The Rogue Song

2025-09-16T17:52:26Z

95.152.58.245: /* External links */

{{short description|1930 American film}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Infobox film
|name = The Rogue Song
|image = The-Rogue-Song-1930-LC-2.jpg
|caption = Lobby card
|producer = [[Irving Thalberg]]
|director = [[Lionel Barrymore]] [[Hal Roach]] (uncredited)
|based_on = {{based on|''[[Gypsy Love (operetta)|Gipsy Love]]''|[[Franz Lehár]]}}
|screenplay = [[John Colton (screenwriter)|John Colton]] [[Frances Marion]] [[Wells Root]] (suggested by)
|writer =
|starring = [[Lawrence Tibbett]] [[Stan Laurel]] [[Oliver Hardy]]
|music = [[Herbert Stothart]] [[Franz Lehár]] [[Clifford Grey]] [[Dimitri Tiomkin]] (ballet)<ref name=variety />
|cinematography = Percy Hilburn (*[[:fr:Percy Hilburn|French]]) [[Charles Schoenbaum|Charles Edgar Schoenbaum]] ([[Technicolor]])
|editing = [[Margaret Booth]]
|studio = [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]]
|distributor = [[Loews Cineplex Entertainment|Loew's, Inc.]]
|released = {{Film date|1930|1|28|NYC|1930|2|17|LA|1930|5|10|US}}
|country = United States
|runtime = 103 minutes
|language = English
|gross = $1,610,000 (worldwide)<ref name=bann />
|budget = $646,000 (final negative cost)<ref name=bann />
}}

'''''The Rogue Song''''' is a 1930 American [[pre-Code]] romantic and musical film that tells the story of a Russian bandit who falls in love with a princess, but takes his revenge on her when her brother rapes and kills his sister. The [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] production was directed by [[Lionel Barrymore]] and released in two versions, with and without sound. [[Hal Roach]] wrote and directed the Laurel and Hardy sequences and was not credited. The film stars [[Metropolitan Opera]] singer [[Lawrence Tibbett]]—who was nominated for an [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his performance—and [[Catherine Dale Owen]]. [[Laurel and Hardy]] were third-billed; their sequences were filmed at the last minute and interspersed throughout the film in an attempt to boost its potential box-office appeal.<ref name=variety />

This film, MGM's first all-talking [[Technicolor]] film,<ref name=bann>Bann, Richard W. (2000) [http://www.laurel-and-hardy.com/archive/articles/2000-09-rogue.html "More 'Rogue Song' Footage Found"] ''laurel-and-hardy.com''</ref> is partially lost as there are no known complete prints of this film. Fragments do exist.

==Plot==
The story takes place in the [[Russian Empire]] in the year 1910. Yegor (Lawrence Tibbett), a dashing (as well as singing) bandit leader meets Princess Vera (Catherine Dale Owen) at a mountain inn. They fall in love, but the relationship is shattered when Yegor kills Vera's brother, Prince Serge, for raping his sister, Nadja, and driving her to suicide. Yegor kidnaps Vera, forcing her to live a life of lowly servitude among the bandits. Vera manages to outwit Yegor, who is captured by soldiers and flogged. Vera begs Yegor's forgiveness. Although still in love with each other, they realize they cannot be together.

==Cast==
*[[Lawrence Tibbett]] as Yegor
*[[Catherine Dale Owen]] as Princess Vera
*[[Nance O'Neil]] as Princess Alexandra
*[[Judith Vosselli]] as Tatiana
*[[Ullrich Haupt (Sr.)|Ullrich Haupt]] as Prince Serge
*[[Elsa Alsen]] as Yegor's mother
*[[Florence Lake]] as Nadja
*[[Lionel Belmore]] as Ossman
*[[Wallace MacDonald]] as Hassan
*[[Kate Price (actress)|Kate Price]] as Petrovna
*[[Kewpie Morgan|H.A. Morgan]] as Frolov
*[[Burr McIntosh]] as Count Peter
*[[James Bradbury Jr.]] as Azamat
*[[Stan Laurel]] as Ali-Bek
*[[Oliver Hardy]] as Murza-Bek

==Songs==
[[File:RogueSongSM.jpg|thumb|upright|Sheet music for ''The Rogue Song'']]
* "The Rogue Song" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)
* "The Narrative" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)
* "Love Comes Like a Bird on the Wing" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)
* "The White Dove" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)
* "Swan Ballet" (played by studio orchestra)
* "Once in the Georgian Hills" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)
* "When I'm Looking at You" (sung by Lawrence Tibbett)

==Laurel and Hardy==
[[File:The-Rogue-Song-1930-LC-1.jpg|thumb|Lobby card for ''The Rogue Song'' featuring Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel]]
There were eight comic episodes throughout the film in which Laurel and Hardy appeared. One of these has survived on film. In this scene, there is a storm and a tent is blown away revealing Stan and Oliver. They try to sleep without any cover. A bear enters a cave. Stan and Oliver decide to seek shelter in the cave and, because it is so dark, they can't see the bear. Oliver thinks that Stan is wearing a fur coat. The bear begins to growl. Stan and Oliver flee.

Another segment, in which Laurel swallows a bee, has also survived on the [[trailer (film)|trailer]] to the film, which has survived almost intact.

==Production==
[[File:Barrymore-The-Rogue-Song-1930.jpg|thumb|[[Lionel Barrymore]] directing ''The Rogue Song''. [[Lawrence Tibbett]] reflected in mirror.]]
The film is MGM's first all-talking, all-color ([[Technicolor]]) production. It was also the screen debut of Lawrence Tibbett, a world-renowned star of the [[Metropolitan Opera]]. The film is notable today as Laurel and Hardy's first and only appearance in a color feature film (all of their feature films before and after were shot in black-and-white; their only other professionally shot color film was the wartime short ''[[The Tree in a Test Tube]]''), although they were only minor players in the film.

The film was adapted from the score of the [[operetta]] ''[[Gipsy Love (operetta)|Gipsy Love]]'', with a new story by [[Robert Bodanzky]] and [[A. M. Willner]] and only "a little" of the music in [[Franz Lehár]]'s score.<ref>[https://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/lehar/GipsyLove.html "''Gipsy Love (Zigeunerliebe)''"], ''The Guide to Musical Theatre''. Retrieved July 24, 2025</ref>

Production was supervised by Paul Bern, and the anticipated 30-day shooting schedule began on August 29, 1929. The studio executives' response to the daily "rushes" was that the film was not working well and needed help. MGM borrowed Laurel and Hardy from Hal Roach, and after negotiations between Roach and Thalberg, Roach agreed to write and direct their scenes. The final film has eight scenes with the comedy duo. Principal photography ended on October 11.<ref name=bann />

==Release==
The film premiered in Hollywood at [[Grauman's Chinese Theatre]] on January 17, 1930.<ref name=bann />

Although Laurel and Hardy were minor players in the film, opera star Lawrence Tibbett was virtually unknown in much of the United States. As a result, in many places the film was advertised as "Laurel & Hardy in ''The Rogue Song''".<ref name=bann />

==Preservation status==
Although the film is considered to be lost, as there are no known complete prints, some fragments have been found. A two and a half minute fragment that had been cut out of the film by a local projectionist was found in a bookstore in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1981, it featured a comic segment with Laurel and Hardy hiding in a cave in which a bear has taken shelter.<ref name=bann /> Another 500 foot piece, about 10 minutes long, which showed a ballet sequence by [[Albertina Rasch]] was found in Maine in 1998 and was restored by [[University of California, Los Angeles|UCLA]].<ref name=variety>Madigan, Nick. (November 11, 1998) [https://variety.com/1998/film/news/lost-film-makes-scene-1117488378/ "'Rogue Song' footage given to UCLA archive"] ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]''</ref><ref name=reading /> Another reel of assorted clips is in the [[Czech Film Archive]]; it was screened at a convention in 1995.<ref name=bann /> Another short fragment shows Lawrence Tibbett singing to Catherine Dale Owen as they are caught in a storm.

The film's trailer, which includes Laurel and Hardy, is extant except for the first 60 seconds, which were lost due to decomposition; the remainder was transferred to safety stock by UCLA.<ref name=reading>News service report (November 14, 1998) [https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&dat=19981114&id=ag4vAAAAIBAJ&sjid=M6YFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5157,1969811&hl=en "Lost 'Rogue' Sequence Recovered"] ''[[Reading Eagle]]''</ref> In the trailer, Tibbett sings "White Dove" to Owen. A short segment featuring the comics Laurel & Hardy is also seen in which Laurel has apparently swallowed a bee.

In addition to those film fragments, the complete soundtrack of the film and the trailer survived because it was re-recorded on [[Vitaphone]] disks for theaters that did not have [[optical sound]] systems, such as the [[Movietone sound system|Movietone system]], which MGM usually utilized.

The estate of Lawrence Tibbett held a color copy of the entire ''Rogue Song'' for many years after his death. Tibbett liked the film and showed it frequently to his friends. The late [[Allan Jones (actor)|Allan Jones]] was a regular visitor and friend and reportedly gained possession of the print, which his son [[Jack Jones (American singer)|Jack Jones]] destroyed because of [[nitrate film]] decomposition. Tibbett had recorded some of the songs from the film in studio recordings released by [[RCA Victor]].

[[YouTube]] currently (November 2020) contains a reconstruction of the entire film, utilizing the complete soundtrack, the half hour or so of existing footage, and stills from the film.

MGM held the negative of reel four until early 1974.<ref>Dorman, Trevor. [http://www.laurelandhardy.org/MissingFilms.html "A Guide to the Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy – Update"] ''The Laurel and Hardy Magazine''</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of American comedy films]]
*[[Laurel and Hardy filmography]]
*[[List of rediscovered films]]
*[[List of early color feature films]]
* [[List of incomplete or partially lost films]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|The Rogue Song}}
* {{AFI film|11752}}
* {{IMDb title|0021307}}
* {{TCMDb title|88544}}

{{Irving Thalberg}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogue Song, The}}
[[Category:1930 films]]
[[Category:1930s color films]]
[[Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films]]
[[Category:Lost American musical films]]
[[Category:Lost American romance films]]
[[Category:American romantic musical films]]
[[Category:American films about revenge]]
[[Category:Films based on operettas]]
[[Category:Films directed by Lionel Barrymore]]
[[Category:Films produced by Irving Thalberg]]
[[Category:Films set in 1910]]
[[Category:Films set in 20th-century Russian Empire]]
[[Category:Films about rape]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Frances Marion]]
[[Category:Operetta films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin]]
[[Category:1930 lost films]]
[[Category:1930s romantic musical films]]
[[Category:1930s English-language films]]
[[Category:1930s American films]]
[[Category:English-language romantic musical films]]

Of Freaks and Men

2025-09-15T16:46:07Z

95.152.58.245: /* External links */

{{Infobox film
| name = Of Freaks and Men
| image =Pro urodov i lyudey.jpg
| caption =
| director = [[Aleksei Balabanov]]
| producer = [[Sergei Selyanov]]
| writer = Aleksei Balabanov
| narrator =
| starring = {{ubl|[[Sergei Makovetsky]]|[[Dinara Drukarova]]|[[Viktor Sukhorukov]]|[[Lika Nevolina]]|[[Alyosha De]]|[[Chingiz Tsydendambayev]]|[[Igor Shibanov]]}}
| music =
| cinematography = [[Sergei Astakhov]]
| editing = [[Marina Lipartia]]
| studio= {{ubl|STV|SoyuzKino}}
| released ={{Film date|1998}}
| runtime = 89 minutes
| country = Russia
| language = Russian
| budget =
}}
'''''Of Freaks and Men''''' ({{langx|ru|Про уродов и людей|Pro urodov i lyudey}}) is a 1998 [[Russia]]n historical comedy-drama film written and directed by [[Aleksei Balabanov]].

== Synopsis ==
In the beginning of the twentieth century, two seemingly prosperous families become associated with the mysterious Johann, the owner of a photo studio, in the basement of which a certain photographic theater honouring the Marquise de Sade was created. Photographic postcards are produced with the humbled nakedness of the human body, causing lust and gloating triumph of power. Johann has the look of a photographer who knows how to see angel curls and a sweet smile in a girl, and the same look that corrupts the body, the look of a pornographer. Over and over again, Johann destroys the well-being of families and turns ordinary people into freaks, seized with vice.<ref>{{Citation|title="Про уродов и людей" (1998)|url=https://www.kinopoisk.ru/film/7650/|language=ru|access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref>

==Premise==
Filmed initially in black and white, then entirely in sepia tone, this film set in turn-of-the-century Russia is centered on two families and their decline at the hands of one man, Johann, and his pornographic endeavours. Hailed by some as a masterpiece, the movie comments on the decline of Russian society as a result of the rise of capitalism.

==Soundtrack==
The soundtrack is taken from [[Prokofiev]]'s ballet, [[Romeo and Juliet (Prokofiev)|Romeo and Juliet]]; and [[Modest Mussorgsky|Mussorgsky]]'s [[Pictures at an Exhibition]].

==Awards==
At the [[Russian Guild of Film Critics|1998 Russian Guild of Film Critics Awards]] the picture was awarded the prizes for ''Best Director'' ([[Alexei Balabanov]]), ''Best Director of Photography'' (Sergei Astakhov), ''Best Art Direction'' ([[Vera Zelinskaya]]), ''Best Male Actor'' ([[Sergei Makovetsky]]) and ''Best Supporting Actor'' ([[Maksim Sukhanov]]).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://kinopressa.ru/white-elephant/httpkinopressa-rupage_id377|work=[[Russian Guild of Film Critics]]|title=1998}}</ref>

At the [[Nika Award]]s the film received the prizes for ''Best Film'' and ''Best Director'' (Alexei Balabanov).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://kino-nika.com/page91712.html|work=[[Nika Award]]|title=Лауреаты Национальной кинематографической премии "НИКА" за 1998 год.}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[List of post-1960s films in black-and-white]]
*[[Sadism and masochism in fiction]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0156849}}
*[https://www.kinopoisk.ru/film/7650/ ''Of Freaks and Men''] on [[KinoPoisk|Kinopoisk]]
*''[https://chapaev.media/films/134 Of Freaks and Men]'' on <nowiki>[[Чапаев]]</nowiki>

{{Aleksei Balabanov}}
{{Nika Award Best Picture}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Of Freaks And Men}}
[[Category:1998 films]]
[[Category:1990s historical comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:1990s Russian films]]
[[Category:1990s Russian-language films]]
[[Category:Russian-language historical comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:Russian black-and-white films]]
[[Category:Russian historical comedy-drama films]]
[[Category:BDSM in films]]
[[Category:Films about child abuse]]
[[Category:Films about pornography]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1900s]]
[[Category:Films set in 20th-century Russian Empire]]
[[Category:Films set in Saint Petersburg]]
[[Category:Films shot in Saint Petersburg]]
[[Category:Films directed by Aleksei Balabanov]]

{{1990s-Russia-film-stub}}
{{1990s-comedy-drama-film-stub}}

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The Rogue Song

Of Freaks and Men