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One of the few films MGM released in "Perspecta" sound.
How do you study to reign?
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Walking with God.
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Since I don't know the title, all I can say is they look like they are two dolls atop a music box.
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Edmund Purdom dubbed by Mario Lanza (who had gained so much weight, MGM didn't want him on camera).
While Lanza's weight was an issue on other projects, I don't believe that it was the issue with this one.
The film first went into production in August 1952, with Curtis Bernhardt as director and singer Mario Lanza in the lead role. However, Lanza, who had already recorded the songs for the film, failed to show up for the first day of production. M-G-M suspended Lanza on August 20th, threatening legal action and, under the provisions of Lanza's studio contract, preventing the singer from performing on his weekly radio program on NBC. The suspension was lifted when Lanza came in for wardrobe tests on August 22nd, and he was permitted to appear on his radio show that evening. Production was rescheduled for August 25th, but Lanza again failed to report for work and was immediately placed back on suspension. News items in the Hollywood Reporter, the Los Angeles Daily News, and Variety suggested variously that Lanza was boycotting work because of financial difficulties stemming from bad investments, personal problems, or a contractual dispute with the studio, although the singer's agent company, MCA, told Variety that money was not at issue.
On September 2, 1952, M-G-M announced that it would abandon the film, adding that it had already incurred more than $700,000 in pre-production costs. After meeting with Lanza, however, the studio decided to give him one more opportunity to appear in the film. When Lanza failed to report for work for the third time, M-G-M cancelled the production and sued Lanza for more than five million dollars for breach of contract. The suit was settled in May 1953, when Lanza gave the studio the right to use his pre-recorded songs, and M-G-M withdrew its claim for damages. Modern sources allege that Lanza refused to appear because he disagreed with Bernhardt over the interpretation of his role and had tried unsuccessfully to have the director fired.
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From Wikipedia:
The Student Prince
In 1952, Lanza was dismissed by MGM after he had pre-recorded the songs for The Student Prince. The reason most frequently cited in the tabloid press at the time was that his recurring weight problem had made it impossible for him to fit into the costumes of the Prince.[19] However, as his biographers Cesari and Mannering have established, Lanza was not overweight at the beginning of the production, and it was, in fact, a disagreement with director Curtis Bernhardt over Lanza's singing of one of the songs in the film that led to Lanza walking off the set. MGM refused to replace Bernhardt, and the film was subsequently made with English actor Edmund Purdom, who was dubbed to Lanza's recorded voice.
Depressed by his dismissal, and with his self-confidence severely undermined, Lanza became a virtual recluse for more than a year, frequently seeking refuge in alcoholic binges. During this period, Lanza also came very close to bankruptcy as a result of poor investment decisions by his former manager, and his lavish spending habits left him owing about $250,000 in back taxes to the IRS.
It was "years" ago that I read it was his weight. Obviously, truth came to light when I wasn't looking!
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One of the few films MGM released in "Perspecta" sound.
How do you study to reign?
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