MovieChat Forums > Down to Earth (1947) Discussion > Dubbed singing

Dubbed singing

posted 17 years ago by davidkindc
3 replies | jump to latest

"Down to Earth" (1947) may be one of the few film musicals in which literally every cast member's singing voice is dubbed.
It's common knowledge that Rita Hayworth did not do her own singing on film (with the possible and disputed exception of the "slow" version of "Put the Blame on Mame" in "Gilda"); she's dubbed by Anita Ellis here. But Larry Parks, Marc Platt and Adele Jergens are all also dubbed as well. Even the chorus members are dubbed; the three beauties who appear at the beginning of the "Muses" number (I think the middle dancer may be Carol Haney, who was with Jack Cole's dance troupe at the time) are obviously post-dubbed.
Incidentally, Adele Jergen's singing voice is supplied by the very distinctive Kay Starr, who was a band singer and then a top popular songstress in the 1950s.

[–] leroykevin 13 years ago

After seeing "The Jolson Story" And "Jolson Sings Again" I almost expected Larry Parks to sound like Jolson :oD

[–] MyMovieTVRomance 9 years ago

Isn't it true that back when these movies were first released, nobody knew about the dubbing? Not only that, but it was common practice to keep it a secret, to not spoil the illusion of gifted and talented stars who could do it all. Well, I think it's awfully sad that we spoil that illusion for ourselves now. It's not set in a tragic sort of way, but it said in an unnecessary spoiler sort of way.

Why must we spoil the magic for ourselves? I wish people would stop spreading this around that the people we see on screen are really singing. We don't need to know that.

Please excuse typos/funny wording; I use speech-recognition that doesn't always recognize!

[–] sludgehound 9 years ago

The dancing was terrific. Rita is a flawless beauty. Her smile just lights up the scenes.
I didn't really fuss over the voice factor given the way she could move around.
Whole thing a pleasure so no need to dwell on usual features of these light musicals. Always the easy thin plot, some gags, romance. Plenty enough for relaxing and soaking in the sheer beauty of the Rita.
Did appreciate the way they played on the egghead intellectual crowd vs the common people theme. Art gets the high and low brow across all of its forms. But fun to see that both sides come out together in this one. Also enjoyed the sheer sense of freedom in the striking pastel colors of the women's off stage clothing. It reflects the total joy of having gotten through the prior years of doing without.
This generation certainly deserved to let it fly.