Hello, Dolly! (film)

Hello, Dolly!
Theatrical release poster, designed by Richard Amsel
Directed byGene Kelly
Screenplay byErnest Lehman
Based onHello, Dolly!
by Michael Stewart
The Matchmaker
by Thornton Wilder
Einen Jux will er sich machen
by Johann Nestroy
A Day Well Spent
by John Oxenford
Produced byErnest Lehman
StarringBarbra Streisand
Walter Matthau
Michael Crawford
Louis Armstrong
CinematographyHarry Stradling
Edited byWilliam Reynolds
Music byJerry Herman (music and lyrics)
Score adaptation:
Lennie Hayton
Lionel Newman
Production
company
Chenault Productions
Distributed by20th Century-Fox
Release date
  • December 16, 1969 (1969-12-16)
(NYC)[1]
Running time
148 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25 million
Box office$26 million (theatrical rental)

Hello, Dolly! is a 1969 American musical romantic comedy film based on the 1964 Broadway production of the same name, which was based on Thornton Wilder's play The Matchmaker. Directed by Gene Kelly and written and produced by Ernest Lehman, the film stars Barbra Streisand, Walter Matthau, Michael Crawford, Danny Lockin, Tommy Tune, Fritz Feld, Marianne McAndrew, E. J. Peaker and Louis Armstrong (whose recording of the title tune had been a number-one hit in May 1964).[2]

The film follows the story of Dolly Levi, a strong-willed matchmaker who travels to Yonkers, New York, to find a match for the miserly "well-known unmarried half-a-millionaire" Horace Vandergelder. In doing so, she convinces his niece, his niece's intended, and Horace's two clerks to travel to New York City.

Released on December 16, 1969, by 20th Century-Fox, the film won three Academy Awards: for Best Art Direction, Best Score of a Musical Picture and Best Sound, and was nominated for four other Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Although the film eventually broke even financially, it was not a contemporary commercial success.[3][4]

  1. ^ Hello, Dolly! at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
  2. ^ Bronson, Fred. The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits (2003), Billboard Books, ISBN 0-8230-7677-6
  3. ^ Nickens, Christopher; Swenson, Karen (2000). The Films of Barbra Streisand. Citadel Press. pp. 54–64. ISBN 9780806519548. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference tcm was invoked but never defined (see the help page).