Oh, Marieta!

One of the first concerts I ever attended was an appearance of Nelson Eddy singing on the stage of the Troy Music Hall in Troy, New York, my hometown. My older sister was a violinist, and took me to hear him, a fine baritone, wanting to introduce me to classical music for the first time. He had a very appealing voice, as he was a handsome man. His parts were important, for they reflect music and styles of eras of the early twentieth century before and after films. Nelson 2003 is now history, having been a fabulous week-long festival of films, music, lectures, friendship, fun (and glorious food) at the historic Riverside Inn in beautiful Cambridge Springs, PA. Plans are already underway for June 2007. For details, contact Dr. John Marsh (jmarsh1@san.rr.com) after January 1, 2007 for exact dates, convention theme, and a hint about guests and activities. You are also invited to attend the dedication of Nelson Eddy Street at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, California. The ceremony will begin at noon in the chapel and conclude with the unveiling of the street sign. There will be entertainment and refreshments. It is hoped that many who knew and heard Nelson, and were important in his life will be able to come.

Only a few of the other comments mention the dialogue of this movie, which I think is superb! The verbal sparring between Marietta and Captain Warrington is a delightful contrast to their soul-mated singing and elevates this film above other musicals of the era. One always suspends disbelief when viewing any film, of any era (come on, you don't think modern films are really "real", do you?), and it may be difficult for some to enter into the mindset of a '30s moviegoer, but with not too much effort even those who say they don't like this type of film, or these actors, or whatever, can find something to enjoy in this film. (Just call it a fantasy, without special effects.) Some of the opening scenes are almost embarrassingly silly, but quite soon the movie hits its stride and the music, humor, and sweep of the story carry you along. As an untrained actor in his first real role (singing cameos don't count), Nelson Eddy does quite well, thank you; I am inclined to think that the oft-repeated comment about his "wooden" acting style may owe more to L. B. Mayer's jealousy (remember what he did to John Gilbert?) than to a true assessment of his skill (which, admittedly, did improve over time). Mayer wanted MacDonald for himself and the obvious attraction between Eddy and MacDonald, coupled with her stinging rebuffs of Mayer's advances, made him no good friend of "the baritone". (Bear in mind, too, that Eddy was not interested in being an actor; he used film to advance his concert career.) I think this is a grand film, almost my favorite of the duos' work. "Maytime" has an edge because I had the good fortune to see it on the big screen when it was re-released in 1962, and I've only seen the others on television. The music in "New Moon" is glorious, and Nelson and Jeanette seem to be having such fun together in "Sweethearts".... All I can say is, if you have the opportunity to see MacDonald/Eddy films on the big screen at a film festival or revival theatre, don't pass it by!

This is just a flat out good movie! Maybe I should say a GREAT movie. Although I've been a fan over the past few decades of many films and performers of the 1930s--including the amazing dancing team of (who else?) Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers--until yesterday I'd never seen a film featuring Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald. Then, by chance a couple of weeks ago, I heard some singing by Eddy and started checking his and Jeanette's work on Youtube.

This led me to many scenes and songs on good old Youtube. The singing was, well, fabulous, and the chemistry between the stars was kinetic, but I figured that, outside of the songs themselves, the movies would probably be syrupy sweet and impossibly dated. That seemed to be the buzz, and otherwise, why weren't they more popular with today's audiences. Still, I had to see a whole film after those tantalizing Youtube scenes.

Still, actually finding their films isn't all that easy. There is nothing much on Netflix and few videos of any kind seem to be currently in print. Still, I managed to track down and buy a DVD of 'Naughty Marietta' from an independent outlet--and was amazed at how good it was, and not just the songs!

It has a compelling plot, a whole variety of settings going up and down the social ladder from posh Louis XV Paris to the bayous of the rugged Louisiana frontier. It also features some appealing comic moments from MGM's team of crack character actors. Frank Morgan (later the man behind the curtain in the Wizard of Oz) particularly stands out as the likably incompetent governor of French colonial New Orleans.

And even in their non-singing scenes, the chemistry between the two stars remains electric. I somehow hadn't realized, at least until my Youtube explorations, that Jeanette MacDonald was drop-dead gorgeous--but she was. She also had a great deal of vivacity and charm-- and, boy, could she sing. Eddy's acting has been criticized, and maybe he didn't have tremendous emotional range, but he does have a real presence on the screen along with that electric connection with Jeanette. And when he sings, his voice acts for him! Moreover, as a singer, he's even better than Jeanette.

All in all, the effect is remarkable and one can see why these movies were so immensely popular in their own time. Moreover, overall, I'd rate the non-musical elements of Naughty Marietta (plot, dialog, characterization, acting, setting, thematic development) as superior to most or all of the non-musical moments of Astaire-Rogers, although their movies are, of course, far better known today. In Astaire-Rogers one is often wishing they'll get through this silly scene of dialog and get to the next dance, but that doesn't happen in Naughty Marietta, where the songs seem to grow organically out of the intriguing dramatic situations.

I'm going to track down more films in the Eddy-MacDonald series. This one certainly far exceeded my expectations!

Naughty Marietta has earned it place in film history for being the first film to pair the singing duo of Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald, but it's also a fine example of its particular genre.

A typical variant on the boy-meets-girl theme, this film has a French princess running away from the court of Versailles to the newly- colonized Louisiana, where she meets and falls in love with a mercenary soldier who sings as well he fights. There is an excellent supporting cast including Frank Morgan and Elsa Lanchester, but it is above all a vehicle for the singing talent of Eddy and MacDonald. The script is amusing and at times quite sophisticated and the pair handle it well (MacDonald is a bit ahead of Eddy here, but he makes up for that with his glorious baritone voice). The final duet, Ah Sweet Mystery of Life is one of the great vocal duets in cinema musical history, and only slightly less orgasmic than the "Czaritza" duet in Maytime.

Obviously a vehicle for fans of the Singing Sweethearts, but the film's production values are good, and it should be interesting viewing for any student of cinema's Golden Age.

Jeannette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy had their first teaming in the musical "Naughty Marietta" in 1935. They went on to make "The New Moon," "I Married an Angel," my favorite, "Maytime," and many others. Both performers were operatically trained, Eddy possessing a magnificent high baritone, and MacDonald a coloratura soprano. If her high notes don't have frontal placement and seem to back off, it's still a pretty voice, and of the two, she was the actor as well as being a great beauty.

Though the film uses the Victor Herbert score, it differs in plot from the actual musical. Here, a princess ordered to marry one Don Carlo replaces her maid, Marietta, on a ship that carries women to New Orleans to look for a husband. Right before they arrive, pirates attack the ship and the women are rescued by mercenaries, headed by Richard Worthington (Eddy). With her beauty and obvious education, Marietta sticks out and begins a love-hate relationship with the vain Worthington. Soon, however, a messenger arrives - the King is looking for his escaped princess.

The couple sing "Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life," while Eddy leads his men in "Tramp, tramp, tramp," and MacDonald entertains with the "Italian Street Song," and "Chansonette" among other solos that each has.

This isn't the greatest MacDonald-Eddy musical, but it was a huge hit and started them off on their partnership. Were they in love in real life? Supposedly they were and never got together because Eddy wouldn't have wanted her to work. But take a look at Gene Raymond. He kind of looks like Nelson Eddy.