Roberta is a 1935 American musical film made by RKO Radio Pictures and directed by William A. Seiter. The film features actors Irene Dunne, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Randolph Scott, Helen Westley, Victor Varconi, and Claire Dodd. It was based on the 1933 Broadway musical Roberta, which came from the book Gowns by Roberta by Alice Duer Miller. The film was very successful, making over $750,000 in profit.

The film included songs from the Broadway show, such as "Yesterdays," "Let's Begin" (with changed lyrics), and "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes." A fourth song, "I'll Be Hard to Handle," was also added. Three songs from the Broadway show were not used in the film: "The Touch of Your Hand," "Something Had to Happen," and "You're Devastating." Two new songs were added to the film: "I Won't Dance" (taken from a previous show that was not successful) and "Lovely to Look At." Both of these songs became number one hits in 1935. "Lovely to Look At" was considered for an Oscar award. These two songs are still often included in later performances and recordings of Roberta.

Roberta was the third film starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, and the only one to be remade with different actors. In 1952, MGM released a Technicolor version called Lovely to Look At. MGM had purchased the rights to Roberta in 1945 and planned to remake it, but the original film was not shown publicly until the 1970s. Roberta was the first of three films pairing Irene Dunne and Randolph Scott. The other two films were High, Wide and Handsome (1937) and My Favorite Wife (1940).

Plot

John Kent, a former star football player from Harvard, travels to Paris with his friend Huck Haines and Huck's dance band, the Wabash Indianians. Alexander Voyda had arranged for the band to perform, but he cancels the show when he discovers the musicians are not the group he expected—they are from Indiana instead.

John turns to his only contact in Paris, his Aunt Minnie, who runs the fashionable "Roberta" gown shop. There, he meets Stephanie, her main assistant and the secret head designer. John becomes quickly fond of her.

Meanwhile, Huck unexpectedly meets someone he knows—Lizzie Gatz, who is actually the temperamental customer at Roberta's known as "Countess Scharwenka." She helps Huck's band get a performance at a nightclub where she works, and Huck agrees to keep her identity secret.

John has two concerns: Ladislaw, a handsome Russian prince who works as a doorman and seems too interested in Stephanie. The other is his memory of Sophie, his former girlfriend who left him after an argument about his lack of sophistication.

When Aunt Minnie suddenly passes away without a will, John inherits the shop. Not knowing about fashion and knowing his aunt wanted Stephanie to take over, he convinces her to stay as his partner. Reporters ask John about fashion, and Huck answers with strange comments about new ideas John plans.

Sophie arrives in Paris, drawn by John's success. She visits the shop, but isn't happy with Stephanie's choices. Huck convinces her to pick a dress John had planned to throw away. When John sees her in it, they argue again.

John scolds Stephanie for letting Sophie choose the dress. Hurt, Stephanie leaves the shop. With a fashion show in a week, Huck takes over designing, leading to poor results. When Stephanie sees his work, she returns to save the shop's reputation.

The show is a success, with entertainment from Huck, Countess Scharwenka, and the band. The highlight is Stephanie modeling a gown. John overhears that Stephanie and Ladislaw are leaving and assumes they married. Later, he congratulates her, but she reveals Ladislaw is her cousin and she was born a princess. They reunite. Huck and Lizzie, who plan to marry, do a final tap dance.

Cast

Members of the band (not credited)

• Lucille Ball, with platinum blond hair, appears in her first RKO film as a model wearing a fancy cape made of feathers, after Dunne sings, during a fashion show.

Musical numbers

The film used four songs from the stage musical: "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes," "Yesterdays," "I'll Be Hard to Handle," and "Let's Begin." Some of Otto Harbach's lyrics were changed to avoid censorship issues. Music from three other songs from the stage play— "You're Devastating," "The Touch of Your Hand," and "Don't Ask Me Not to Sing"—was included in the background. The song "I Won't Dance" was originally from Three Sisters, a 1934 musical by Jerome Kern and Otto Harbach. Oscar Hammerstein II's lyrics were added to by Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh, who received screen credit for their work. One song, "Lovely to Look At," was created specifically for the film and was nominated for an Academy Award.

Fred Astaire arranged the dance music, and Hermes Pan was the dance director, the first time he received this credit (as "assistant dance director"). Astaire choreographed his dances two weeks before Jerome Kern completed the film's score.

• "The Pipe Organ Number": Astaire performed on the hands of his band arranged as a keyboard
• "Let's Begin": A comedy song and dance number by Astaire, Candy Candido, and Gene Sheldon, with band (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Otto Harbach)
• "Russian Lullaby": Sung by Dunne with a balalaika orchestra (traditional)
• "I'll Be Hard to Handle": A double dance by Astaire and Rogers, a tap number in which they "talk with their feet" (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Bernard Dougall)
• "Yesterdays": Sung by Dunne, with guitar and string bass accompaniment (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Otto Harbach)
• "I Won't Dance": Sung by Rogers and Astaire, with Astaire introducing the song at the piano; followed by a solo dance by Astaire (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Dorothy Fields, and Jimmy McHugh). Hal Borne, who played one of the "Wabash Indianaians" and was Astaire's real-life rehearsal pianist, played piano off-screen with Astaire during the introduction.
• "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes": Sung by Dunne; reprise danced by Rogers and Astaire (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Otto Harbach)
• "Fashion Pageant": A parade of models in costumes to a medley of songs, with Astaire as master of ceremonies
• "Lovely to Look At": Dunne solo, Astaire reprise, and Rogers and Astaire dance (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Dorothy Fields, and Jimmy McHugh)
• "Finale Dance": Astaire and Rogers
• Sources:

Production

RKO paid more money than MGM and Paramount to get the rights to the stage play, spending $65,000. The movie Roberta was made from November 26, 1934, to January 21, 1935. The time spent rehearsing for the film was nine weeks. Filming was delayed to allow Ginger Rogers to marry actor Lew Ayres.

The studio borrowed actor Randolph Scott from Paramount to appear in the film.

Some scenes in the film were written while the movie was being made. Screenwriter Alan Scott and producer Pandro S. Berman were traveling by train across the country at the same time. They sent the new scenes to the set via telegraph from the train.

Reception

According to RKO records, the film earned $1,467,000 in the United States and Canada and $868,000 in other countries, which led to a profit of $770,000. According to reports, the film set new records for movie ticket sales in every place where it was shown.

Adaptations

In 1945, MGM purchased the rights to the story Roberta to create a Technicolor film. This version, titled Lovely to Look At, was released in 1952. It featured actors Kathryn Grayson, Red Skelton, and Howard Keel, and was directed by Mervyn LeRoy. MGM did not release the original Roberta in movie theaters until the 1970s. However, two television versions of the story, starring Bob Hope, were shown on NBC in 1955 and 1958.

In popular culture

The Venetian clothing company Roberta di Camerino was established in 1945 by Giuliana Camerino. The company's name was inspired by a movie.