'My Sister Eileen' is based on true incidents. Ruth and Eileen McKenney were sisters from a small town in Ohio who came to New York City: Ruth intending to become an author, Eileen hoping to be an actress. Although Ruth McKenney sold a few magazine pieces, her most successful work was her series of fictionalised articles about the misadventures of her younger sister Eileen. The stories themselves have been out of print for many years, but they provided the basis for a popular play, 'My Sister Eileen' (NOT written by Ruth McKenney), which was a long-running Broadway hit and which has remained in print ever since. Ruth McKenney ironically gained fame and wealth from a play written by two other people, based on her stories.
The real Eileen McKenney ended badly. A pretty actress with more looks than talent, she married the overrated screenwriter Nathanael West and she died alongside him in West's fatal car accident.
The 1942 film 'My Sister Eileen' is a faithful (and funny) version of the Broadway hit, although it bears only slight resemblance to the real-life exploits of sisters Ruth and Eileen McKenney (here renamed Sherwood). Rather unusually, this movie was made at Columbia Studios *during* the play's Broadway run. Two of the best performances here are given by actors repeating their stage roles: Gordon Jones as an obsessive football player named 'The Wreck', and Richard Quine as nice young man Frank Lippincott, who fancies Eileen.
Small-town sisters Ruth and Eileen come to the big city. Ruth (Rosalind Russell) is smart, cynical, and doesn't need a man. Eileen (Janet Blair) is naive and pretty and attracts all the lads. Because the sisters haven't got much money, the only place they can afford is a basement flat in Greenwich Village, owned by a crooked landlord named Appopolous (George Tobias, not up to his usual high standard here). The flat is directly above a subway tunnel, where construction workers are blasting with dynamite: at regular intervals, the whole building shakes. Worse luck, the previous tenant was a young lady who (ahem!) rented by the hour, and so Ruth and Eileen are constantly plagued with male visitors who assume that their apartment is still, erm, open for business. Ruth and Eileen have no end of misadventures while trying to start their careers as, respectively, a journalist and an actress.
BIG SPOILER STARTING NOW. The last gag in this movie is absolutely hilarious. All through the film, we hear the sounds of the subway navvies directly under Ruth's and Eileen's apartment. At the very end of this movie, a jackhammer pokes up through the floor and three construction workers emerge. When they pull off their helmets, we see that they're Moe, Larry and Curly! Moe lambastes his two 'knucklehead' workmates while the soundtrack starts playing the 'Three Stooges' theme tune!
In 1953, Betty Comden and Adolph Green approached Rosalind Russell to star in a Broadway musical version of 'My Sister Eileen' with music by Leonard Bernstein, to be called 'Wonderful Town'. (The original title wasn't legally available.) I really dislike 'Wonderful Town': it has a score which I consider extremely pretentious. Rosalind Russell, to her credit, had no illusions about her own song-and-dance abilities. 'Wonderful Town' was never filmed, because Columbia had retained the musical rights ... and they made their OWN musical version in 1955, with tunes by Jule Styne that are vastly better than anything "Lenny" Bernstein ever wrote. Interestingly, Richard Quine (who hed acted in the original film and the Broadway cast) directed the musical remake, and his role as Frank Lippincott was taken over by Bob Fosse, giving his best performance as an actor and choreographing some snappy dance numbers as well. I strongly recommend both film versions of 'My Sister Eileen', which is more than I can say for the overrated 'Wonderful Town'. I'll rate this 1942 version 9 points out of 10. Well done!
The real Eileen McKenney ended badly. A pretty actress with more looks than talent, she married the overrated screenwriter Nathanael West and she died alongside him in West's fatal car accident.
The 1942 film 'My Sister Eileen' is a faithful (and funny) version of the Broadway hit, although it bears only slight resemblance to the real-life exploits of sisters Ruth and Eileen McKenney (here renamed Sherwood). Rather unusually, this movie was made at Columbia Studios *during* the play's Broadway run. Two of the best performances here are given by actors repeating their stage roles: Gordon Jones as an obsessive football player named 'The Wreck', and Richard Quine as nice young man Frank Lippincott, who fancies Eileen.
Small-town sisters Ruth and Eileen come to the big city. Ruth (Rosalind Russell) is smart, cynical, and doesn't need a man. Eileen (Janet Blair) is naive and pretty and attracts all the lads. Because the sisters haven't got much money, the only place they can afford is a basement flat in Greenwich Village, owned by a crooked landlord named Appopolous (George Tobias, not up to his usual high standard here). The flat is directly above a subway tunnel, where construction workers are blasting with dynamite: at regular intervals, the whole building shakes. Worse luck, the previous tenant was a young lady who (ahem!) rented by the hour, and so Ruth and Eileen are constantly plagued with male visitors who assume that their apartment is still, erm, open for business. Ruth and Eileen have no end of misadventures while trying to start their careers as, respectively, a journalist and an actress.
BIG SPOILER STARTING NOW. The last gag in this movie is absolutely hilarious. All through the film, we hear the sounds of the subway navvies directly under Ruth's and Eileen's apartment. At the very end of this movie, a jackhammer pokes up through the floor and three construction workers emerge. When they pull off their helmets, we see that they're Moe, Larry and Curly! Moe lambastes his two 'knucklehead' workmates while the soundtrack starts playing the 'Three Stooges' theme tune!
In 1953, Betty Comden and Adolph Green approached Rosalind Russell to star in a Broadway musical version of 'My Sister Eileen' with music by Leonard Bernstein, to be called 'Wonderful Town'. (The original title wasn't legally available.) I really dislike 'Wonderful Town': it has a score which I consider extremely pretentious. Rosalind Russell, to her credit, had no illusions about her own song-and-dance abilities. 'Wonderful Town' was never filmed, because Columbia had retained the musical rights ... and they made their OWN musical version in 1955, with tunes by Jule Styne that are vastly better than anything "Lenny" Bernstein ever wrote. Interestingly, Richard Quine (who hed acted in the original film and the Broadway cast) directed the musical remake, and his role as Frank Lippincott was taken over by Bob Fosse, giving his best performance as an actor and choreographing some snappy dance numbers as well. I strongly recommend both film versions of 'My Sister Eileen', which is more than I can say for the overrated 'Wonderful Town'. I'll rate this 1942 version 9 points out of 10. Well done!