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The King and I - I Whistle A Happy Tune video song reviews from users:  Siam Landon
Directed by Walter Lang based on the book "Anna and the King of Siam" by Margaret Landon, screenplay by Ernest Lehman, musical play Oscar Hammerstein II, with Deborah Kerr as Anna Leonowens, Yul Brynner as King Mongkut of Siam, Rita Moreno as Tuptim, Martin Benson as Kralahome, Terry Saunders as Lady Thiang, Rex Thompson as Louis Leonowens, Carlos Rivas as Lun Tha, Patrick Adiarte as Prince Chulalongkorn, Alan Mowbray as Sir John Hay, Geoffrey Toone as Sir Edward Ramsay Kerr Leonowens
Deborah Kerr's uncredited voice double Marni Nixon said that she realized the keys of Anna's songs were very low for her - "very contralto keys" - and that she was really too young (just 21) to be able to sound "adult" and "womanly". Hence, a modifier was placed in Nixon's microphone, to make her voice sound deeper and more mature. "I have a very light, bright ring to my voice, and I tried to take that out" she said. "But they were able to use this modifier to emphasize the lower partials of my voice. I also remember having a terrible cold at the time, not being able to breathe in those recording sessions. But that probably helped in matching Deborah's voice, deepening it." Brynner Mongkut
Marni Nixon was hired on a six-week contract, and she was to be at the studio every day that Deborah Kerr rehearsed a scene with a song in it. Nixon would actually stand next to Kerr and walk through the whole scene - both of them singing - and Nixon would be looking closely at Kerr's facial expressions to try to imitate her speech pattern in the songs. King Lang
he original Broadway production of "The King and I" opened at the St. James Theater on March 29, 1951, ran for 1246 performances and won the 1952 Tony Award (New York City) for the Best Musical. Yul Brynner won the 1952 Tony Award (New York City) for Supporting or Features Actor in a Musical for "The King and I" as the King of Siam and recreated his role in the movie version. |