Centennial Summer

Although Centennial Summer did not approach the success that MGM's Meet Me In St. Louis either artistically or financially, the film still has a lot to recommend it. It may be the only musical in history done with mostly non-musical performers with leads Linda Darnell and Jeanne Crain dubbed by other singers.

Darnell and Crain are sisters and daughters of Walter Brennan and Dorothy Gish who are just like the family in Meet Me In St. Louis with the problems that your average middle class families in the Centennial year of 1876 had. They're all looking forward to the Centennial World's Fair of that year.

Some complications get thrown into the mix when prim and proper Dorothy Gish gets a visit from Constance Bennett who is quite the jet setter in those days before jets and flying were accomplished facts. She's in from Paris and she's bringing with her a nephew by marriage played by Cornel Wilde. Wilde uses the same French accent he did in The Greatest Show On Earth and Sword Of Lancelot and he gets both the sisters romantic motors running. In the meantime earnest young William Eythe going into a new medical field of obstetrics is hanging around hoping to pick someone up on the rebound, but he's hoping it's Crain.

Centennial Summer is known for the fact that it was Jerome Kern's last musical project and it was released the year after Kern died. He used three different lyricists for the various songs, Oscar Hammerstein, II, E.Y. Harburg, and Leo Robin. All Through The Day with lyrics by Hammerstein got an Oscar nomination for best song as did Alfred Newman's overall musical scoring. The song which obviously the studio thought would be the big hit was entrusted to a real singer Larry Stevens and introduced in a musical hall sequence.

I'm not sure what Darryl F. Zanuck was thinking in not casting the already proved Dolly Sister team of Betty Grable and June Haver in the leads. The film might have been better if he had.

Still for those like myself who love the music of Jerome Kern, Centennial Summer is a must see film.

If remembered at all, "Centennial Summer" is generally dismissed as 20th-Century-Fox's failed attempt to copy "Meet Me in St. Louis."

I'd like to set the record straight, and urge Fox to release this neglected treasure on VHS, DVD, cable-TV, whatever, so today's movie-lovers can savor one of the most endearing, original, lovingly crafted musicals ever made.

This lavish Technicolored production is indeed a visual knockout, but what truly matters is so much more than its dazzling visuals. Set against the 1876 Philadelphia Exposition, this exquisitely designed valentine to a bygone era focuses on a suburban middle-class family's troubles and turmoils, highlighted by Jerome Kern's final (and one of his finest) scores.

Jeanne Crain and Linda Darnell are the daughters of railroad/laborer aspiring/inventor Walter Brennan and his understanding wife, the lovely Dorothy Gish in one of her rare film appearances. Their humdrum lives are sparked by the arrival of a glamorous Parisian relative (the dazzling Constance Bennett)and a dashing young French man (Cornel Wilde) in charge of setting up his country's exhibition at the Centennial.

That's the plot, and it's a more-than-sufficient frame for a charming, low-keyed, often surprisingly moving dramatization of a family in crisis. Ms. Crain & Ms. Darnell are heartbreakingly beautiful as the sibling rivals in romance; Otto Preminger's direction is subtle and refreshingly modest; and though none of Kern's songs became hits, the underrated score includes some of the loveliest ballads ever written--Listen closely to the melodic "The Right Romance," "In Love in Vain" and "All Through the Day." "Up with the Lark" is as captivating, tuneful, brilliantly photographed and sung a showstopper as one could wish for. And the rousing "Railroad Song," plus an unexpected diversion "Cinderella Sue" (performed by Avon Long and several black children, sans one iota of the racial condescension typical of films of its era) are two more rousing highlights.

The cast is uniformly superb (Ms. Crain's plaintive beauty and heartfelt sincerity set the screen aglow; William Eythe, a talented, appealing actor whose life and career were tragically short, adds a special poignancy as Ms. Darnell's spurned suitor), the production design exquisite, and the screenplay (based on a long-forgotten novel) will touch you in ways you wouldn't expect from a movie musical.

"Centennial Summer" deserves stature as one of the finest musicals of all time. That few people have even heard of it, much less seen it, is sad indeed. It deserves to be revived, re-evaluated and cherished for the work of art it most certainly is.

This was the film that introduced me to the world of classic movies. Jeanne Crain has since been one of my all-time favorite actresses.

This is a great musical and represents Jerome Kern's last creative effort before his untimely death. It's set around the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. When the Rodgers family receives a visit from their Aunt Zenia who is accompanied by Philippe (a dashing Frenchman who arrives to set up the French Pavilion for the Centennial), the excitement of the exposition is heightened. Edith decides to forget her engagement to Ben, in order to pursue Philippe, but Philippe actually has eyes for Julia. When Edith tells Philippe that it is Julia who is actually engaged to Ben, he loses hope. Julia and Ben then play out a make-believe romance to make Philippe jealous and bring Edith back to Ben.

All the while, the Rodgers mother is having troubles of her own...keeping her husband out of the romantic whirl of Zenia's man collection.

A fun, romantic, musical-comedy, with gorgeous costumes and a nice soundtrack. This is one that needs to be released on video!

This movie has always been a favorite one of mine. It is light-hearted and entertaining. It may be an escape movie, but it does deal with the different personalities in a family. The music and costuming are a treat. It is a very uplifting movie experience. I wish that it would be released on video.

Despite the setting, the story really focuses on two sisters--nice sister Julia (Jeanne Craine) and her B****y sister, Edith (Linda Darnell). When Aunt Zenia (Constance Bennett) arrives from France with her step-son, Philippe (Cornel Wilde), Julia falls for the guy. Seeing her sister is smitten, Edith decides to try to steal him away for herself. What follows are some mistakes where both Julia and Philippe assume the worst and you wonder if by the end of the film they'll end up together. Along for the ride are her parents (Walter Brennan and Dorothy Gish).

The film has quite a few songs--mostly which are pleasant and forgettable. But unlike the very similar "Meet Me in St. Louis", instead of one person doing most of the songs, everyone gets in on the act, though a few of them have weak voices. In fact, in many ways this is like Twentieth Century-Fox's answer to MGM's "Meet Me in St. Louis" (both coincide with a huge exhibition in town)...though in pretty much every way the Fox effort is inferior. I especially disliked Darnell's character--she was awful. In the other film, the family loved and cared about each other...and this was not the case with Edith. It's not a bad film but by comparison it suffers significantly. Enjoyable but nothing outstanding.