The Helen Morgan Story (1957) on Netflix
NR19571h 58mBiographyDramaMusic
Helen Morgan dances in a Chicago carnival until fast-talking Larry Maddux takes charge of her career and makes her a Broadway and nightclub star. The married attorney Russell Wade loves her.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb6.3/101,051 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Trailer
Plot summary
Chicago carnival dancer Helen Morgan catches the eye of the fast-talking Larry Maddux, whose promotion of her carries her to fame, first on Broadway in Show Boat and then as the headliner of her own nightclub. Her rise takes her from sordid beginnings to fortune, and she is known as a torch singer and actress. In her private life she is involved with two men: Maddux, and Russell Wade, a wealthy attorney who is genuinely in love with her though he is married and a divorce is impossible for him. Each of the two attachments brings her its own anguish.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Helen Morgan Story (1957)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Warner Bros. planned a musical biography of Helen Morgan with Doris Day in 1950, but it became one of the few studio projects Day refused, because she did not want to portray the sordid aspects of Morgan's life, which clashed with her wholesome screen image.
- Ann Blyth was known to be a talented singer, but her singing voice in the film was dubbed by Gogi Grant.
- A rival version of Morgan's life story, a live Playhouse 90 drama with Polly Bergen as Morgan, aired five months before the film's release despite requests to delay the television version.
SPOILER
The film's gala-dinner ending suggests Helen Morgan was on her first step to recovery, success and happiness, but that was not the case for the real Morgan.- The 1957 film turned out to be Ann Blyth's final film role, the last screen appearance of the actress who played Helen Morgan.
