Together, they front line a troupe of jolly nomads who pitch the idea of circus life as the greatest of all traveling trades. Hotchner. Doris Day, who holds the title of the number one female box-office star, was involved in a secret interracial affair with baseball legend Maury Wills when they were both married; before her death, she denied the allegations. He reluctantly falls in love with the beautiful young co-owner, later feels guilty about his dads underhanded tactics and decides to break with the Noble plan. Now I feel that whatever talent I may have had is gone. Portrait of Doris Day circa 1965 | Photo: Getty Images. She did, however, walk away with the evenings coveted Worlds Most Popular Film Actress accolade again. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". How much Hay does a horse eat in a month? The title character, a prancing pachyderm, does not seem interested at all in its performance. Despite public protest, Jumbo was sold to P. T. Barnum, who took him to the United States for exhibition in March 1882. This news rocked the tabloids for some time, and not many have been able to identify its credibility until the athlete's publication. by miss maxwell 13 May 2008, 03:06, Unread post Daysdeath on May 13has opened a rift between family and friends who accuse one another of mistreating the star. by jmichael 12 May 2008, 13:17, Unread post The film was Doris Day's last screen musical. That's what makes this film so good. Three ring pandemonium breaks out when a handsome rival (Stephen Boyd) infiltrates the circus, and father, daughter and wise cracking fiancee (Martha Raye) are suddenly at risk of losing the entire circus. Both play and film feature Durante leading a live elephant and being stopped by a police officer, who asks him, "What are you doing with that elephant?" Jumbo is a mighty talented elephant. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. She is terrific as always, he's a damn good singer, and of course with Jimmy Durante, Martha Raye and an elephant how could it fail? Her onscreen credits ranged from romance to comedies and live shows. Director Norman Jewison, who worked with Day on 1963's The Thrill of It All and Send Me No Flowers, also talked about Doris' surprising view on her obvious good looks. He has been deceiving the clairvoyant Lulu (Martha Raye) for many years promising to marry her. In fact, the movie kept one of Durante's classic moments of stage comedy. Discover (and save!) He last received a letter from the star in April. She barely used the rest of the house . Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Years later MGM made the movie.[3]. For starters, the title is kind of odd, seeing how the elephant Jumbo only makes sporadic and brief appearances throughout the movie. Doris Day sings the standards very well, and - stealing the film - Jimmy Durante (who gives a glorious rendition of "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World") and Martha Raye are memorable in support. Doris Day was one of the most popular and yet one of the most underrated movie stars of her generation. And I love "Why Can't I?" Jimmy Durante owns the little circus with the big elephant in Billy Rose's Jumbo (1962). It stars Doris Day as Kitty Wonder, a performer in her father's circus. Did Doris Day do her own stunts in Calamity Jane? Doris Day's final musical role was in Jumbo which finally came to the screen almost 30 years after it played at the legendary Hippodrome Theater for 233 performances in 1935. It's also the ideal word to describe this big-time, big-top extravaganza bursting with laughter and love, sang and dance, circus stunts and star power. to foreclosing , as a spy goes undercover into the bankrupted circus to attempt to take it . Just clear tips and lifehacks for every day, They grew up and hit Hollywood on horseback, doubling for stars such as Betty Hutton in Perils of Pauline, Barbara Stanwyck in Maverick Queen, Doris Day in Calamity Jane and Gail Davis in Annie Oakley. . It was the last film producer Joe Pasternak made at MGM.[1]. She is unaware that Sam is the son of circus mogul John Noble, whose ambition is to buy the Wonder Circus for himself. She did all her own stunts, too, which was quite a feat in what is an enormously athletic role. The result is bright and competent enough (and it retains most of the wonderful Rodgers & Hart songs), but ten years earlier the Arthur Freed Unit would have sharpened up the book, included a lot more dancing and had a superior leading man (Stephen Boyd is a disaster in this movie). . I watched it in the auditorium of my public school in Queens in the 1963 - not in a movie house. The one person she could count on was her son, Terry, who had been adopted by her third husband. He was a good looking hunk, but no singer and had no special charisma to match that of Doris. Jimmy Durante is hilarious and has a lot of effortless charm, and Martha Raye matches him every step of the way. This failure was the only sour note during the spectacular run that Miss Day had at the box-office between 1959-66. I have never been able to understand why it didn't do well at the box office because I really think it is a lovely movie and it seems that Doris likes it too with good cause. In one sequence . by daybyday08 12 May 2008, 16:05, Unread post As a warm, lightweight entertainment it works, but has little more to offer. Throughout the film looks beautiful with lots of colour. "I loved portraying Calamity Jane, who was a rambunctious, pistol-packing prairie girl (I lowered my voice and stuck . And the staging of it is so perfect. There's also a funny clown sequence by all four near the end. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. It's also the ideal word to describe this big-time big-top extravaganza, bursting with laughter and love, song and dance, circus stunts and star power. All of the circus acts were wonderful but I wish I knew which was Doris and which was not. (Although the film eventually made a substantial profit through rentals, DVDs and TV showings, including a $1million deal.). She trusted animals more than she did humans. Rather like his Pop Wonder role in "Jumbo" he married his second wife, Marjorie Little after a 16-year courtship when she was 39 and he was 67. Doris Day was an actress responsible for putting smiles on the faces of many. . I love this film. I absolutely loved it! It does not store any personal data. Im a character actor. . Doris looked great and i really liked the long hair it was a change , she never looked prettier than in Jumbo i think. Portrait of Doris Day for the Paramount Pictures film "The Man Who Knew Too Much," circa 1956 | Photo: Getty Images. Her grandparents were all German immigrants. Less than one year after their marriage, he abandoned his wife. She found him interesting because he looked like a former flame and co-star whom she had loved. All rights reserved. For favourite scenes, the rousing opening and the hilarious scene where Jimmy Durante tries to hide the elephant are personal picks. Her fourth husband was Barry Comden. The usual circus fun: a determinedly old-fashioned big-top opus with animals, parades, high-wire attractions, songs by Rodgers & Hart. But, the stars boost it to a fun, non-stop rollick with elephants, high-wire acts, and clowns. Sam, however, has fallen in love with Kitty and has a guilty conscience about what he has done. I saw it on DVD in widescreen and with a superb 5.1 sound system. Who knew he could sing and dance so well?! She seemingly found a semi-permanent home at Universal, but returned to MGM again in 1962 to film thebig, splashy circus musical, Billy Roses Jumbo. Radiant Doris Day as Kitty Wonder sings beloved Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart tunes and does her own horseback riding tricks in a razzle-dazzle musical based on Billy Rose's original stage . According to a sports columnist known as Jim Murray, Day adored Wills and his talent. 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Unlikely co-star Stephen Boyd, still hot from Ben-Hur, also acquits himself surprisingly well, but then he does get to sing a lilting The Most Beautiful Girl in the World. Doris Day playing with a dog, circa 1950 | Photo: Getty Images. He is trying to lure the elephant off the circus grounds, and is moving very quietly followed by Jumbo, and is being nonchalant while doing this. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. 9/10 Bethany Cox. The song is later reprised by Pop (Jimmy Durante) as he prepares to marry Lulu (Martha Raye) in a comical, but touching bit. Stephen Boyds singing voice was dubbed by Los Angeles studio singer, Jimmy Joyce. ", Doris Day, Terry Melcher, and his wife at Hyatt Regency Hotel in Monterey, California in 1988 | Photo: Getty Images. ", was a show-stopper in 1935. Jane owns a beautiful ranch in New Mexico, where she horse rides, explores on her quad bike and goes fly fishing. I agree with Miss Maxwell. His choreography on Over and Over Again brought back the marvel of his mathematically complex, extravagant musical routines of yore. 6 How much Hay does a horse eat in a month? Bashara, a veterinarian, joined Days employ 20 years ago and soon became her business manager as well as the head of her foundation. It's also the ideal word to describe this big-time big-top extravaganza, bursting with laughter and love, song and dance, circus stunts and star power. They stop and she finishes the song just in time to kiss her lover passionately. The MGM musical circus had left Culver City a few years earlier by the time the studio decided to film this 1930s stage extravaganza. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. All of the circus acts were wonderful but I wish I knew which was Doris and which was not. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. She loved her career, worked with class, elegance and was grounded in acting, music, and dance. But Jumbo was her last true musical. One or two sections drag a bit but in the main this is exceptionally good stuff. The play was adapted from the book written by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, the screenplay here is written by Sidney Sheldon. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Wills later trained as a baseball instructor and worked as a broadcast analyst for the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. Legal Statement. . From the circus scenes to those wonderful musical numbers (My Romance, The Most Beautiful Girl in the World, This Can't Be Love) this just shines. While the cast is bright and likable, and the movie boasts some pretty good production values and circus acts, these things don't raise the movie much from the level of being instantly forgettable. She also had a huge fanbase and enjoyed a successful career. 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