Bring Your Smile Along (1955) - Turner Classic Movies

Brief Synopsis

A New England schoolteacher goes to New York to become a songwriter.

Cast & Crew

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Blake Edwards

Frankie Laine

Keefe Brasselle

Martin "Marty" Adams

Constance Towers

Lucy Marlow

Marge Stevenson

William Leslie

Film Details

Genre

Musical

Comedy

Romance

Release Date

Aug 1955

Premiere Information

not available

Production Company

Columbia Pictures Corp.

Distribution Company

Columbia Pictures Corp.

Country

United States

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 23m

Sound

Mono

Color

Color (Technicolor)

Film Length

9 reels

Synopsis

At a small New England college, music teacher Nancy Willows decides to depart mid-semester for New York to pursue her dream of becoming a songwriter. Her fiancé, biology teacher David Parker, reluctantly agrees to Nancy's decision and promises to visit her in three months. In New York, singer Jerry Dennis and his partner, musician Martin "Marty" Adams, are fired from their engagement playing for a chorus line when Marty lashes out at another band member in frustration over the shabby show. When Jerry frets about their unemployment, Marty insists it is the motivation they need to make another attempt to sell his songs and get Jerry a recording contract. Meanwhile, Nancy moves into the apartment across from Jerry and Marty. That evening, when she hears Jerry playing one of Marty's compositions, she is inspired to write matching lyrics. The following morning Nancy slips the lyrics sheet under Marty's door with her card before departing to see publisher Mr. Jenson. When the landlady, Mrs. Kline, comes into Marty and Jerry's room to clean, she accidentally separates the card from the lyrics. Later, Jerry finds the lyrics and tries them out with Marty's tune. The men are excited about the completed song, which they call "If Spring Never Comes," and wonder who wrote the lyrics. They go to visit Jenson, but because he is seeing Nancy, they meet with his partner, who agrees to publish the song if they can learn the identity of the lyricist. The partners spend all day vainly seeking their mystery writer and arrive home dejected. Later that evening, Marty hears Nancy singing in the shower and, recognizing their song, excitedly tries to break into her apartment, frightening Nancy. Mrs. Kline finally makes introductions, and after Nancy explains her recent arrival in New York, Marty and Jerry invite her to their favorite little Italian restaurant to discuss the possibilities of publishing their tune and working together. When they break out into an argument about whether the lyric or music comes first, Marty and Nancy try writing a song off the cuff, and before the evening is over, delight the restaurant proprietor with a song about his wife, called "Mamma Mia." The following day, Nancy, Marty and Jerry take the two tunes to Jenson, who agrees to publish the songs and gives them an advance. When Marty expresses his growing affection for Nancy, however, she tells him about her involvement with David. A short time later, as Marty and Nancy continue writing songs together, Jerry informs them that Jenson has arranged for him to record "Mamma Mia." In a few weeks, the trio has compiled several songs, recordings and two radio hits. Back in New England, David receives the news in letters from Nancy and decides to surprise her with a visit. During a night out dancing, Jerry and Jenson's secretary, Marge Stevenson, pair off and Marty decides to declare his feelings for Nancy, who feels confused and guilty over David. After David arrives, Marty grows short-tempered, and at a recording session with Jerry taping "If Spring Never Comes," starts an argument with Nancy. Concerned over Nancy's moodiness, David nevertheless asks her to return to New England with him, but she hesitates. Later that evening, Marty apologizes to Nancy for their fight, but grows angry again when she confides that David has asked her to go back with him. When Marty complains that Nancy will be breaking up a lucrative partnership, she is hurt and immediately decides to return with David to resume teaching. Before she departs, Nancy gives one last set of lyrics to Jerry to pass on to Marty. Marty refuses the lyrics, angering Jerry, and the two friends part ways. Jerry goes on to continued recording success, appearing on various television programs, while Marty searches in vain for a competent lyricist. Some months later, Jerry receives a letter from Nancy asking him to perform at the campus dance, which prompts Jerry to visit Marty and offer him Nancy's lyrics again and reveal that Nancy has broken up with David. At Nancy's college campus dance, Jerry make a surprise appearance to the delight of the students. While Jerry performs a medley of Marty and Nancy's songs, Nancy and Marty are reunited and make up.

Director

Blake Edwards

Cast

Frankie Laine

Keefe Brasselle

Martin "Marty" Adams

Constance Towers

Lucy Marlow

Marge Stevenson

William Leslie

Mario Siletti

Ruth Warren

Jack Albertson

Bobby Clark

Murray Leonard

Ida Smeraldo

Richard Collier

Bob Hopkins

Barrie Chase

Specialty dancer

Jack Lomas

Davis Alpert

Stanley King

Patrick Miller

Don Oreck

Senior dance chairman

Mario Cimino

Richard C. Jones

Chuck Courtney

Robert Campbell

Senior class president

Leighton Noble

Orchestra conductor

Frank Carter

Tyler Mcvey

Gene Wesson

Master of ceremonies

Mitchell Boys Choir

Frank Sully

Crew

Bill Carey

Al Clark

George Cooper

Benny Davis

Louis Diage

George Duning

Blake Edwards

Blake Edwards

Dorothy Fields

Carl Fischer

William Flannery

Paul Mason Howard

Henri Jaffa

Technicolor Color Consultant

Fred Karger

Charles Lawton Jr.

Director of Photography

Lester Lee

John Livadary

Recording Supervisor

Jimmy Mchugh

Irving Moore

Assistant Director

Miriam Nelson

Richard Quine

Allan Roberts

Morris Stoloff

Music Supervisor and Conductor

Jonie Taps

Ned Washington

Paul Weston

Harry Woods

Film Details

Genre

Musical

Comedy

Romance

Release Date

Aug 1955

Premiere Information

not available

Production Company

Columbia Pictures Corp.

Distribution Company

Columbia Pictures Corp.

Country

United States

Technical Specs

Duration

1h 23m

Sound

Mono

Color

Color (Technicolor)

Film Length

9 reels

Articles

Bring Your Smile Along

March 24, 2009

Bring Your Smile Along (1955) is a light-hearted musical comedy that marked the feature film directing debut of Blake Edwards. The story, co-written by Edwards and his professional mentor Richard Quine, concerns Nancy (Constance Towers in her first film role), a music teacher at a small New England college who decides to try her luck in New York as a songwriter. In New York she teams up with musician Martin Adams (Keefe Brasselle) and together they form a successful partnership writing songs for singer Jerry Dennis (Frankie Laine). Nancy and Martin are attracted to each other, but Nancy has a fiancé back home, David (William Leslie). When David visits her in New York, Nancy must decide if she will stay in the Big Apple and live her dream or return home to her old life with David.

Frankie Laine was already a top recording star when he appeared in Bring Your Smile Along, his third feature film and the first of two for director Blake Edwards; he would follow this with Edwards' musical-comedy He Laughed Last (1956). After that, he didn't pursue any more feature length roles, preferring to concentrate on his recording career and occasional television and movie appearances in cameo parts. His powerful, dramatic voice, however, was often used for movie themes for Westerns, and his stirring vocal performances on Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) and 3:10 to Yuma (1957) are iconic and still popular today.

If nothing else, Bring Your Smile Along is a lighthearted and rarely shown B-picture that fans of Blake Edwards will enjoy seeing as an example from his early career. The film also features several songs including "If Spring Never Comes", "Don't Blame Me", "Every Baby Needs a Da-Da-Daddy" and the title song sung by Frankie Laine.

Producer: Jonie Taps
Director: Blake Edwards
Screenplay: Blake Edwards, Richard Quine
Cinematography: Charles Lawton Jr.
Film Editing: Al Clark
Cast: Frankie Laine (Jerry Dennis), Keefe Brasselle (Martin 'Marty' Adams), Constance Towers (Nancy Willows), Lucy Marlow (Marge Stevenson), William Leslie (David Parker), Mario Siletti (Ricardo), Ruth Warren (Mrs. Klein, Landlady), Jack Albertson (Mr. Jenson).
BW-83m.

by Andrea Passafiume

Bring Your Smile Along

Bring Your Smile Along

Bring Your Smile Along (1955) is a light-hearted musical comedy that marked the feature film directing debut of Blake Edwards. The story, co-written by Edwards and his professional mentor Richard Quine, concerns Nancy (Constance Towers in her first film role), a music teacher at a small New England college who decides to try her luck in New York as a songwriter. In New York she teams up with musician Martin Adams (Keefe Brasselle) and together they form a successful partnership writing songs for singer Jerry Dennis (Frankie Laine). Nancy and Martin are attracted to each other, but Nancy has a fiancé back home, David (William Leslie). When David visits her in New York, Nancy must decide if she will stay in the Big Apple and live her dream or return home to her old life with David. Frankie Laine was already a top recording star when he appeared in Bring Your Smile Along, his third feature film and the first of two for director Blake Edwards; he would follow this with Edwards' musical-comedy He Laughed Last (1956). After that, he didn't pursue any more feature length roles, preferring to concentrate on his recording career and occasional television and movie appearances in cameo parts. His powerful, dramatic voice, however, was often used for movie themes for Westerns, and his stirring vocal performances on Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) and 3:10 to Yuma (1957) are iconic and still popular today. If nothing else, Bring Your Smile Along is a lighthearted and rarely shown B-picture that fans of Blake Edwards will enjoy seeing as an example from his early career. The film also features several songs including "If Spring Never Comes", "Don't Blame Me", "Every Baby Needs a Da-Da-Daddy" and the title song sung by Frankie Laine. Producer: Jonie Taps Director: Blake Edwards Screenplay: Blake Edwards, Richard Quine Cinematography: Charles Lawton Jr. Film Editing: Al Clark Cast: Frankie Laine (Jerry Dennis), Keefe Brasselle (Martin 'Marty' Adams), Constance Towers (Nancy Willows), Lucy Marlow (Marge Stevenson), William Leslie (David Parker), Mario Siletti (Ricardo), Ruth Warren (Mrs. Klein, Landlady), Jack Albertson (Mr. Jenson). BW-83m. by Andrea Passafiume

Quotes

Trivia

Notes

Bring Your Smile Along marked the directorial debut of actor-writer Blake Edwards and the acting debut of Constance Towers.

Miscellaneous Notes

Released in United States August 1955

Released in United States Winter January 1, 1955

Released in United States Winter January 1, 1955

Released in United States August 1955

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