From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Easter Parade
Easter Parade DVD cover
Directed by	Charles Walters
Produced by	Arthur Freed
Written by	Sidney Sheldon, Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett
Starring	Judy Garland Fred Astaire Peter Lawford Ann Miller
Music by	Johnny Green and Roger Edens (score) Irving Berlin (songs)
Cinematography	Harry Stradling Sr.
Editing by	Albert Akst
Distributed by	MGM
Release date(s)	June 30, 1948 (U.S. release)
Running time	107 min.
Language	English
Budget	$2,503,654 (estimated)
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Easter Parade is a 1948 musical film starring Fred Astaire and Judy Garland. It features music by Irving Berlin. The film was originally to have starred Gene Kelly, but Kelly was injured just prior to production and Astaire, who had announced his retirement from film, was coaxed back to replace him. (Astaire would "retire" several more times over the next decade, but he would also go on to make a number of additional classic musicals in between retirements.) This film marked the major MGM debut of tap-dancer Ann Miller (who had previously been under contract to RKO), replacing Cyd Charisse, who also had to bow out of the production.

The film featured some of Astaire and Garland's best-known songs, including "Steppin' Out With My Baby" and "We're a Couple of Swells." One musical number, a seductive performance by Garland of "Mr. Monotony" wearing the top half of a tuxedo and nylon tights (a style of dress which would become something of a trademark in later years after she wore the same outfit in 1950's Summer Stock), was cut from the film as it was deemed too risqué for a film supposedly set in 1912. Audiences finally got to see this number in the 1990s when an edited version was included in the 1994 compilation film That's Entertainment! III, though audiences wouldn't get to see the complete performance of "Mr. Monotony" until it was included in a special DVD box set of the three That's Entertainment films in 2004; it was subsequently included as a special feature on the 2005 DVD release of Easter Parade.

Contents 1 Awards 2 Plot summary 3 Principal cast 4 Musical numbers 5 External links

Easter Parade was the 1948 Academy Award winner for Best Scoring of a Musical Picture; it also received the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Musical.

Veteran hoofer Don Hewes (Astaire) finds out that his long-time partner Nadine Hale (Miller) has decided to strike out on her own with a solo act. Don, forced to find a new partner, happens across Hannah Brown (Garland), who waitresses and performs in a small club but who has trouble remembering which is her left leg and which is her right. Don's buddy Johnny (Peter Lawford) takes a fancy to Hannah, but she has a crush on Don already.

Don and Hannah begin the small-time vaudeville circuit, with Hannah using Nadine's old costumes, props, and dance moves. Hannah is uncomfortable and Don eventually hears through the grapevine that Nadine thinks he's making fun of her by "making over" his new protegee in her image. Don realizes what he's been doing and remodels the routine to suit Hannah's real personality, and the two begin to gain popularity.

Meanwhile, Nadine's show is a success, but she's jealous of Hannah (all the while stringing Johnny along as well). In an attempt to steal their thunder, Nadine gets Don to perform a number with her when he and Hannah come to see Nadine's act. Hannah goes back to her rooms, upset that Don seems to prefer Nadine. Don shows up, tries to talk to her through her door, and finds that Hannah thinks the whole business was "just a big scheme to get Nadine back". Don is chased off by the hotel detective before he can get in to see Hannah, and she thinks he has given up on her.

Next morning, Johnny shows up and talks some sense into Hannah, who remembers she had a standing Easter morning date with Don. She shows up at Don's flat in a fancy dress and hat, bringing flowers for him and reminding him of their date. They make up, and join the throngs in the traditional New York City Easter parade.

• Judy Garland as Hannah Brown
• Fred Astaire as Don Hewes
• Peter Lawford as Jonathan Harrow III
• Ann Miller as Nadine Hale
• Jules Munshin as François
• Clinton Sundberg as Mike the bartender

All songs by Irving Berlin

• "Happy Easter"
• "Drum Crazy"
• "It Only Happens When I Dance With You"
• "I Want to Go Back to Michigan"
• "A Fella with an Umbrella"
• "Vaudeville Montage: I Love A Piano / Snookey Ookums / The Ragtime Violin / When the Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam'"
• "Shakin' the Blues Away"
• "Steppin' Out with My Baby"
• "A Couple of Swells"
• "The Girl on the Magazine Cover"
• "Better Luck Next Time"
• "Easter Parade"

• Easter Parade at the Internet Movie Database
• The Judy Room: Easter Parade section