Lady of Burlesque

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Movie
Original title Lady of Burlesque
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1943
length 91 minutes
Rod
Director William A. Wellman
script James Gunn
production Hunt Stromberg
music Arthur Lange
camera Robert De Grasse
occupation

Lady of Burlesque is a US-American literary film adaptation by William A. Wellman from 1943. It is based on the novel G-String Murders by burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee from 1941.

action

In the Old Opera House in New York, the young Dixie Daisy is the new star of the show, with the entire ensemble of burlesque dancers falling out. The glamorous Lolita La Verne in particular, who always has a photo of her mother on her dressing table, is causing controversy. Dixie, on the other hand, has problems not only with women, but also with men. Comedian Biff Brannigan, with whom she appears as a duo, is in love with her, but she regularly rejects him. During one of their appearances, the police raided the building. The lights go out and Dixie is strangled backstage by an unknown person until she passes out. Nobody knows who the perpetrator was and who the attempted murder was actually aimed at. It's not just the dancers and employees of the house that are suspect. Lolita's brutal friend Louie could also be an offender, as he treats Lolita badly and is furiously jealous of her stage partner Russell Rogers. Even the old “Stacchi” Stacciaro doesn't particularly like burlesque and mourns the time when the Alte Oper was still an opera. Dixie suspects that the perpetrator is aiming to close the opera house.

Shortly thereafter, Dixie meets the former star of the show, who only calls herself Princess Nirvena. She uses an artificial accent and it is rumored among the dancers that Nirvena once performed in Toledo. Nirvena rejects the allegation. When Dixie performs, Lolita and Louie argue so loudly behind the stage that Dixie, Bill and others have to improvise a song on stage. Shortly afterwards, Dixie finds Lolita dead in the cloakroom. She was apparently strangled with her own thong . Before Inspector Harrigan can investigate the murder, however, the item of clothing has disappeared. During interrogation, the innocent Bill finds it in his jacket pocket. Others are also suspicious: Dixie because she was alone when she found Lolita, Louie because he had an argument with her, Rogers because he was her lover, and the dancer Dolly Baxter because she is married to Russell. Harrigan eventually reveals to the ensemble that Lolita was poisoned before she died of strangulation.

Dixie and Biff get closer, but Dixie doesn't stop the police from arresting him when he secretly tries to dispose of the thong. Meanwhile, Dixie discovers that Lolita's picture of her mother has disappeared from her table. $ 10,000 was withdrawn from Lolita's account and is missing. Rogers, in turn, is now often seen with Nirvena, who is elevated to the new star of the burlesque show. Dixie has had enough and resigns from revue leader SB Foss. Biff is released from prison where he passed the time reading old newspapers. Shortly afterwards, Nirvena is also found strangled. Louie is suspected because the frame from the photo of Lolita's mother was found on him. He shows up in the theater and shoots around. Followed by the police, he plunges himself into the theater and dies. However, he is out of the question as Nirvena's murderer. Rather, it becomes clear that Foss was blackmailed by her because they both had a relationship in Toledo. Foss paid Nirvena well for her silence. Rogers, in turn, got the $ 10,000 from Nirvena, which was suddenly missing from Lolita's account. He says Nirvena gave it to him for the realization of one of his pieces. Rogers admits that he heard that Nirvena poisoned Lolita, as Lolita knew of Nirvena's appearances in Toledo. She did not strangle them, however; Rogers found Lolita only dead, so the strangler must still be active.

The police recommend that the Alte Oper be temporarily closed. Foss agrees, but Dixie suspects that the closure would be exactly in the interests of the killer. She refuses and other dancers join her. Shortly thereafter, Dixie remains alone in the cloakroom when the killer pounces on her and tries to strangle her. The police, led by Biff, are quickly with her and free her. The perpetrator is the old "Stacchi" Stacciaro, who hates the burlesque shows. Biff had read the old newspaper and realized that Lolita's mother was his daughter. He reacted with hatred when he realized that his granddaughter had become a burlesque dancer and killed her when she was already poisoned by Nirvena. Nirvena had to die because she saw him as the culprit.

Stacciaro is arrested. Dixie in turn receives a marriage proposal from Biff, which she gladly accepts.

production

Lady of Burlesque was one of several films in which Barbara Stanwyck and director William A. Wellman worked together, as well as the film debut of leading actor Michael O'Shea. The film was shot from December 1942 to January 1943 under the working title G-String Murders . The costumes are by Natalie Visart , the costumes for Barbara Stanwyck were created by Edith Head . The film constructions came from Joseph B. Platt . Barbara Stanwyck sings the song Take It Off the E-String by Sammy Cahn and Harry Akst in the film . Frank Fenton also has an appearance with the song So This Is You .

The film premiered in New York on May 14, 1943 and was released in US cinemas in May.

criticism

The New York Times criticized that the film was developing at a snail's pace, that the dialogues were incredibly banal and that the killer had exposed himself prematurely. Variety called the film "good entertainment for the masses".

Awards

Lady of Burlesque was nominated for an Oscar in 1944 in the category Best Film Music - Drama / Comedy (Arthur Lange).

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Lady of Burlesque - Original Print Information . tcm.turner.com
  2. ↑ Lady of Burlesque - Notes . tcm.turner.com
  3. ↑ Lady of Burlesque (1943) . nytimes.com, May 14, 1943.
  4. ↑ Review: Lady of Burlesque . variety.com, December 31, 1942.