Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) | |
| Director(s) | Vincente Minnelli |
| Producer(s) | Arthur Freed, Roger Edens (associate uncredited) |
| Top Genres | Family, Musical, Romance |
| Top Topics | Book-Based, Christmas, Holiday, Romance (Musical), Sisters, Turn of the Century |
Featured Cast:
Meet Me in St. Louis Overview:
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) was a Family - Musical Film directed by Vincente Minnelli and produced by Arthur Freed and Roger Edens.
The film was based on the short stories 5135 Kensington written by Sally Benson published in The New Yorker and as a Novel (June 14, 1941 - May 23, 1942 (magazine) and 1942 (novel)).
SYNOPSIS
On nearly every list of the best Hollywood musicals of all time, Minnelli's slice of Americana set during the 1904 World's Fair was unusual for its failure to employ a "backstage" plot device to set up the songs More important, it served to reestablish Garland's career and established Minnelli (Garland's future husband) as a major American filmmaker. The story of the well-to-do Alonzo Smith (Ames) and his family is a nostalgic portrait an idealized happy American household, where the biggest worries concern the romantic futures of daughters Garland and Bremer and a possible move to New York. With songs like "The Boy Next Door," "Have Yourself a Merry Christmas," and the famous "Trolley Song," this soon became MGM's second most successful film, bested only by Gone With the Wind.
(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).
.Meet Me in St. Louis was inducted into the National Film Registry in 1994.
Academy Awards 1944 --- Ceremony Number 17 (source: AMPAS)
| Award | Recipient | Result |
| Best Cinematography | George Folsey | Nominated |
| Best Music - Scoring | Georgie Stoll | Nominated |
| Best Music - Song | Music and Lyrics by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin | Nominated |
| Best Writing | Irving Brecher, Fred F. Finklehoffe | Nominated |
Meet Me in St. Louis BlogHub Articles:
Win Tickets to see ?TCM Big Screen Classics: Meet Me in St. Louis? (Giveaway runs now through Nov 24)
By Annmarie Gatti on Nov 18, 2019 From Classic Movie Hub BlogWin tickets to see ?TCM Big Screen Classics: Meet Me in St. Louis (75th Anniversary)? on the Big Screen!In Select Cinemas Nationwide Sun Dec 8 and Wed Dec 11 ?But the main thing is, Tootie, that we’re all going to be together, just like we’ve always been. That’s what really coun... Read full article
The Saint: Mary Astor in "Meet Me In St. Louis"
By Vanessa Buttino on May 2, 2013 From StardustThe Saint: Mary Astor in "Meet Me In St. Louis" The Smith House at 5135 Kensington Ave, St. Louis When I was around the age of 13 or so, I desperately wanted to live in the Smith household. Full of jolly family members, a crotchety old maid, and lovely Victorian decor, the Smith house conj... Read full article
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) and Margaret O'Brien at the 2014 TCM Classic Film Festival
By Raquel Stecher on Nov 30, -0001 From Out of the Past - A Classic Film BlogI had the pleasure of attending a very special screening of Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). It took place in the TCL Chinese Theatre (Grauman's Chinese) and actress Margaret O'Brien was in attendance. Seeing O'Brien at the TCM Classic Film Festival was an experience I'll never forget. In fact, I saw he... Read full article
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Quotes from Meet Me in St. Louis
Katie the Maid: I don't know... a little while ago, she got in my way and I kicked her down the cellar steps. I could hear her spine hitting on every step.
Agnes Smith: Oh, if you killed her, I'll kill you! I'll stab you to death in your sleep, then I'll tie your body to two wild horses until you're pulled apart.
Katie the Maid: Oh, won't that be terrible, now? There's your cat.
Esther Smith: Meeting him across the lawn for the first time would be so ordinary. I don't want to be just introduced to him. I want it to be something strange and romantic and something I'll always remember.
[after John & Esther kiss]
Esther Smith: You've got a mighty strong grip for a boy.
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Facts about Meet Me in St. Louis
The success of the film had encouraged MGM to create further movies involving the Smith family and was to be based on further tales of Sally Benson's family. MGM wanted to make sort of a deluxe color group of serials in the spirit of the popular "Andy Hardy" series. A proposed sequel titled "Meet Me in Manhattan" was in the works in which the Smith family actually moved to New York. (This happened in real life to Sally Benson's family.) However, the project never got out of planning stages and the film was never made.
"The Trolley Song" was inspired by a caption in a book about the history of St. Louis. The book had a page with a picture of a turn-of-the-century trolley car, captioned "Clang! Clang! Clang! went the jolly little trolley."
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