With her gangster boyfriend under investigation by the police, a nightclub singer hides out in a musical research institution staffed by bachelor professors - one of whom begins to fall for ... Read allWith her gangster boyfriend under investigation by the police, a nightclub singer hides out in a musical research institution staffed by bachelor professors - one of whom begins to fall for her.With her gangster boyfriend under investigation by the police, a nightclub singer hides out in a musical research institution staffed by bachelor professors - one of whom begins to fall for her.
- Bubbles
- (as John William Sublett)
- The Page Cavanaugh Trio
- (as The Page Cavanaugh Trio)
- The Golden Gate Quartette
- (as The Golden Gate Quartet)
- The Samba Kings
- (as Russo and The Samba Kings)
- Professor Traumer
- (as Ludwig Stossel)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDanny Kaye's wife, Sylvia Fine, was also his personal composer/writer. However, Fine refused to take part in any more of Kaye's projects because he had recently left her for actress Eve Arden. Kaye did not want anyone else writing songs for him, so he simply did not perform any songs in this movie.
- GoofsWhilst at the resort, with everyone sitting around the table, the candles are different lengths depending on the angle of the shot.
- Quotes
Honey Swanson: [about Frisbee] Yes, I love him. I love those hick shirts he wears with the boiled collars and the way he always has his coat buttoned wrong. It looks like a giraffe, and I love him. I love him because he's the sort of a guy that gets drunk on a glass of buttermilk. And I love the way he blushes right up over his ears. I love him because he... he doesn't know how to kiss, the jerk.
- Alternate versionsThere is an Italian edition of this film on DVD, distributed by DNA Srl, re-edited with the contribution of film historian Riccardo Cusin. This version is also available for streaming on some platforms.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues (2022)
- SoundtracksA Song Is Born
(1948)
Words and Music by Don Raye and Gene de Paul
Orchestrations by Sonny Burke
Sung by Virginia Mayo (uncredited) (dubbed by Jeri Sullavan (uncredited))
Sung and played by Louis Armstrong (uncredited)
Played by Tommy Dorsey (uncredited)
Sung by The Golden Gate Quartette (uncredited)
Danny Kaye, Virginia Mayo and Steve Cochran are reunited yet again after appearing together in 1945's 'Wonder Man' and 1946's 'The Kid from Brooklyn' and this was the fourth and final pairing of Kaye and Mayo, (the other being 1947's 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty). However, Kaye is no Gary Cooper, Mayo is no Barbara Stanwyck and Cochran is no Dana Andrews.
The main screenplay for the most part remains unaltered and is basically a word for word copy, except of course in this movie the professors are writing a musical Encyclopedia and not one on general knowledge so these aspects have been changed to fit this change.
Sadly this version lacks the spark that made the original so great and instead of a ball of fire, we get a hot water bottle at best.
However, we are treated to some great 1940's swing, big band and Jazz talent in the form of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Louis Armstrong, Mel Powell, Charlie Barnet and Lionel Hampton, all masters of their craft and it's these musical interludes that are the ONLY reasons to watch this instead of the 1941 version as they are brilliant and fun to watch and will have your toes a'tappin.
Mayo's singing voice was dubbed by the ultra talented, yet sadly uncredited Jeni Sullavan and some Sullavan's other vocal recordings are well worth checking out.
However, Kaye doesn't have a single song in the movie, which is sad given that comedy songs and zany musical numbers were his main stock in trade. This was because he had recently split from his wife Sylvia Fine who was also the composer of all of his songs and she refused to write write for him and he didn't want anyone else composing for him. Thankfully, the split was only temporary and they reconciled soon after.
Howard Hawks who had directed the original returns to direct here, but he found this version difficult and disliked the finish product. Mary Field is the only returning performer from 'Ball of Fire' as the socialite Miss Totten , the same role she had played seven years before.
Not a bad film, but If you're in it for the plot and plot alone, watch the original. However, if you have a penchant for 1940's jazz and swing music, then give this one a try, those parts will give you a thrill at least even if nothing else does.
Enjoy!
- MartynGryphon
- Feb 2, 2024
- How long is A Song Is Born?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- That's Life
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,400,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 53 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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![Danny Kaye, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Barnet, Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton, Virginia Mayo, and Mel Powell in A Song Is Born (1948)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTk0ZTk5ZGYtNzk5Ni00ZjYwLWEzZGItNDAyODQ1N2JhMjY2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjc1NTYyMjg@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,1,90,133_.jpg)