Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie

Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie. Gangsters from Chicago in need of a shave. To the right: David Wayne as the barber Ben Halper. In the chair: Richard Karlan  as the gangster boss Mike Kava hoping to experience Ben's "velvet touch".

1905 sheet music cover for "Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie". Cover has insert photos of songwriter/publisher Harry Von Tilzer and of singer Geo Brown. Photo and caption from Wikipedia.

Director: Henry King. Year: 1952. Country: USA. Sog.: dal romanzo I Heard Them Sing (1946) di Ferdinand Reyher. Scen.: Allan Scott, Maxwell Shane. F.: Leon Shamroy. M.: Barbara McLean. Scgf.: Lyle R. Wheeler, Maurice Ransford. Mus.: Alfred Newman.
    Int.: David Wayne (Ben Halper), Jean Peters (Nellie Halper), Hugh Marlowe (Ed Jordan), Albert Dekker (Lloyd Slocum), Helene Stanley (Eadie Jordan), Tommy Morton (Benny Halper, Jr.), Joyce MacKenzie (Bessie Jordan), Alan Hale Jr. (George Oliphant), Richard Karlan (Mike Kava).
    Prod.: George Jessel per Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp.. 35 mm. D.: 109’. Col.
    Theme song: "Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie" (comp. Harry von Tilzer, lyr. Andrew B. Sterling), 1905. Special patter by George Jessel.
    Not released in Finland.
    Copy from 20th Century Fox by courtesy of Park Circus.
    Soul and Craft: A Portrait of Henry King.
    Introduce Ehsan Khoshbakht.
    Viewed at Cinema Jolly, Bologna, Il Cinema Ritrovato, e-subtitles in Italian by Sub-Ti Londra, 28 June 2019.

Ehsan Khoshbakht (Il Cinema Ritrovato): "A “virtually unknown minor masterpiece of nostalgia in all its aspects”, according to Clive Denton, chronicling nearly 50 years of life in the small town of Sevillinois, narrated in flashback  from the point of view of the town’s barber. One of the first instances in King’s cinema of a fully matured portrayal of a marital relationship, the barber and his beautiful and troubled wife are early character sketches for King’s late-period CinemaScope melodramas, especially Tender Is the Night. Based on a novel that was originally optioned by Edward G. Robinson’s company, with the plan being for him to star (which, considering Robinson’s age, could have led to something closer to film noir than melodrama), the film is a subtle take on King’s recurring motif of the fickleness of emotions. Here, King’s stoicism, his fascination with showing the process of building societies and his  yearning look back at a lost America reach a climax that, in contrast with the alluring Technicolor cinematography, has a heavier heart and a darker mood than most of his other films." Ehsan Khoshbakht

Miguel Marías: "One of the genres in which Henry King excelled was the very vaguely defined ‘Americana films’, scarcely appreciated outside their country of origin. I’m afraid that his affinity with something that many find uninteresting if not repellent will always hinder a fuller understanding of King’s cinema. Of the more than 100 films that he directed – at least half of which should be known by anyone dealing with Hollywood cinema – a good number can be labeled as Americana films, with Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie as the most naked and pure expression of this theme. People allergic to all things ‘American’ – apple  pie, hot dogs, chewing gum, marshmallows, Aunt Jemima Pancake Syrup and Life Savers – would probably miss King’s never-too-optimistic uncovering of warmth, humour, generosity, affection and resilience in his characters. King may often be labelled as ‘conventional’ and ‘conservative’, but I dare say that no other director in American cinema of this period could cover half a century in about 100 minutes, to have the courage (with the exception of Hitchcock) to eliminate one of the central characters halfway through the picture and, with the exception of Joseph Losey, to cast David Wayne in the main role, without trying to make him sympathetic to the audience." Miguel Marías (Il Cinema Ritrovato)

AA: A film title taken from a beloved song can cover all sorts of things as we know from John Ford's My Darling Clementine and The Sun Shines Bright. The title and the poster of Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie make us anticipate an idyllic romantic story.

The title song is a pop standard, an American standard, a Great American Songbook candidate. Dedicated to Nellie, it is a romantic song of great expectations, and the beginning of the film is inspired by its lyrics.

A counter-current soon emerges. Ben has promised Nellie to take her to Chicago, but instead they remain in the middle of nowhere in a (fictional) place called Sevillinois. Ben claims that he has only rented a barbershop, but in fact he has bought it. A barbershop is a place in which only men are allowed, and this comes as a surprise to Nellie. Ben also insists that he has only rented the house in which they settle, but he owns it. Ben keeps promising Nellie to take her to a holiday in Chicago, but he never keeps the promise. Without previously agreeing about it, Ben leaves for military service in the Spanish-American war.

The film presents a satirical and critical study of patriarchy. Instead of a love relationship between equals, Ben runs a household based on domination and deception. Nellie is chronically disappointed with Ben, and it is little wonder that she is vulnerable to the attentions of Ed Jordan.

I was looking forward to this movie which I now saw for the first time. It was never released in Finland, the only 1950s Henry King film without a Finnish premiere. (Almost all of King's Fox films were distributed in Finland, also his films before his Fox contract since Tol'able David and even before.) I could not find a Swedish or Italian title for this film, so it seems it was not widely released outside America. Americana may have been tricky in international distribution.

As popular entertainment, the film has a dimension of the musical: the theme song and other standards such as "On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away" are sung by a barbershop quartet or chorus. Ben also joins the town brass band and fire department. Ben's son Benny and his wife Eadie become music hall entertainers in Chicago. The producer George Jessel had presumably an interest in this aspect.

Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie, set not far away from Chicago, has also an element of the gangster film. After Benny is wounded in WWI, his career in Chicago gets a new turn: he becomes an associate of the gangster Kava. Eddie Muller commented in Bologna that Richard Karlan is the closest likeness to Al Capone he has seen on screen.

What is the Henry King distinction here? A heartfelt love of America. A celebration of shared experiences, values and traditions. A special attention to small town America. A joy in showing the building of the modern world. A tenderness in the family saga. A simultaneous awareness of family tensions. A special talent in covering a long historical time span without feeling rushed. A celebration of male dignity in the scene where the barber meets the Chicago gangsters. A critical distance to patriarchy in Nellie's story. Ostensibly the film is a celebration of Nellie; actually it shows her being ignored, neglected and crushed. Hope remains alive for the Nellie of the next generation. King is equally capable of covering the American dream and the American nightmare.

Ehsan Khoshbakht in his introduction called Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie Henry King's most beautiful Technicolor film. This 20th Century Fox print did justice to Leon Shamroy's cinematography.

NB. 13 Aug 2019. I confess I understood the joke of "The Barber of Sevillinois" only just now, reading Lorenzo Sciofani's blog.

    
"WAIT TILL THE SUN SHINES, NELLIE" lyrics (1905)

On a Sunday morn sat a maid forlorn
With her sweetheart by her side,
Through the windowpane, she looked at the rain,
"We must stay home, Joe," she cried.
"There's a picnic, too, at the old Point View,
It's a shame it rained today."
Then the boy drew near, kissed away each tear,
And she heard him softly say:

"Wait till the sun shines, Nellie,
When the clouds go drifting by,
We will be happy, Nellie,
Don't you sigh.

Down Lover's Lane we'll wander,
Sweethearts you and I.
Wait till the sun shines, Nellie,
Bye and bye."

"How I long," she sighed, "for a trolley ride
Just to show my brand new gown."
Then she gazed on high with a gladsome cry
For the sun came shining down.
And she looked so sweet on the big front seat
As the car sped on its way,
And she whispered low,
"Say you're all right, Joe,
You just won my heart today."

Written by: HARRY VON TILZER, ANDREW B. STERLING

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group


AFI CATALOG ONLINE: HISTORY

The working title of this film was Seeing Nellie Home. Voice-over narration by David Wayne as "Ben Halper" is heard throughout the picture. According to a 16 Oct 1946 DV news item, the rights to Ferdinand Reyher's novel were first purchased by Thalia Productions, which was headed by Edward G. Robinson and Sol Lesser. Robinson was slated in star in the picture, with Lesser set to produce. In Dec 1946, HR noted that Paul Trivers had been hired to do the screenplay. The Robinson-Lesser film was not produced, however, and the rights to Reyher's novel were acquired by Twentieth Century-Fox in Oct 1950. According to an Oct 1950 HR news item, the studio purchased the story as a vehicle for Anne Baxter, and subsequent HR news items reported that Dan Dailey would be her co-star.

Although an early Jul 1951 HR news item announced that producer George Jessel was "scouting the song and dance act of Peggy Ryan and Ray McDonald at Ciro's," they did not appear in the completed picture. HR news items include Harry Carter, Irl Hunsacker and Ruby Rae in the cast, but their appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. Contemporary sources note that the picture was partially shot on location in Castleton and Hutchinson, KS, where the film's premiere was held. The film marked the screen debut of Tommy Morton. David Wayne and Jean Peters reprised their roles for a 4 May 1953 Lux Radio Theatre presentation of the story.

SONG CREDITS

"Wait 'Til the Sun Shines, Nellie," music by Harry von Tilzer, lyrics by Andrew B. Sterling, special patter by George Jessel
"On the Banks of the Wabash Far Away," music and lyrics by Paul Dresser
"Open the Door," music by Eliot Daniel, lyrics by George Jessel

SYNOPSIS

In 1945, the citizens of Sevillinois, Illinois, prepare to celebrate the town's fiftieth anniversary. A reporter seeking a story on Senator Lloyd Slocum, who was the town's first mayor, is told to question Ben Halper, the town's first barber.

As the reporter talks with Ben, the elderly man remembers his first night in Sevillinois: Ben is on a train with his new bride Nellie, who believes that they will honeymoon in Chicago. Nellie is severely disappointed when they instead disembark in the tiny town of Sevillinois, where Ben has invested in a barbershop.

Although Ben tries to persuade Nellie that there are advantages to establishing a business in a growing town, her tears prompt him to lie that he is renting the shop, while actually he has purchased it. Ben promises to take Nellie to Chicago when they have more money, and the couple soon settle into the apartment behind the shop.

They become friends with the families of hardware store owner Ed Jordan; livery stableman George Oliphant; general store proprieter Sam Eichenbogen; and Slocum, the town's mayor and only attorney.

On their wedding anniversary, Ben surprises Nellie with a new home, but is nonplussed when she reacts with anger. Nellie explains that she still wants to go to Chicago, and Ben again lies, telling her that he is only renting the house.

Ben joins the town band and fire department, and soon expands the barber shop by hiring "Trooper" Robert Waverly Fairless, a black ex-cavalry man seeking a job as a bootblack.

Soon after, Ben Halper, Jr. is the fourteenth child born in Sevillinois, and Ben's contentment continues until one night, at a party, Nellie allows the roguish Jordan to kiss her. Jordan's wife Bessie and Ben discover the brief flirtation but quickly cover it up.

Ben then prepares to leave for military service during the Spanish-American war and asks banker Burdge to serve as the executor of his estate. Ben cautions Burdge not to let Nellie know that he owns both the shop and their home, and later, bids farewell to Nellie.

Nellie, who regrets the impulsive kiss, reveals that she is expecting their second child. Several months later, Nellie has given birth to daughter Adeline, while Ben serves as a barber in a Georgia training camp. One afternoon, Jordan offers to take Nellie on a vacation to Chicago, but she declines. Nellie changes her mind, however, when Burdge reveals the extent of Ben's ownership of town property. Infuriated, Nellie leaves Benny and Adeline in the care of Trooper and leaves with Jordan.

Soon after, Ben receives a telegram notifying him of Nellie's death in a train wreck, and upon his arrival home, is heartbroken to learn of her betrayal. Ben's friends gently rouse him from his drunken depression and promise him that there will be no gossip about Nellie. Although he gradually becomes bitter and cynical, Ben carries on with the shop and rearing his young children, with Trooper's help.

Several years later, Ben is about to propose to a townswoman but is interrupted by the sound of the fire bell. It is Ben's barbershop that is on fire, and after the building is burned down, Ben's friends help him to raise the money to build a new, larger shop.

The gentle Trooper continues to urge Ben to forgive Nellie as the years go by, and soon, Adeline is in high school and Benny has graduated. Rather than going to medical school, as Ben prefers, Benny wants to become a dancer, and has perfected an act with Eadie, Jordan's daughter. When Ben angrily declares that he will hear no more talk of vaudeville, Benny and Eadie run away together to Chicago, and Ben does not hear from them for a year. Eventually, Ben receives a telegram from Benny summoning him to Chicago, and there he watches with pride as Benny and Eadie perform their headlining act. Ben still responds gruffly, however, when Benny informs him that he and Eadie are married, and that he has joined the Army to serve in World War I.

After Ben and Eadie return to Sevillinois, Eadie confides in Ben that he will soon become a grandfather, and Ben softens and asks her to move in with him and Adeline. Later, after the birth of Eadie's daughter, Nellie Jordan Halper, Benny is reported missing in action, and the Halpers await news. Benny is found, wounded but alive, and many months later, returns home with a severe limp.

Benny then joins Ben at the barber shop, but, hoping for a more prosperous life, falls in with a Chicago gang run by racketeer Kava. Ben is outraged to learn that Benny is selling "protection insurance," and approaches Kava, asking him to leave Benny alone.

Kava arrives at Ben's barbershop the next morning and states that Benny is returning with him to Chicago, and so Ben, desperate to save his son, does not tell Kava when Benny calls to say that a rival gang is on its way. The gangsters spray the shop with machine guns just as Benny enters, and both he and Kava are killed.

Grief-stricken, Ben finds comfort in his granddaughter, and spends the following years helping to care for her. Ben, who has fallen asleep during his reminiscences, is awakened by Nellie, who looks exactly like her grandmother, and he then joins his friends in the celebratory parade.