"Champagne Waltz" is a comedy that stars Gladys Swarthout, Fred MacMurray and Jack Oakie. It's not billed as a musical on the IMDb Web site, although Paramount promoted it as such. The IMDb mavens, with the advantage of hindsight, wisely label the film just for its prominent aspect and value. Although the plot is centered around music, there are so few actual songs sung and played. There is a lot of noisy background music in some scenes. Except for the early formal dance scene with the orchestra playing Strauss's Blue Danube, and a couple of songs by Swarthout, it's more noise than music, as Franz Strauss (played by Fritz Leiber) calls the American jazz band playing.
This is the third of four musical comedy films that Paramount made with Swarthout. She was a well known singer in the Metropolitan Opera of New York. Paramount was hoping to make her a movie star. She had a very good film persona and could act. But the material she got to perform in was strictly second class. Even with a co-star like Fred MacMurray, or the biggest stars of the day, these films wouldn't be big hits.
What little there is of Swarthout's singing is very good. But the goofy plot of this film instead has a terribly exaggerated picture of jazz music. MacMurray's American band is a big hit in Vienna, playing its exceptionally loud and noisy jazz along with some goofy routines. Five members of the band slither along the floor and bark and clap their hands in imitation of seals. It's really hard to believe that this would have been a sensation in Austria at any time and to have drawn all the business away from the Strauss Waltz palace. But that's the gist of this film
MacMurray was a musician before he got into films. In some of his early films, he sings and plays one or more instruments. Here he sings and plays woodwinds briefly - a clarinet and a saxophone. His character, Buzzy Bellew, isn't very likeable for most of the film. He seems to have been a consummate liar most of his life. Swarthout plays Elsa Strauss, the granddaughter of Franz Strauss. He is the son of the famous composer, Johann Strauss.
The relief in the film, and what keeps it from being an outright flop, is the comedy. It's not great stuff, but it's mixed situations and dialog throughout the film. Jack Oakie and some others of the supporting cast provide a few chuckles and smiles. Oakie plays Bellew's manager, Happy Gallagher. Vivienne Osborne, as Countess Mariska, provides the only hilarious comedy. She plays - or fakes it at being a fugitive member of the former Russian royalty. The film is never clear on this, so the little nagging question about that is part of the what makes her part so funny. She takes some of the Bellew's band members, one after the other, to the cleaners. Starting with Gallagher, she lures them to her apartment. He intercepts her note to the second trombone player. It reads, "I will be waiting for you in the lounge. You will recognize me immediately. I am very beautiful. Countess Mariska."
In her apartment, the countess pitches a sob story about having to sell her precious silver tea set that had been given to her father by the Czar. Each pigeon winds up buying the tea set, and promises to keep it a secret. Ergo, the continuing success of the same ploy time after time. The scenes with her pigeons and the instantaneous returns of her butler with the wrapped tea are very, very funny. I don't recall having seen another movie with so many actors doing double-takes. And, a later scene shows where and how the countess gets so many of the tea sets. Gallagher happens across her at a carnival shooting gallery. Her shots hit every target and she does a couple Annie Oakley shots over her shoulder using a mirror held in one hand. Gallagher sure as heck isn't going to raise a fuss with a sharpshooter like the countess, even after she takes the top prize from the stand owner - a silver tea set.
All of that makes this film worthwhile. It drags some toward the end as the screenwriters, director and studio must have struggled to bring the romance to a closure and end the film. But for the comedy, this would have been a pretty dull and distasteful film to watch. Here are some of the few humorous lines form this film.
Max Snellinek, played by Herman Bing, "There is no king. This is a republic." Happy Gallagher, "Fair enough. Bring me the republicans then."
Happy Gallagher, "All the years I've known you, you've never told the truth - not once. What's the matter with you anyway?" Buzzy Bellew, "Who wants the truth? A good lie is more fun to tell and more fun to listen to any day."
Countess Mariska, "We who are the victims of the revolution must be cautious. You will come to my apartment, yes?"
This is the third of four musical comedy films that Paramount made with Swarthout. She was a well known singer in the Metropolitan Opera of New York. Paramount was hoping to make her a movie star. She had a very good film persona and could act. But the material she got to perform in was strictly second class. Even with a co-star like Fred MacMurray, or the biggest stars of the day, these films wouldn't be big hits.
What little there is of Swarthout's singing is very good. But the goofy plot of this film instead has a terribly exaggerated picture of jazz music. MacMurray's American band is a big hit in Vienna, playing its exceptionally loud and noisy jazz along with some goofy routines. Five members of the band slither along the floor and bark and clap their hands in imitation of seals. It's really hard to believe that this would have been a sensation in Austria at any time and to have drawn all the business away from the Strauss Waltz palace. But that's the gist of this film
MacMurray was a musician before he got into films. In some of his early films, he sings and plays one or more instruments. Here he sings and plays woodwinds briefly - a clarinet and a saxophone. His character, Buzzy Bellew, isn't very likeable for most of the film. He seems to have been a consummate liar most of his life. Swarthout plays Elsa Strauss, the granddaughter of Franz Strauss. He is the son of the famous composer, Johann Strauss.
The relief in the film, and what keeps it from being an outright flop, is the comedy. It's not great stuff, but it's mixed situations and dialog throughout the film. Jack Oakie and some others of the supporting cast provide a few chuckles and smiles. Oakie plays Bellew's manager, Happy Gallagher. Vivienne Osborne, as Countess Mariska, provides the only hilarious comedy. She plays - or fakes it at being a fugitive member of the former Russian royalty. The film is never clear on this, so the little nagging question about that is part of the what makes her part so funny. She takes some of the Bellew's band members, one after the other, to the cleaners. Starting with Gallagher, she lures them to her apartment. He intercepts her note to the second trombone player. It reads, "I will be waiting for you in the lounge. You will recognize me immediately. I am very beautiful. Countess Mariska."
In her apartment, the countess pitches a sob story about having to sell her precious silver tea set that had been given to her father by the Czar. Each pigeon winds up buying the tea set, and promises to keep it a secret. Ergo, the continuing success of the same ploy time after time. The scenes with her pigeons and the instantaneous returns of her butler with the wrapped tea are very, very funny. I don't recall having seen another movie with so many actors doing double-takes. And, a later scene shows where and how the countess gets so many of the tea sets. Gallagher happens across her at a carnival shooting gallery. Her shots hit every target and she does a couple Annie Oakley shots over her shoulder using a mirror held in one hand. Gallagher sure as heck isn't going to raise a fuss with a sharpshooter like the countess, even after she takes the top prize from the stand owner - a silver tea set.
All of that makes this film worthwhile. It drags some toward the end as the screenwriters, director and studio must have struggled to bring the romance to a closure and end the film. But for the comedy, this would have been a pretty dull and distasteful film to watch. Here are some of the few humorous lines form this film.
Max Snellinek, played by Herman Bing, "There is no king. This is a republic." Happy Gallagher, "Fair enough. Bring me the republicans then."
Happy Gallagher, "All the years I've known you, you've never told the truth - not once. What's the matter with you anyway?" Buzzy Bellew, "Who wants the truth? A good lie is more fun to tell and more fun to listen to any day."
Countess Mariska, "We who are the victims of the revolution must be cautious. You will come to my apartment, yes?"