Hans Christian Andersen (film)

1952 film by Charles Vidor

Hans Christian Andersen

Theatrical release poster

Directed by| Charles Vidor
Written by| Moss Hart
Story by| Myles Connolly
Produced by| Samuel Goldwyn
Starring| Danny Kaye
Farley Granger
Zizi Jeanmaire
Cinematography| Harry Stradling
Edited by| Daniel Mandell
Music by| Walter Scharf
Frank Loesser

Production
company

Samuel Goldwyn Productions

Distributed by| RKO Radio Pictures

Release dates

* November 25, 1952 (1952-11-25) (Premiere)[1]
* December 19, 1952 (1952-12-19)[1]

Running time

| 112 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English
Budget| $4 million[1]
Box office| $6 million (Rentals)[2]

Hans Christian Andersen is a 1952 Hollywood musical film directed by Charles Vidor and produced by Samuel Goldwyn. The screenplay by Moss Hart and an uncredited Ben Hecht is based on a story by Myles Connolly.

Although it is nominally about Hans Christian Andersen, the 19th-century Danish author of many world-famous fairy tales, the film is romantic fiction, and does not relate to Andersen's biography: the introduction describes it as "not the story of his life, but a fairy tale about this great spinner of fairy tales." Andersen, as played by Danny Kaye, is portrayed as a small-town cobbler with a childlike heart and a vivid imagination.

A large part of the narrative is told through song (music and lyrics by Frank Loesser) and ballet and includes many of the real Andersen's most famous stories, such as The Ugly Duckling, Thumbelina, The Emperor's New Clothes and The Little Mermaid. The film was internationally successful at the time of release.

## Plot

[edit]

In the 1830s, in the small Danish town of Odense, cobbler Hans Christian Andersen spends his day spinning fairy tales for the village children. One day, the stern schoolmaster implores the Burgomaster and councilmen to curtail the cobbler's habit of distracting the students with his storytelling. Hans finally returns to his shop, where his teenage assistant, the orphan Peter, begs him to stop causing trouble.

When the children do not arrive at school the next day, the schoolmaster deduces that Hans is again distracting his pupils. When the schoolmaster then demands that the Burgomaster and the councilmen choose between him and the cobbler, they decide that Hans must leave Odense. Peter tries to save his friend by suggesting they travel to Copenhagen.

After a sea voyage, Hans and Peter arrive at the city's harbor and find their way to the Great Square of Copenhagen. When Hans introduces himself to the crowd while standing on a statue of the king, police arrest him for defaming the image of their leader. Peter, who has sought refuge from the police by hiding by the back entrance of the Royal Theatre, overhears choreographer Niels demand that a company producer send for a cobbler and asks them to free his friend from jail.

Hans sees a lonely young girl outside his jail cell window and offers to introduce her to his companion. By drawing on his thumb, Hans creates a puppet he calls Thumbelina and brings a smile to the girl's face. Soon Hans is bailed out of jail by the theater company and taken to the theater, where he becomes entranced by the beauty and talent of a Royal Danish Ballet dress rehearsal. When Niels ridicules lead ballerina Doro's performance, she in turn complains that her shoes need adjusting.

Doro gives the slippers to Hans, who is immediately smitten with the ballerina. Peter learns that Niels and Doro are a happily married couple, despite their theatrical quarrels. Hans resists the idea and writes a love letter to Doro in the form of a fable called The Little Mermaid, in which he tells her that she has chosen the wrong man. That night while Peter surreptitiously reads the letter, a gust of wind whisks it from his hands and carries it into the theater, where a stage doorman delivers it to Doro.

The next day, the entire ballet company sets off on their annual tour, leaving Hans bereft, but he soon finds comfort entertaining a new group of children with his stories. One day, Lars, a sad boy with a shaved head, remains behind after the other children tease him. Hans tells him the story of an ugly duckling who is ostracized by his peers until he becomes a handsome swan. When not with the children, Hans counts the days by making pair after pair of brightly colored satin slippers for his absent ballerina.

One day, Hans receives an invitation from the Gazette newspaper office, where Lars's father, the publisher, thanks Hans for helping his son overcome his difficulties and offers to publish The Ugly Duckling in the newspaper. Overjoyed by the news, Hans asks that his credit be changed from "Hans, the cobbler" to "Hans Christian Andersen" and runs down the street singing his full name with pride.

That evening, when the ballet company returns, Doro tells Hans that they have created a ballet based on his story The Little Mermaid, which Hans believes is a sign of her love for him. The next evening, Peter warns Hans that Doro will humiliate him. Disappointed by his friend's attitude, Hans suggests that they part ways and leaves for the opening of the new ballet. When Hans tries to deliver Doro's slippers backstage, Niels locks the insistent writer in a closet to prevent him from disrupting the performers. While Hans listens to the music and dreams of his story, the performance opens on stage.

The morning after the ballet, Doro sends for Hans and discovers that he is in love with her and has misunderstood her relationship with Niels. Niels interrupts their conversation and insults Hans by offering to pay him for The Little Mermaid. Hans refuses Niels's offer and claims that his writing was a fluke. Doro accepts the slippers Hans made for her and allows him to leave. On the road to Odense, Hans meets Peter and renews their friendship. Upon reaching town, Hans is greeted as a celebrity and regales the citizens, including the schoolmaster, with his now famous moral tales.

## Cast

[edit]

* Danny Kaye \- Hans Christian Andersen
* Farley Granger \- Niels
* Zizi Jeanmaire \- Doro
* Beverly Washburn \- little girl outside the jailhouse
* Joseph Walsh - Peter
* Philip Tonge \- Otto
* Erik Bruhn \- The Hussar in "Ice Skating Ballet"
* Roland Petit \- The Prince in "The Little Mermaid" Ballet
* John Brown \- Schoolmaster
* John Qualen \- Burgomaster
* Jeanne Lafayette - Celine
* Robert Malcolm - Stage Doorman
* George Chandler \- Gerta's Father
* Fred Kelsey \- First Gendarme
* Gil Perkins \- Second Gendarme
* Peter Votrian - Lars (as Peter Votrian)
* Barrie Chase \- Ballerina in "The Little Mermaid" Ballet
* Sylvia Lewis \- Ballerina in "The Little Mermaid" Ballet
* Henry Blair – Backstage "Little Mermaid" crew member who gives overture three-minute warning (uncredited)[3][4]

## Production

[edit]

Producer Samuel Goldwyn conceived the idea for the film in 1936 and employed numerous writers to work on early drafts of the screenplay over the years. In 1941 he was reportedly in discussions with Walt Disney Studios to produce the film, but the deal fell through.[1]

The film was eventually produced in the spring of 1952.[1] As Danish authorities were not consulted on the film, there were complaints from Denmark that the film was a fairy tale rather than the true story of Andersen's life[5] and the Danish Foreign Office considered making a formal protest against the film.[1]

## Soundtrack

[edit]

The soundtrack features eight songs, all with words and music by Frank Loesser.

1. "The King's New Clothes"
2. "The Inch Worm"
3. "I'm Hans Christian Andersen"
4. "Wonderful Copenhagen"
5. "Thumbelina"
6. "The Ugly Duckling"
7. "Anywhere I Wander"
8. "No Two People"

A studio cast recording of the film's songs was released by Decca, with Danny Kaye and Jane Wyman, as well as a backup chorus singing the songs. The album also included two Sylvia Fine originals made specifically for the album, "Uncle Pockets" and "There's a Hole at the Bottom of the Sea", and Danny Kaye's narration of two Tubby the Tuba stories by Paul Tripp. The songs were originally released as a series of four 78 rpm singles, with two songs per disk,[6] a 45 rpm album,[7] and a 10" LP.[8]

The music for the Little Mermaid ballet incorporates passages from various pieces by Franz Liszt including Gnomenreigen and the Mephisto Waltzes.

## Release

[edit]

The film premiered in New York City on November 25, 1952, opening at the Paris Theatre and at the Criterion Theatre, and received a general release in both the United States and United Kingdom on December 19, 1952.[1][9]

## Reception

[edit]

The film opened in Copenhagen on September 6, 1953. In its first 6 days of release at two theaters, it grossed $80,000;[10] it ultimately grossed $6 million in North America, making it one of the top ten grossing films of 1952.[2]

### Early reviews

[edit]

The film received mixed critical response, though in its first week of release at the Palads Teatret it played to full capacity earning 74,000 Danish krone;[5] however, in Andersen's home town of Odense, this film was poorly received.[1]

### Critical reception

[edit]

The film holds an 83% "Fresh" rating at Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 6/10, based on 6 reviews.[11]

### Accolades

[edit]

Award  | Category  | Nominee(s)  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|

Academy Awards | Best Art Direction – Color | Art Direction: Richard Day and Antoni Clavé;
Set Decoration: Howard Bristol | Nominated  | [12]
[13]
[1]
Best Cinematography – Color | Harry Stradling | Nominated
Best Costume Design – Color | Antoni Clavé, Mary Wills, and Barbara Karinska | Nominated
Best Scoring of a Musical Picture | Walter Scharf | Nominated
Best Song | "Thumbelina"
Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser | Nominated
Best Sound Recording | Gordon E. Sawyer | Nominated
Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Charles Vidor | Nominated  | [14]
Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Nominated  | [15]
Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Danny Kaye | Nominated
Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Written American Musical | Moss Hart and Myles Connolly | Nominated  | [16]

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

* 2004: AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs:
* "Thumbelina" – Nominated[17]
* 2006: AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals – Nominated[18]

## First telecast

[edit]

The film was first telecast by ABC-TV in 1966. In an odd reversal of the situation for the early CBS telecasts of The Wizard of Oz, this time a host was needed because the film was too long for a two-hour time slot, rather than too short. It runs exactly two hours without commercials, and ABC did not wish to cut it, so they presented it as a family special with Victor Borge as host, and padded the telecast out to two-and-a-half hours. Borge was selected because, like the real Hans Christian Andersen, he was Danish.[19]

## In popular culture

[edit]

"Inchworm" was featured in season 3, episode 16 of The Muppet Show, wherein Kaye guest starred.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Hans Christian Andersen at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
2. ^ a b "Top Grossers of 1953". Variety. January 13, 1954. p. 10.
3. ^ "Castings". The Hollywood Reporter. April 1, 1952. p. 6\. ProQuest 2469197921. "Henry Blair, Richard Monahan, 'Hans Christian Andersen,' Goldwyn."
4. ^ YouTube Movies & TV. "Hans Christian Andersen". YouTube.
5. ^ a b "Looks Like Nearly All Is Forgiven Goldwyn By Once-Irked Danes". Variety. September 23, 1953. p. 7. Retrieved October 8, 2019 - via Archive.org.
6. ^ Decca A-919 cataloged at http://78discography.com/Dec28000.htm
7. ^ Decca 9-364 cataloged at http://castalbums.org/labels/?label=Decca
8. ^ Decca DL 5433 cataloged at http://lccn.loc.gov/99569726
9. ^ Notice in the Times, 17 December 1952, page 3: "The film goes into the programme at the Carlton Cinema on Friday." - found 2013-08-11 via The Times Digital Archive
10. ^ "'Hans' 80G in 6 Days, May Set Records in 2 B'Way Theatres". Daily Variety. p. 3.
11. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
12. ^ "The 25th Academy Awards (1953) Nominees and Winners". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2011.
13. ^ "NY Times: Hans Christian Andersen". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-10-03. Retrieved 2008-12-21.
14. ^ "5th Annual DGA Awards". Directors Guild of America Awards. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
15. ^ "Hans Christian Andersen". Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
16. ^ "Awards Winners". Writers Guild of America Awards. Archived from the original on December 5, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2010.
17. ^ "AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs Nominees" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-04-17. Retrieved 2016-08-13.
18. ^ "AFI's Greatest Movie Musicals Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-08-13.
19. ^ IMDb: Hans Christian Andersen \- Trivia Linked 2013-08-11

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hans Christian Andersen (film).

* Hans Christian Andersen at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
* Hans Christian Andersen at IMDb
* Hans Christian Andersen at the TCM Movie Database
* Hans Christian Andersen at Rotten Tomatoes

* v
* t
* e

Hans Christian Andersen

Bibliography

Short story collections|

* Fairy Tales Told for Children. First Collection. (1835–1837)
* Fairy Tales Told for Children. New Collection (1838–1841)
* New Fairy Tales. First Volume (1843–1845)

Short stories|

* "The Angel" (1843)
* "Blockhead Hans" (1855)
* "The Elf Mound" (1845)
* "The Emperor's New Clothes" (1837)
* "The Fir-Tree" (1844)
* "The Flying Trunk" (1839)
* "The Galoshes of Fortune" (1838)
* "The Garden of Paradise" (1839)
* "The Goblin and the Grocer" (1852)
* "Golden Treasure" (1865)
* "The Ice-Maiden" (1861)
* "Little Claus and Big Claus" (1835)
* "The Little Match Girl" (1845)
* "The Little Mermaid" (1837)
* "The Most Incredible Thing" (1870)
* "The Nightingale" (1843)
* "Ole Lukoie" (1841)
* "The Princess and the Pea" (1835)
* "The Red Shoes" (1845)
* "The Shadow" (1847)
* "The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep" (1845)
* "The Snow Queen" (1844)
* "The Snowman" (1861)
* "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" (1838)
* "The Story of a Mother" (1847)
* "The Sweethearts; or, The Top and the Ball" (1843)
* "The Swineherd" (1841)
* "The Tallow Candle" (1820s)
* "The Teapot" (1863)
* "Thumbelina" (1835)
* "The Tinderbox" (1835)
* "The Travelling Companion" (1835)
* "The Ugly Duckling" (1843)
* "What the Old Man Does is Always Right" (1861)
* "The Wicked Prince" (1840)
* "The Wild Swans" (1838)

Novels|

* The Improvisatore (1835)
* O.T (1836)
* The Two Baronesses (1848)

Plays, operas|

* Little Kirsten (1846)
* When the Spaniards Were Here (1865)

Poems and songs|

* Barn Jesus i en krybbe lå
* Danmark, mit fædreland
* Hist hvor vejen slår en bugt

Other works|

* Christine's Picture Book (art book)

Works inspired by
Andersen's life and works|

* Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
* The Daydreamer (1966)
* The World of Hans Christian Andersen (1968)
* Andersen Monogatari (1971)
* The Fairytaler (2002–2003)
* Hans Christian Andersen: My Life as a Fairytale (2003 miniseries)
* Young Andersen (2005 serial)

Related|

* Hans Christian Andersen Museums
* Pleated Christmas hearts
* International Children's Book Day
* Hans Christian Andersen Award
* Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award

Category

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Charles Vidor

* The Mask of Fu Manchu (1932)
* Sensation Hunters (1933)
* Double Door (1934)
* Strangers All (1935)
* The Arizonian (1935)
* His Family Tree (1935)
* A Doctor's Diary (1937)
* The Great Gambini (1937)
* Romance of the Redwoods (1939)
* Blind Alley (1939)
* Those High Grey Walls (1939)
* My Son, My Son! (1940)
* The Lady in Question (1940)
* Ladies in Retirement (1941)
* New York Town (1941)
* The Tuttles of Tahiti (1942)
* The Desperadoes (1943)
* Cover Girl (1944)
* Together Again (1944)
* A Song to Remember (1945)
* Over 21 (1945)
* Gilda (1946)
* The Loves of Carmen (1948)
* Thunder in the East (1951)
* Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
* Rhapsody (1954)
* Love Me or Leave Me (1955)
* The Swan (1956)
* The Joker Is Wild (1957)
* A Farewell to Arms (1957)
* Song Without End (1960)

* v
* t
* e

Musicals by Frank Loesser

* Where's Charley?
* Guys and Dolls
* The Most Happy Fella
* Greenwillow
* How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
* Pleasures and Palaces
* Señor Discretion Himself

* v
* t
* e

Films produced by Samuel Goldwyn

* The Pest (1919)
* Slave of Desire (1923)
* Potash and Perlmutter (1923)
* The Eternal City (1923)
* Cytherea (1924)
* In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter (1924)
* A Thief in Paradise (1925)
* His Supreme Moment (1925)
* The Dark Angel (1925)
* Stella Dallas (1925)
* The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)
* Partners Again (1926)
* The Night of Love (1927)
* The Magic Flame (1927)
* The Devil Dancer (1927)
* Two Lovers (1928)
* The Awakening (1928)
* Condemned (1929)
* The Rescue (1929)
* This Is Heaven (1929)
* Bulldog Drummond (1929)
* Raffles (1930)
* Whoopee! (1930)
* The Devil to Pay! (1930)
* One Heavenly Night (1931)
* Street Scene (1931)
* Palmy Days (1931)
* The Unholy Garden (1931)
* Arrowsmith (1931)
* Tonight or Never (1931)
* The Greeks Had a Word for Them (1932)
* The Kid from Spain (1932)
* Cynara (1932)
* The Masquerader (1933)
* Roman Scandals (1933)
* We Live Again (1934)
* Nana (1934)
* Kid Millions (1934)
* The Dark Angel (1935)
* The Wedding Night (1935)
* Barbary Coast (1935)
* Splendor (1935)
* These Three (1936)
* Dodsworth (1936)
* Come and Get It (1936)
* Strike Me Pink (1936)
* Beloved Enemy (1936)
* Woman Chases Man (1937)
* Stella Dallas (1937)
* Dead End (1937)
* The Hurricane (1937)
* The Adventures of Marco Polo (1938)
* The Cowboy and the Lady (1938)
* The Goldwyn Follies (1938)
* They Shall Have Music (1939)
* Wuthering Heights (1939)
* The Real Glory (1939)
* The Westerner (1940)
* The Little Foxes (1941)
* Ball of Fire (1941)
* The Pride of the Yankees (1942)
* They Got Me Covered (1943)
* The North Star (1943)
* Up in Arms (1944)
* The Princess and the Pirate (1944)
* Wonder Man (1945)
* The Kid From Brooklyn (1946)
* The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
* The Bishop's Wife (1947)
* The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947)
* A Song Is Born (1948)
* Enchantment (1948)
* Roseanna McCoy (1949)
* My Foolish Heart (1949)
* Our Very Own (1950)
* Edge of Doom (1950)
* I Want You (1951)
* Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
* Guys and Dolls (1955)
* Porgy and Bess (1959)

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