From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Where the Boys Are” | |
|---|---|
One of US reissues | |
| Single by Connie Francis | |
| B-side | “No One,” “Baby Roo” |
| Released | January 1961 |
| Recorded | October 18, 1960 (A-side) December 27, 1960 (B-side) |
| Genre | Traditional pop |
| Length | 2:43 (A-side) 2:48 (B-side) |
| Label | MGM Records K 12971 |
| Songwriter(s) | Neil Sedaka, Howard Greenfield |
| Producer(s) | Jesse Kaye |
| Connie Francis US singles chronology | |
| “Many Tears Ago” / “Senza Mamma e Nnammurata” (1960)”Where the Boys Are“ (1961)”Breakin’ in a Brand New Broken Heart” / “Someone Else’s Boy“ (1961) | |
“Where the Boys Are” is a song written by Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield for, and first recorded by, Connie Francis as the title track of the 1960 movie by the same name in which she was co-starring.
Original version by Connie Francis
Premise
Connie Francis recorded “Where the Boys Are” as the theme song for the motion picture Where the Boys Are a 1961 MGM release filmed in 1960 in which Francis made her movie acting debut as one of four coeds on spring break in Fort Lauderdale.
According to Francis she was on location in Fort Lauderdale when the film’s director Joe Pasternak advised her that he had commissioned the Oscar-winning songwriting team of Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen to write a theme song for the movie which Francis would sing. Pasternak later recalled that when, at Francis’s insistence, he agreed to consider a submission from the Sedaka-Greenfield songwriting team to follow her “Stupid Cupid” hit from that team, he told her, “They’ve got a week but it’s got to be here by Wednesday: that’s when we’re picking the song.”
Francis thereupon telephoned Howard Greenfield in New York City and Greenfield agreed to complete a “Where the Boys Are” theme song with Sedaka (although Francis recalled that Greenfield initially reacted unfavorably to the request, later saying “‘Where the Boys Are’? What kind of stupid title is that? Who can write a song with a title like ‘Where the Boys Are’?”). Despite this reaction, Sedaka and Greenfield in fact completed two “Where the Boys Are” theme songs and in order to meet Pasternak’s deadline, the demos of Sedaka singing both songs were delivered by an airline hostess who personally knew Francis and was working a flight to Florida.
Sedaka and Greenfield had indicated to Francis that they both much preferred one of their two proposed “Where the Boys Are” theme songs over the other and Francis concurred. Of this, Francis later said, “One of the versions we loved and the other we [three] all hated. Joe Pasternak came to me after [the Wednesday] meeting with the decision. ‘You’re right, Connie,’ he said: ‘This is the [right] song.’ And it was the version the three of us hated.”
An alternate scenario for Pasternak’s vetting of the two Sedaka-Greenfield bids indicates that the producer witnessed a live performance of Francis performing both versions of the song to Sedaka’s piano accompaniment. According to this scenario, the rejected version of the “Where the Boys Are” theme song was never recorded even as a demo.
Neil Sedaka has stated that “Where the Boys Are” is the only one of his 700 plus compositions not written with any intent of his singing it himself: (Sedaka quote:) “People think I wrote [a lot of] songs for others, but the truth is I wrote them all for me to record. Other people then picked them up and recorded them themselves.” Sedaka did perform the song in concert, however, notably for his live album “The Show Goes On” recorded at the Royal Albert Hall.
Motion picture version
The version chosen by Joe Pasternak was recorded for the first time on July 12, 1960, in Hollywood and was only used when combined to medleys with the overture and closing credits scores written by George E. Stoll.
Original released version (1960)
Francis recorded the single version of Where the Boys Are on 18 October 1960 in a New York City recording session with Stan Applebaum arranging and conducting. The same session also came up with Francis’ hits “Many Tears Ago“
and “Breakin’ in a Brand New Broken Heart”
well as the songs “On the Outside Looking In”,
“Happy New Year Baby”,
and “Mein Herz weiß genau, was es will“, which all would remain unreleased until the 1980s.
Subsequently, Francis recorded “Where the Boys Are” in six other languages on November 9, 1960:
- German (as Wenn ich träume)
- French (as Je sais qu’un gars)
- Italian (as Qualcuno mi aspetta)
- Japanese (as Atashi-no)
- Neapolitan (as C’è qualcuno)
- Spanish (as Donde hay chicos)
The German and French singles of the respective translations of “Where the Boys Are” would feature as B-side a translated version of “No One,” the flip of the English-language single: the German rendering of “No One” was entitled “Niemand”, the French was “Personne”. (Francis also recorded renderings of “No One” in Italian: as “Mai nessuno”, and Japanese: “Mada”.)
The various versions of “Where the Boys Are” would afford Francis a #1 hit in some fifteen countries. The Japanese version Atashi-no was even released in the US on MGM Records Single K 13005.
Where the Boys Are was comparatively less successful in the English speaking world: in the US, the song peaked at #4 while the track peaked on both the UK and Australian charts at #5. However, Where the Boys Are became Francis’ signature tune and remains a fan favorite.
Charts
| Chart (1961) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia | 5 |
| New Zealand (Listener) | 4 |
| UK Singles (OCC) | 5 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 4 |
Re-recordings
After several years of stage absence, Francis recorded a new album entitled Who’s Happy Now? in 1978. A revamped Disco version of Where the Boys Are was chosen as the leading track of the album and issued as a single. Although the English recording wasn’t able to crack the charts anywhere, Francis also recorded Spanish, Italian and Japanese Disco versions of the song.
Francis would again re-record “Where the Boys Are”, the song being one of seventeen of her hits remade for her 1989 album Where the Hits Are a Roger Hawkins production recorded for Malaco Records at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios.
Cover versions
- The duo Get Wet: comprising pianist Zecca Esquibel and vocalist Sherri Beachfront (née Lewis), recorded “Where the Boys Are” for their 1981 self-titled debut – produced by Phil Ramone – from which it was issued as the follow-up to the Top 40 hit “Just So Lonely”.
- Lisa Hartman recorded “Where the Boys Are” for the soundtrack of the film’s 1984 remake of the same name. Issued as a single in April 1984 – concurrently with the film – the track would be included on the 2011 CD reissue of Hartman’s 1982 album Letterock.
- Lorna Luft, who co-starred in Where the Boys Are ’84, recorded a disco version of “Where the Boys Are” released concurrently with the film although it was not a soundtrack item: produced by Joel Diamond this version – credited mononymously to Lorna – featured background vocals by members of the Village People.
- Tracey Ullman remade “Where the Boys Are” for her 1984 album You Caught Me Out.
- Michael Callen‘s 1988 album Purple Heart opens with a cover of “Where the Boys Are”, that includes a few minor lyric changes.
- Linda Martin reached #19 on the Irish charts with a 1990 remake of “Where the Boys Are”.
- Voice actress Kath Soucie performed a cover version of “Where the Boys Are” as her animated skunk character Fifi La Fume from the Tiny Toon Adventures TV series for the 1992 album, Tiny Toons Sing!
- The Czars recorded a studio version of the song that appeared on their 2006 b-sides and out-takes album, Sorry I Made You Cry.
- Gerard Joling remade “Where the Boys Are” for his 2004 album, Nostalgia.
- Song co-writer Neil Sedaka included a demo version of the song on his 2007 album, The Definitive Collection.
- Ricky Koole remade “Where The Boys Are” for her 2014 album, No Use Crying.
- Mary Sarah recorded “Where the Boys Are” for her 2014 album Bridges: the track is a duet with its composer Neil Sedaka. Mary performed the song solo on the February 29, 2016 episode of the U.S. version of The Voice.
- 伊東ゆかり – ボーイ・ハント(Japanese)
- Version by Nishida Hikaru (Japan)
- EMILY ESTEFAN – Live at the Hollywood Bowl, LA
- Where the Boys Are – Dave Monk
- The Lucky Duckies – Where The Boys Are
- Ariana Grande – “Where the Boys Are” [Connie Francis cover] (Live in San Diego 2-20-12)
- Where The Boys Are (ボーイハント) / GRAYHOUNDS JPN (グレイハウンズ)
WHERE THE BOYS ARE FILM
DVD cover by Reynold Brown
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| Directed by | Henry Levin |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Joe Pasternak |
| Screenplay by | George Wells |
| Based on | Where the Boys Are (1960 novel) by Glendon Swarthout |
| Starring | Connie Francis Dolores Hart Paula Prentiss George Hamilton Yvette Mimieux Jim Hutton Frank Gorshin |
| Music by | Score: George E. Stoll Jazz: Pete Rugolo Songs: Neil Sedaka (music) Howard Greenfield (lyrics) |
| Cinematography | Robert J. Bronner |
| Edited by | Fredric Steinkamp |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
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Release date
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Running time
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99 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2 million |
| Box office | $3.5 million (US rentals) |
Where the Boys Are (1960) is a Metrocolor and CinemaScope American coming-of-age comedy film, written by George Wells based on the novel of the same name by Glendon Swarthout, about four Midwestern college co-eds who spend spring break in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The title song “Where the Boys Are” was sung by Connie Francis, who also co-starred in a supporting role. The film was aimed at the teen market, featuring sun, sand and romance. Released in the wintertime, it inspired thousands of additional American college students to head to Fort Lauderdale for their annual spring break. Where the Boys Are was one of the first teen films to explore adolescent sexuality and the changing sexual morals and attitudes among American college youth. It won Laurel awards for Best Comedy of the Year and Best Comedy Actress (Paula Prentiss).
The film mainly focuses on the “coming of age” of four girl students at a midwestern university during spring vacation. In a class discussion, smart, down-to-earth Merritt Andrews suggests that premarital sex might be something young women should experience. Melanie Tolman, a magnet for young men, loses her virginity on her first date, soon after the young women arrive in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Tuggle Carpenter seeks to be a “baby-making machine”, lacking only a man to join her in marriage. The athletic Angie, who is clueless about romance, rounds out the group.
The girls find their attitudes challenged. Merritt, a freshman, meets suave, darkly handsome Ryder Smith, a senior at Brown University, and realizes she is not ready for sex. Melanie discovers that Franklin, a boy from Yale University whom she thought loved her, was only using her for sex. Tuggle quickly fixes her attention on goofy “TV” Thompson, a junior at Michigan State University, but becomes disillusioned when he becomes infatuated with performer Lola Fandango, a “mermaid” swimmer/dancer in a local nightclub. Angie stumbles into a relationship with eccentric jazz musician Basil.
The relationship angst of Merritt, Tuggle, and Angie evaporates when they discover Melanie is distraught after going to meet Franklin at a motel and instead finding there another of the “Yalies”, Dill, who raped her. Franklin had moved on to another girl, but told Dill that Melanie was “easy” and set up the ambush. Melanie, her dress torn, walks into traffic. Just as her friends arrive, she is sideswiped by a car and is rushed to the hospital.
Ultimately, the girls resolve to act more maturely and responsibly. Melanie recovers in the hospital, with Merritt looking after her. Merritt promises Ryder she will continue their long-distance relationship. He then drives them back to college.
Cast
- Dolores Hart as Merritt Andrews
- Paula Prentiss as Tuggle Carpenter
- Yvette Mimieux as Melanie Tolman
- Connie Francis as Angie
- George Hamilton as Ryder Smith
- Jim Hutton as TV Thompson
- Rory Harrity as Franklin
- Frank Gorshin as Basil
- Chill Wills as Police Captain
- Barbara Nichols as Lola Fandango
- Maggie Pierce as Dody
- Carol Byron as Sybil
Production
Joe Pasternak bought the film rights to the novel, which originally was known as Unholy Spring, even before it was published. He assigned George Wells to write the script.
“There isn’t a gat, knife, or marijuana cigarette in the whole thing”, said Pasternak. “These are good students. We’ll use our young contract players, such as George Hamilton, Joe Cronin, Denny Miller, Alfredo Sadel, Bill Smith, Russ Tamblyn, Luana Patten, Maggie Pierce, Carmen Phillips, and Nancy Walters; then get one star to head the cast.” Natalie Wood, who had just made All the Fine Young Cannibals for MGM, was mentioned as a possible star at one stage.
MGM eventually persuaded the book’s author to change the title from Unholy Spring to Where the Boys Are.
Henry Levin was signed to direct. The first two stars confirmed for the movie were George Hamilton and Yvette Mimieux. Paula Prentiss was cast despite never having made a movie before. Connie Francis also made her movie debut (although she had previously done voice work in Jamboree! and Rock Rock Rock!). Strangely enough, this marked the first of three films starring Francis which featured “boys” in the title. The other two were Follow The Boys and When The Boys Meet The Girls. Coincidentally, Hamilton, Prentiss and star Dolores Hart were all born the same year, and 22 at the time of filming. The youngest of the principal cast was Yvette Mimieux, who was only 19 years old during filming.
The novel contained a section where the students help raise money to ship arms to Fidel Castro for his revolution in Cuba. Pasternak decided to remove this. “The author was very sympathetic to Castro”, said Pasternak. “Politics does not belong in entertainment. As actors or writers or movie makers of any sort, we have a right to our political preferences. But that is why we have secret ballots… We felt that the only revolution these youngsters should be involved in was their personal revolution.”
George Hamilton got a bit part for his friend Sean Flynn in the movie.
Hamilton claims to have improvised the scene in which he wrote a question mark in the sand next to Dolores Hart. He firmly believed he was making a “little nothing of a film” and did not enjoy the shoot. The film also featured the screen debut, in an unaccredited role, by former Miss Ohio and Elvis Presley consort Kathy Gabriel.
The opening sequence was narrated by veteran voice-over artist Paul Frees. Frees is best known for his work on Disneyland attractions, such as The Haunted Mansion and Pirates Of The Caribbean.
Music
The kind of cool modern jazz (or west coast jazz) popularized by such acts as Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan, and Chico Hamilton, then in the vanguard of the college music market, features in a number of scenes with Basil. Called “dialectic jazz” in the film, the original compositions were by Pete Rugolo.
MGM had bolstered the film’s success potential by giving a large role to Connie Francis, the top American female recording star and a member of the MGM Records roster. Francis had solicited the services of Neil Sedaka and Howard Greenfield, who had written hit songs for her, to write original material for her to perform on the film’s soundtrack including a “Where the Boys Are” title song. Sedaka and Greenfield wrote two potential title songs for the film, but producer Joe Pasternak passed over the song Francis and the songwriting duo preferred in favor of a lush 1950s style movie theme. Francis recorded the song on October 18, 1960 in a New York City recording session with Stan Applebaum arranging and conducting.
The theme song, “Where the Boys Are”, peaked at #4 in the U.S. and became Connie Francis’s signature tune. It was covered by other artists.
Besides the theme song, Francis sang “Turn on the Sunshine”, another Sedaka-Greenfield composition, in the film.
The film’s soundtrack also features “Have You Met Miss Fandango?” The song was sung by co-star Barbara Nichols and featured music by Victor Young and lyrics by Stella Unger.
MGM did not release a soundtrack album for Where the Boys Are.
Reception
The film was a success at the box office.
MGM signed Henry Levin, Dolores Hart, Prentiss and Hutton to long-term contracts.
Critical
American humanities professor Camille Paglia has praised Where the Boys Are for its accurate depiction of courtship and sexuality, illustrating once-common wisdom that she contends has been obscured by second-wave feminism:
The theatrics of public rage over date rape are [feminists’] way of restoring the old sexual rules that were shattered by my generation. Because nothing about the sexes has really changed. The comic film Where the Boys Are (1960), the ultimate expression of ’50s man-chasing, still speaks directly to our time. It shows smart, lively women skillfully anticipating and fending off the dozens of strategies with which horny men try to get them into bed. The agonizing date rape subplot and climax are brilliantly done. The victim, Yvette Mimieux, makes mistake after mistake, obvious to the other girls. She allows herself to be lured away from her girlfriends and into isolation with boys whose character and intentions she misreads. Where the Boys Are tells the truth. It shows courtship as a dangerous game in which the signals are not verbal but subliminal.
Accolades
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
- 2004: AFI’s 100 Years…100 Songs:
- “Where the Boys Are” – Nominated
Proposed sequel
In 1960, it was announced Pasternak would make a follow up titled Where the Girls Are, starring George Hamilton. It was meant to be an entirely different story rather than a sequel. But this was never produced.
Pasternak also announced plans to reunite Hamilton, Prentiss, Hutton and Mimieux in a romantic comedy titled Only a Paper Moon from a story by George Bradshaw, “Image of a Starlet”. This became A Ticklish Affair, and was made, but without any of those actors.
Nonetheless there were a number of unofficial follow-ups. MGM liked Paula Prentiss and Jim Hutton as a team so much they put them together in three more movies: Bachelor in Paradise, The Honeymoon Machine and The Horizontal Lieutenant. MGM also made a number of other romantic comedies in the style of Where the Boys Are, including Come Fly with Me and Follow the Boys.
It also inspired a number of imitations from other studios, including the Beach Party series and Palm Springs Weekend.
1984 film
Where the Boys Are ’84 was released in 1984 by TriStar Pictures. While it bears the distinction of being the first film released by TriStar, the film was a critical and commercial failure. Although it was touted as a remake, Roger Ebert reported that “It isn’t a sequel and isn’t a remake and isn’t, in fact, much of anything.”
Watch the movie
https://youtu.be/d_x321PTvFM
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