretary - Anthony Steel as Roger Godfrey, the Private Detective
- Charlotte MitchellCharlotte MitchellCharlotte Mitchell is an English actress and poet.She was once the girlfriend of Peter Sellers, hence her occasional appearances on The Goon Show in the 1950s. Charlotte Mitchell was married to actor Philip Guard and is the mother of 3 children, actors Christopher Guard and Dominic Guard and...
as Ethel, Agnes' maid - Leslie DwyerLeslie DwyerLeslie Dwyer was an English character actor of film and television. He was born in Catford, the son of the popular music hall comedian Johnny Dwyer and acted from the age of ten and appeared in his first film in 1921...
as Police station sergeant - Colin GordonColin GordonColin Gordon was a British actor born in Ceylon .He was educated at Marlborough College and Christ Church, Oxford. He made his first West End appearance in 1934 as the hind legs of a horse in a production of “Toad of Toad Hall”. From 1936 to 1939 he was a director with the Fred Melville Repertory...
- Police station constable - Ronald AdamRonald Adam (actor)Ronald Adam OBE , born Ronald George Hinings Adams, was a British RAF officer, an actor on stage and screen and a successful theatre manager.-Early life:...
as Wagstaffe, the bank manager - Michael PertweeMichael PertweeMichael Pertwee was a British playwright and screenwriter. Among his credits were episodes of The Saint, Danger Man, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, B-And-B, Ladies Who Do, and many other films and TV series....
as Stewart - Mary GermaineMary Germaine-Cast:* Laughter in Paradise * Where's Charley? * The Floating Dutchman * Father's Doing Fine * House of Blackmail * Out of the Clouds * The Green Carnation -External links:...
as Susan Heath - Audrey HepburnAudrey HepburnAudrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century...
as Frieda - Cigarette girl - Noel HowlettNoel HowlettNoel Howlett was an English actor, principally remembered as the incompetent headmaster, Morris Cromwell, in the ITV 1970s cult television programme Please Sir!...
as Clerk of the Court - Martin BoddeyMartin BoddeyMartin Boddey was a British film and television actor.He was a founder member of the Lord's Taverners charity.-Selected filmography:* The Twenty Questions Murder Mystery * Cairo Road...
as Store detective
Portrayal
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century...
makes a brief appearance, playing a cigarette girl. This was Hepburn's first professional appearance on film (save for a brief role in a 1948 Dutch film entitled Dutch in Seven Lessons
Dutch in Seven Lessons
Dutch in Seven Lessons is a film produced in the Netherlands in 1948. The film is notable as it was the first film in which Audrey Hepburn appeared; she has a small role as a stewardess. Although sometimes listed in Hepburn filmographies as a short film, in fact the Internet Movie Database lists...
). The filming of the scene in which Hepburn appears (somewhat against her later "type") was later recreated in the 2000 biopic The Audrey Hepburn Story
The Audrey Hepburn Story
The Audrey Hepburn Story is a 2000 television movie biography of actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn. Jennifer Love Hewitt, who also produced the film, starred as the actress although her casting drew criticism from some of Hepburn's fans and the media...
starring Jennifer Love Hewitt
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Jennifer Love Hewitt is an American actress, producer, television director and former singer-songwriter. Hewitt began her acting career as a child by appearing in television commercials and the Disney Channel series Kids Incorporated...
.