Copyright 27 December 1947 by Warner Bros Pictures, Inc. A First National picture. New York opening at the Strand: 24 December 1947. U.S. release: 27 December 1947. U.K. release: 27 December 1948 (sic). Australian release: 27 January 1949 (sic). 9,115 feet. 101 minutes.
SYNOPSIS: When William Scanlan's voice fails on tour, Chauncey Olcott agrees to dub his singing from hidden positions on the stage. Eventually, Scanlan's voice cracks to such an extent that he can no longer deliver his lines. One St Patrick's night in Boston, Olcott substitutes for Scanlan on stage. After a near-riot, Olcott is accepted by the crowd after he sings "A Little Bit of Heaven". At this point, Scanlan himself walks on stage to give Olcott his blessing. Olcott continues with the tour, triumphing in such shows as Mavourneen, Sweet Inniscarra and The Carey Fair.
NOTES: Heindorf and Steiner were both nominated for an Academy Award for Scoring of a Musical Picture, losing to Alfred Newman's "Mother Wore Tights".
Although it didn't make the top ten, "My Wild Irish Rose" was a huge box-office success, despite unenthusiastic, even condemnatory reviews.
COMMENT: A feast of green for lovers of old Erin and old-time minstrel shows. Visually, the screen is so flooded with various shades of green, by film's end all other colors have virtually been extinguished.
Aurally, the producer supplies such a fulsome musical program, he scarce has room for his story. Not that I'm complaining. No, sirree! There's more than enough humor left to float a dozen rounds of Irish laughter, enough tears to move all but the flintiest Anglo hearts. Especially moving is the scene in which Scanlan, played by William Frawley — his finest performance ever! — gives young Olcott his watch.
The only area in which film-lovers will feel short-changed lies in the direction of Miss Arlene Dahl. Now I am not a fan of the blandly doll-like Dahl, so it doesn't worry me that her part has been cut to ribbons and that she is outclassed and out-acted almost right off the screen. With fine players like Alan Hale, Andrea King, George O'Brien, Ben Blue and the aforesaid William Frawley on hand, who needs a spiritless Kewpie doll?
OTHER VIEWS: Superlative sound recording really does justice to this account of Irish tenor Chauncey Olcott, superbly enacted by Dennis Morgan who was never in better voice than in this feast of Irish song and dance. Musical number succeeds musical number with each one more lavish than the one before, until finally mind and heart can bear the strain no longer. True the story is pretty facile, but who cares when it serves so admirably as a peg on which such a musical feast is imposed? Beautifully photographed and costumed, lavishly produced, with a wonderful array of character actors including Emmett Vogan (doctor), Grady Sutton ("sick" minstrel), Andrew Tombes (bogus bartender) and Hale, Tobias, Ben Blue, etc. Perhaps to say the script is facile is to dismiss it too easily. It does have some wonderful moments — Morgan's killing the bass drum is a wonderful joke and Allgood's regretting her lost opportunity to say it first is a very nice piece of drama. The director makes sure everything is easy on the eye, the dances, music and above all the songs and sound are marvelous. - JHR writing as George Addison.
SYNOPSIS: When William Scanlan's voice fails on tour, Chauncey Olcott agrees to dub his singing from hidden positions on the stage. Eventually, Scanlan's voice cracks to such an extent that he can no longer deliver his lines. One St Patrick's night in Boston, Olcott substitutes for Scanlan on stage. After a near-riot, Olcott is accepted by the crowd after he sings "A Little Bit of Heaven". At this point, Scanlan himself walks on stage to give Olcott his blessing. Olcott continues with the tour, triumphing in such shows as Mavourneen, Sweet Inniscarra and The Carey Fair.
NOTES: Heindorf and Steiner were both nominated for an Academy Award for Scoring of a Musical Picture, losing to Alfred Newman's "Mother Wore Tights".
Although it didn't make the top ten, "My Wild Irish Rose" was a huge box-office success, despite unenthusiastic, even condemnatory reviews.
COMMENT: A feast of green for lovers of old Erin and old-time minstrel shows. Visually, the screen is so flooded with various shades of green, by film's end all other colors have virtually been extinguished.
Aurally, the producer supplies such a fulsome musical program, he scarce has room for his story. Not that I'm complaining. No, sirree! There's more than enough humor left to float a dozen rounds of Irish laughter, enough tears to move all but the flintiest Anglo hearts. Especially moving is the scene in which Scanlan, played by William Frawley — his finest performance ever! — gives young Olcott his watch.
The only area in which film-lovers will feel short-changed lies in the direction of Miss Arlene Dahl. Now I am not a fan of the blandly doll-like Dahl, so it doesn't worry me that her part has been cut to ribbons and that she is outclassed and out-acted almost right off the screen. With fine players like Alan Hale, Andrea King, George O'Brien, Ben Blue and the aforesaid William Frawley on hand, who needs a spiritless Kewpie doll?
OTHER VIEWS: Superlative sound recording really does justice to this account of Irish tenor Chauncey Olcott, superbly enacted by Dennis Morgan who was never in better voice than in this feast of Irish song and dance. Musical number succeeds musical number with each one more lavish than the one before, until finally mind and heart can bear the strain no longer. True the story is pretty facile, but who cares when it serves so admirably as a peg on which such a musical feast is imposed? Beautifully photographed and costumed, lavishly produced, with a wonderful array of character actors including Emmett Vogan (doctor), Grady Sutton ("sick" minstrel), Andrew Tombes (bogus bartender) and Hale, Tobias, Ben Blue, etc. Perhaps to say the script is facile is to dismiss it too easily. It does have some wonderful moments — Morgan's killing the bass drum is a wonderful joke and Allgood's regretting her lost opportunity to say it first is a very nice piece of drama. The director makes sure everything is easy on the eye, the dances, music and above all the songs and sound are marvelous. - JHR writing as George Addison.