| "Make 'Em Laugh" | |
|---|---|
 Australian label | |
| Song by Donald O'Connor | |
| Released | 1952 |
| Recorded | 1951–1952 |
| Genre | Showtune |
| Length | 3:17 |
| Songwriter(s) | Nacio Herb Brown Arthur Freed |
"Make 'Em Laugh" is a song first featured in the 1952 MGM musical film Singin' in the Rain, performed by Donald O'Connor as the character Cosmo Brown. Written by Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown,[1] the song is closely based on Cole Porter's "Be a Clown" from the Freed-produced 1948 MGM musical film The Pirate, in which it was sung by Gene Kelly and Judy Garland.[2][3] In the song, Cosmo explains that he loves making people laugh, and quotes back to the inspiring words of a man named Samuel J. Snodgrass (as he was about to be led to the guillotine), his dad and his grandpa (though it's made unclear whether Cosmo refers to Snodgrass's or his own relatives).
O'Connor's performance for "Make 'Em Laugh" is noted for its extreme physical difficulty, featuring dozens of jumps, pratfalls, and two backflips. Hollywood legend states that O'Connor, though only 27 years old at the time but a chain-smoker, was bedridden for several days after filming the sequence. The routine is often cited as a tour de force in physical comedy.[4]
"Make 'Em Laugh" is listed at #49 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema.[5]
- ^ "SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, 1952". Margaret Herrick Library Digital Collections. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
DOPEwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "The Pirate". IMDb. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ Clover, Carol J. (Summer 1995). "Dancin' in the Rain". Critical Inquiry. 21 (4): 722–747. doi:10.1086/448772. JSTOR 1344065. S2CID 162299329. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
- ^ "AFI List of Top 100 Songs From U.S. Films". Associated Press. June 22, 2004. Retrieved January 6, 2022.