De-Lovely

De-Lovely is a 2004 musical biopic directed by Irwin Winkler. The screenplay by Jay Cocks is based on the life and career of Cole Porter, from his first meeting with Linda Lee Thomas until his death. It is the second biopic about the composer, following Night and Day.

Plot

As he is about to die, Porter's life flashes before him in the form of a musical production staged by the archangel Gabriel in the Indiana theater where the composer first performed on stage.

He immediately calls to mind the start of his story - the night he met his wife, Linda Lee Thomas - Paris' latest divorcee and stunning beauty. From the start, they "click" and become a devoted couple. Linda is well aware of Cole's gay identity and activities; her "ex" was the same but violent with her. Cole is completely different, she declares on their wedding day - he loves and adores her and shows it, so she tolerates his dalliances. Her love for and devotion to him are strong enough for her to overlook his romantic flings outside their marriage. With Linda his fun with music turns into a top international career. Their lavish lifestyle is enviable worldwide. At film's end he tells her the songs were all about her - "not all" she corrects - but enough of them. The leaders in music praise his work and his amazing shows begin. Linda begins a tradition for his show opening nights - a Cartier cigarette case custom designed and engraved to commemorate each show, but almost misses one of his openings herself due to miscarriage and they remain childless.

It's De-Lovely

"It's De-Lovely" is one of Cole Porter's hit songs, originally appearing in his 1936 musical, Red Hot and Blue. It was introduced by Ethel Merman and Bob Hope. The song was later used in the musical Anything Goes, first appearing in the 1962 revival where it was sung by Hal Linden and Barbara Lang. The hit records in late 1936 and early 1937 included versions by Eddy Duchin, Shep Fields, and Will Osborne. Kitty Brown also recorded the song with Les Brown's Band of Renown.

The song played with words that have the prefix "de", which leads to the creation of the neologism "de-lovely": "It's de-lightful, it's de-licious, it's de-lovely."

Robbie Williams sang the song in the Cole Porter biopic, De-Lovely.

The song was used by the Chrysler Corporation in advertising DeSoto automobiles, changing the lyrics to "Its delovely, its dynamic, its DeSoto." A 1970s commercial for 7Up used the song, describing it as "de-sugarfree".

References