Four's a Crowd | |
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Directed by | Michael Curtiz |
Produced by | Hal B. Wallis |
Written by | Wallace Sullivan (story) |
Screenplay by |
Casey Robinson Sig Herzig |
Starring |
Errol Flynn Olivia de Havilland Rosalind Russell Patric Knowles |
Music by | Eddie Durant Ray Heindorf M. K. Jerome Heinz Eric Roemheld |
Cinematography | Ernest Haller |
Edited by | Clarence Kolster |
Production
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Release date
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Running time
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92 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Four's a Crowd is a 1938 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, Rosalind Russell and Patric Knowles. It was written by Casey Robinson and Sig Herzig from a story by Wallace Sullivan. This was the fourth of nine films that Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland appeared in.
Reporter Jean Christy (Rosalind Russell) works for a newspaper in danger of being thrown away by its young owner, Pat Buckley (Patric Knowles), after Buckley has a falling-out with the editor-in-chief, Robert Lansford (Errol Flynn). Meanwhile, Lansford hopes to gain tycoon John Dillingwell's (Walter Connolly) business for his public relations firm, and uses his position at Buckley's paper to drum up good press for Dillingwell. In the process, he discovers that Dillingwell's granddaughter Lorri (Olivia de Havilland) is Buckley's fiancée. Lansford decides to try to charm Lorri while Christy makes a play for Buckley.
The film began with the working title of "All Rights Reserved," and was supposedly based on the career of noted public relations man Ivy Ledbetter Lee, who worked for the Rockefeller family. The film's title was changed to Four's a Crowd in February.
Warner Bros. borrowed Rosalind Russell from MGM for the film.William Dieterle was originally slated to direct the film, and Edmund Goulding turned it down, before the studio assigned it to Michael Curtiz. Although principal photography went 12 days over the allotted time, Curtiz still managed to bring it in $12,000 under budget.