Film Notes
     "Hollywood's legendary "woman's director," George Cukor (The Women, The Philadelphia Story), transformed Audrey Hepburn into street-urchin-turned-proper-lady Eliza Doolittle in this film version of the Lerner and Loewe musical. Based on George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion, My Fair Lady stars Rex Harrison as linguist Henry Higgins (Harrison also played the role, opposite Julie Andrews, on stage), who draws Eliza into a social experiment that works almost too well. The letterbox edition of this film on video certainly pays tribute to the pageantry of Cukor's set, but it also underscores a certain visual stiffness that can slow viewer enthusiasm just a tad. But it's really star wattage that keeps this film exciting, that and such great songs as On the Street Where You Live and I Could Have Danced All Night. Actor Jeremy Brett, who gained a huge following later in life portraying Sherlock Holmes, is quite electric as Eliza's determined suitor." (Tom Keogh, Amazon.com)
     Released theatrically in the USA October 21, 1964. Named Best Film by the New York Film Critics and one of the 10 Best Films of the Year by the National Board of Review. The Broadway musical My Fair Lady was staged by Moss Hart, produced on the stage by Herman Levin, and starred Julie Andrews, Rex Harrison, and Stanley Holloway. George Bernard Shaw's straight play Pygmalion was adapted for the screen in 1938, starring Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller. Marni Nixon, who dubbed Audrey Hepburn's singing voice, previously dubbed Natalie Wood's singing voice in West Side Story and Deborah Kerr's in The King and I. Many speculated that Hepburn was passed over for the Academy Award nomination because she did not do her own singing. The voice for Jeremy Brett, who played Freddie Eynsford-Hill, was supplied by Bill Shirley. Cecil Beaton's screen credit read "Costumes, Scenery and Production Designer," which, in actuality, referred to his design work for the stage version of My Fair Lady. For the film, he was responsible for Costumes, Makeup and Hair. Dr. Peter Ladefoged from UCLA served as phonetics advisor. Actor Wilfrid Hyde-White served as "Ascot advisor." Special photographic effects by Linwood G. Dunn and Film Effects of Hollywood. Filmed at the Warner Bros. Studios. Estimated budget: $17 million. Warner Bros. reportedly paid $5.5 million for the rights to the musical. Additionally, the owners of the stage property were to receive 47.5% of all proceeds after the first $20 million. Color by Technicolor and shot in Super Panavision 70. Original aspect ratio: 2.35:1. Utilized RCA six-track magnetic stereophonic sound. Additional cast: Baroness Veronica de Goldschmidt-Rothschild (Queen of Transylvania), Moyna Macgill (Lady Boxington), Miriam Schiller (Landlady), Ayllene Gibbons (Fat Woman at Pub), and Major Sam Harris (Guest at Ball). Additional crew: Sergei Petschnikoff (unit manager), Susan Seton (dialogue supervisor), Joe Wiatt, Eleanor Abbey, Norma Brown, Geoffrey Allen, Bob Richards, Anne Laune, and Betty Huff (Wardrobe), Gerda Roberson (costume design coordinator), Leah Barnes (milliner), Ed Graves (production illustrator), Max Bercutt, Carl Combs, and Mort Lichter (unit publicists), Bob Willoughby and Mel Traxel (stills), and Frank Flanagan (gaffer).