Love Happy
Encyclopedia
Love Happy was the 14th (including Humor Risk
) and last starring feature for the Marx Brothers
. The film stars Harpo Marx
, Chico Marx
, and, in a smaller role than usual, Groucho Marx
, plus Ilona Massey
, Vera-Ellen
, Paul Valentine, Marion Hutton
, Raymond Burr
, Bruce Gordon
(in his film debut), and Eric Blore
, with a walk-on by Marilyn Monroe
. It was directed by David Miller
, and written by Frank Tashlin
and Mac Benoff, based on a story by Harpo.
The film was produced by former silent film star Mary Pickford
and released by United Artists
. Although shooting began in August 1948, the film was not released generally until March 3, 1950. (The film stated copyright as 1949, however, because the movie premiered in San Francisco in October 1949.) The production ran out of money during shooting, so they came up with a unique form of product placement
(rare for the time): a rooftop chase around advertising billboards.
) and her stooges (Melville Cooper
, Raymond Burr
, Bruce Gordon
).
Groucho appears without his usual greasepaint moustache and thick eyebrows. He is rarely in the same scenes as his brothers (the three are never seen together), and mainly provides an encompassing narration to explain things in the film when the necessary sequences for a coherent narrative were unavailable. Groucho avoided mentioning the film at all in his autobiography, Groucho and Me (1959), apparently at that time considering A Night in Casablanca
(1946) their last film together. He did acknowledge the film in his later book, The Groucho Phile: An Illustrated Life (1976). Because of the encapsulated nature of Groucho's scenes, it had been assumed that his presence was an afterthought. However, recently discovered letters from Groucho show that he was to have been part of the project from its earliest stages in 1946-47.
, which always disapproved of any movie showing brand-name products, severely criticized this film for its rooftop chase among billboards promoting Baby Ruth
, General Electric
, Fisk Tires, Bulova
watches, Kool
cigarettes, Wheaties
and Mobil
.
rates The Story of Mankind
lower, but that was not specifically produced as a Marx Brothers vehicle.
At the end of his March 8, 1950 episode of his You Bet Your Life
radio show, Groucho lamely promotes the film as "Harpo, Chico, and I tell a few jokes and do some acting. It's very educational." In later years, on Today, Groucho dismissed it as a "terrible movie", while speaking of the lasting impression Marilyn Monroe
made during her screen test.
The film has a musical score and lyrics by Ann Ronell
, with a lively film noir
ish dancing version of Sadie Thompson
(Vera-Ellen) and former ballet dancer Paul Valentine as one of the US Marines on a South Pacific
Island.
Chico plays a duet on "Gypsy Love Song" with actor-musician Leon Belasco
as Mr. Lyons, the owner of the stage props and costumes. Belasco, on violin
, starts playing many fancy trills until Chico says, "Look, Mista Lyons, I know you wanna make a good impression — but please, don't play better than me!"
Humor Risk
Humor Risk was the first Marx Brothers film. The short film was never released and is now considered a lost film. The print may have been accidentally thrown away when left in the screening box overnight...
) and last starring feature for the Marx Brothers
Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act, originally from New York City, that enjoyed success in Vaudeville, Broadway, and motion pictures from the early 1900s to around 1950...
. The film stars Harpo Marx
Harpo Marx
Adolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...
, Chico Marx
Chico Marx
Leonard "Chico" Marx was an American comedian and film star as part of the Marx Brothers. His persona in the act was that of a dim-witted albeit crafty con artist, seemingly of rural Italian origin, who wore shabby clothes, and sported a curly-haired wig and Tyrolean hat.As the first-born of the...
, and, in a smaller role than usual, Groucho Marx
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
, plus Ilona Massey
Ilona Massey
Ilona Massey was a film, stage and radio performer.-Early life and career:...
, Vera-Ellen
Vera-Ellen
Vera-Ellen was an American actress and dancer, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye and Donald O'Connor.-Early life:...
, Paul Valentine, Marion Hutton
Marion Hutton
Marion Hutton was a United States singer and actress.-Biography:Born as Marion Thornburg, the elder sister of actress Betty Hutton, their father abandoned their family when they were both young: he later committed suicide. Their mother worked a variety of jobs to support the family until she...
, Raymond Burr
Raymond Burr
Raymond William Stacey Burr was a Canadian actor, primarily known for his title roles in the television dramas Perry Mason and Ironside. His early acting career included roles on Broadway, radio, television and in film, usually as the villain...
, Bruce Gordon
Bruce Gordon
Bruce Gordon may refer to:* Bruce Gordon , Canadian bassist and member of I Mother Earth* Bruce L. Gordon, American philosopher and Intelligent Design proponent* Bruce S...
(in his film debut), and Eric Blore
Eric Blore
Eric Blore was an English comic actor. Blore was born in Finchley , England.Aged eighteeen, he worked as an insurance agent for two years. He gained theatre experience while touring Australia. Originally enlisting into the Artists Rifles he was commissioned in the South Wales Borderers in World...
, with a walk-on by Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
. It was directed by David Miller
David Miller (director)
David Miller was an American movie director who directed such varied films as Billy the Kid with Robert Taylor and Brian Donlevy, Flying Tigers with John Wayne, and Love Happy with the Marx Brothers.-Filmography:* Bittersweet Love * Executive Action * Hail, Hero! * Hammerhead...
, and written by Frank Tashlin
Frank Tashlin
Frank Tashlin, born Francis Fredrick von Taschlein, also known as Tish Tash or Frank Tash was an American animator, screenwriter, and film director.-Animator:...
and Mac Benoff, based on a story by Harpo.
The film was produced by former silent film star Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
and released by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
. Although shooting began in August 1948, the film was not released generally until March 3, 1950. (The film stated copyright as 1949, however, because the movie premiered in San Francisco in October 1949.) The production ran out of money during shooting, so they came up with a unique form of product placement
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
(rare for the time): a rooftop chase around advertising billboards.
Plot
A group of aspiring actors are putting together a musical review called Love Happy. Harpo, the troupe's mascot, keeps the actors from starving by stealing canned goods from a local grocer. On one occasion, he accidentally grabs a sardine can containing the stolen Romanoff diamonds. As a result, Harpo becomes the target of adventuress Madame Egilichi (Ilona MasseyIlona Massey
Ilona Massey was a film, stage and radio performer.-Early life and career:...
) and her stooges (Melville Cooper
Melville Cooper
George Melville Cooper , best known as Melville Cooper, was a British stage, film and television actor. Among his roles are the cowardly Sheriff of Nottingham in The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring Errol Flynn, and Mr...
, Raymond Burr
Raymond Burr
Raymond William Stacey Burr was a Canadian actor, primarily known for his title roles in the television dramas Perry Mason and Ironside. His early acting career included roles on Broadway, radio, television and in film, usually as the villain...
, Bruce Gordon
Bruce Gordon (actor)
Bruce Gordon was an American actor best known for playing Frank Nitti in the ABC television series The Untouchables....
).
Production
Love Happy was originally conceived as a solo vehicle for Harpo, but Groucho often said the brothers did the film to help Chico pay off gambling debts. Once Chico was in, the producers refused to finance it unless all three Marx Brothers were featured.Groucho appears without his usual greasepaint moustache and thick eyebrows. He is rarely in the same scenes as his brothers (the three are never seen together), and mainly provides an encompassing narration to explain things in the film when the necessary sequences for a coherent narrative were unavailable. Groucho avoided mentioning the film at all in his autobiography, Groucho and Me (1959), apparently at that time considering A Night in Casablanca
A Night in Casablanca
A Night in Casablanca was the twelfth Marx Brothers movie, starring Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, and Harpo Marx. The picture was directed by Archie Mayo and written by Joseph Fields and Roland Kibbee, and is generally considered one of the better of the Marx Brothers' later films.-Plot:Set in...
(1946) their last film together. He did acknowledge the film in his later book, The Groucho Phile: An Illustrated Life (1976). Because of the encapsulated nature of Groucho's scenes, it had been assumed that his presence was an afterthought. However, recently discovered letters from Groucho show that he was to have been part of the project from its earliest stages in 1946-47.
Product placement
In its 8 October 1949 front page editorial, as well as its review of the movie in the same issue, the motion picture trade periodical Harrison's ReportsHarrison's Reports
Harrison’s Reports was a New York City-based motion picture trade journal published weekly from 1919 to 1962. The typical issue was four letter-size pages sent to subscribers under a second-class mail permit. Its founder, editor and publisher was P. S...
, which always disapproved of any movie showing brand-name products, severely criticized this film for its rooftop chase among billboards promoting Baby Ruth
Baby Ruth
Baby Ruth is an American candy bar made of peanuts, caramel and chocolate-flavored nougat covered in chocolate.In 1921, the Curtiss Candy Company refashioned its Kandy Kake into the Baby Ruth. The bar was a staple of the Chicago-based company for some seven decades. Curtiss was purchased by Nabisco...
, General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
, Fisk Tires, Bulova
Bulova
Bulova is a corporation making luxury watches and clocks. It has its headquarters in Woodside, Queens, New York City.Bulova was founded and incorporated as the J. Bulova Company in 1875 by Joseph Bulova , an immigrant from Bohemia...
watches, Kool
Kool
Kool may refer to:* Kool , a brand of cigarettes* Kool & The Gang, a 1970s R&B and Funk band* Kool, a 2011 Kannada language film-Broadcasting:*KOOL-FM, a radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, United States...
cigarettes, Wheaties
Wheaties
Wheaties is a brand of General Mills breakfast cereal. It is well known for featuring prominent athletes on the exterior of the package, and has become a major cultural icon...
and Mobil
Mobil
Mobil, previously known as the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, was a major American oil company which merged with Exxon in 1999 to form ExxonMobil. Today Mobil continues as a major brand name within the combined company, as well as still being a gas station sometimes paired with their own store or On...
.
Reception
Love Happy is regarded as the worst Marx Brothers movie. The Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database
Internet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
rates The Story of Mankind
The Story of Mankind (1957 film)
The Story of Mankind is a 1957 American fantasy film, based on the nonfiction book The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon, which is notable mostly for its campness, and for featuring an ensemble of notable Hollywood performers in the last years of their careers...
lower, but that was not specifically produced as a Marx Brothers vehicle.
At the end of his March 8, 1950 episode of his You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life is an American quiz show that aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio in September...
radio show, Groucho lamely promotes the film as "Harpo, Chico, and I tell a few jokes and do some acting. It's very educational." In later years, on Today, Groucho dismissed it as a "terrible movie", while speaking of the lasting impression Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
made during her screen test.
The film has a musical score and lyrics by Ann Ronell
Ann Ronell
Ann Rosenblatt, known as Ann Ronell was an American composer and lyricist best known for the jazz standard "Willow Weep for Me" .- Biography :...
, with a lively film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
ish dancing version of Sadie Thompson
Sadie Thompson
Sadie Thompson is an American silent film that tells the story of a "fallen woman" who comes to Pago Pago on the island of Tutuila to start a new life, but encounters a zealous missionary who wants to force her back to her former life in San Francisco. The film stars Gloria Swanson, Lionel...
(Vera-Ellen) and former ballet dancer Paul Valentine as one of the US Marines on a South Pacific
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
Island.
Musical numbers
- "Love Happy"
- "Who Stole the Jam?"
- Sadie ThompsonSadie ThompsonSadie Thompson is an American silent film that tells the story of a "fallen woman" who comes to Pago Pago on the island of Tutuila to start a new life, but encounters a zealous missionary who wants to force her back to her former life in San Francisco. The film stars Gloria Swanson, Lionel...
number (including "Willow Weep for MeWillow Weep for Me"Willow Weep for Me" is a popular song composed in 1932 by Ann Ronell, who also wrote the lyrics. It is mostly known as a jazz standard, but it was a Top 40 hit for the British duo Chad & Jeremy in 1964.-Notable recordings:...
") - "Gypsy Love Song" and "I'm Daffy Over You" (Marx and Belasco)
- Swanee River"
- "Polonaise in A-Flat"
Chico plays a duet on "Gypsy Love Song" with actor-musician Leon Belasco
Leon Belasco
Leon Belasco was a Russian-American musician and actor who had a 60-year career in film and television from the 1920s to the 1980s, appearing in more than 100 films.-Musical career:Belasco attended St...
as Mr. Lyons, the owner of the stage props and costumes. Belasco, on violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, starts playing many fancy trills until Chico says, "Look, Mista Lyons, I know you wanna make a good impression — but please, don't play better than me!"
Cast
- Harpo MarxHarpo MarxAdolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...
as Harpo - Chico MarxChico MarxLeonard "Chico" Marx was an American comedian and film star as part of the Marx Brothers. His persona in the act was that of a dim-witted albeit crafty con artist, seemingly of rural Italian origin, who wore shabby clothes, and sported a curly-haired wig and Tyrolean hat.As the first-born of the...
as Faustino the Great - Groucho MarxGroucho MarxJulius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
as Detective Sam Grunion - Ilona MasseyIlona MasseyIlona Massey was a film, stage and radio performer.-Early life and career:...
as Madame Egelichi - Vera-EllenVera-EllenVera-Ellen was an American actress and dancer, principally celebrated for her filmed dance partnerships with Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Danny Kaye and Donald O'Connor.-Early life:...
as Maggie Phillips - Marion HuttonMarion HuttonMarion Hutton was a United States singer and actress.-Biography:Born as Marion Thornburg, the elder sister of actress Betty Hutton, their father abandoned their family when they were both young: he later committed suicide. Their mother worked a variety of jobs to support the family until she...
as Bunny Dolan - Raymond BurrRaymond BurrRaymond William Stacey Burr was a Canadian actor, primarily known for his title roles in the television dramas Perry Mason and Ironside. His early acting career included roles on Broadway, radio, television and in film, usually as the villain...
as Alphonse Zoto - Melville CooperMelville CooperGeorge Melville Cooper , best known as Melville Cooper, was a British stage, film and television actor. Among his roles are the cowardly Sheriff of Nottingham in The Adventures of Robin Hood, starring Errol Flynn, and Mr...
as Lefty Throckmorton - Paul Valentine as Mike Johnson
- Bruce GordonBruce Gordon (actor)Bruce Gordon was an American actor best known for playing Frank Nitti in the ABC television series The Untouchables....
as Hannibal Zoto - Marilyn MonroeMarilyn MonroeMarilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
as Grunion's Client - Leon BelascoLeon BelascoLeon Belasco was a Russian-American musician and actor who had a 60-year career in film and television from the 1920s to the 1980s, appearing in more than 100 films.-Musical career:Belasco attended St...
as Mr. Lyons - Eric BloreEric BloreEric Blore was an English comic actor. Blore was born in Finchley , England.Aged eighteeen, he worked as an insurance agent for two years. He gained theatre experience while touring Australia. Originally enlisting into the Artists Rifles he was commissioned in the South Wales Borderers in World...
as Mackinaw - Otto Waldis as Ivan