The Merry Widow (films)

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For the operetta on which the films are based, see The Merry Widow

There have been three major film versions of The Merry Widow, all in English, and all produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. None of the three film versions use the same plot, although all three use the Lehár score. The 1925 version however, is a silent film, so the songs, quite naturally, are never sung. The two sound versions each use a different set of lyrics. The 1934 version features lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and the 1952 one has lyrics by Paul Francis Webster.

• The 1925 version starred Mae Murray and John Gilbert, and was directed by Erich von Stroheim. It was notable for introducing the subject of foot fetishism into the quite innocent original operetta.

• The 1934 version is one of the most famous and successful film musicals of all time. It stars Jeanette MacDonald and Maurice Chevalier, and was directed by Ernst Lubitsch in his usual sophisticated style. All three had been brought over from Paramount especially for the film, which, despite the Hays Code that had just gone into effect, was full of Lubitsch's usual double entendres.

• The 1952 film version was made in Technicolor and was a notable failure both critically and financially. It starred Lana Turner (whose singing voice was dubbed by Trudy Erwin) and Fernando Lamas, who not only did most of the singing, but was even given the song "Vilja". This was the only version of the operetta, on stage or screen, to make the widow an American showgirl.

[edit] External links

• The Merry Widow—1925 film at IMDb
• The Merry Widow—1934 film at IMDb
• The Merry Widow—1952 film at IMDb