Sunny Side Up
Encyclopedia
Sunny Side Up is a Fox Movietone
movie musical with original songs, story, and dialogue by B. G. DeSylva, Lew Brown
and Ray Henderson
. The romantic comedy
/musical
, which starred Janet Gaynor
and Charles Farrell
, premiered on 3 October 1929 at the Gaiety Theatre
in New York City
. The film was directed by David Butler, had (now-lost) Multicolor
sequences, and had a running time of 121 minutes.
runs off to New York City
on account of his fiancee's relentless flirting. He attends an Independence Day
block party
where Molly Carr, from Yorkville, Manhattan
, falls in love with him. Comic relief is provided by grocer Eric Swenson, above whose shop Molly and her flatmate, Bea Nichols, live.
Gaynor and Farrell made almost a dozen films together, including Frank Borzage's classics Seventh Heaven (1927), Street Angel (1928), and Lucky Star (1929). Gaynor won the first Academy Award for Best Actress
for the first two and F. W. Murnau's Sunrise
(1927).
and The New York Times
both express the opinion that the film, and the singing voices of Gaynor and Farrell, are all tolerable if not exactly worthy of praise. Despite the sugary sentimentality, the film is engaging, while the cinematography
and special effects are impressive.
.
The song was punned by the Marx Brothers
in the film Animal Crackers
(1930). Groucho asks his brother to play a song about Montreal
, to which Chico
starts up with "I'm a dreamer, Montreal." The pun
has been much-recycled not least in Stewart Parker
's award-winning play I’m a Dreamer, Montreal.
The tune was recorded by John Coltrane
in 1958 and included on his album Bahia
(1964).
Movietone sound system
The Movietone sound system is a sound-on-film method of recording sound for motion pictures that guarantees synchronization between sound and picture. It achieves this by recording the sound as a variable-density optical track on the same strip of film that records the pictures...
movie musical with original songs, story, and dialogue by B. G. DeSylva, Lew Brown
Lew Brown
Lew Brown was a lyricist for popular songs in the United States.Brown was born as Louis Brownstein in Odessa, Russian Empire...
and Ray Henderson
Ray Henderson
Ray 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...
. The romantic comedy
Romantic Comedy
Romantic Comedy can refer to* Romantic Comedy , a 1979 play written by Bernard Slade* Romantic Comedy , a 1983 film adapted from the play and starring Dudley Moore and Mary Steenburgen...
/musical
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...
, which starred Janet Gaynor
Janet Gaynor
Janet Gaynor was an American actress and painter.One of the most popular actresses of the silent film era, in 1928 Gaynor became the first winner of the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performances in three films: Seventh Heaven , Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans and Street Angel...
and Charles Farrell
Charles Farrell
Charles Farrell was an American film actor of the 1920s silent era and into the 1930s, and later a television actor...
, premiered on 3 October 1929 at the Gaiety Theatre
Gaiety Theatre (New York)
The Gaiety Theatre was a Broadway theatre at 1547 Broadway in New York City from 1909 until 1982, when it was torn down.An office building above the theatre has been called the Black Tin Alley.It was designed by Herts & Tallant and owned by George M. Cohan...
in 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...
. The film was directed by David Butler, had (now-lost) Multicolor
Multicolor
Multicolor is a subtractive natural color process for motion pictures. Multicolor, introduced to the motion picture industry in 1929, was based on the earlier Prizma Color process, and was the forerunner of Cinecolor....
sequences, and had a running time of 121 minutes.
Plot
The film centres around a Will-they won't-they romance. Wealthy Jack Cromwell from Long IslandLong Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
runs off to 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...
on account of his fiancee's relentless flirting. He attends an Independence Day
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
block party
Block party
A block party is a large public party in which many members of a single neighbourhood congregate, either to observe an event of some importance or simply for mutual enjoyment. The name comes from the form of the party, which often involves closing an entire city block to vehicle traffic...
where Molly Carr, from Yorkville, Manhattan
Yorkville, Manhattan
Yorkville is a neighborhood in the greater Upper East Side, in the Borough of Manhattan in New York City. Yorkville's boundaries include: the East River on the east, 96th Street on the north, Third Avenue on the west and 72nd Street to the south. However, its southern boundary is a subject of...
, falls in love with him. Comic relief is provided by grocer Eric Swenson, above whose shop Molly and her flatmate, Bea Nichols, live.
Cast
- Janet GaynorJanet GaynorJanet Gaynor was an American actress and painter.One of the most popular actresses of the silent film era, in 1928 Gaynor became the first winner of the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performances in three films: Seventh Heaven , Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans and Street Angel...
as Molly Carr - Charles FarrellCharles FarrellCharles Farrell was an American film actor of the 1920s silent era and into the 1930s, and later a television actor...
as Jack Cromwell - Marjorie WhiteMarjorie WhiteMarjorie White was a Canadian-born actress of stage and film.-Career:Born Marjorie Ann Guthrie in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, she was the first-born child of a grain merchant born in Simcoe, Ontario...
as Bea Nichols - El BrendelEl BrendelEl Brendel was a vaudeville comedian turned movie star, best remembered for his dialect schtick as a Swedish immigrant. His biggest role was as "Single-0" in the sci-fi musical Just Imagine , produced by Fox Film Corporation...
as Eric Swenson - Mary ForbesMary ForbesMary Forbes was an English film actress. She appeared in over 130 films between 1919 and 1958....
as Mrs. Cromwell - Peter GawthornePeter GawthornePeter Gawthorne was an Irish actor, probably best known for his roles in Will Hay films. Gawthorne was one of Britain's most called-upon bit part actors during the 1940s and 50s....
as Lake - Sharon Lynn as Jane Worth
- Frank Richardson as Eddie Rafferty
- Joe Brown as Joe Vito
- Jackie CooperJackie CooperJackie Cooper was an American actor, television director, producer and executive. He was a child actor who managed to make the transition to an adult career. Cooper was the first child actor to receive an Academy Award nomination...
as Jerry McGinnis (uncredited)
Gaynor and Farrell made almost a dozen films together, including Frank Borzage's classics Seventh Heaven (1927), Street Angel (1928), and Lucky Star (1929). Gaynor won the first Academy Award for Best Actress
Academy Award for Best Actress
Performance by an Actress 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 actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for the first two and F. W. Murnau's Sunrise
Sunrise (film)
Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, also known as Sunrise, is a 1927 American silent film directed by German film director F. W. Murnau. The story was adapted by Carl Mayer from the short story "Die Reise nach Tilsit" by Hermann Sudermann.Sunrise won an Academy Award for Unique and Artistic Production...
(1927).
Reception
The The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
and The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
both express the opinion that the film, and the singing voices of Gaynor and Farrell, are all tolerable if not exactly worthy of praise. Despite the sugary sentimentality, the film is engaging, while the cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
and special effects are impressive.
I'm A Dreamer, Aren't We All?
Several times throughout the film Gaynor sings the tune "I'm a Dreamer, Aren't We All?" and, on one occasion, sings it impressively, according to the New York Times. The credits are: words, De Sylva & Brown; music, Ray HendersonRay Henderson
Ray 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...
.
The song was punned by 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...
in the film Animal Crackers
Animal Crackers (film)
Animal Crackers is a 1930 American comedy film, in which mayhem and zaniness ensue when a valuable painting goes missing during a party in honor of famed African explorer Captain Spaulding. The film was both a critical and commercial success upon initial release, and remains one of the Marx...
(1930). Groucho asks his brother to play a song about Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, to which Chico
Chico
-Given name:* Chico Marx , actor and one of the Marx Brothers* Chico Buarque , Brazilian singer and writer* Chico DeBarge , R&B singer* Chico Ejiro, Nigeria film director* Chico Mendes , Brazilian environmental activist...
starts up with "I'm a dreamer, Montreal." The pun
Pun
The pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use and abuse of homophonic,...
has been much-recycled not least in Stewart Parker
Stewart Parker
James Stewart Parker was a Northern Irish poet and playwright.He was born in Sydenham, Belfast, of a Protestant working class family. While still in his teens, he contracted bone cancer and had a leg amputated...
's award-winning play I’m a Dreamer, Montreal.
The tune was recorded by John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
in 1958 and included on his album Bahia
Bahia (album)
Bahia is an album credited to jazz musician John Coltrane, released in 1965 on Prestige Records, catalogue 7353. It is assembled from unissued results of two separate recording sessions at the studio of Rudy Van Gelder in Hackensack, New Jersey in 1958...
(1964).