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at a time of rationing and shortages of materials in the period immediately after World War II, it was filmed in the shell of "Sound City
Shepperton", which had been made available as a film studio after being requisitioned during the war as a factory for aircraft parts. (The studio was later renamed
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In
September 2011, the full-length version of the film was made commercially available for the first time, when it was released on a PAL DVD by Odeon Entertainment in the U.K. (Running time is listed as 122 mins. on Amazon UK, so that would be shortened. Or, that might simply be running fast at PAL
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Guest said "Wes
Ruggles needed somebody firm on top of him and he didn’t have anybody. I think they were overawed by his “weight” because his biography read like movie history. It just didn’t hang together, it was a very bad script". He added, "I spent quite a lot of time down there trying to hot
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According to Val Guest "after it folded in
America, they took all Sid’s routines out of the picture and joined them all together and issued it. As a sort of comedy half-hour. And that became the rage in Hollywood, everybody had it at their parties because they thought he was quite fabulous. And
658:. "Nobody had ever heard of me but they called me a star", she later recalled. "I opened bazaars, signed autographs, went to premieres, did everything a star was supposed to do. My photograph was on magazine covers and front pages of newspapers. And all before we'd ever finished the picture."
651:, while at the same time re-equipping the studio from the ground up. He was confident that box-office business was booming at the time and that demand for a flashy musical entertainment would be such that he would make a healthy profit, so his financial controls were slack.
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Kay
Kendall said after the film's release there were "no more bazaars to open, no more premieres, no more autographs." However her career later recovered and she became a major star of British films, before dying of leukaemia in 1959 at the age of just 32.
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aspects make it fascinating, and film historians consider it an interesting record of the times in which it takes place. Following
Britain's victory in the war, it can be seen as a tribute to London and its residents, and as a celebration of popular
595:(1946), so he seemed a natural for the lead. As he was of the opinion that no British director was capable of making a good musical, he insisted on having an American at the helm, and the task fell to Wesley Ruggles, who produced as well.
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things up, it was heart-breaking. Sid was also doing a show at the same time, and was having slight drinking problems – not a lot... Wes was sober during shooting yes, absolutely paralytic at night."
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674:. However, dismissed by critics (who described it as "tacky" and "tasteless") and ignored by audiences, it was a legendary flop. In hindsight, however, especially for nostalgia fans, many of its
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367:), who arrives in London believing he has been hired as the star of a major stage production, when in fact he is merely an understudy. Thanks to his daughter Peggy (
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It should also be pointed out that according to trade papers, the film was a "notable box office attraction" at
British cinemas in 1946. According to
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include "You Can't Keep a Good
Dreamer Down", "The 'Ampstead Way" (most definitely inspired by "The Lambeth Walk" from the earlier stage production
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Ruggles and Guest were going to make a film together about the Rolls Royce family but those plans ended after the financial failure of
375:), he finally gets his big break. The premise allows for a variety of musical numbers and comedy sketches performed by, among others,
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In
September 2006, the film's soundtrack – plus bonus tracks including four early studio recordings by Clark – was released on CD by
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The original two-hour-12 minute version, which never was released commercially, is now available for viewing at the archives at the
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Val Guest said he did not write the script but he "did a script of all Sid's stuff" because they had worked together on stage.
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Music Hall performer Field had cheered up wartime London audiences with his hugely successful stage variety shows, including
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So much was spent on production that the film needed to perform better than possible just to
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932:"London Town (1946) – Wesley Ruggles – Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related"
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Sinatra had special showings, it went around all the people there, it became a cult thing."
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speed, 25 frames per second instead of transferred correctly at film speed of 24 fps.)
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The critical and financial failure of the extravagant film, Britain's first major
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MORGAN HUDGINS (31 July 1955). "GENEVIEVE'S' KAY KENDALL CLICKS".
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Blackout : reinventing women for wartime British cinema
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the 'biggest winner' at the box office in 1946 Britain was
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and his orchestra), and costumes by the legendary designer
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Realism and Tinsel: Cinema and Society in Britain 1939-48
985:"Wesley Ruggles – Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos"
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musical, is part of British film legend. Financed by the
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career was on a downslide, he was an odd choice indeed.
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Sheila Huntington as London Town Dozen & One Girl
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spent large sums of money for American songwriters (
622:(1933), both more than a decade old – and his
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Giselle Morlais as London Town Dozen & One Girl
48:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
519:Mary Midwinter as London Town Dozen & One Girl
555:Ann Sullivan as Singer, Street Scene (uncredited)
534:Jackie Watson as London Town Dozen & One Girl
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516:Freda Lansley as London Town Dozen & One Girl
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528:Enid Smeeden as London Town Dozen & One Girl
498:Dorothy Cuff as London Town Dozen & One Girl
495:Sheila Bligh as London Town Dozen & One Girl
912:"Rank's 27 Pix Represent A $ 22,000,000 Outlay"
683:culture, especially its music hall traditions.
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1077:. Princeton University Press. p. 232.
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580:and is still used for film production).
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967:"London Town aka My Heart Goes Crazy"
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1046:Murphy, Robert (2 September 2003).
510:as London Town Dozen & One Girl
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1311:Mr. Billings Spends His Dime
920:. 24 April 1946. p. 19.
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57:"London Town" 1946 film
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260:30 September 1946
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1011:"Interview with Val Guest"
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137:Sid Field and Petula Clark
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1439:Are These Our Children
1073:Lant, Antonia (1991).
486:Lucas Hoving as Dancer
379:in her film debut and
1635:British musical films
1128:"My Heart Goes Crazy"
696:The Bells of St Marys
552:as Extra (uncredited)
477:as Novelty Shopkeeper
453:Scotty McHarg as Bill
1511:The Bride Comes Home
1335:The Age of Innocence
1319:The Remittance Woman
1239:The Winchester Woman
1009:Fowler, Roy (1988).
950:"London Town (1946)"
784:Caesar and Cleopatra
688:Kinematograph Weekly
42:improve this article
1655:1940s British films
1149:4 July 2008 at the
971:www.petulaclark.net
796:Theirs is the Glory
740:Leave Her to Heaven
708:Tomorrow is Forever
700:Piccadilly Incident
420:as Charlie de Haven
1645:1946 musical films
1599:Slightly Dangerous
1535:I Met Him in Paris
1447:Roar of the Dragon
1255:The Desperate Hero
1217:Films directed by
704:The Road to Utopia
593:Piccadilly Hayride
578:Shepperton Studios
347:The screenplay by
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1567:Too Many Husbands
1455:No Man of Her Own
1295:The Greater Claim
1247:The Leopard Woman
792:Men of Two Worlds
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732:The Corn is Green
728:The Captive Heart
585:Strike a New Note
573:Rank Organisation
402:as Mrs. Eve Barry
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641:Johnny Burke
631:
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619:I'm No Angel
617:
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591:(1944), and
588:
584:
582:
566:
558:
490:Jack Parnell
406:Petula Clark
369:Petula Clark
346:
343:Plot summary
333:Petula Clark
323:directed by
321:musical film
312:
311:
310:
277:Running time
253:Release date
235:Johnny Burke
222:Sidney Stone
187:Petula Clark
104:
98:January 2017
95:
85:
78:
71:
64:
52:
40:Please help
35:verification
32:
15:
1607:London Town
1407:Street Girl
1168:London Town
841:London Town
825:London Town
819:London Town
780:London Town
756:Blue Dahlia
656:Lana Turner
569:Technicolor
544:Wally Patch
448:Beryl Davis
418:Sonnie Hale
412:Kay Kendall
377:Kay Kendall
373:Sonnie Hale
357:Elliot Paul
318:Technicolor
313:London Town
233:(lyrics by
199:Sonnie Hale
195:Kay Kendall
171:Produced by
165:Elliot Paul
143:Directed by
126:London Town
1630:1946 films
1624:Categories
1303:Wild Honey
884:References
829:Susan Shaw
768:Spellbound
716:Wonder Man
672:break even
649:Orry-Kelly
563:Production
550:Susan Shaw
492:as Drummer
471:as Heckler
469:Alfie Dean
438:as herself
430:Mary Clare
400:Greta Gynt
349:Sig Herzig
316:is a 1946
264:1946-09-30
191:Greta Gynt
161:Sig Herzig
153:Written by
68:newspapers
1415:Condemned
857:in 1953.
839:Songs in
666:Reception
645:Ted Heath
624:Hollywood
602:-winning
457:W. G. Fay
444:as George
394:Sid Field
365:Sid Field
353:Val Guest
329:Sid Field
219:Edited by
183:Sid Field
157:Val Guest
1431:Cimarron
1147:Archived
1132:TV Guide
1093:AllMovie
989:AllMovie
936:AllMovie
614:Mae West
609:Cimarron
587:(1943),
450:as Paula
414:as Patsy
294:Language
227:Music by
179:Starring
1575:Arizona
1399:Scandal
1231:Outcast
1182:Variety
952:. IMDb.
917:Variety
804:Bedelia
748:Caravan
681:Cockney
676:kitschy
616:comedy
604:Western
459:as Mike
297:English
286:Country
281:126 min
262: (
82:scholar
1610:(1946)
1602:(1943)
1594:(1942)
1586:(1941)
1578:(1940)
1570:(1940)
1562:(1939)
1554:(1938)
1546:(1937)
1538:(1937)
1530:(1936)
1522:(1935)
1514:(1935)
1506:(1935)
1498:(1934)
1490:(1934)
1487:Bolero
1482:(1933)
1474:(1933)
1466:(1933)
1458:(1932)
1450:(1932)
1442:(1931)
1434:(1931)
1426:(1930)
1418:(1929)
1410:(1929)
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1394:(1928)
1386:(1928)
1378:(1927)
1370:(1927)
1362:(1926)
1354:(1925)
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1338:(1924)
1330:(1923)
1322:(1923)
1314:(1923)
1306:(1922)
1298:(1921)
1290:(1921)
1282:(1921)
1274:(1920)
1266:(1920)
1258:(1920)
1250:(1920)
1242:(1919)
1234:(1917)
1056:
802:, and
764:O.S.S.
355:, and
337:cinema
302:Budget
84:
77:
70:
63:
55:
1423:Honey
868:Media
835:Music
744:Gilda
724:Kitty
606:epic
89:JSTOR
75:books
1263:Love
1173:IMDb
1054:ISBN
639:and
387:Cast
331:and
61:news
1180:at
1171:at
44:by
1626::
1130:.
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1101:^
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958:^
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86:·
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38:.
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