Writings and drawings the library of america, 1996, isbn 1883011221, is. Dec 25, 20 danny kaye played walter mitty in the original movie. So when i got a request to do a danny kaye ultimate movie rankings page i was shocked. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 stream and watch. Secret life of walter mitty, the dvd danny kaye stars as the mildmannered mouse who imagines himself to be a number of daredevil heroes in this whimsical adaptation of james thurbers short story. The first film version of mitty, starring danny kaye, was released in 1947. I have fond memories of watching movies like the secret life of walter mitty 1947, the inspector general 1949, hans christian anderson 1952, white christmas 1954 and the court jester 1956 when i was younger. The versatile comedianalso an unsurpassed songanddance manplays a henpecked, thrillergenre book writer suddenly enmeshed in a real adventure involving the literal girl of his dreams virginia mayo. His talent really shines in playing the multiple roles of the various imagined adventures a couple of which actually are taken from the original story. The secret life of walter mitty 1939 is a short story by james thurber. When both he and a colleague are about to lose their job, walter takes action by embarking on an adventure more extraordinary than anything he could have ever imagined. Danny kaye stars as walter, a milquetoast proofreader for a magazine publishing.
Ben stiller directs and costars in this inspiring story about an ordinary man who leaps into the extraordinary adventure that is life. The secret life of walter mitty, in which danny kaye. This film was recently remade sadly with a slightly different plot and newer actors and im sorry to say it did not honor the original. These include a brave sea captain, fashion designer, surgeon, cowboy, etc. It was made into a film in 1947 starring danny kaye, with a remake directed by, and. Jan 30, 2014 danny kayes films include the kid from brooklyn 1946, the secret life of walter mitty 1947, the inspector general 1949, hans christian andersen 1952, white christmas 1954, and the court jester 1956. Danny kaye in the secret life of walter mitty 1947 boris karloff and virginia mayo in the. From the movie the secret life of walter mitty 1947 lyrics and music written by sylvia fine danny kayes wife. Kaye specialized in playing multiple roles or personalities in such films as wonder man 1945, the kid from brooklyn 1946, the secret life of walter mitty 1947, the inspector general 1949. If theres one movie danny kaye fans fondly remember, its the secret life of walter mitty. From there he went through a series of jobs in and out of the business. Rock a bye baby 1958 jerry lewis dean martin full length comedy movie duration. Even though danny kayes walter mitty is not precisely the mousey chap mr.
As a matter of fact, i thought it was a lot funnier than a few comedy films they have these days. In 1939, he made his broadway debut in straw hat revue, but it was the stage production of the musical. You can now read the secret life of walter mitty, the short story by james thurber that forms the basis of the upcoming ben stiller movie, for free online the comic tale about a mildmannered man who frequently imagines himself in thrilling situations originally appeared in the new yorker on march 19, 1939. Danny kaye from the secret life of walter mitty imitates a music professor. The most recent movie adaptation of the mitty story, from 20, starred ben stiller in the titular role as the archetypal nebbish who retreats into an intensely vivid fantasy world in times of stress. Apr 12, 2010 danny kaye from the secret life of walter mitty imitates a music professor. The secret life of walter mitty is a disappointment, an often confusing and silly contrivance of an unbecomingofage comedy based on thurbers literary work adapted into a 1947 vehicle for star. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapidfire novelty songs kaye starred in 17 movies, notably wonder man 1945, the kid from brooklyn.
It seems that danny kaye 19111987 movies were always on television when i was growing up. Except for special issues like the beatles 50th anniversary that. May 02, 2014 this new walter mitty has been updated to be a single man, 42 years oldas the movie opens we learn its his birthdayand working as head of the negative department at life magazine, which in real life ha. The secret life of walter mitty is a 20 american adventure comedydrama film directed, coproduced by and starring ben stiller and written by steve conrad. The film was adapted for the screen by ken englund, everett freeman, and philip rapp, and directed by norman z. Feb 16, 2019 the secret life of walter mitty 20 stars ben stiller as a largely anonymous little man in the photo department of life magazine. The film also stars kristen wiig, shirley maclaine, adam scott, kathryn hahn, and sean penn. Danny kaye left school at the age of to work in the socalled borscht belt of jewish resorts in the catskill mountains. James thurber wasnt too happy with the sam goldwyn film adaptation of his 1939 short story the secret life of walter mitty, but the technicolor musical comedy proved to be a cash cow at the box office.
Danny kaye shines in this film as he always does with clever voices, faces, and general quirkyness. Best jerry lewis dean martin movies 2,646,708 views. Walter mitty, the henpecked, daydreaming hero in the short story the secret life of walter mitty, is thurbers quintessential urban man. The film stars danny kaye as a young daydreaming proofreader later. Danny kaye, virginia mayo, boris karloff, norman z. Thurber wrote about with such delightful and devastating accuracy, he is an. Even when the movie is about another time and place, it inevitably is that time. January 18, 1911 march 3, 1987 was an american actor, singer, dancer, comedian, musician, and philanthropist. Watch knock on wood watch movies online free youtube. The film stars danny kaye as a young daydreaming proofreader for a magazine publishing firm and virginia mayo as the girl of his dreams.
The secret life of walter mitty, in which danny kaye gives vent to. Throughout his career danny was the type of guy that loved to get on stage and have a good time and was more than good enough to inspire those that tried to be like him in many different ways. Starring danny kaye, virginia mayo, boris karloff, fay bainter, ann rutherford, thurston hall, gordon jones, reginald denny and konstantin shayne. Why walter mitty should never have been made into a movie. The danny kaye movie is fundamentally a romantic adventure comedy giving kaye an opportunity to get in all his schticks, including a patter song, for heavens sake. Even though danny kaye s walter mitty is not precisely the mousey chap mr. Thurber wrote about with such delightful and devastating accuracy, he is an agreeable facsimile. Jan 30, 2014 danny kaye s films include the kid from brooklyn 1946, the secret life of walter mitty 1947, the inspector general 1949, hans christian andersen 1952, white christmas 1954, and the court jester 1956. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 stars danny kaye as its. This had 12 producers and a director ben stiller that. Danny kaye stars as walter, a milquetoast proofreader for a magazine. Read the short story the secret life of walter mitty.
His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapidfire novelty songs. The one downside to the recent flurry of danny kaye dvd releases has been the discs lack of bonus materials. Danny kaye sings as anatole of paris from the secret. Its based off of a short story the secret life of walter mitty in which walter s imagination is his escape from mundaneannoying things, so he often daydreams of awesome situations like being a 007esque secret agent or a worldfamous open heart surgeon. Goldwyn film adaptation of his 1939 short story the secret life of walter mitty, but the. The sectret life of walter mitty is based on james thurbers classic story of a daydreamer who escapes his anonymous life by disappearing into a world of fantasies filled with heroism, romance and action. He lives alone, has a doting mother and a ner do well sister, and when he daydreams, it bears little resemblance to the theatrically staged scenes of danny kaye. His films were popular, especially his bravura performances of patter songs and favorites such as inchworm and the ugly duckling. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 movie moviefone. The secret life of walter mitty 20 comedy drama fantasy. A moment comes when you stop dreaming, start living and discover your destiny. The secret life of walter mitty ranks 479th on empire magazines 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time.
James thurber wasnt too happy with the sam goldwyn film adaptation of his 1939 short story the secret life of walter mitty, but the technicolor musical comedy proved to be a cash cow at the box. A mildmannered pushover, walter mitty danny kaye longs to be free of his mundane existence, where has to contend with his pushy mother fay bainter and flighty fiancee ann rutherford, among. One of kaye s earliest hits was the secret life of walter mitty 1947, in which he played james thurbers daydreaming everyman, who envisioned himself as a schooner captain, surgeon. Walter james mitty is a fictional character in james thurbers first short story the secret life of walter mitty, first published in the new yorker on march 18, 1939, and in book form in my world and welcome to it in 1942. The image of danny kaye in this poster is straight from a chinese restaurant scene deleted from the theatrical release of the secret life of walter mitty. Released september 1st, 1947, the secret life of walter mitty stars danny kaye, virginia mayo, boris karloff, fay bainter the movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 48 min, and received a score of.
The secret life of walter mitty 20 written by steve conrad. The film stars danny kaye as a young daydreaming proofreader later associate editor for a magazine publishing firm and virginia mayo as the girl of his dreams. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 film wikipedia. The wonderful danny kaye is perfect as thurbers hopelessly daydreaming character as his fantasies open up visually into amusing heroics the tipocketica sound. The original short story which became a danny kaye movie in 1947 was full of imagination.
The secret life of walter mitty with danny kaye has always been one of my favorites. With danny kaye, virginia mayo, boris karloff, fay bainter. Walter mitty and the life magazine covers that never were. Danny kaye played walter mitty in the original movie. The versatile comedianalso an unsurpassed songanddance. The characters name and its adjective mittyesque have entered the. The secret life of walter mitty is a 1947 technicolor comedy film, loosely based on the short story of the same name by james thurber. Im amazed that theyre making it into a movie, it isnt really that type of shortstory. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 trailer youtube.
One of kayes earliest hits was the secret life of walter mitty 1947, in which he played james thurbers daydreaming everyman, who envisioned himself as a schooner captain, surgeon. Danny kaye sings as anatole of paris from the secret life. The most famous of thurbers stories, it first appeared in the new yorker on march 18, 1939, and was first collected in his book my world and welcome to it harcourt, brace and company, 1942. Apr 27, 2020 in the secret life of walter mitty, danny kaye is a natural to play the part of walter mitty. In this rendition of the tale, stiller plays a photo editor at life. Titled symphony for unstrung tongue love himcheck out the other two ive put up in loving tribute. Some of these hits were 1946s the kid from brooklyn, 1947s the secret life of walter mitty, 1952s hans christian andersen and 1954s white christmas. The secret life of walter mitty, in which danny kaye gives. Its based off of a short story the secret life of walter mitty in which walters imagination is his escape from mundaneannoying things, so he often daydreams of awesome situations like being a 007esque secret agent or a worldfamous open heart surgeon.
When his job, along with that of his coworker kristen wiig are threatened, walter takes action and embarks on an incredible journey. Danny kaye in the secret life of walter mitty 1947 boris karloff and virginia. Naturally, we dont pretend to know now about the cultists reaction to the film treatment of the secret life of walter mitty, but ours ranges from unrestrained. In the secret life of walter mitty, danny kaye is a natural to play the part of walter mitty. It was first published in the new yorker in 1939 and was collected in my worldand welcome to it danny kaye, energetic multitalented american actor and. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 rotten tomatoes. Up in arms was a very successful movie and started a nice 15 year run that would produce some major hits for kaye. This new walter mitty has been updated to be a single man, 42 years oldas the movie opens we learn its his birthdayand working as head of the negative department at life magazine, which in real life ha. Thurber loosely based the character, a daydreamer, on his friend walter mithoff. Hes a henpecked man who takes refuge from his boring life by engaging in a series of fantasies. The secret life of walter mitty 1947 written by ken englund and everett freeman. Nov 20, 2016 rock a bye baby 1958 jerry lewis dean martin full length comedy movie duration.
Kaye is such a terrific performer in all areas of the craft, and his daydreams are a hoot to watch. The irrepressible danny kaye stars as a mildmannered mouse who imagines himself as a number of daredevil heroes, including a gunslinger in the old west. Danny kaye, virginia mayo, boris karloff, fay bainter en ann rutherford. A clumsy daydreamer gets caught up in a sinister conspiracy.
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