Moon Over Miami (film)
Encyclopedia
Moon Over Miami is a 1941 Technicolor
musical film
directed by Walter Lang
, with Betty Grable
and Don Ameche
in leading roles and co-starring Robert Cummings
, Carole Landis
, Jack Haley
, and Charlotte Greenwood
. It was one of Haley's last appearances in a major, large-budgeted film; after 1943 he began making mostly B-pictures. (Haley is most noted for playing the Tin Man
in The Wizard of Oz
).
and make the acquaintance of Jack O'Hara, a bartender who pontificates about his hatred of fortune hunters. Jack, who quickly becomes enamored with Susan, believes that Kay is on the level and promises to steer her away from gold diggers. Kay finagles an invitation to a party being hosted by rich Jeffrey Bolton, and while there, also meets Phil McNeil, heir to the renowned McNeil Mines. Boyhood friends Jeff and Phil begin a fierce rivalry for Kay, who cannot make up her mind between the two handsome men, nor does she notice that Barbara has fallen in love with Jeff. At the end of three weeks, the women are in trouble because they need $150 to pay their hotel bill, but Susan borrows the money from Jack, who has proposed to her. Realizing that she needs to get one of the men to propose to her that evening, Kay brings Barbara along to a dance to keep one of them occupied. Kay gets Barbara to dance with Jeff while she talks with Phil, with whom she has fallen in love. Phil admits to her that he is broke, and that the McNeil Mines will not be profitable again for at least five years. Kay confesses that she, too, came to Miami to find a rich spouse, and the pair reluctantly agree to pursue other partners. Phil tells Jeff that Kay loves him, after which she accepts Jeff's proposal. As the women are packing to leave for Jeff's father's island, however, Jack overhears them talking about their scheme and threatens to tell Jeff. After locking Jack in the bathroom, the women leave for the island, where they meet William, Jeff's businessman father. Desperate to see Kay again, Phil goes to the island and volunteers to be Jeff's best man. The woman are also stunned by the arrival of Jack, who threatens to tell all if he determines that Kay does not really love Jeff. On the night of a party that Jeff is throwing for Kay, Barbara encourages Jeff to accept a challenging job in South America to escape from under his father's shadow, while Phil admits to Kay that he loves her. As Phil is trying to persuade Kay that they belong together no matter what, Jeff enters the room. Phil and Kay explain that they are going to get married, and Jeff acknowledges that he has loved Barbara all along and will marry her. Soon all ends well, as Susan and Jack also come to a romantic conclusion, and the three couples begin their lives together.
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
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 Walter Lang
Walter Lang
Walter Lang was an American film director.-Early life:Walter Lang was born in Memphis, Tennessee. As a young man he went to New York City where he found clerical work at a film production company. The business piqued his artistic instincts and he began learning the various facets of filmmaking...
, with Betty Grable
Betty Grable
Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable was an American actress, dancer and singer.Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the LIFE magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World"...
and Don Ameche
Don Ameche
Don Ameche was an Academy Award winning American actor with a career spanning almost sixty years.-Personal life:...
in leading roles and co-starring Robert Cummings
Robert Cummings
Charles Clarence Robert Orville Cummings , mostly known professionally as Robert Cummings but sometimes as Bob Cummings, was an American film and television actor....
, Carole Landis
Carole Landis
Carole Landis was an American film and stage actress whose break-through role was as the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C.. Landis has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1765 Vine Street....
, Jack Haley
Jack Haley
John Joseph "Jack" Haley was an American stage, radio, and film actor best known for his portrayal of the Tin Man and Kansas farmworker Hickory in The Wizard of Oz.-Career:...
, and Charlotte Greenwood
Charlotte Greenwood
Frances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
. It was one of Haley's last appearances in a major, large-budgeted film; after 1943 he began making mostly B-pictures. (Haley is most noted for playing the Tin Man
Tin Woodman
The Tin Woodman, sometimes referred to as the Tin Man or the Tin Woodsman , is a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum...
in The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
).
Synopsis
Sisters Kay and Barbara Latimer are working as car hops in a Texas drive-in restaurant with their aunt Susan, who is the cook, when they are notified that an expected inheritance of $55,000 is only $4,000 after taxes and fees. Determined to marry a millionaire, Kay talks Barbara and Susan into spending the money on a trip to Miami, where she hopes to hook a rich man at a resort. With Barbara posing as Kay's secretary and Susan as her maid, the three women check into the Flamingo HotelFlamingo Hotel, Miami Beach
The Flamingo Hotel overlooked Biscayne Bay on the west side of the newly formed city of Miami Beach, Florida until the 1950s, when it was torn down to make room for the new Morton Towers development, which is now known as the Flamingo South Beach....
and make the acquaintance of Jack O'Hara, a bartender who pontificates about his hatred of fortune hunters. Jack, who quickly becomes enamored with Susan, believes that Kay is on the level and promises to steer her away from gold diggers. Kay finagles an invitation to a party being hosted by rich Jeffrey Bolton, and while there, also meets Phil McNeil, heir to the renowned McNeil Mines. Boyhood friends Jeff and Phil begin a fierce rivalry for Kay, who cannot make up her mind between the two handsome men, nor does she notice that Barbara has fallen in love with Jeff. At the end of three weeks, the women are in trouble because they need $150 to pay their hotel bill, but Susan borrows the money from Jack, who has proposed to her. Realizing that she needs to get one of the men to propose to her that evening, Kay brings Barbara along to a dance to keep one of them occupied. Kay gets Barbara to dance with Jeff while she talks with Phil, with whom she has fallen in love. Phil admits to her that he is broke, and that the McNeil Mines will not be profitable again for at least five years. Kay confesses that she, too, came to Miami to find a rich spouse, and the pair reluctantly agree to pursue other partners. Phil tells Jeff that Kay loves him, after which she accepts Jeff's proposal. As the women are packing to leave for Jeff's father's island, however, Jack overhears them talking about their scheme and threatens to tell Jeff. After locking Jack in the bathroom, the women leave for the island, where they meet William, Jeff's businessman father. Desperate to see Kay again, Phil goes to the island and volunteers to be Jeff's best man. The woman are also stunned by the arrival of Jack, who threatens to tell all if he determines that Kay does not really love Jeff. On the night of a party that Jeff is throwing for Kay, Barbara encourages Jeff to accept a challenging job in South America to escape from under his father's shadow, while Phil admits to Kay that he loves her. As Phil is trying to persuade Kay that they belong together no matter what, Jeff enters the room. Phil and Kay explain that they are going to get married, and Jeff acknowledges that he has loved Barbara all along and will marry her. Soon all ends well, as Susan and Jack also come to a romantic conclusion, and the three couples begin their lives together.
Cast
- Betty GrableBetty GrableElizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable was an American actress, dancer and singer.Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the LIFE magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World"...
as Kathryn 'Kay' Latimer aka Miss Adams - Don AmecheDon AmecheDon Ameche was an Academy Award winning American actor with a career spanning almost sixty years.-Personal life:...
as Phil O'Neil - Robert CummingsRobert CummingsCharles Clarence Robert Orville Cummings , mostly known professionally as Robert Cummings but sometimes as Bob Cummings, was an American film and television actor....
as Jeffrey 'Jeff' Boulton II - Carole LandisCarole LandisCarole Landis was an American film and stage actress whose break-through role was as the female lead in the 1940 film One Million B.C.. Landis has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1765 Vine Street....
as Barbara Latimer aka Miss Sears - Jack HaleyJack HaleyJohn Joseph "Jack" Haley was an American stage, radio, and film actor best known for his portrayal of the Tin Man and Kansas farmworker Hickory in The Wizard of Oz.-Career:...
as Jack O'Hara - Charlotte GreenwoodCharlotte GreenwoodFrances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
as Aunt Susan 'Sue' Latimer