Film-Musical Memories to transport/connect with loved ones
Some favourite film-musicals E.g. Rodgers and Hammerstein, Sondheim, Bernstein.
I’m Victoria. You can read why I’m publishing Carer Mentor here: Who Started Carer Mentor and Why?
Christmas and New Year can be difficult for caregivers and their loved ones. Sometimes, old musical films and songs can spark warm memories and nostalgia.
🎶 What musical film brings back memories and connects you with your parents/relatives/family and friends?
My friends
and have shared some of their thoughts.
Here are some of my favourites…’remember when’
I hope these will offer musical prompts to share more memories and songs with your loved ones.
[includes Wikipedia notes and Spotify playlist links]
Meet Me in St Louis (Film 1944)
Buy/Rent on Amazon, Apple, Google Play
'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane. Directed by Vincente Minnelli
Garland, unhappy with the script and unsure of herself as a leading lady, also suffered severe emotional problems, an acute addiction to amphetamines and numerous physical ailments such as recurring migraine headaches. Production reports show that she disrupted the schedule with fits of hysteria, habitual lateness and occasional absences, missing an entire week of shooting because of what she claimed to be an ear infection. Garland also balked at Minnelli's heavy schedule of rehearsals and prerecording sessions in the months preceding filming, but Minnelli won her confidence and the two became lovers, cohabiting by the time of the film's post-production and marrying soon after its release'
Vincente Minnelli married Garland in 1944r, and their daughter Liza was born in 1946. He subsequently directed Garland in The Clock (1945), Ziegfeld Follies (1945) and The Pirate (1948). He divorced Garland in 1951.
Throughout the 1950s, Minnelli directed numerous comedies, dramas and musicals, including Father of the Bride (1950), An American in Paris (1951), The Bad and the Beautiful (1952), Lust for Life (1956) and Gigi (1958). An American in Paris and Gigi respectively both won the Academy Award for Best Picture, with Minnelli winning the Best Director for the latter film. For over 26 years, Minnelli became the longest-tenured film director for MGM.
Gigi - Leslie Caron Maurice Chevallier, Louis Jourdan Buy/Rent on Amazon, Google Play
An American in Paris - Music by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin. Gene Kelly is the lead actor Buy/Rent on Amazon, Apple, Google Play, YouTube, Sky store
On Moonlight Bay is a 1951 American musical film starring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae, and directed by Roy Del Ruth, which tells the story of the Winfield family at the turn of the 20th century. The movie is based loosely on the Penrod stories by Booth Tarkington.[3] The sequel By the Light of the Silvery Moon was made in 1953. Available on Apple.
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Buy/Rent on Amazon, Apple, Google Play, YouTube. This is a YouTube site for fans of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The hyperlinks
Oklahoma (Film 1955) July 2023 Hugh Jackman starred in Oklahoma the film, celebrating the 80th anniversary of the show.
The King and I (Film 1956) Deborah Kerr plays Anna Leonowens and Yul Brynner the King of Siam. It’s worth noting that Marni Nixon dubbed the singing voice of Anna, and Rita Moreno played Tuptim—she is one of the few actors to have been awarded an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony (EGOT), she played Anita in West Side Story.
The Sound of Music (Film 1965)
West Side Story (Film 1961)
Available to watch on Amazon, Google Play, Apple
West Side Story is a 1961 American musical romantic drama film directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, written by Ernest Lehman, and produced by Wise. The film is an adaptation of the 1957 Broadway musical of the same title, which in turn was inspired by Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. It stars Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, Rita Moreno, and George Chakiris and was photographed by Daniel L. Fapp in Super Panavision 70. The music was composed by Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
The Slipper and The Rose Available on Amazon or Apple
The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella is a 1976 British musical retelling the classic fairy tale of Cinderella. The film was chosen as the Royal Command Performance motion picture selection for 1976.
Lead actors Richard Chamberlain and Gemma Craven. The Fairy Godmother is played by Annette Crosbie. The Wicked Stepmother is played by Margaret Lockwood.
The Wizard of Oz (Film 1939)
The music was composed by Harold Arlen and adapted by Herbert Stothart, with lyrics by Edgar "Yip" Harburg. You can watch this on on Amazon, Apple, Google Play, YouTube, Sky store. This is the link to the album of music in Spotify.
I was trying to explain ‘Wicked’ to a friend who knew nothing about it. We may set up a virtual movie time with the Wizard of Oz and then Wicked!
Here’s a short Wikipedia summary of ‘Wicked’ beware of spoilers if you’re waiting for the new film’s part 2 on November 21, 2025!
Wiki of Wicked
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is a loose adaptation of the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which in turn is based on L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its 1939 film adaptation. The musical is told from the perspective of two witches, Elphaba1 and Galinda, before and after Dorothy's arrival in Oz. The story explores the complex friendship between Elphaba (who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West) and Galinda (who becomes Glinda the Good). Their relationship is tested by their contrasting personalities, conflicting viewpoints, shared love interest, reactions to the corrupt rule of the Wonderful Wizard, and ultimately, Elphaba's tragic fall.
Here’s a review of the recently released film by
🎶 What musical film brings back memories and connects you with your parents/relatives/family and friends?
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Elphaba The character is a reimagining of the Wicked Witch of the West from L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The American novelist, Gregory Maguire recalled that he “invented the name” by “playing with the initials of the author Lyman Frank Baum”, who penned the original Wizard Of Oz books in the early 1900s. “I tried ‘Lafaba’, I tried ‘Lafeyba’. And then I tried ‘Elphaba’. As soon as I got Elphaba, I thought, ‘oh, that’s it’.”
This is great!!! Thank you for sharing! I actually need to sit with this for a day or two because there’s just too many options swirling around in my head right now lol.
Thx for the mention! It’s “Sound of Music” and “Wizard of Oz” that bring me back to being a kid and family time. I’m pretty sure this was because they were specials on prime time annually. This was the 80s and pre- on demand.