Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Robert Buckner (screenplay) and
Edmund Joseph (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

6 June 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

Based on the story of GEORGE M. COHAN with the Greatest of all his Great Music

Plot:

A film of the life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer and singer George M. Cohan.

Plot Keywords:

Vaudeville | Playwright | Dancer | Comeback | Songwriter

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

James Cagney	...	George M. Cohan
Joan Leslie	...	Mary
Walter Huston	...	Jerry Cohan
Richard Whorf	...	Sam Harris
Irene Manning	...	Fay Templeton
George Tobias	...	Dietz
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Nellie Cohan
Jeanne Cagney	...	Josie Cohan
Frances Langford	...	Singer
George Barbier	...	Erlanger
S.Z. Sakall	...	Schwab
Walter Catlett	...	Theatre Manager
Douglas Croft	...	George M. Cohan, As a Boy of 13
Eddie Foy Jr.	...	Eddie Foy
Minor Watson	...	Albee
Chester Clute	...	Goff
Odette Myrtil	...	Madame Bartholdi
Patsy Parsons	...	Josie Cohan, As a Girl of 12 (as Patsy Lee Parsons)
Jack Young	...	The President (as Capt. Jack Young)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Eddie Acuff	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Murray Alper	...	Wiseguy (uncredited)
Ernest Anderson	...	George M. Cohan's valet (uncredited)
Vivian Austin	...	Pianist (uncredited)
Leon Belasco	...	Magician (uncredited)
Brooks Benedict	...	Dressing room guest (uncredited)
Henry Blair	...	George M. Cohan at 7 (uncredited)
Walter Brooke	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Leslie Brooks	...	Chorus girl ('Little Johnny Jones' number) (uncredited)
Georgia Carroll	...	Betsy Ross (uncredited)
Glen Cavender	...	Colony Opera House stagehand (uncredited)
Dick Chandlee	...	Teenager (uncredited)
Spencer Charters	...	Colony Opera House stage manager (uncredited)
Wallis Clark	...	Theodore 'Teddy' Roosevelt (uncredited)
Alan Copeland	...	Choirboy (uncredited)
William B. Davidson	...	New York stage manager (uncredited)
Ann Doran	...	Receptionist (uncredited)
Tom Dugan	...	Actor, railroad station (uncredited)
Bill Edwards	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Frank Faylen	...	Sergeant on parade (last scene) (uncredited)
Pat Flaherty	...	Sgt. Lewis (White House guard) (uncredited)
Robert Flatley	...	Dancer (uncredited)
James Flavin	...	Union Army veteran #1 on caisson (uncredited)
William Forrest	...	Critic #1 (uncredited)
William Gillespie	...	Baritone solo: Grand Old Flag number (uncredited)
Art Gilmore	...	Franklin D. Roosevelt (voice) (uncredited)
Joe Gray	...	(uncredited)
Creighton Hale	...	Telegraph operator (uncredited)
John Hamilton	...	Recruiting officer (uncredited)
Harry Hayden	...	Dr. Llewellyn (uncredited)
Stuart Holmes	...	Backstage actor, 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
William Hopper	...	Reporter (uncredited)
Joyce Horne	...	Teenager (uncredited)
Charles Irwin	...	Horse race announcer, 'Little Johnny Jones' number (uncredited)
Thomas E. Jackson	...	Stage manager, 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Marijo James	...	Sister act (uncredited)
Eddie Kane	...	Wilson ('Little Johnny Jones' number) (uncredited)
Edward Keane	...	Critic #2 (uncredited)
Dorothy Kelly	...	Sister act (uncredited)
Fred Kelsey	...	Irish cop in 'Pecks Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Phyllis Kennedy	...	Fanny (uncredited)
Vera Lewis	...	(uncredited)
Audrey Long	...	Dietz & Goff's receptionst (uncredited)
Jerrie Lynne	...	Singer (uncredited)
Hank Mann	...	Peck's Bad Boy stagehand (uncredited)
Jo Ann Marlowe	...	Josie Cohan, age 6 (uncredited)
Louis Mason	...	Boarder (uncredited)
Frank Mayo	...	Hotel clerk #2 (uncredited)
Lon McCallister	...	(uncredited)
Edward McWade	...	New York stage doorman (uncredited)
George Meeker	...	Hotel clerk #1 (uncredited)
John 'Skins' Miller	...	Horse race official (uncredited)
Frank Mills	...	Pedestrian seeking newspaper (uncredited)
Bert Moorhouse	...	Maurice Ruppe (music publisher) (uncredited)
Dolores Moran	...	Girl (uncredited)
Charles Morton	...	Friendly man at restaurant window on New Year's Eve (uncredited)
Jack Mower	...	Backstage actor, 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Lee Murray	...	Jockey (uncredited)
Garry Owen	...	Army clerk (uncredited)
Paul Panzer	...	Robinsons Theater stagehand (uncredited)
Francis Pierlot	...	Dr. Anderson (uncredited)
Joyce Reynolds	...	Teenager (uncredited)
Ruth Robinson	...	Nurse (uncredited)
Clinton Rosemond	...	White House butler (uncredited)
Thomas W. Ross	...	Doctor (uncredited)
Syd Saylor	...	Star boarder (uncredited)
Harry Seymour	...	O'Rourke's Varieties stagehand (uncredited)
John Sheehan	...	Boarder (uncredited)
Charles Smith	...	Teenager (uncredited)
Elliott Sullivan	...	Army recruiter examiner (uncredited)
Frank Sully	...	Army recruiter (uncredited)
Sailor Vincent	...	Schults, grocer in 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Dick Wessel	...	Union Army veteran #2 on caisson (uncredited)
Leo White	...	Backstage actor, 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Poppy Wilde	...	Chorus girl ('Little Johnny Jones' number) (uncredited)
Dave Willock	...	Stage Manager, 'Peck's Bad Boy' (uncredited)
Joan Winfield	...	Sally (uncredited)
Jack Wise	...	Boarder (uncredited)

Directed by
Michael Curtiz

Writing credits
Robert Buckner		(screenplay) and
Edmund Joseph		(screenplay)
Robert Buckner		(story)
Julius J. Epstein		uncredited
Philip G. Epstein		uncredited

Produced by
William Cagney	....	associate producer
Hal B. Wallis	....	executive producer
Jack L. Warner	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Ray Heindorf		(uncredited)
Heinz Roemheld		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
James Wong Howe

Film Editing by
George Amy

Art Direction by
Carl Jules Weyl

Costume Design by
Milo Anderson		(gowns)

Makeup Department
Perc Westmore	....	makeup artist

Sound Department
Everett A. Brown	....	sound
Nathan Levinson	....	sound (uncredited)

Music Department
Leo F. Forbstein	....	musical director
Ray Heindorf	....	orchestral arranger
Heinz Roemheld	....	musical director (uncredited)

Other crew
Jack Boyle	....	choreographer: James Cagney's dances (as John Boyle)
William Collier Sr.	....	technical advisor
Seymour Felix	....	dance number stager and director
Hugh MacMullan	....	dialogue director
LeRoy Prinz	....	dance number stager and director (as Leroy Prinz)
Don Siegel	....	montages

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures
• First National Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1942) (USA) (theatrical)
• Dominant Pictures Corporation (1956) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Sociedade Importadora de Filmes (SIF) (????) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• CBS/Fox (????) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #7929) | Canada:G (video rating) | Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Frances Langford is listed in the credits simply as "Singer". In the film, Cagney calls her "Nora", so this character is probably the real-life Nora Bayes (1880-1928). Bayes was a popular performer who recorded many Cohan songs and entertained the troops with Cohan during World War I. Bayes wrote the song "Shine on Harvest Moon" and was the subject of the Warner Brothers biopic Shine on Harvest Moon (1944). In "Yankee Doodle Dandy", Langford also sings the medley "In a Kingdom of Our Own" / "Love Nest" / "Nellie Kelly, I Love You" / "The Man Who Owns Broadway" / "Molly Malone"/ "Billie" that backs up one of Don Siegel's great montage sequences. Langford sang "Over There" to WW I American troops and toured with Bob Hope to entertain American troops in WW II, Korea and Viet Nam.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The violin George played on stage as a child was fitted with a chin piece not used on violins until the twentieth century.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Critic #1: I call it a hit. What'll your review say?
Critic #2: I like it too, so I guess I'll pan it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2007)

Soundtrack:

Keep Your Eyes Upon Me (Dancing Master)

He Was the "Yankee Doodle Boy"

Unless you happen to catch a rare showing of THE PHANTOM PRESIDENT, you are not going to see any film that will bring you closer to that long gone Broadway phenomenon named George M. Cohan than this. Producer, Director, Dramatist, Actor, Composer, and super-patriot, he rewrote the American musical theater. If his successful productions are out of date today, the music survives to reawaken us every July 4th (his big holiday). His success as a songwriter led the way to Gershwin, Porter, Rodgers (and Hart and Hammerstein), Kern, and Youmans.

YANKEE DOODLE DANDY is not a perfect biography of Cohan - he was still alive while it was being made, and would have vetoed the project mentioning his first failed marriage to Ethel Levey or his opposition to Actor's Equity. But as a valentine to his greatness as an entertainment phenomenon it remains great. Whole numbers from his LITTLE JOHNNY JONES ("Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "Give My Regards To Broadway") and FORTY-FIVE MINUTES FROM Broadway ("So Long Mary") are shown as they were produced. James Cagney (who was a first rate song and dance man on Broadway) studied THE PHANTOM PRESIDENT to know what were Cohan's singing and dancing style. His research and work paid off in this, his best musical performance and his only Oscar performance.

Walter Huston and Rosemary DeCamp are splendid as his loving, but long suffering parents (best scene for both is when Huston has to spank the young Cohan for blowing an important booking chance). Huston also has a moving moment when he gets as a birthday gift 50% of George's business enterprises. Richard Whorf (who was so sinister that same year in KEEPER OF THE FLAME) was excellent as partner/friend Sam Harris. Jeanne Cagney is good as Cohan's sister Josie, and Joan Leslie wonderful as Mary Cohan (the only wife of Cohan in the film, but historically his second wife). Also of note are George Tobias and Chester Clute as Dietz and Goff (poor Goff) and S.Z.Sakall as a backer who loves chorus girls. Walter Catlett as a conniving theater owner has a funny scene. Irene Manning as Fay Templeton is a perfectly snobbish star who actually finds Cohan has merit. Finally, catch Eddie Foy Jr. as his father, Cohan's rival and closest friend. That scene together was so good that it could have been continued as a short subject comedy.

One minor point to bring out - it is mentioned that LITTLE JOHNNY JONES is based on a jockey named Tod Sloane. If you recall Johnny Jones was accused of throwing the English Derby, and he is cleared afterward when papers are found showing one Anskey was responsible. In actuality Sloane, the leading American jockey of the day, was disgraced in a similar situation when riding in the English Derby. In Sloane's case there was no sequel with an "Anskey" and it sent his career into a tailspin. Only in the last year was a biography written about Sloane's tragic fall from sports fame.