For the article about the theatre genre, see Summer stock theatre.
| Summer Stock | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Charles Walters |
| Produced by | Joe Pasternak |
| Written by | George Wells (writer), Sy Gromberg (writer and story) |
| Starring | Judy Garland Gene Kelly Gloria DeHaven Marjorie Main Phil Silvers Eddie Bracken |
| Music by | Harry Warren, Mack Gordon, Saul Chaplin, Harold Arlen |
| Cinematography | Robert Planck |
| Editing by | Albert Akst |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | August 31, 1950 |
| Running time | 109 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Summer Stock (known as If You Feel Like Singing in the UK) is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical made in 1950. The film was directed by Charles Walters and stars Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Eddie Bracken, Gloria DeHaven, Marjorie Main, and Phil Silvers. Nicholas Castle Sr was the choreographer.
Judy Garland struggled with many personal problems during filming, and Summer Stock proved to be her last MGM movie and also her last pairing with Gene Kelly onscreen. MGM terminated Garland's contract - by mutual agreement - in September 1950.[1]
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Judy Garland stars as Jane Falbury, a farm owner whose actress sister Abigail, played by Gloria DeHaven, arrives at the family farm with her theater troupe. They need a practice stage, and Jane and her housekeeper Esme (Marjorie Main) reluctantly agree to let them use their barn. The actors and actresses, including the director Joe Ross (Gene Kelly), repay her hospitality by doing chores around the farm. Although Joe is engaged to Abigail, he begins to fall in love with Jane after Abigail leaves him in an angry fit. Similarly, although Jane is engaged to Orville (Eddie Bracken), she falls in love with Joe. The movie ends in a spectacular final show in the barn itself, with the new leading lady, Jane.
All songs were written by Harry Warren (music) and Mack Gordon (lyrics) except where noted. Orchestration chores were divided between Conrad Salinger and Skip Martin. Order of songs per Track listing amazon.com
The filming of this movie was sometimes a struggle for Garland. She was facing many pressures in her personal life, including a heavy reliance on prescription medication.[3][4]
Audiences noticed that in the last number "Get Happy" she appears thinner than in the rest of the film. Before performing the number, she had taken two months off and lost between 15-20 pounds.[3][4][5] Garland finished filming the movie, and embarked on a long promised vacation from the studio. Soon, however, she was called back to star with Fred Astaire in the upcoming film Royal Wedding. Once again, Garland struggled to perform at her absolute best in the face of exhaustion and overwork. She was fired from the film, and her contract with MGM was terminated through mutual agreement.[6][7] Even though Summer Stock took six months to film, it was a box-office success and proved to be a fitting farewell for Garland at M-G-M.
The film's most famous scene is the final song-and-dance number "Get Happy" performed by Judy Garland in a tuxedo jacket, black fedora, and black nylons to an arrangement by Skip Martin. This sequence was choreographed by Charles Walters and filmed two months after the rest of the movie, after Garland sought the help of a hypnotist in Santa Barbara and lost 20 pounds. With the sedative-hypnotic paraldahyde reportedly on her breath, which the number's male dancers described as sickeningly sweet, Garland performed the number perfectly in just a couple of takes, and the rest is history. According to New York Times critic Bosley Crowther: " 'Get Happy' finds Miss Garland looking and performing her best."[5][8][9]
In another notable sequence, Kelly performs a solo dance in a darkened barn, using a newspaper and a creaky board as partners and props; the musical accompaniment reprises "You Wonderful You". The dance "turned out to be one of the breakthrough numbers" of his career.[10]
In the film 'Summer Stock', Garland and Kelly share what may be Garland's best dance duet on screen, the swinging "Portland Fancy" where a square dance turns into a heated challenge dance for the two stars.
The film has been referenced many times, mostly the "Get Happy" sequence. Most notably at the 1993 American Music Awards and the 1995 MTV Video Music Awards (but in every performance of the song), Michael Jackson performed Dangerous, and the beginning of the performance was clearly inspired by the movie. Jackson and his dancers wore suits, and a dancer stood in front of Jackson until the beginning of the song, just like in the movie, in which Judy is covered by a dancer at first. Some excerpts from the song can be heard of Jackson's performance.
Duffy's "Rain on Your Parade" music video was also inspired by that sequence, and Duffy can be seen wearing an outfit similar to Garland's, and dancing against a white background along some male dancers dressed in suits.
Katie Holmes paid homage to Judy Garland, performing "Get Happy" on the television show So You Think You Can Dance. She wore a similar outfit and danced alongside male dancers in suits in front of a match-painted background.
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