Singin' in the Rain (1952) : Classic Movie Hub (CMH)

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Singin' in the Rain (1952)
Director(s)	Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly
Producer(s)	Arthur Freed, Roger Edens (associate uncredited)
Top Genres	Comedy, Musical, Romance
Top Topics	Dance, Fame, Romance (Comic), Show Business

Featured Cast:

See Full Cast

Donald O'Connor
(as Cosmo Brown)

Debbie Reynolds
(as Kathy Selden)

Singin' in the Rain Overview:

Singin' in the Rain (1952) was a Comedy - Musical Film directed by Stanley Donen and Gene Kelly and produced by Arthur Freed and Roger Edens.

SYNOPSIS

Perhaps the finest screen musical of all time is a particular treat for classic movie fans as it portrays the frantic period when Hollywood's pictures learned to talk. But this is no dry history lesson: it moves with a nimble grace through flashbacks and a romantic storyline while featuring a selection of the best Freed-Brown numbers from MGM's musicals of the preceding two decades. The silver-screen characters from the late '20s include matinee-idol Kelly and his silent diva leading lady Hagen, whose voice ensures that she won't make the transition to sound, and fresh-faced Reynolds as an aspiring actress and singer who wins Kelly's heart with her voice and good nature. The justly famous numbers include Charisse's slinky "Broadway Ballet" and, of course, Kelly's exuberant stomp through the title song. Other musical numbers include: "You Were Meant for Me," "Make 'Em Laugh," "You Are My Lucky Star," and "All I Do Is Dream of You."

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

Singin' in the Rain was inducted into the National Film Registry in 1989.

Academy Awards 1952 --- Ceremony Number 25 (source: AMPAS)

Award	Recipient	Result
Best Supporting Actress	Jean Hagen	Nominated
Best Music - Scoring	Lennie Hayton	Nominated

BlogHub Articles:

1001 Classic Movies: Singin' in the Rain

By Amanda Garrett on Jan 9, 2017 From Old Hollywood Films

Singin' in the Rain (1952), starring Debbie Reynolds and Gene Kelly, is one of the 1001 classic movies you should see. Each Monday, I'm going to recommend a classic movie you should see (for the reasons behind the 1001 series and reviews of earlier films covered go here). January's theme is movie... Read full article

HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD: SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)

By FlickChick on Aug 2, 2014 From A Person in the Dark

Since my slavish devotion to Lina Lamont is well known to anyone who might have stumbled by here in the past, I simply had to include Singin’ in the Rain as part of the Hooray for Hollywood series. I can’t help viewing this film as a musical counterpoint to Sunset Boulevard; sort of... Read full article

CMBA Blogathon: Fabulous Films Of the 50s: Singin' In the Rain

By Vanessa Buttino on May 19, 2014 From Stardust

CMBA Blogathon: Fabulous Films Of the 50s: Singin' In the Rain Believe it or not, this is now the FOURTH time I've had to re-start this blog post. Singin' In the Rain is one of my all-time favourite classic films and yet I can't seem to put pen to paper - or in this case, fingers to keys -... Read full article

HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD: SINGIN' IN THE RAIN

By FlickChick on Jan 22, 2014 From A Person in the Dark

2014 is the year A Person in the Dark celebrates films about my favorite place - Hollywood! Singin' in the Rain When "Singin' in the Rain" was released in 1952, silent films had been a thing of the past for only 24 years or so. Probably more than half of those in the audience remembered them... Read full article

CMBA Film Passion 101 Blogathon: "Singin' in the Rain"

By David on Dec 3, 2013 From The Man on the Flying Trapeze

I was 10 years old when I remember seeing Gene Kelly for the first time, and I was not impressed. It was 1967, and Kelly was the star of a musical TV version of "Jack and the Beanstalk," and he was just so ... so ...smarmy. I felt like he was talking down to me, and I was 10! Besides, I was much ... Read full article

See all Singin' in the Rain articles

Quotes from

Don Lockwood: Ladies and gentlemen, stop that girl, that girl running up the aisle. Stop her! That's the girl whose voice you heard and loved tonight. She's the real star of the picture. Kathy Selden!
[theater audience applauds and cheers]
Don Lockwood: Kathy...
[Don and Kathy sing "You Are My Lucky Star"]

Don Lockwood: I'm no actor. I never was. Just a bunch of dumb show. I know that now.
Cosmo Brown: Well, at least you're taking it lying down.
Don Lockwood: No. No kidding, Cosmo. Did you ever see anything as ridiculous as me on that screen tonight?
Kathy: Yeah, how about Lina?
Don Lockwood: All right. I ran her a close second. Maybe it was a photo finish. I'm through, fellas.
Kathy: Don, you're not through!
Cosmo Brown: Why of course not. Why, with your looks and figure, you could drive an ice wagon or shine shoes!
Kathy: Block hats!
Cosmo Brown: Sell pencils!
Kathy: Dig ditches!
Cosmo Brown: Or worse still, go back to vaudeville.

Don Lockwood: What's your lofty mission in life that lets you sneer at my humble profession?
Kathy Selden: I'm an actress...
Don Lockwood: Oh...
Kathy: ...on the stage.
Don Lockwood: Oh, on the stage, well I'd like to see you act, what are you in right now? I could brush up on my English, or bring along an interpreter, that is if they'd let in a *movie* actor.
Kathy Selden: I'm not in a play right now, but I will be. I'm going to New York...
Don Lockwood: Oh, you're going to New York and then some day we'll all hear of you, won't we? Kathy Selden as Juliet, as Lady Macbeth, as King Lear. You'll have to wear a beard for that one of course.
Kathy Selden: Laugh all you want, but at least the stage is a dignified profession.
Don Lockwood: [scoffing] Dignified profession.
Kathy: What do you have to be so conceited about? You're nothing but a shadow on film... just a shadow. You're not flesh and blood.
Don Lockwood: Oh, no?
[moves amorously towards her]
Kathy: Stop!
Don Lockwood: What can I do to you, I'm only a shadow.

Facts about

Originally, Kathy was to sing "You Are My Lucky Star" to a billboard of Don Lockwood after he sang to her in the studio, by way of dramatizing that she was the president of the Don Lockwood Fan Club. The number, sung by Debbie Reynolds and chorus, is restored as an extra on the DVD issued by Warner Home Video. The prerecording can be heard on Rhino's soundtrack CD. Closing the movie is the "billboard duet" of this song by Miss Reynolds and Gene Kelly with a chorus.

Cyd Charisse had to be taught how to smoke for her vampy dance sequence.

The role of the ditzy movie diva Lina Lamont was written with Judy Holliday in mind. Holliday was a close friend of Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and they even modeled the character on routines they had worked up with Holliday back when they were part of a satirical group called The Revuers in New York. Timing was everything, however, and the idea of casting Holliday was vetoed after she hit it big in Born Yesterday. Everyone figured she'd be uninterested in the supporting part but, as it turned out, the lovely Jean Hagen, Holliday's understudy on Broadway for "Born Yesterday", got the part.

Featured Cast: See Full Cast

Gene Kelly(as Don Lockwood)

Donald O'Connor(as Cosmo Brown)

Debbie Reynolds(as Kathy Selden)