“Thank heaven…” for Leslie Caron!
Two Academy Award® Musical Classics Starring Caron
Each Capturing Wins for Best Picture
AN AMERICAN IN PARIS
Caron Debuts, Gene Kelly Stars in the Celebrated Classic
GIGI 50th ANNIVERSARY
Lerner & Loewe’s Charming Musical Cinderella Story
BOTH NOW RETURN IN METICULOUSLY REMASTERED
TWO-DISC SPECIAL EDITIONS WITH ALL-NEW DOCUMENTARIES, OUTTAKES, VINTAGE SHORTS AND MORE FROM WHV SEPTEMBER 16
Burbank, Calif. June 20, 2008 – On September 16, An American in Paris and Gigi, two glorious Best Picture Oscar®-winning 1950s classics from the crown jewel collection of M-G-M’s Golden Age of Musicals, join the impressive roster of Warner Home Video’s
Two-Disc Special Editions DVDs.
Celebrating the musical genre at its peak while magically evoking the joie de vivre of Paris, these two motion pictures captured an amazing 15 Academy Awards® including Best Picture. They also share an impressive pedigree that goes beyond Oscar®. Both films featured the lovely Leslie Caron as their leading lady, had Oscar®-winning screenplays by Alan Jay Lerner (My Fair Lady), were produced by Arthur Freed (Singin’ in the Rain) and directed by Vincente Minnelli (Meet Me in St. Louis). With an assemblage of talent like that, it’s no wonder that both films have been popular for more than a half-century. Each Two-Disc Special Edition will sell for $20.97 SRP.
WHV has also announced that both titles will be released on Blu-ray™ Hi-Def in early 2009.
WHV is toasting these classics with two extensively restored and remastered versions:
An American in Paris, originally photographed in Technicolor, is the latest recipient of Warner Bros.’ proprietary Ultra-Resolution process, which takes the original Technicolor negatives and meticulously combines them to yield a stunning picture with sharpness and depth of field never seen before.
Gigi was produced after the demise of the original Technicolor system, photographed in the industry-standardized Eastmancolor process. For this new DVD release, Gigi has been photo-chemically restored from its original camera negative and safety separations to produce a much sharper and colorful image than has been seen in decades. It also contains a 5.1 audio mix created from the original multi-track source elements.
About Leslie Caron
Leslie Caron was a classically trained dancer discovered by co-star Gene Kelly (who also directed one sequence) for her motion picture debut in An American in Paris.
Her other early credits include The Glass Slipper, Daddy Long Legs (with Fred Astaire), Lili (for which she earned an Best Actress Oscar® nomination), Father Goose (with Cary Grant), Fanny, The L-Shaped Room (her second Best Actress Oscar® nomination and a Best Actress Golden Globe® win) and Promise Her Anything.
Since then, Miss Caron has selected her projects carefully. Other noteworthy appearances include Louis Malle’s Damage (with Jeremy Irons, Juliette Binoche and Miranda Richardson), Funny Bones (with Oliver Platt, Jerry Lewis and Oliver Reed), “Last of the Blonde Bombshells” for HBO (with Dame Judi Dench and Ian Holm), and Chocolat (with Johnny Depp). More recently, she gave one of her best performances in Le Divorce, the sophisticated Merchant-Ivory production in which she played opposite Naomi Watts.
Just last year, Miss Caron won an Emmy ® for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She now spends most of her time in France where she owns and operates a country inn.
About Gene Kelly
The late Gene Kelly wore many hats in Hollywood -- director, actor, producer, dancer, choreographer and singer. Kelly joined M-G-M in 1941 after appearing in the 1940 Broadway production of “Pal Joey.” Kelly had intended to return to the stage after he finished filming his film debut of For Me and My Gal with Judy Garland. Due to the success of the picture, Kelly ultimately decided to stay in Hollywood.
Kelly has starred with some of Hollywood’s most famous leading ladies, such as Lucille Ball, Rita Hayworth, Judy Garland, Cyd Charisse and Debbie Reynolds. He co-starred with Frank Sinatra in a number of films (available from WHV) such as Take Me out the Ball Game, On the Town and Anchors Aweigh (for which he earned a Best Actor Oscar® nomination). Nowhere was Kelly more engaging than in 1952’s Singin’ in the Rain, one of the all-time great movie musicals, and perhaps the film most associated with Kelly.
Mr. Kelly’s many awards include a 1952 Honorary Academy Award®[1], Life Achievement Awards from the American Film Institute, the Screen Actors Guild and the Cecil B. DeMille Award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. His star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame is at 6161 Hollywood Boulevard.
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition (1951)
An American in Paris is “one of the greatest, most elegant, and most celebrated of M-G-M’s 50s musicals” (filmsite.org). Legendary producer Arthur Freed developed the film based on George Gershwin’s celebrated 1928 orchestral work, and assembled a stellar team of talents to bring forth what would become a landmark film. With Alan Jay Lerner crafting an original screenplay around the songs of George and Ira Gershwin, Vincente Minnelli directing and Gene Kelly starring (and choreographing) with newcomer Leslie Caron, the results were, and still are, unforgettable. More than two dozen Gershwin songs are used throughout the film, including such favorites as “Love Is Here to Stay,” “I Got Rhythm,” “‘S Wonderful” and “Embraceable You.” Add to this a mix of lavish sets and costumes, tremendous Technicolor cinematography, a romantic love story and a climactic show-stopping ballet, and you’ve got a film that easily captured six Oscar® wins (including Best Picture, Director and Music). An American in Paris also holds the distinction of being the first musical to win a Golden Globe® Award for Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical).
The plot revolves around ex-GI Jerry Mulligan (Kelly), a struggling American painter in Paris, who is discovered by an influential heiress (Nina Foch) with an interest in more than Jerry’s art. Jerry in turn falls for Lise (Caron), a young French girl already engaged to a cabaret singer. Jerry jokes, sings and dances with his best friend, an acerbic would-be concert pianist (Oscar Levant), and romantic complications abound.
DVD Special Features:
Disc 1
· 1938 MGM short: Paris on Parade
· 1951 MGM cartoon: Symphony in Slang
· Theatrical trailer
Disc 2
· 2002 American Masters Documentary: Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
· ‘S Wonderful: The Making of An American in Paris, an all new documentary, produced especially for this release. A dynamic history of the making of the film, which reveals how George and Ira Gershwin’s classic songs, the dazzling art of the French impressionists and the ultimate teamwork of MGM’s legendary “Freed Unit” came together to create a musical masterpiece. Featuring ten new interviews, including co-stars Leslie Caron and Nina Foch
· Outtakes: Georges Guetary performing Love Walked In and Gene Kelly performing I Got a Crush on You (audio only)
· Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron promotional radio interview with Dick Simmons
Love Walked In Outtake
Audio Outtakes
Alternate Main Title
But Not for Me Guetary
But Not for Me Levant Piano Solo
Gershwin Prelude #3
I've Got a Crush on You
Nice Work if You Can Get It
'S Wonderful
Radio Interviews
Johnny Green
Gene Kelly
Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition (1958)
For nearly a decade Arthur Freed hoped to make a musical film based on Colette’s enchanting novel “Gigi,” but he garnered little support from the M-G-M brass. That changed after the opening of My Fair Lady in early 1956. The show was an immediate smash hit and went on to a record-breaking theatrical run but didn’t get to the screen until 1964. So when Freed came up with the idea of assembling some of the same My Fair Lady creative team -- lyricist Alan Jay Lerner, composer Frederick Loewe and costumer Cecil Beaton -- he quickly received a green light to proceed with his project.
The plot, about a school girl who becomes a Frenchman’s mistress, was considered very risqué and daring for its time. Under the inspired and tasteful direction of Vincente Minnelli, however, the result was nothing short of a triumph --so much so that M-G-M opened the film in a legitimate Broadway theater, where it played on a reserved-seat basis like a new stage musical. The film became a hit all over the world and handily won every Academy Award® category in which it was nominated -- Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay (Lerner), Best Color Cinematography, Best Art/Set Direction, Best Song (“Gigi” by Lerner and Loewe), Best Musical Score (Andre Previn), Best Costume Design, and Best Editing. It was highly unusual that none of the excellent cast -- Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold, or Maurice Chevalier -- received acting nominations, although Chevalier, known for his singing of “Thank Heaven For Little Girls,” was presented with an honorary Oscar®. Other delightful songs on the soundtrack include “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore,” “The Night They Invented Champagne,” “I Remember it Well,” and of course, the title tune, “Gigi.” Considered by many the last of the great M-G-M musicals, the film was selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
Gigi tells the story of Gaston (Louis Jordan), a handsome playboy from a wealthy Parisian family, who finds emotional refuge from the superficial lifestyle of upper class Parisian 1900s society with the former mistress (Gingold) of his uncle (Maurice Chevalier) and her outgoing, tomboy granddaughter, Gigi (Leslie Caron). When Gaston becomes aware that Gigi has matured into a woman, her grandmother and aunt (Isabel Jeans), who have groomed Gigi to be a wealthy man’s mistress, encourage him to become her provider and try to persuade her to accept such a golden opportunity. However, love adds a surprise twist to this delightful turn-of-the 20th century Cinderella story.
DVD Special Features
Disc 1 (Gigi ’58)
The Million Dollar Nickel [1952 MGM short]
The Vanishing Duck [1958 MGM cartoon]
Theatrical Trailer
Disc 2
Thank Heaven! The Making of Gigi - The story of how 1958's Best Picture winner (the last of the classic MGM musicals) survived a turbulent production that included censorship battles over its daring sexual content and creative struggles between a studio in turmoil and a demanding, visionary director. Featuring an all-new interview with star Leslie Caron, and a rare interview with Oscar-winning director Minnelli
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition
Street Date: September 16, 2008
Each title priced at $20.97 SRP
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition
Not Rated
Run Time: 113 minutes
Color-1.33:1-Original Mono audio
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition
Rated G
Run Time: 116 minutes
Color-16x9 2.35 Anamorphic Widescreen-5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
Two Academy Award® Musical Classics Starring Caron
Each Capturing Wins for Best Picture
AN AMERICAN IN PARIS
Caron Debuts, Gene Kelly Stars in the Celebrated Classic
GIGI 50th ANNIVERSARY
Lerner & Loewe’s Charming Musical Cinderella Story
BOTH NOW RETURN IN METICULOUSLY REMASTERED
TWO-DISC SPECIAL EDITIONS WITH ALL-NEW DOCUMENTARIES, OUTTAKES, VINTAGE SHORTS AND MORE FROM WHV SEPTEMBER 16
Burbank, Calif. June 20, 2008 – On September 16, An American in Paris and Gigi, two glorious Best Picture Oscar®-winning 1950s classics from the crown jewel collection of M-G-M’s Golden Age of Musicals, join the impressive roster of Warner Home Video’s
Two-Disc Special Editions DVDs.
Celebrating the musical genre at its peak while magically evoking the joie de vivre of Paris, these two motion pictures captured an amazing 15 Academy Awards® including Best Picture. They also share an impressive pedigree that goes beyond Oscar®. Both films featured the lovely Leslie Caron as their leading lady, had Oscar®-winning screenplays by Alan Jay Lerner (My Fair Lady), were produced by Arthur Freed (Singin’ in the Rain) and directed by Vincente Minnelli (Meet Me in St. Louis). With an assemblage of talent like that, it’s no wonder that both films have been popular for more than a half-century. Each Two-Disc Special Edition will sell for $20.97 SRP.
WHV has also announced that both titles will be released on Blu-ray™ Hi-Def in early 2009.
WHV is toasting these classics with two extensively restored and remastered versions:
An American in Paris, originally photographed in Technicolor, is the latest recipient of Warner Bros.’ proprietary Ultra-Resolution process, which takes the original Technicolor negatives and meticulously combines them to yield a stunning picture with sharpness and depth of field never seen before.
Gigi was produced after the demise of the original Technicolor system, photographed in the industry-standardized Eastmancolor process. For this new DVD release, Gigi has been photo-chemically restored from its original camera negative and safety separations to produce a much sharper and colorful image than has been seen in decades. It also contains a 5.1 audio mix created from the original multi-track source elements.
About Leslie Caron
Leslie Caron was a classically trained dancer discovered by co-star Gene Kelly (who also directed one sequence) for her motion picture debut in An American in Paris.
Her other early credits include The Glass Slipper, Daddy Long Legs (with Fred Astaire), Lili (for which she earned an Best Actress Oscar® nomination), Father Goose (with Cary Grant), Fanny, The L-Shaped Room (her second Best Actress Oscar® nomination and a Best Actress Golden Globe® win) and Promise Her Anything.
Since then, Miss Caron has selected her projects carefully. Other noteworthy appearances include Louis Malle’s Damage (with Jeremy Irons, Juliette Binoche and Miranda Richardson), Funny Bones (with Oliver Platt, Jerry Lewis and Oliver Reed), “Last of the Blonde Bombshells” for HBO (with Dame Judi Dench and Ian Holm), and Chocolat (with Johnny Depp). More recently, she gave one of her best performances in Le Divorce, the sophisticated Merchant-Ivory production in which she played opposite Naomi Watts.
Just last year, Miss Caron won an Emmy ® for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She now spends most of her time in France where she owns and operates a country inn.
About Gene Kelly
The late Gene Kelly wore many hats in Hollywood -- director, actor, producer, dancer, choreographer and singer. Kelly joined M-G-M in 1941 after appearing in the 1940 Broadway production of “Pal Joey.” Kelly had intended to return to the stage after he finished filming his film debut of For Me and My Gal with Judy Garland. Due to the success of the picture, Kelly ultimately decided to stay in Hollywood.
Kelly has starred with some of Hollywood’s most famous leading ladies, such as Lucille Ball, Rita Hayworth, Judy Garland, Cyd Charisse and Debbie Reynolds. He co-starred with Frank Sinatra in a number of films (available from WHV) such as Take Me out the Ball Game, On the Town and Anchors Aweigh (for which he earned a Best Actor Oscar® nomination). Nowhere was Kelly more engaging than in 1952’s Singin’ in the Rain, one of the all-time great movie musicals, and perhaps the film most associated with Kelly.
Mr. Kelly’s many awards include a 1952 Honorary Academy Award®[1], Life Achievement Awards from the American Film Institute, the Screen Actors Guild and the Cecil B. DeMille Award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. His star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame is at 6161 Hollywood Boulevard.
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition (1951)
An American in Paris is “one of the greatest, most elegant, and most celebrated of M-G-M’s 50s musicals” (filmsite.org). Legendary producer Arthur Freed developed the film based on George Gershwin’s celebrated 1928 orchestral work, and assembled a stellar team of talents to bring forth what would become a landmark film. With Alan Jay Lerner crafting an original screenplay around the songs of George and Ira Gershwin, Vincente Minnelli directing and Gene Kelly starring (and choreographing) with newcomer Leslie Caron, the results were, and still are, unforgettable. More than two dozen Gershwin songs are used throughout the film, including such favorites as “Love Is Here to Stay,” “I Got Rhythm,” “‘S Wonderful” and “Embraceable You.” Add to this a mix of lavish sets and costumes, tremendous Technicolor cinematography, a romantic love story and a climactic show-stopping ballet, and you’ve got a film that easily captured six Oscar® wins (including Best Picture, Director and Music). An American in Paris also holds the distinction of being the first musical to win a Golden Globe® Award for Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical).
The plot revolves around ex-GI Jerry Mulligan (Kelly), a struggling American painter in Paris, who is discovered by an influential heiress (Nina Foch) with an interest in more than Jerry’s art. Jerry in turn falls for Lise (Caron), a young French girl already engaged to a cabaret singer. Jerry jokes, sings and dances with his best friend, an acerbic would-be concert pianist (Oscar Levant), and romantic complications abound.
DVD Special Features:
Disc 1
· 1938 MGM short: Paris on Parade
· 1951 MGM cartoon: Symphony in Slang
· Theatrical trailer
Disc 2
· 2002 American Masters Documentary: Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer
· ‘S Wonderful: The Making of An American in Paris, an all new documentary, produced especially for this release. A dynamic history of the making of the film, which reveals how George and Ira Gershwin’s classic songs, the dazzling art of the French impressionists and the ultimate teamwork of MGM’s legendary “Freed Unit” came together to create a musical masterpiece. Featuring ten new interviews, including co-stars Leslie Caron and Nina Foch
· Outtakes: Georges Guetary performing Love Walked In and Gene Kelly performing I Got a Crush on You (audio only)
· Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron promotional radio interview with Dick Simmons
Love Walked In Outtake
Audio Outtakes
Alternate Main Title
But Not for Me Guetary
But Not for Me Levant Piano Solo
Gershwin Prelude #3
I've Got a Crush on You
Nice Work if You Can Get It
'S Wonderful
Radio Interviews
Johnny Green
Gene Kelly
Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition (1958)
For nearly a decade Arthur Freed hoped to make a musical film based on Colette’s enchanting novel “Gigi,” but he garnered little support from the M-G-M brass. That changed after the opening of My Fair Lady in early 1956. The show was an immediate smash hit and went on to a record-breaking theatrical run but didn’t get to the screen until 1964. So when Freed came up with the idea of assembling some of the same My Fair Lady creative team -- lyricist Alan Jay Lerner, composer Frederick Loewe and costumer Cecil Beaton -- he quickly received a green light to proceed with his project.
The plot, about a school girl who becomes a Frenchman’s mistress, was considered very risqué and daring for its time. Under the inspired and tasteful direction of Vincente Minnelli, however, the result was nothing short of a triumph --so much so that M-G-M opened the film in a legitimate Broadway theater, where it played on a reserved-seat basis like a new stage musical. The film became a hit all over the world and handily won every Academy Award® category in which it was nominated -- Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay (Lerner), Best Color Cinematography, Best Art/Set Direction, Best Song (“Gigi” by Lerner and Loewe), Best Musical Score (Andre Previn), Best Costume Design, and Best Editing. It was highly unusual that none of the excellent cast -- Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold, or Maurice Chevalier -- received acting nominations, although Chevalier, known for his singing of “Thank Heaven For Little Girls,” was presented with an honorary Oscar®. Other delightful songs on the soundtrack include “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore,” “The Night They Invented Champagne,” “I Remember it Well,” and of course, the title tune, “Gigi.” Considered by many the last of the great M-G-M musicals, the film was selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
Gigi tells the story of Gaston (Louis Jordan), a handsome playboy from a wealthy Parisian family, who finds emotional refuge from the superficial lifestyle of upper class Parisian 1900s society with the former mistress (Gingold) of his uncle (Maurice Chevalier) and her outgoing, tomboy granddaughter, Gigi (Leslie Caron). When Gaston becomes aware that Gigi has matured into a woman, her grandmother and aunt (Isabel Jeans), who have groomed Gigi to be a wealthy man’s mistress, encourage him to become her provider and try to persuade her to accept such a golden opportunity. However, love adds a surprise twist to this delightful turn-of-the 20th century Cinderella story.
DVD Special Features
Disc 1 (Gigi ’58)
The Million Dollar Nickel [1952 MGM short]
The Vanishing Duck [1958 MGM cartoon]
Theatrical Trailer
Disc 2
Thank Heaven! The Making of Gigi - The story of how 1958's Best Picture winner (the last of the classic MGM musicals) survived a turbulent production that included censorship battles over its daring sexual content and creative struggles between a studio in turmoil and a demanding, visionary director. Featuring an all-new interview with star Leslie Caron, and a rare interview with Oscar-winning director Minnelli
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition
Street Date: September 16, 2008
Each title priced at $20.97 SRP
An American in Paris Two-Disc Special Edition
Not Rated
Run Time: 113 minutes
Color-1.33:1-Original Mono audio
Gigi 50th Anniversary Two-Disc Special Edition
Rated G
Run Time: 116 minutes
Color-16x9 2.35 Anamorphic Widescreen-5.1 Dolby Digital Audio
