On the Town

On the Town (1949)

Timing: 1:38 (98 min)

7.032/10
236

7.171/10
1115

7.3/10
20000

All about film

Video 2

Photo 5

Actors and characters

Release date

1949-12-08

Country

United States

Production

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Genre

Music, Comedy, Romance

Budget

$2 111 250

Revenue

$4 428 000

Website

Director

Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly

Actors

Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Betty Garrett, Ann Miller, Jules Munshin, Vera-Ellen, Florence Bates, Alice Pearce, George Meader, Murray Alper
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Producer

Arthur Freed

Operator

Harold Rosson

Composer

Roger Edens

Artist

Audition

Editing

Ralph E. Winters
All team (23)

• Filming in New York took 5 days. The only two factors that interfered with the filming process were the weather (it rained almost constantly) and the fame of Frank Sinatra (1915-1998). According to Gene Kelly (1912-1996), the film was shot during the height of Sinatra's popularity, and he was instantly recognized on the street. For the transportation of the actors involved in the film, they had to hire regular taxis instead of limousines, and the camera had to be hidden in a van; otherwise, crowds of people would immediately gather around the film crew. During the performance of the dance to the song "New York, New York" in the final shot, you can notice the heads of onlookers watching the filming process.
• At least one take of Ann Miller’s (1923-2004) dance to “Prehistoric Man” was ruined by her costume. She was dancing near a dinosaur skeleton, and during one of her turns, her dress’s hem brushed against the bones, and the entire display simply collapsed and fell to the floor. Filming had to be interrupted until the set was restored.
• Frank Sinatra was very thin, and he wore special padding under his sailor suit to appear more filled out.
• Jules Munshin (1915-1970) was afraid of heights. During the filming of the dance on the roof to “New York, New York”, he was tied up with a rope under his sailor suit, and the end of the rope was held by director Stanley Donen (1924-2019) himself. Even so, it is noticeable that in this scene, Munshin almost constantly touches a wall, props, or another actor for extra reassurance.