This article is about the musical film. For an unrelated 1971 CBS sitcom, see Funny Face (TV series). This series is unrelated, other than by coincidence of name, to the 1957 musical film Funny Face. ...

Funny Face
Original 1957 Movie Poster
Directed by	Stanley Donen
Produced by	Roger Edens
Written by	Leonard Gershe
Starring	Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire, Kay Thompson, Michel Auclair, Robert Flemyng
Music by	original score by Adolph Deutsch with songs by George Gershwin Ira Gershwin
Cinematography	Ray June
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	13 February 1957
Running time	103 min.
Country	USA
Language	English
Budget	$3,000,000 est.
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Funny Face is an American musical film released in 1957, based on the 1927 Broadway version by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin. It stars Audrey Hepburn as Jo, a shy, bookshop clerk-come-amateur philosopher, who is discovered by a famous fashion photographer (played by Fred Astaire) and finds herself at a major fashion event in Paris, where romance blossoms. The plot for the film version is dramatically different from that of the Broadway musical, although many of the songs remain. Astaire also starred in the stage version alongside his sister, Adele. The movie plot is actually adapted from another Broadway musical Wedding Bells by Leonard Gershe. The original title for the film was "Wedding Day". Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (350x685, 75 KB) Movie poster advertisement for Funny Face - © 1957 Paramount Pictures For an article about a film, the original theatrical advertisement poster is one of the most important images that could be included. ... Stanley Donen (born April 13, 1924) is an American film director and choreographer hailed by David Quinlan as the King of the Hollywood musicals. His most famous work is Singin In The Rain, which he co-directed with Gene Kelly. ... Roger Edens (9 November 1905, Hillsboro, Texas, -- 13 July 1970, Hollywood) was a Hollywood composer, arranger and associate producer, and is considered one of the major creative figures in Arthur Freeds musical film production unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the golden era. ... Audrey Hepburn (May 4, 1929 – January 20, 1993) was an Academy Award-winning actress, fashion model and humanitarian. ... Balanchine[1] and Nureyev[2] rated him the greatest dancer of the 20th Century, and he is generally acknowledged to have been the most influential dancer in the history of filmed and televised musicals. ... Kay Thompson (born November 9, 1908 in St. ... Wanda Ventham and Robert Flemyng in The Blood Beast Terror Robert Flemyng (January 3, 1912 - May 22, 1995) was a British film and stage actor. ... Adolph Deutsch (October 20, 1897 - January 1, 1980) was an Academy Award-winning composer, songwriter, conductor and arranger. ... George Gershwin photograph by Edward Steichen in 1927. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American motion picture production and distribution company, based in Hollywood, California. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... Broadway theatre[1] is often considered the highest professional form of theatre in the United States. ... George Gershwin photograph by Edward Steichen in 1927. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Audrey Hepburn (May 4, 1929 – January 20, 1993) was an Academy Award-winning actress, fashion model and humanitarian. ... Balanchine[1] and Nureyev[2] rated him the greatest dancer of the 20th Century, and he is generally acknowledged to have been the most influential dancer in the history of filmed and televised musicals. ... The Eiffel Tower has become the symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Adele Astaire, 1927 Lady Charles Cavendish (September 10, 1896 -January 25, 1981) [1], better known as Adele Astaire was an American dancer and entertainer. ...

Unlike her later film, My Fair Lady, Hepburn sings in her own voice in this, her first musical. She performs one solo, "How Long Has This Been Going On?", a duet with Astaire, "S'Wonderful", a duet with Kay Thompson called "On How to be Lovely", and takes part in an ensemble performance of "Bonjour, Paris". Her dance training is also called into play, not only in the two dance numbers she does with Astaire, but also for a Bohemian-style solo dance in a nightclub which is often replayed in retrospectives of her career. The original poster for the Broadway production of the show designed by Al Hirschfeld My Fair Lady is a 1956 musical theater production with lyrics and book by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederic Loewe. ... Kay Thompson (born November 9, 1908 in St. ... Though a Bohemian is a native of the Czech province of Bohemia, a secondary meaning for bohemian emerged in 19th century France. ...

Astaire, meanwhile, was approaching the end of his musical film career, in this the second in a consecutive series of three French-themed musicals he made in the 1950s. He performs a song and dance solo with cane and cape to Gershwin's "Let's Kiss And Make Up". According to Hepburn, she insisted on Astaire as a precondition for her participation. Thompson, who usually worked behind-the-scenes as a musical director for films, makes a rare appearance on camera as Maggie Prescott, a fashion magazine editor. Besides her duet with Hepburn, she performs the solo number "Think Pink!" in the presence of a dance chorus, and Thompson and Astaire perform a comic dance duet to "Clap Yo Hands". Thompson is perhaps best known today as the author of the popular series of books concerning the spoiled, rich girl, "Eloise." This is a quick reference guide to over one hundred and forty of Fred Astaires Solo and Partnered Dances compiled from his thirty-one Hollywood musical comedy films produced between 1933 and 1968, and his award-winning television special An Evening with Fred Astaire (1958). ...

The overexposed close-up of Hepburn's face

Astaire's character was loosely based upon the career of Richard Avedon, who provided a number of the photographs seen in the film, including its most famous single image: an intentionally overexposed close-up of Hepburn's face in which only her famous features - her eyes, her eyebrows, and her mouth - are visible. (This image is seen during the "Funny Face" musical number, which takes place in a darkroom). Image File history File links Darkroom. ... Image File history File links Darkroom. ... Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American photographer. ... A darkroom is a given space, usually a separate area in a building or a vehicle, that is made dark so as to allow photographers to use light-sensitive materials to develop photographs and film. ...

Cultural references

In the fall of 2006, clothing retailer The Gap used footage from Funny Face in its commercials for its Skinny Black Pant. In the commercials, Hepburn's dance number is paired with the song "Back in Black" by AC/DC. 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Gap (originally The Gap) is a San Fransisco-based apparel and accessories retailer founded in 1969 by Donald Fisher and Doris Fisher. ... Back in Blackis a song by AC/DC appearing as the sixth track on their 1980 self-titled album. ... AC/DC are a hard rock band formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 (see 1973 in music) by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young. ...

External links

• Funny Face at the Internet Movie Database
• Funny Face at All Movie Guide