The Big Pond
Encyclopedia
The Big Pond is a 1930 American romantic comedy film based on a 1928 play of the same name by George Middleton
and A.E. Thomas. The film was written by Garrett Fort
, Robert Presnell Sr. and Preston Sturges
, who provided the dialogue in his first Hollywood assignment, and was directed by Hobart Henley
. The film stars Maurice Chevalier
and Claudette Colbert
, and features George Barbier
, Marion Ballou, and Andrée Corday, and was released by Paramount Pictures
.
The Big Pond was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
for Maurice Chevalier, and also provided Chevalier with his first American hit song "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight
" written by Al Sherman
and Al Lewis
.
), is a Venetian tour guide from a poor French family who falls in love with Barbara Billings (Claudette Colbert
), a wealthy American tourist whose father (George Barbier). Although Barbara loves Pierre as well, her suitor, Ronnie (Frank Lyon) and her father see him as a fortune-hunter. Barbara's mother (Marion Ballou) persuades her husband to give Pierre a job in his chewing-gum factory in the States. Despite living in a dingy boardinghouse and being given the hardest job in the plant, he manages to captivate his landlady (Andrée Corday) and the maid (Elaine Koch) with his humorous songs. Unfortunately, he falls asleep on the night he is to attend Barbara's party, and is then fired when he is wrongly accused of spilling rum on some chewing gum samples. He wins back his job, and is promoted as well, when he sells liquor-coated chewing gum as a sales gimmick. Barbara disapproves, and plans to marry Ronnie, but Pierre whisks her away in a speedboat.
version La grande mare were shot simultaneously at the Paramount Astoria Studios
in Astoria, Queens
, New York City
. Maurice Chevalier, Claudette Colbert, Andrée Corday and Nat Pendelton played the same roles in both versions.
(1929).
version of The Big Pond, which was filmed simultaneously with the English version, was called La grande mare. The cast was:
Writer Preston Sturges was fluent in French, but additional dialogue was provided by Jacques Bataille-Henri. The technical credits for the two versions are the same, except the editing for the French version was done by Barney Rogan
.
George Middleton (playwright)
George Middleton was an American playwright, director, and producer.-Career:He was famous for his plays The Failures and Adam and Eva...
and A.E. Thomas. The film was written by Garrett Fort
Garrett Fort
Garrett Elsden Fort was an American short story writer, playwright, and Hollywood screenwriter. He was also a close follower of Meher Baba....
, Robert Presnell Sr. and Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges
Preston Sturges , originally Edmund Preston Biden, was a celebrated playwright, screenwriter and film director born in Chicago, Illinois...
, who provided the dialogue in his first Hollywood assignment, and was directed by Hobart Henley
Hobart Henley
Hobart Henley was an American silent film actor, director, and screenwriter....
. The film stars Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
and Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
, and features George Barbier
George Barbier (actor)
-Career:Barbier entered Crozier Seminary to study for ministry but gave it up to go on the stage, beginning in light opera. Spent several years in repertory and stock companies and eventually appeared on Broadway...
, Marion Ballou, and Andrée Corday, and was released by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
.
The Big Pond was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for Maurice Chevalier, and also provided Chevalier with his first American hit song "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight
Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight
"Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight" is a popular song written by Al Sherman and Al Lewis for the 1930 film, The Big Pond starring Maurice Chevalier. The song was also sung by Chevalier who made it famous. Chevalier enjoyed his first American hit with this song...
" written by Al Sherman
Al Sherman
Al Sherman was an American Tin Pan Alley songwriter from the first half of the twentieth century. Sherman is a link in a long chain of musical Sherman family members.-Early life:...
and Al Lewis
Al Lewis (lyricist)
Al Lewis is thought of mostly as a Tin Pan Alley era lyricist; however, he did write music on occasion as well. Professionally he was most active during the 1920s working into the 1950s. During this time, he most often collaborated with popular songwriters Al Sherman and Abner Silver...
.
Plot
Pierre Mirande (Maurice ChevalierMaurice Chevalier
Maurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
), is a Venetian tour guide from a poor French family who falls in love with Barbara Billings (Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert
Claudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
), a wealthy American tourist whose father (George Barbier). Although Barbara loves Pierre as well, her suitor, Ronnie (Frank Lyon) and her father see him as a fortune-hunter. Barbara's mother (Marion Ballou) persuades her husband to give Pierre a job in his chewing-gum factory in the States. Despite living in a dingy boardinghouse and being given the hardest job in the plant, he manages to captivate his landlady (Andrée Corday) and the maid (Elaine Koch) with his humorous songs. Unfortunately, he falls asleep on the night he is to attend Barbara's party, and is then fired when he is wrongly accused of spilling rum on some chewing gum samples. He wins back his job, and is promoted as well, when he sells liquor-coated chewing gum as a sales gimmick. Barbara disapproves, and plans to marry Ronnie, but Pierre whisks her away in a speedboat.
Cast
- Maurice ChevalierMaurice ChevalierMaurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
as Pierre Mirande - Claudette ColbertClaudette ColbertClaudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
as Barbara Billings - George BarbierGeorge Barbier (actor)-Career:Barbier entered Crozier Seminary to study for ministry but gave it up to go on the stage, beginning in light opera. Spent several years in repertory and stock companies and eventually appeared on Broadway...
as Mr. Billings - Marion Ballou as Mrs. Billings
- Andrée Corday as Toinette
- Frank Lyon as Ronnie
- Nat PendletonNat PendletonNathaniel Greene "Nat" Pendleton was an American Olympic wrestler and film actor.-Early life:Pendleton was born in Davenport, Iowa to Adelaide E. and Nathaniel G. Pendleton. He studied at Columbia University where he began his wrestling career. He was twice Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling...
as Pat O'Day - Elaine Koch as Jennie
Songs
- "Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the MoonlightLivin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight"Livin' in the Sunlight, Lovin' in the Moonlight" is a popular song written by Al Sherman and Al Lewis for the 1930 film, The Big Pond starring Maurice Chevalier. The song was also sung by Chevalier who made it famous. Chevalier enjoyed his first American hit with this song...
" by Al ShermanAl ShermanAl Sherman was an American Tin Pan Alley songwriter from the first half of the twentieth century. Sherman is a link in a long chain of musical Sherman family members.-Early life:...
and Al LewisAl Lewis (lyricist)Al Lewis is thought of mostly as a Tin Pan Alley era lyricist; however, he did write music on occasion as well. Professionally he was most active during the 1920s working into the 1950s. During this time, he most often collaborated with popular songwriters Al Sherman and Abner Silver... - "This Is My Lucky Day" by Lew BrownLew BrownLew Brown was a lyricist for popular songs in the United States.Brown was born as Louis Brownstein in Odessa, Russian Empire...
, B. G. DeSylva and Ray HendersonRay HendersonRay Henderson , was an American songwriter.Born Raymond Brost in Buffalo, New York, Henderson moved to New York City and became a popular composer in Tin Pan Alley... - "Mia Cara" and "You Brought a New Kind of Love to MeYou Brought a New Kind of Love to Me"You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me" is a 1930 popular song. The credits list music and lyrics as written by Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal, and Pierre Norman...
" by Irving KahalIrving KahalIrving Kahal was a popular lyricist active in the 1920's and '30's. He is best remembered for his collaborations with composer Sammy Fain which started in 1926 when Kahal was working in vaudeville sketches written by Gus Edwards...
, Pierre Norman and Sammy FainSammy FainSammy Fain was an American composer of popular music.-Biography:Sammy Fain was born in New York City. In 1923, Fain appeared with Artie Dunn in a short film directed by Lee De Forest filmed in DeForest's Phonofilm sound-on-film process. In 1925, Fain left the Fain-Dunn act to devote himself to...
Production
The Big Pond and its French languageFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
version La grande mare were shot simultaneously at the Paramount Astoria Studios
Kaufman Astoria Studios
The Kaufman Astoria Studios is an historic movie studio located in the Astoria section of the New York City borough of Queens.-History:It was originally built by Famous Players-Lasky in 1920 to provide the company with a facility close to the Broadway theater district. Many features and short...
in Astoria, Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Maurice Chevalier, Claudette Colbert, Andrée Corday and Nat Pendelton played the same roles in both versions.
Awards
Maurice Chevalier was nominated for a 1930 Academy Award for "Best Actor in a Leading Role" for his performance in The Big Pond as well as his performance in The Love ParadeThe Love Parade
The Love Parade is a 1929 musical comedy film about the marital difficulties of Queen Louise of Sylvania and her consort, Count Alfred Renard...
(1929).
French version
The French languageFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
version of The Big Pond, which was filmed simultaneously with the English version, was called La grande mare. The cast was:
- Maurice ChevalierMaurice ChevalierMaurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
as Pierre Mirande - Claudette ColbertClaudette ColbertClaudette Colbert was a French-born American-based actress of stage and film.Born in Paris, France and raised in New York City, Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the 1920s, progressing to film with the advent of talking pictures...
as Barbara Billings - Henry Mortimer as Mr. Billings
- Maude Allen as Mrs. Billings
- Andrée Corday as Toinette
- William B. Williams as Ronnie
- Nat PendletonNat PendletonNathaniel Greene "Nat" Pendleton was an American Olympic wrestler and film actor.-Early life:Pendleton was born in Davenport, Iowa to Adelaide E. and Nathaniel G. Pendleton. He studied at Columbia University where he began his wrestling career. He was twice Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling...
as Pat O'Day - Loraine Jaillet as Jennie
Writer Preston Sturges was fluent in French, but additional dialogue was provided by Jacques Bataille-Henri. The technical credits for the two versions are the same, except the editing for the French version was done by Barney Rogan
Barney Rogan
- Filmography:*1940 A Miracle on Main Street*1933 Hotel Variety*1931 The Struggle *1931 Tarnished Lady*1931 The Girl Habit*1930 Queen High*1930 Follow the Leader *1929 The Cocoanuts-References:*...
.