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The Great Ziegfeld
 
 
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The Great Ziegfeld (1936
1936 in film

The year 1936 in film involved some significant events....
) is a musical film
Musical film

The musical film is a film genre in which several songs sung by the fictional character are interwoven into the narrative. The songs are used to advance the plot or develop the film's characters....
 produced by MGM. Although the film is a fictionalized biography of Florenz Ziegfeld
Florenz Ziegfeld

Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. , called Flo Ziegfeld, was an American Broadway theatre impresario. He is best known for his series of theatrical revues, the Ziegfeld Follies , inspired by the Folies Berg?res of Paris....
 from his show business beginnings to his death, it showcases a series of spectacular musical productions. The film includes original music by Walter Donaldson
Walter Donaldson

Walter Donaldson was a prolific United States popular songwriter, producing many hit songs of the 1910s and 1920s.Donaldson was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a piano teacher....
 and Irving Berlin
Irving Berlin

Irving Berlin was a Jewish American composer and lyricist, and one of the most prolific American songwriters in history. Berlin was one of the few Tin Pan Alley/Broadway theater songwriters who wrote both lyrics and music for his songs....
. Berlin's work was featured in the Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies

The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway theatre in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
 of 1918, 1919, and 1920.

The film was the first musical film in history for which one of its cast members won an Academy Award - Luise Rainer received the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Anna Held.

Featured in the film are William Powell
William Powell

William Horatio Powell was a three-time Academy Award-nominated American actor, noted for his sophisticated, cynical roles. He was a major MGM film star and is most widely known for portraying the detective Nick and Nora Charles in six The Thin Man films....
 (as Ziegfeld), Myrna Loy
Myrna Loy

Myrna Loy was an American actress. Trained as a dancer, but after a few minor roles in silent films, she devoted herself fully to an acting career, and from 1925 gradually established herself as a film actress....
 (as Billie Burke
Billie Burke

Mary William Ethelbert Appleton "Billie" Burke was an Academy Awards-nominated United States actress primarily known to modern audiences for her role as Glinda the Good Witch of the North in the musical film The Wizard of Oz ....
), Luise Rainer
Luise Rainer

Luise Rainer is a two-time Academy Awards-winning Germany film actress. Of living Academy Awards winners, she holds the earliest-awarded Oscars....
 (as Anna Held
Anna Held

Helene Anna Held was a Poland-born stage performer, most often associated with impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, her common-law husband....
), Nat Pendleton
Nat Pendleton

Nathaniel Greene Pendleton was an United Statesn Olympic Games amateur wrestling and film actor....
 (as Eugen Sandow
Eugen Sandow

Eugen Sandow , born Friederich Wilhelm M?ller, was a pioneering bodybuilder of the Victorian era and is often referred to as the "Father of Modern Bodybuilding"....
), Frank Morgan
Frank Morgan

Frank Morgan was an American actor best known for his portrayal of the title character in the film The Wizard of Oz ....
 and Virginia Bruce
Virginia Bruce

Virginia Bruce was an United States actress and singerBorn Helen Virginia Briggs in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bruce began her acting career in minor roles in Hollywood in 1929....
.






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Encyclopedia


The Great Ziegfeld (1936
1936 in film

The year 1936 in film involved some significant events....
) is a musical film
Musical film

The musical film is a film genre in which several songs sung by the fictional character are interwoven into the narrative. The songs are used to advance the plot or develop the film's characters....
 produced by MGM. Although the film is a fictionalized biography of Florenz Ziegfeld
Florenz Ziegfeld

Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. , called Flo Ziegfeld, was an American Broadway theatre impresario. He is best known for his series of theatrical revues, the Ziegfeld Follies , inspired by the Folies Berg?res of Paris....
 from his show business beginnings to his death, it showcases a series of spectacular musical productions. The film includes original music by Walter Donaldson
Walter Donaldson

Walter Donaldson was a prolific United States popular songwriter, producing many hit songs of the 1910s and 1920s.Donaldson was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a piano teacher....
 and Irving Berlin
Irving Berlin

Irving Berlin was a Jewish American composer and lyricist, and one of the most prolific American songwriters in history. Berlin was one of the few Tin Pan Alley/Broadway theater songwriters who wrote both lyrics and music for his songs....
. Berlin's work was featured in the Ziegfeld Follies
Ziegfeld Follies

The Ziegfeld Follies were a series of elaborate theatrical productions on Broadway theatre in New York City from 1907 through 1931. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air....
 of 1918, 1919, and 1920.

The film was the first musical film in history for which one of its cast members won an Academy Award - Luise Rainer received the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Anna Held.

Featured in the film are William Powell
William Powell

William Horatio Powell was a three-time Academy Award-nominated American actor, noted for his sophisticated, cynical roles. He was a major MGM film star and is most widely known for portraying the detective Nick and Nora Charles in six The Thin Man films....
 (as Ziegfeld), Myrna Loy
Myrna Loy

Myrna Loy was an American actress. Trained as a dancer, but after a few minor roles in silent films, she devoted herself fully to an acting career, and from 1925 gradually established herself as a film actress....
 (as Billie Burke
Billie Burke

Mary William Ethelbert Appleton "Billie" Burke was an Academy Awards-nominated United States actress primarily known to modern audiences for her role as Glinda the Good Witch of the North in the musical film The Wizard of Oz ....
), Luise Rainer
Luise Rainer

Luise Rainer is a two-time Academy Awards-winning Germany film actress. Of living Academy Awards winners, she holds the earliest-awarded Oscars....
 (as Anna Held
Anna Held

Helene Anna Held was a Poland-born stage performer, most often associated with impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, her common-law husband....
), Nat Pendleton
Nat Pendleton

Nathaniel Greene Pendleton was an United Statesn Olympic Games amateur wrestling and film actor....
 (as Eugen Sandow
Eugen Sandow

Eugen Sandow , born Friederich Wilhelm M?ller, was a pioneering bodybuilder of the Victorian era and is often referred to as the "Father of Modern Bodybuilding"....
), Frank Morgan
Frank Morgan

Frank Morgan was an American actor best known for his portrayal of the title character in the film The Wizard of Oz ....
 and Virginia Bruce
Virginia Bruce

Virginia Bruce was an United States actress and singerBorn Helen Virginia Briggs in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bruce began her acting career in minor roles in Hollywood in 1929....
. Ziegfeld performers Eddie Cantor
Eddie Cantor

Eddie Cantor was an United States comedian, singer, actor, and songwriter. Familiar to Broadway theatre, radio and early television audiences, this "Apostle of Pep" was regarded almost as a family member by millions because his top-rated radio shows revealed intimate stories and amusing anecdotes about his wife Ida and five children....
, Fanny Brice
Fanny Brice

Fanny Brice was a popular and influential United States comedienne, singer, theatre and film actress, who made many stage , radio and film appearances but is best remembered as the creator and star of the top-rated radio comedy series, The Baby Snooks Show....
 and Ray Bolger
Ray Bolger

Ray Bolger was an United States entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hunk in the 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz ....
 play themselves. Dennis Morgan
Dennis Morgan

Dennis Morgan was an American actor-singer.In 1945, he played the part of Jefferson Jones in the holiday classic Christmas in Connecticut opposite Barbara Stanwyck....
, in an uncredited role, performed "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" (dubbed by Allan Jones
Allan Jones

Allan Jones was an United States actor and singer. For many years he was married to actor Irene Hervey; their son is American pop singer Jack Jones ....
).

The Great Ziegfeld takes many key liberties with Ziegfeld's life and with the history of the Follies. For instance, George Gershwin
George Gershwin

George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. He wrote most of his vocal and theatrical works in collaboration with his elder brother, lyricist Ira Gershwin....
's Rhapsody in Blue
Rhapsody in Blue

Rhapsody in Blue is a musical composition by George Gershwin for solo piano and jazz band written in 1924, which combines elements of European classical music with jazz-influenced effects....
 was never featured in the Follies, and the number "Pretty Girl" was written for the 1919 Follies, not the first edition of the revue, as shown in the film.

The film also gives the impression that the successful original production of Show Boat
Show Boat

Show Boat is a musical theatre in two acts with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. One notable exception is the song Bill , which was originally written by Kern and author-lyricist P....
, which Ziegfeld produced, closed because of the Great Depression
Great Depression

File:International depression.pngThe Great Depression was a worldwide economic Recession starting in most places in 1929 and ending at different times in the 1930s or early 1940s for different countries....
, when in fact Show Boat ended its original 1927 run in the spring of 1929 (the stock market crash did not occur until October of that year.) It was the 1932 revival of the show, not the original production, that was affected by the Depression.

Ironically, James Whale
James Whale

James Whale was a United Kingdom film director, theatre director and actor. He is best remembered for his work in the horror film genre, having directed Frankenstein , The Old Dark House , The Invisible Man and Bride of Frankenstein , all recognized as classics of the genre....
's film version of Show Boat
Show Boat (1936 film)

Show Boat is a film based on the Show Boat by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II , which the team adapted from the Show Boat by Edna Ferber....
 was released the same year as The Great Ziegfeld, but was not even nominated for Oscars.

Cast

  • William Powell
    William Powell

    William Horatio Powell was a three-time Academy Award-nominated American actor, noted for his sophisticated, cynical roles. He was a major MGM film star and is most widely known for portraying the detective Nick and Nora Charles in six The Thin Man films....
     as Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr.
  • Myrna Loy
    Myrna Loy

    Myrna Loy was an American actress. Trained as a dancer, but after a few minor roles in silent films, she devoted herself fully to an acting career, and from 1925 gradually established herself as a film actress....
     as Billie Burke
    Billie Burke

    Mary William Ethelbert Appleton "Billie" Burke was an Academy Awards-nominated United States actress primarily known to modern audiences for her role as Glinda the Good Witch of the North in the musical film The Wizard of Oz ....
  • Luise Rainer
    Luise Rainer

    Luise Rainer is a two-time Academy Awards-winning Germany film actress. Of living Academy Awards winners, she holds the earliest-awarded Oscars....
     as Anna Held
    Anna Held

    Helene Anna Held was a Poland-born stage performer, most often associated with impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, her common-law husband....
  • Frank Morgan
    Frank Morgan

    Frank Morgan was an American actor best known for his portrayal of the title character in the film The Wizard of Oz ....
     as Jack Billings
  • Fanny Brice
    Fanny Brice

    Fanny Brice was a popular and influential United States comedienne, singer, theatre and film actress, who made many stage , radio and film appearances but is best remembered as the creator and star of the top-rated radio comedy series, The Baby Snooks Show....
     as Herself
  • Virginia Bruce
    Virginia Bruce

    Virginia Bruce was an United States actress and singerBorn Helen Virginia Briggs in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bruce began her acting career in minor roles in Hollywood in 1929....
     as Audrey Dane
  • Ray Bolger
    Ray Bolger

    Ray Bolger was an United States entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hunk in the 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz ....
     as Himself
  • Nat Pendleton
    Nat Pendleton

    Nathaniel Greene Pendleton was an United Statesn Olympic Games amateur wrestling and film actor....
     as Eugen Sandow
    Eugen Sandow

    Eugen Sandow , born Friederich Wilhelm M?ller, was a pioneering bodybuilder of the Victorian era and is often referred to as the "Father of Modern Bodybuilding"....
  • Eddie Cantor
    Eddie Cantor

    Eddie Cantor was an United States comedian, singer, actor, and songwriter. Familiar to Broadway theatre, radio and early television audiences, this "Apostle of Pep" was regarded almost as a family member by millions because his top-rated radio shows revealed intimate stories and amusing anecdotes about his wife Ida and five children....
      as Himself
  • Also appearing uncredited is future First Lady Pat Nixon
    Pat Nixon

    Thelma Catherine "Pat" Ryan Nixon was the wife of Richard Nixon, 37th President of the United States, and was First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974....
     (as a Ziegfeld Girl).


Awards

The movie won three Oscars
Academy Awards

The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers....
:
  • Academy Award for Best Picture
    Academy Award for Best Picture

    The Academy Award for Best Motion Picture is one of the Academy Award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the film industry....
     - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (Hunt Stromberg
    Hunt Stromberg

    Hunt Stromberg was an United States film producer. He won an Academy Award for Best Picture for the 1936 film The Great Ziegfeld. He was also nominated for the Irving G....
    , producer)
  • Academy Award for Best Actress
    Academy Award for Best Actress

    Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Award 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....
     - Luise Rainer
    Luise Rainer

    Luise Rainer is a two-time Academy Awards-winning Germany film actress. Of living Academy Awards winners, she holds the earliest-awarded Oscars....
  • Academy Award for Best Dance Direction
    Academy Award for Best Dance Direction

    The Academy Awards for Best Dance Direction ...
     - Seymour Felix - For "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody".


It was nominated for an additional four:
  • Academy Award for Best Art Direction
    Academy Award for Best Art Direction

    The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in film. The Academy Award for Best Art Direction recognizes achievement in art director#Film on a film....
     - Cedric Gibbons
    Cedric Gibbons

    Austin Cedric Gibbons, was an Irish American art director who was one of the most important and influential in the field in the history of United States film....
    , Eddie Imazu
    Eddie Imazu

    Eddie Imazu was a Japanese art director. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Academy Award for Best Art Direction for the film The Great Ziegfeld....
     and Edwin B. Willis
    Edwin B. Willis

    Edwin Booth Willis was an award-winning motion picture set designer and decorator. Willis worked exclusively at MGM studios for his entire career....
  • Academy Award for Directing
    Academy Award for Directing

    The Academy Award for Achievement in Directing is one of the Academy Award presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to Film directors working in the film industry....
     - Robert Z. Leonard
    Robert Z. Leonard

    Robert Zigler Leonard was an United States film director, actor, producer and screenwriter.He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to silent superstar Mae Murray with the two forming Tiffany Pictures to film eight motion pictures that were released by MGM....
  • Academy Award for Film Editing
    Academy Award for Film Editing

    The Academy Award for Film Editing was first given for films issued in 1934. The name of this award is occasionally changed; in 2008, it was listed as the Academy Award for Achievement in Film Editing....
     - William S. Gray
    William S. Gray

    Dr. William S. Gray was an educator and literacy advocate.Gray was born in the town of Coatsburg, Illinois on June 5, 1885. He graduated from High School in 1904 and began teaching in a one room school house in Adams County, Illinois....
  • Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay
    Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay

    The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Awards for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. Before 1940, there was an Academy Award for Best Story for writing....
     - William Anthony McGuire
    William Anthony McGuire

    William Anthony McGuire was a playwright, theatre director, and theatre producer and an Academy Award-winning United States screenwriter. He won an Oscar for the 1936 film The Great Ziegfeld....


External links