7th January 2009 |

Old movie about a man, an opera singer, and her 500 daughters Best answer on the web

  • I once watched a movie on the network AMC (American Movie Classics) which, from what I can remember, was about a young man who happened to come into living arrangements in a large house owned by a female opera singer who, reasons unknown to myself, had (I believe) five hundred (500) daughters, all approximately twenty years old, give or take a few. I did not catch the very beginning of the movie, and I cannot remember the end, so I do not know why he is living in this house or why the opera singer has so many (presumably adopted) children. This was an older movie, because I remember there being a part featuring what I seem to remember was technicolor, though the rest of the movie did have some color, sort of like washed-out looking, like the old Jimmy Stewart movies.
    Additional information: All of the daughters were trying to date this young man. One of the daughters played the trombone, and she would play to wake the other girls up in the morning. One of the girls never left her room - when the young man entered, it was black and white (so obviously the rest of the picture was in color) and they danced to an orchestra (which just happened to be in her room - the movie was a bit fantastical at times.) The opera singer was not, I believe, married. The bit with what seems to have been technicolor involved the young man opening a display case of butterflies and they all flew away - when he whistled, they entered the case again. There were not many (if any) other men in the movie until the very end. Again, this movie was aired on AMC between five and probably ten years ago - it was definitely hosted by an older gentleman (you know, where they talk about the movie in between commercials.) When the young man first saw the five hundred young women downstairs of the case (the point of the movie where I remember seeing from), he was startled by their presence, leading me to believe that either he was new at the opera singer's house (more likely, since there were five hundred of them and only one of him) or that they weren't supposed to be there. Also, the young man may have had amnesia, though I am not sure - I never saw the very beginning.
    I apologize for not having very much information about this movie - I saw it probably seven years ago and it was very good, and I have tried to remember the title of it ever since to no avail (Man of the House comes to mind, though I have searched that and similar titles and found nothing.)


  • This was a very quick, concise answer to a problem that has been plaguing me for several years - thanks!


  • Thank you very much for the five stars and the generous tip!

    ~pinkfreud


  • I believe you are remembering the 1961 film "The Ladies Man," in which Jerry Lewis plays a young man named Herbert H. Heebert who takes a job as a handyman in a huge rooming house run by a retired opera diva (played by Helen Traubel). Herbert soon learns that this is an all-female rooming house occupied by a multitude of beautiful young women. All the girls chase him, but he ends up falling for a trombone player (Lillian Briggs). There is a scene involving butterflies flying out of a case, as you've described. Much of the film is rather surreal, with interesting use of color effects.
    One of the most memorable things about "The Ladies Man" is the incredible set, which resembles a multi-level cutaway dollhouse:
    Jerry Lewis Comedy
    http://www.jerrylewiscomedy.com/pix/asib20.jpg

    If you'd like to own a copy of the film, it's available on DVD:

    Amazon: The Ladies Man (1961)
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002NY8VM

    I hope this is the correct movie! If it is not, please request clarification; I'll be glad to offer further assistance before you rate my answer.
    Best regards,
    pinkfreud


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