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Music comedy

There’s No Business Like Show Business (1954): Cast & Box Office

There’s No Business Like Show Business (1954) movie poster

There’s No Business Like Show Business is a 1954 music comedy directed by Walter Lang, starring Mitzi Gaynor as Katy Donahue, Johnnie Ray and Marilyn Monroe. It runs 1 hour 57 minutes and earned $6,341 worldwide.

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There’s No Business Like Show Business (1954) movie poster
Released
Runtime
1h 57m (117 min)
Director
Walter Lang
Genres
Comedy , Music
Original language
English
After the credits
No No extra scene
The story

What Is There’s No Business Like Show Business About?

The premise of There’s No Business Like Show Business without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.

The story follows Molly and Terry Donahue and their three children, who perform together as The Five Donahues, navigating the ups and downs of show‑business life. When the youngest son Tim falls for a hat‑check girl named Vicky, tensions mount and the once‑tight family act begins to unravel, all set against a lively musical revue.

There’s No Business Like Show Business Themes & Keywords

· 50 tags
  • year 1919
  • year 1923
  • little red wagon
  • reading a book aloud to a child
  • reference to peter rabbit
  • running away
  • fictional radio commercial
  • stock market crash
  • scottish dancing
  • playing piano
  • male female relationship
  • family relationships
+38 more
  • boarding school
  • husband wife relationship
  • vaudeville
  • show business
  • younger version of character
  • stage show
  • reference to jonah
  • passenger train
  • reference to flopsy mopsy and cottontail
  • newspaper headline
  • year 1929
  • tap dancing
  • reference to moses
  • playing bells
  • hat check
  • predicament prank
  • floor show
  • hippodrome
  • drunken man
  • reference to the st. louis cardinals baseball team
  • party
  • impersonating a parent
  • boat jump
  • speedboat
  • florida
  • rehearsal
  • breadstick
  • goodnight kiss
  • playing hard to get
  • hit on the head by a falling coconut
  • live statue
  • water fountain
  • ordination
  • marriage proposal
  • heliotrope dress
  • anchor tattoo
  • heart tattoo
  • american flag tattoo
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Cast & crew

There’s No Business Like Show Business Cast & Characters

Mitzi Gaynor leads the cast as Katy Donahue, with Johnnie Ray as Steve Donahue and Marilyn Monroe as Vicky. Directed by Walter Lang; 21 actors are credited in all.

Also Starring in There’s No Business Like Show Business

· 17 more
Show all 21 cast members
From the director

More from Walter Lang

More films directed by Walter Lang, best-rated first: The King and I, Snow White and the Three Stooges, The Marriage-Go-Round and Can-Can.

Full filmography
Plot

There’s No Business Like Show Business Plot Summary

What happens in There’s No Business Like Show Business from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 15 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 4-minute read.

Spoilers ahead

In 1919, Terence Donahue Dan Dailey and Molly Donahue Ethel Merman headline a thriving husband-and-wife vaudeville act. By 1923 their children Steve [Johnnie Ray], Katy [Mitzi Gaynor], and Tim [Donald O’Connor] have joined the act, expanding the family troupe into the run of The Five Donahues. As the kids grow, Terence and Molly decide to send them to a Catholic boarding school in Boston, hoping discipline might shape their futures. Yet when Father Dineen Rhys Williams intervenes one Saturday while the parents are on stage, he sends a telegram to the parents arguing that the boys miss their family and performing, while also acknowledging their potential to become leaders. Molly, however, insists the children stay where they are, and the Donahue unit remains intact for the time being.

Full summary

The whole story of There’s No Business Like Show Business, scene by scene

Read the full summary
Box office

There’s No Business Like Show Business Box Office

There’s No Business Like Show Business grossed $6,341 worldwide.

1954 box office

Worldwide gross

$6.3K

International
$6.3K
Videos

There’s No Business Like Show Business Trailers & Videos

The trailer of There’s No Business Like Show Business.

THERE'S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS trailer
Quiz

How Well Do You Know There’s No Business Like Show Business?

10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.

Question 1 of 10

  1. Question 1: not answered
  2. Question 2: not answered
  3. Question 3: not answered
  4. Question 4: not answered
  5. Question 5: not answered
  6. Question 6: not answered
  7. Question 7: not answered
  8. Question 8: not answered
  9. Question 9: not answered
  10. Question 10: not answered

Which two actors portray the married vaudeville couple Terence and Molly Donahue?

Cars

Cars in There’s No Business Like Show Business

3 cars on screen, including the 1937 Buick Special and the 1936 De Soto Airstream.

  • 1937 Buick Special in There’s No Business Like Show Business 1937 Buick Special Important role
  • 1936 De Soto Airstream in There’s No Business Like Show Business 1936 De Soto Airstream Important role
  • 1931 Cadillac V-12 Model 370-A in There’s No Business Like Show Business 1931 Cadillac V-12 Model 370-A Minor role
Details

There’s No Business Like Show Business Also Known As

23 alternative titles, including “Luces de candilejas” and “Vérükben a ritmus”.

Also known as
  • Luces de candilejas
  • Vérükben a ritmus
  • Sex i elden
  • Follie dell'anno
  • Rhythmus im Blut
  • La Joyeuse Parade
  • Sahne Işıkları
  • Parada de Estrelas
  • אין כעסקי שעשועים
  • O Mundo da Fantasia
  • Nu există nicio afacere ca afacerea de spectacole
  • Páratlan biznisz a színházi biznisz
+11 more
  • Нет такого бизнеса, как шоу-бизнес
  • 쇼처럼 즐거운 인생은 없다
  • Нема посла као што је шоу бизнис
  • 娱乐至上
  • El mundo de la fantasía
  • کسب و کار من نمایش است
  • Nie ma jak show biznes
  • Llums de teatre
  • ショウほど素敵な商売はない
  • Немає такого бізнесу, як шоу-бізнес
  • 娛樂至上

Seen There’s No Business Like Show Business?

FAQ

There’s No Business Like Show Business FAQ: Cast & Box Office

Runtime, release date, director, cast, box office and post-credit scenes of There’s No Business Like Show Business, each answered in a sentence.

How long is There’s No Business Like Show Business?

There’s No Business Like Show Business runs 1 hour 57 minutes (117 minutes).

When was There’s No Business Like Show Business released?

There’s No Business Like Show Business was released on December 16, 1954.

Who directed There’s No Business Like Show Business?

There’s No Business Like Show Business was directed by Walter Lang.

More films by Walter Lang

Who is in the cast of There’s No Business Like Show Business?

There’s No Business Like Show Business stars Mitzi Gaynor as Katy Donahue, Johnnie Ray as Steve Donahue and Marilyn Monroe as Vicky, among 21 credited actors.

How much did There’s No Business Like Show Business make at the box office?

There’s No Business Like Show Business grossed $6,341 worldwide.

Does There’s No Business Like Show Business have a post-credit scene?

No. There’s No Business Like Show Business has no extra scene during or after the credits.

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