Hollywood Nelson Eddy

eddy discovered hollywood when substituted @ last minute noted diva, lotte lehmann, @ sold-out concert in los angeles on february 28, 1933. scored professional triumph 18 curtain calls, , several film offers followed. after agonizing, decided being seen on screen might boost audiences considered real work , concerts. (also, machinist father, fascinated gadgets , mechanics of new talking pictures.) eddy s concert fee rose $500 $10,000 per performance.

eddy , macdonald trailer sweethearts (1938): pair acted in 8 films together.

eddy signed metro-goldwyn-mayer (mgm), made first 15 of 19 feature films. contract guaranteed him 3 months off each year continue concert tours. mgm not sure how use him, , spent more year on salary little do. voice can heard singing daisy bell on soundtrack of 1933 pete smith short, handlebars. appeared , sang 1 song each in broadway hollywood , dancing lady, both in 1933, , student tour in 1934. audience response favorable, , cast male lead opposite established star jeanette macdonald in film version of victor herbert s 1910 operetta naughty marietta.

naughty marietta surprise hit of 1935. key song, ah! sweet mystery of life , became hit , earned eddy first gold record. sang tramp, tramp, tramp , m falling in love . film nominated oscar best picture, received photoplay gold medal award best picture, , voted 1 of ten best pictures of 1935 new york film critics. critics singled out eddy praise:

new star emerged on capitol screen.  — new york daily news.
screen has found thrilling thrush, possessed not of rare vocal tone, of personality , form , features cast in heroic mould. - new york american.
eddy brilliant baritone, masculine, engaging , looking. - richard watts, jr., in new york herald.

eddy appeared in 7 more mgm films jeanette macdonald:

rose marie, 1936, most-remembered film. eddy sang song of mounties , indian love call rudolf friml. definitive portrayal of steadfast mountie became popular icon, spoofed in cartoons , tv skits, , generating travesties on stage (little mary sunshine, 1959) , film (dudley do-right, 1999). when mounties retired classic red jackets , campaign hats in 1970, except ceremonial attire, hundreds of newspapers accompanied story photo of nelson eddy sgt. bruce in rose marie, made 34 years earlier.
maytime, 1937, regarded 1 of eddy s best films. remember sigmund romberg brought eddy gold record. new york times wrote film [was] entrancing operetta screen has given us.... [i]t affirms nelson eddy s preeminence among baritones of filmdom .
the girl of golden west (1938) had original score sigmund romberg , reused david belasco stage plot employed giacomo puccini la fanciulla del west.


new moon (1940)



sweethearts, 1938, mgm s first three-strip technicolor feature, incorporating victor herbert s 1913 stage score modern script dorothy parker. won photoplay gold medal award best picture of year.
new moon, 1940, based on romberg s 1927 broadway hit, became 1 of eddy s popular films, although in 1978 included in book fifty worst films of time. key songs lover, come me , softly in morning sunrise , wanting , , stout hearted men .
bitter sweet, 1940, technicolor film version of noël coward s 1929 operetta. love theme ll see again. eddy played viennese singing teacher elopes pretty english pupil , takes live in vienna.
i married angel, 1942, adapted rodgers , hart stage musical angel loses wings on wedding night, suffered censorship problems. eddy sang spring here , title song.

nelson eddy starred in films other leading ladies:

rosalie, 1937, eleanor powell, offered score cole porter. in first solo-starring film, script called eddy portray football-playing west point pilot pursues princess-in-disguise europe. eddy recorded title song.
let freedom ring, 1939, virginia bruce, western. eddy got beat rugged oscar winner victor mclaglen , preserve freedom , american way bad guys, popular theme before world war ii.
balalaika, 1939, ilona massey, based on 1936 english operetta george posford , bernard grün. eddy prince in disguise, in love commoner during russian revolution. title song became 1 of standards.
the chocolate soldier, 1941, metropolitan opera star risë stevens, stylish musical adaptation of ferenc molnár s guardsman. eddy played dual role , turned in 1 of best performances.
phantom of opera, 1943, eddy s first film after left mgm @ end of seven-year contract. lavish technicolor musical starred claude rains phantom , susanna foster christine.
knickerbocker holiday, 1944, based on popular stage musical kurt weill , maxwell anderson. co-starred charles coburn (singing classic september song ) , constance dowling.
make mine music, 1946, walt disney animated feature compilation. eddy provided singing , speaking voices touching final segment, whale wanted sing @ met, later released short, willie, operatic whale, rko in 1954. using technique based on technical experiments home recording equipment, eddy able sing sextets himself on soundtrack, providing voices bass soprano.
northwest outpost, 1947, co-starred ilona massey. rudolf friml provided songs story of fort ross, russian settlement in wild west of california. made @ republic studios , turned out eddy s final film.

after eddy , macdonald left mgm in 1942, several unrealized films remained have reunited team. eddy signed universal in 1943 two-picture deal. first phantom of opera , second have co-starred macdonald. filmed 2 scenes follow boys, both stars severed ties universal, eddy upset how phantom of opera turned out.

among later other proposed projects east wind; crescent carnival, book optioned macdonald; , rosary, 1910 best-seller, eddy had read teen , pitched mgm comeback film macdonald , himself in 1948. under name isaac ackerman wrote biopic screenplay chaliapin, in play lead , young nelson eddy, never produced. wrote 2 movie treatments macdonald , himself, timothy waits love , stars don t spangle.