Once in a Blue Moon (1936)
- Starring:
- Nikita Balieff, Cecilia Loftus, (more)
- Director(s):
- Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur, (more)
Synopsis of Once in a Blue Moon
Hecht and MacArthur's Once in a Blue Moon was an unsuccessful attempt to fashion a film vehicle for legendary Broadway comedian Jimmy Savo. The pixieish star is cast as Gabbo the Great, a circus performer in pre-Revolutionary Russia. A sensitive soul, Gabbo is afforded an opportunity to prove his loyalty to the Motherland by delivering an urgent message to a Russian general (Nikita Balieff, who died just after completing his role). Savo's great appeal lies in his whimsical pantomime, not his handling of dialogue; alas, he is saddled with reams and reams of satirical dialogue, very little of which was genuinely amusing. Though co-scripters Ben Hecht and Charlie McArthur are credited with the direction, it was an open secret in 1936 that most of Once in a Blue Moon was directed by cinematographer Lee Garmes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Complete Cast of Once in a Blue Moon
- Nikita Balieff - Gen. Onyegio
- Whitney Bourne - Nina
- Hans Steinke - Count Bulba
- Michael Dalmatoff - Nikita
- Cecilia Loftus - Duchess
- Sandor Szabo, Sr. - Ivan
- George Andre - Kolla
- Jimmy Savo - Gabbo, the Great
- Director(s):
- Charles MacArthur, Ben Hecht
- Writer(s):
- Charles MacArthur, Ben Hecht
- Producer(s):
- Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur
- Looking for special editions of Once in a Blue Moon?
- See All Versions
- Subtitles:
- Check All Versions
- Closed Captioning:
- Check All Versions





