Second hand angel
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | Second hand angel |
| Original title | The Shopworn Angel |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1938 |
| length | 85 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | HC Potter |
| script | Waldo Salt |
| production | Joseph L. Mankiewicz |
| music | Edward Ward |
| camera | Joseph Ruttenberg |
| cut | W. Donn Hayes |
| occupation | |
| |
Second-hand angel (Original title: The Shopworn Angel ) is an American film drama from 1938. The short story Pettigrew's Girl (1918) by Dana Burnet served as a literary model .
action
On April 6, 1917, enter the United States in the First World War one. Young men are being recruited as soldiers across the country, including Bill Pettigrew from Texas , who arrives with other recruits in New York and sees a skyscraper there for the first time. When he was alone in the city in the evening, he was hit by a car. In it is musical star Daisy Heath, who is to take him to his camp on the instructions of a police officer. Once there, Bill pretends to be his girlfriend in front of his comrades. Because they don't believe him that he really knows Daisy, his comrades insist that Bill introduce Daisy to them after one of their stage shows. To Bill's surprise, Daisy agrees to play his girlfriend. In a milk bar he confesses to her that he was forced to declare her his girlfriend because all the other recruits have a girlfriend and they would have raised him otherwise. Back at her hotel, Daisy finds her manager Sam Bailey and other theater people in her room, happily partying.
The next morning Daisy has a hangover. Sam, who is worried about Daisy because she is feeling increasingly dull and bored, pays her a visit as always. Bill, who fell head over heels in love with Daisy, also comes by with flowers and chocolates. He asks how she is and is happy when Daisy gives him a photo of herself. After Daisy has made an acclaimed appearance at the soldiers' camp, Bill watches her at the back exit. With his innocent manner he can persuade Daisy to show him New York the next day. Together they visit an amusement park on Coney Island and Daisy returns to her hotel beaming with joy, where Sam is already waiting impatiently for her. When Sam is jealous, Daisy assures him there is no need to do so and gives him a kiss.
When Bill learns that he has to move to the front in France in a few hours , he leaves the camp without permission and rushes to Daisy's hotel. However, Daisy is not there. She spends the day with Sam in the country. Bill waits for Daisy's return in front of her theater. When she arrives there, he asks her to spend the last few hours he is still in New York together. Daisy lets him off at first, but then decides to go with him. While dancing in a beer garden, he confesses his love to her. When a rain shower sets in, they rush to Daisy's hotel, where Bill asks them to marry him before he leaves. When Sam arrives and he is jealous again, Daisy tries to explain to him in private how much it means to Bill if she marries him and he could go to war with a fond memory. Sam finally gives in and leaves the hotel disappointed. Daisy, on the other hand, who really loves Sam, retires crying to her bedroom. In the camp chapel, Bill and Daisy are finally married. Unexpectedly, Sam arrives and congratulates the new groom, who immediately has to say goodbye to Daisy with a kiss and is shipped to France. At the front he writes Daisy a letter every day. One day, however, a letter from the government arrives. Daisy's housemaid Martha receives him and suspects what is in the letter. She rushes to a club where Daisy is performing and gives Sam the letter. When he opens it, Daisy sees Bill's dog tag and stops singing. At Sam's encouragement, she continues to sing with tears in her eyes.
background
Paramount Pictures filmed Dana Burnet's original in 1919 and 1928 . The 1928 version was directed by Richard Wallace and was hugely successful at the box office. The main roles were played by Gary Cooper and Nancy Carroll . In the mid-1930s, MGM acquired the filming rights from Paramount for a remake with Jean Harlow , who died in 1937. Joan Crawford and Rosalind Russell were then discussed for the female lead, which was ultimately Margaret Sullavan . Melvyn Douglas, in turn, was originally intended for Walter Pidgeon's role. Richard Thorpe and then Julien Duvivier would direct the film . In the end, they decided on HC Potter , who was under contract with Samuel Goldwyn .
In order to comply with the censorship, the so-called Production Code , the characters had to be partially rewritten. Sullavan's role went from being a serene revue dancer to a bored musical star. Pidgeon's role, a gangster, was quickly turned into a manager. Also, the love affair between Sullavans and Stewart's characters could only be portrayed in a chaste manner. The shooting took place from March 28 to May 6, 1938. In her two vocal interludes to the song Pack Up Your Troubles In Your Old Kit Bag and Smile, Smile, Smile! Sullavan was dubbed by Broadway singer Mary Martin . Cedric Gibbons designed the film structures , Adrian designed the costumes .
The film was released in US cinemas on July 15, 1938. The reviews were mixed, but Engel secondhand turned out to be a huge hit at the box office. In Germany, the film was shown for the first time on March 6, 1988 by ARD on television. In the synchronization created for this , James Stewart was spoken by Sigmar Solbach .
Reviews
For the lexicon of international films , second-hand angel was a “balancing act between comedy and emotion, naivety and calculation”. “Romantic heartwarmers with a dream couple,” said Cinema . The film critic Leonard Maltin noted that "Stewart and Sullavan always make a beautiful couple, even in this rather shallow drama".
Web links
- Angels second hand in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Angels second hand at Turner Classic Movies (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Louella Parsons : Joan Crawford Steps Out of 'Shopworn Angel' . In: Schenectady Gazette , March 1, 1938.
- ↑ a b c cf. Frank Miller on tcm.com
- ↑ cf. Notes on tcm.com
- ↑ Second-hand angel. In: synchronkartei.de. German synchronous index , accessed on October 29, 2019 .
- ↑ Second-hand angel. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed October 29, 2019 .
- ↑ cf. cinema.de
- ↑ "Stewart and Sullavan are always a fine pair, even in this fairly routine soaper." Leonard Maltin: Leonard Maltin's 2001 Movie & Video Guide . Signet, 2000, p. 1260.