The King Steps Out (1936)
Director:
Josef von SternbergWriters:
Sidney Buchman, Ernst Decsey (play)Stars:
Franchot Tone, Grace Moore, Walter ConnollyJosef Von Sternberg, past directorial master of movie exotica, came down to earth with The King Steps Out, a major studio musical. Set in 19th century Vienna, the plot concerns a sprightly young lady (opera star Grace Moore) who wishes to rescue her sister from marrying their cousin, the "wicked" Emperor Franz Josef (Franchot Tone). Disguised as a dressmaker, the girl instantly falls in love with the young monarch herself, and sings her way into his heart. The film is a compendium of every mittel-European operetta ever made, right down to the supporting appearance of Hermann Bing as an innkeeper named Pretzelberger. The King Steps Out was adapted from the Fritz Kreisler stage musical Cissy.
Here is the link to the film at the Internet Movie database: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0027847/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
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The KIng fools his Mom
This is the Hollywood version of the Kr1eiler operetta "Sissi" which is still popular in German speaking countries. It concerns the courtship of The Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph and Elisabeth of Bavaria in the 1850's. The actual events portrayed are historically dubious but the over-all situation is correct; Sissi is the forthright gal she really was and Franz-Joseph is struggling to escape his dominating mother's control. The music is good, the story is fun and the ending is happy.
