Ten Movies on an Island: Musicals

As promised, here is my first list of my top ten in each movie genre: musicals, westerns, dramas, comedies (screwball/romantic & regular comedies), comedy-drama, horror/ghost/sci-fi, suspense/mystery, biographical, and Disney.

This list will focus on musicals. First of all, what is a musical? According to the definition on Wikipedia, a musical is:

... a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing.

Throughout Hollywood History, the musical has evolved. A musical from the 1930s is not going to be the same as a musical from the 1950s. Over the decades, there have been Operetta's, Horse Operas (that's a Western that's also a musical), the Busby Berkley musicals, biopics about musicians and showmen, Historical costume epics, fantasies, musicals adapted from Broadway productions, rock & roll musicals, beach party musicals... the list goes on.

Now I'm not a huge musicals person (surprising since I love music, sing, and play both the piano and the ukulele).  But I've never been a huge fan of the musicals that typically come to mind when someone says the word "musicals,"  so you will not be finding such classics as Singing in the Rain and Oklahoma! on here.

In picking my films, I did decide on a certain criteria, aside from merely liking it. It had to be a movie that I enjoyed the songs as much as the storyline (aka I actually know most if not all of the songs by heart) and if I looked for it at the library I would find it in the musicals section. So with those two things in mind, here is my list:

1. The Great Ziegfeld (1936) - William Powell

2. The Wizard of Oz (1939) - Judy Garland

3. Ziegfeld Girl (1941) - Lana Turner, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr

4. Girl Crazy (1943) - Judy Garland & Mickey Rooney

5. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) - Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell, Charles Coburn

6. White Christmas (1954) - Bing Crosby & Rosemary Clooney, Danny Kaye & Vera-Ellen

7. Daddy Long Legs (1955) - Fred Astaire & Leslie Caron

8. My Fair Lady (1964) - Audrey Hepburn & Rex Harrison

9. The Sound of Music (1965) - Julie Andrews & Christopher Plummer

10. Funny Girl (1968) - Barbra Streisand & Omar Shariff

Here is the list I consulted when choosing my Top Ten Musicals. What are your favorites?

Tomorrow, my top ten Westerns!

The Sound of Music: Filming Locations

The Sound of Music was filmed on Soundstage 15 at 20th Century Fox and on location in Austria and Germany. The principal cast and crew were in Austria for a total of 11 weeks - it was supposed to be 6 but the rainy weather delayed the film. Luckily it more than made up for the extra costs.

 

Here's the best tour site I can find with additional information for those who are actually traveling to Salzburg, Austria. Here's a map of all the locations. This site has a step-by-step walk-through if you want to get really technical. Also, on the Blu-ray special features disc of the 45th and 50th anniversary sets is a fantastic interactive map of all of the locations used with film clips, additional facts, and photos. I highly recommend looking at it.

 

Anif Castle, Salzburg - seen in the opening aerial shots

Schloss Fuschl, seen in opening aerial shots. Located about 40 minutes outside of Salzburg.

 

The field, which is private property, is located in Mehlweg, Germany, about 6 miles from Salzburg.

 

Journey to the Meadow - video

The stream and birch trees were brought in for the scene. An angry farmer, on whose property it was built on, punctured holes in the stream with his pitchfork, halting production while it was fixed.

 

 

The abbey gate seen in the film is from the Nonnberg Abbey where the real Maria Von Trap was a postulant. The nuns there allowed it to be used for the film.

 

Another exterior shot of Nonnberg Abbey (you can see the changing heights of the children here as they grew).

 

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Schloss Frohnburg Palace, used for the front and  back of the Von Trapp Home

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It is located just off of Hellbrunner Allee, an alleyway that connects the Hellbrun Palace with Salzburg.

 

Hellbrun Palace is also where the original gazebo from "16 Going on 17" is located. It was built at Leopoldskron specifically for the film. It was moved to Hellbrunn so that tourists could visit it. The interior shots of the gazebo were filmed on a sound stage, as the real gazebo was too small for the dance scene. No one is now allowed to go inside because some old lady tried to do the dance and hurt herself... yeah.

 

The front of the movie house, Schloss Frohnburg Palace (belonged to actress Hedy Lamarr at the time).

 

The real Von Trapp home. It was taken over by the Nazi's and used as offices during WWII. It is now a hotel.

 

The Mirror Room inside Schloss Leopoldskron in Salzburg, which was copied and used as the ballroom.

 

Schloss Leopoldskron, Salzburg, Austria. Used as the back yard of the von Trapp house (actually they built a replica of this on the lot next door for filming).

 

The terrace at Scloss Leopoldskron where Uncle Max has pink lemonade. 

 

The "Do-Re-Mi" sequence was shot in nine different locations:

 

The Mozart Footbridge (Mozartsteg crossing the Salzach River)

 

The hills of Werfen (Untersberg Peak can be seen from their terrace). Also the meadow beneath the Untersberg.

 

Winkler Terrece

 

Mirabell Gardens

The Pegasus Fountain in Mirabell Gardens

 

Mirabell Gardens Tunnel

 

Mirabell Garden steps, from a different angle.

 

Statues in Mirabell Gardens

 

St. Wolfgang Schafbergbahn Mountain Railway (the final scene filmed with the children on location).

 

Pferdschwemme (Horse Pond), Karajan Square - a scene that was cut from the movie was shot here, more about that in the post on Charmian Carr's book, Forever Liesl.

 

I think this is where the children climbed the trees but I can't find where I found the photo.

 

Bertelsmann on Leopoldskron Lake, where the children were filmed boating.

 

Bertelsmann from the air - I think it's also in the aerial shots at the beginning.

 

Mondsee Church (mond-say), where the movie couple were married. It is located  in the village of Mondsee, which is situated in the middle of a lake at the base of sheer cliffs. It is about 20 minutes from Salzburg. The real Maria was married at Nonnberg Abbey.

 

The exterior of the church.

 

The Residenz Platz (Residence Square), where the Nazi soldiers are seen marching. When that scene was filmed, the town did not allow the public to watch. Also where Maria sings "I Have Confidence" near the beginning of the film.

 

 

Felsenreitschule (Rock Riding School), Salzburg - film location for the final performance of the von Trapps. This is the stage that the real Salzburg Festival takes place on every year.

 

St. Peter's Cemetery

Though not actually filmed here, the St. Peter's Cemetery was recreated on the sound stage at Fox so it's still a cool place to visit. It's located in the St. Peter's District of Salzburg.

 

The final scene of the movie shows the von Trapps hiking over the mountains into Switzerland (which is geographically and historically inaccurate - they really just drove a few minutes to the border). This scene was filmed at Mount Obersalzburg in Rossfeld, just a little ways from where Hitler's "Eagle's Nest" at Berchteschgaden, was located, giving the cast and crew a chilling reminder of how near the danger really was. It is a mere 12 miles from Salzburg.

 

View the rest of my Sound of Music posts here!

 

 

Sources:
The Sound of Music Companion by Lauence Maslon, 2006.
Forever Liesl: A Memoir of 'The Sound of Music' by Charmian Carr, 2000.
Sound-of-Music.com
Images found via Pinterest

More Travel Links:
Panorama Tours
BigBoyTravel - SoM Movie Locations - Map
Salzburg Official Site
Map of Locations

The Sound of Music: Behind-the-Scenes

Every great movie has great behind-the-scenes stories and photos. Here are a few from The Sound of Music.

 

It took several takes to get the perfect opening shot. Julie Andrews remembers she would come from one side of the hill and the helicopter with the cameraman hanging out the side would come from the other. When the helicopter circled around her, the downdraft would fling her to the ground. She kept motioning for the helicopter to not circle so close but all she kept getting was a thumbs up. After they got the shot, Andrews was whisked away by helicopter to another mountain where they filmed the ending hike.

Rehearsals. Andrews, Plummer, and Carr (Liesl) all had to learn guitar for their roles. Andrews has said that "Edelweiss" is her favorite song from the film. However, it was Plummer's least favorite.

Goofing around

From Charmian Carr's memoir, Forever Liesl: "Kymmie [Kym Karath] was an adorable and very self-assured little girl. I always used to tell people that, even though her birth certificate said she was five, she was really forty-two. She would climb up into my lap and squish my cheeks together as if she were my grandmother and say, 'Oh, I just love your dimples! You're so cute!' "

Skateboarding on the lot

Drying up after the boat scene

Preparing to film the conversation between Maria and the Captain. This was shot in two locations: one with the back of the house (Frohnburg) and the other with the "back yard" (Bertelsmann). Also on the same day, the scene where the Captain and Maria return from their honeymoon was filmed.

 

 

Trying to stay warm

 

With the director, Robert Wise

One place I read said this is a photo of Julie Andrews finding out that she has been nominated for her performance in Mary Poppins. Another said they're looking at the script, but it doesn't look like a script to me.

Andrews, Parker, and Carr

 

With Angela Cartwright

Julie Andrews freshening her make-up; sound check for Eleanor Parker; Plummer waiting on the set

 

 

Carr getting her make-up freshened

 

Parker with Duane Chase and Debbie Turner

Here's the story behind this photo of Parker and Richard Haydn (you may also recognize his voice as that of the caterpillar in Disney's animated Alice in Wonderland): Haydn had appeared on an episode of the Dick Van Dyke Show who could imitate the call of a red-bellied gudgeon fish. In this photo, he got the very elegant Parker to do the imitation with him, much to the delight of everyone else. (Forever Liesl, 58).

With the real Maria Von Trapp. You can see her crossing a street with one of her daughters in the background of the "I Have Confidence" number.

 

Oh, I must stop these doubts, all these worries. If I don't then I know I'll turn back!

 

 

 

Plummer and Chase

Debbie Turner, Duane Chase, and Kym Karath

 

On the set

Karath (looking like she just stepped out of the turn-of-the-century), Andrews, and Turner

Andrew's stand-in, Larri Thomas (right). Thomas is in the train scene and the tree-climbing scene, both some of the last scenes shot on location.

 

Andrews and Plummer couldn't stop laughing during the scene. The solution was to film them in silhouette. You can see them smiling in this (weird orange) photo.

 

The wedding gown had a 14 foot train and was very heavy. It took Andrews half a day to learn how to navigate it down the aisle.

With director Robert Wise

 

Doing some sightseeing

 

Shopping for postcards in Austria

 

Working with Julie Andrews is like getting hit over the head with a Valentine.

 - Christopher Plummer

The kids now

 

 So long! Farewell!

 

More behind-the-scenes photos 

View the rest of my Sound of Music posts here!

Five Stories You Didn't Know About 'The Sound of Music' As Told By Julie Andrews

'16 Going On 17' Things You Probably Didn't Know

 

Other sources:

Forever Liesl: A Memoir of 'The Sound of Music' by Charmian Carr, 2000.

IMDb - lots more interesting tidbits here!

Photos also found via Pinterest.