|
|
| STAGE DOOR CANTEEN (1943) |
A Sol Lesser Production
A United Artists Released
B&W, 132 minutes
|
|
|
|
CAST
Eileen: Cheryl Walker
Ed "Dakota" Smith: William Terry
Jean: Marjorie Riordan
"California": Lon McCallister
Ella Sue: Margaret Early
"Texas": Michael Harrison
Mamie: Dorothea Kent
"Jersey": Fred Brady
Lillian: Marion Shockley
The Australian: Patrick O'Moore
Girl: Ruth Roman
And, the Stars at the Stage Door Canteen:
Judith Anderson, Henry Armetta, Benny Baker, Kenny Baker, Tallulah Bankhead, Ralph Bellamy, Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy, Ray Bolger, Helen Broderick, Ina Claire, Katharine Cornell, Lloyd Corrigan, Jane Cowl, Jane Darwell, William Demarest, Virginia Field, Dorothy Fields, Gracie Fields, Lynn Fontanne, Arlene Francis, Vinton Freedley, Billy Gilbert, Lucile Gleason, Vera Gordon, Virginia Grey, Helen Hayes, Katharine Hepburn, Hugh Herbert, Jean Hersholt, Sam Jaffe, Allen Jenkins, George Jessel, Roscoe Karns, Virginia Kaye, Tom Kennedy, Otto Kruger, June Lang, Betty Lawford, Gertrude Lawrence, Gypsy Rose Lee, Alfred Lunt, Bert Lytell, Harpo Marx, Aline MacMahon, Elsa Maxwell, Helen Menken, Yehudi Menuhin, Ethel Merman, Ralph Morgan, Alan Mowbray, Paul Muni, Elliott Nugent, Merle Oberon, Franklin Pangborn, Helen Parrish, Brock Pemberton, George Raft, Lanny Ross, Selena Royle, Martha Scott, Cornelia Otis Skinner, Ned Sparks, Bill Stern, Ethel Waters, Johnny Weissmuller, Arleen Whelan, Dame May Whitty, Ed Wynn
And:
Count Basie and His Band
Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra, with Lina Romay
Benny Goodman and His Orchestra, with Peggy Lee
Kay Kyser and His Band
Freddy Martin and His Orchestra
Guy Lombardo and His Orchestra
|
 |
CREDITS
Director: Frank Borzage
Producer: Sol Lesser
Associate Producer: Barnett Briskin
Original Screenplay by: Delmer Daves
Photographer: Harry Wild
Art Director: Hans Peters
Set Decorator: Victor Gangelin
Editor: Hal Kern
Sound Recorder: Hugh McDowell
Musical Score: Freddie Rich
Musical Director: C. Bakaleinikoff
Production Designer: Harry Horner
Assistant Production Designer: Clem Beauchamp
Costumer: Albert Deano
Talent Coordinator: Radie Harris
Assistant Directors: Lew Borzage, Virgil Hart
|
|
|
|
|
SYNOPSIS
Eileen, a canteen junior hostess at New York's Stage Door Canteen, meets Private Ed Smith, nicknamed "Dakota" after his home state by his three buddies. They don't hit it off, because Eileen is really seeking out Broadway producers, not mere soldiers. Next day, the sailing is postponed and the boys are back at the Canteen, but Eileen is abrupt with "Dakota" and he soon leaves. Later, her roommates upbraid her behavior and the next evening, she receives him warmly. Both soon find they are in love.
The couple plan to get married and agree to meet at the Canteen at 5:00 P.M. However, since she has broken the rule about dating servicemen, the Canteen takes Eileen's pass away. Katharine Hepburn, who is Officer of the Day, suggests that Eileen be allowed to wait inside. Shortly, an Australian soldier brings word that the boys sailed that morning. Miss Hepburn consoles Eileen, giving her the strength to go on doing her important morale work at the Canteen until "Dakota" comes back.
|
|
|
|
|
|
CRITIQUES
"...Katharine Hepburn, whose sequence toward the end with Eileen (Cheryl Walker) is as moving in warmth as it is gripping in sentiment."
- Lawrence Perry, Baltimore Sun, 1943
"Patriotism, entertainment, and romance mix badly in this celebration of the 44th Street canteen run for servicemen by stage folk during the Second World War; many famous performers make fools of themselves, and six bands provide the music--those of Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Xavier Cugat, Kay Kyser, Freddy Martin, and Guy Lombardo. When this movie first came out, James Agee said that it was a gold mine for those who were willing to go to it in the wrong spirit. It's depressing, though. Frank Borzage directed; the horribly elaborate narrative by Delmer Daves is about a group of soldiers (Lon McCallister is among them) about to be sent overseas. They go to the canteen on their last night of leave in New York and fall in love with hostesses there. When the embarkation is postponed, they go back for another night, and then a third; by the time their farewells are final, the audience's tears could float them to the war zone. Katharine Cornell, Katharine Hepburn, and Paul Muni fare a shade worse than most of the other 50-odd famous performers; Ray Bolger and Ed Wynn come off rather better. Some other breaks: Ethel Waters sings 'Quicksand' with the Basie orchestra, and Peggy Lee sings 'Why Don't You Do Right?' with the Goodman band. With Cheryl Walker and William Terry as the young lovers."
- Pauline Kael, The New Yorker
"A curio from 1943, set in a servicemen's canteen where the guest celebrities outnumber the soldiers by about ten to one. Frank Borzage, one of the finest directors of the 30s and 40s, has little to do but direct traffic here, but he manages to get such diverse personalities as Tallulah Bankhead and Edgar Bergen, Helen Hayes and Johnny Weissmuller, on and off screen with a measure of dignity. The nonstop swing sound track features Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Xavier Cugat, and, alas, Kay Kyser and Guy Lombardo."
- Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
HOME VIDEO AVAILABILITY
Links are provided for information only, and are not endorsements. Please ensure that your player is compatible with the region or standard before purchase.
Region 1:
NTSC Standard:
|
|
|
|
|
|
Katharine Hepburn, Cheryl Walker
|
On the set: Frank Borzage, Katharine Hepburn
|
On the set: Cheryl Walker, Selena Royle, Lon McCallister, Katharine Hepburn, Frank Borzage, Marjorie Riordan, Margaret Early
|
|
|
