Bedtime Story (1964 film)

Lawrence Jameson is a refined, elegant con artist living in the French Riviera town of Beaumont-sur-Mer, where he masquerades as the deposed prince of a small European country, seducing wealthy women into donating money and jewelry to his revolutionary "cause". Meanwhile, Corporal Freddy Benson is a small-time operator in the US Army stationed in West Germany, conning his way into the hearts and finances of young women with sob stories about his sick grandmother. His attempt at seducing the daughter of a local Bürgermeister (a mayor) backfires when her father arrives home early, but Freddy is able to blackmail his colonel into giving him an early discharge.

On a train to Beaumont-sur-Mer, Freddy cockily displays his skill as a conman to Lawrence, whom he believes to be a henpecked husband. Lawrence, believing Freddy's "poaching" will endanger his own activities, attempts to distract him into leaving town, and when that fails, arranges for his arrest. Lawrence has him released and buys him a plane ticket to the United States. However, one of Lawrence's former conquests is on the plane and inadvertently gives away Lawrence's deception. Freddy returns and blackmails Lawrence into taking him on as an apprentice.

Freddy is taught to play The Prince's mentally challenged brother Ruprecht, a tactic to scare women away from trying to marry the prince. They are successful, but when Lawrence refuses to pay Freddy until he can acquire the culture necessary for Lawrence's style of con, Freddy decides to set out on his own. Lawrence believes that there is not enough room in Beaumont-sur-Mer for both of them, so the two make a bet: the first one to steal $25,000 from a selected mark will stay, and the other must leave forever.

They choose Janet Walker, a naïve American heiress, announced as the American Soap Queen, as their target. Freddy poses as a soldier who is suffering from psychosomatic paralysis. He wins Janet's affections with a sad story and convinces her that he needs $25,000 to pay for treatment by a celebrated Swiss psychiatrist, Dr. Emil Schaffhausen. Lawrence then masquerades as Dr. Schaffhausen, agreeing to treat Freddy's "condition" with the stipulation that Janet pay the $25,000 directly to him. The two battle for Janet's affections, ruthlessly sabotaging each other, with the worldly Lawrence mostly coming out on top.

Lawrence discovers that Janet is not a major heiress after all, but merely the winner of the American Soap Queen contest, and that she intends to sell all her belongings to pay for Freddy's treatment. Since Lawrence only preys on wealthy women who can afford it, he attempts to call off the bet. Freddy refuses, but suggests they change the bet: the first to get Janet into bed will win. Lawrence refuses to try to seduce Janet, but bets that Freddy will fail to do so.

Freddy has Lawrence kidnapped by some paratroopers whom he fools into believing Lawrence is trying to steal his girl (Janet). He then convinces Janet of his love by "conquering" his paralysis and walking. Lawrence has been present the whole time, and he now declares that Freddy is cured. Lawrence explains that he told the soldiers he had been a British Army paratrooper during the war, and filled them in on Freddy's lies. The angry soldiers keep Freddy occupied until Lawrence puts Janet on a train. However, as the train is departing, Janet receives a telegram stating that Dr. Emil Schaffausen has been dead since 1927. Confused and distraught, she returns to her hotel room, where she finds Freddy, who apparently succeeds in seducing her.

Lawrence gracefully accepts defeat, but Freddy surprisingly has had a change of heart: he could not take advantage of Janet, and realises that his feelings for her are genuine. Instead, he marries her, goes straight, and they return to the US. Lawrence reflects that, in the end, Freddy is happier than he, but as he sees his next mark, a ravishing and extremely wealthy blonde, concludes that "a man must learn to live with his misery".

{{Cast listing|

• Marlon Brando as Freddy Benson
• David Niven as Lawrence Jameson
• Shirley Jones as Janet Walker
• Dody Goodman as Fanny Eubank
• Aram Stephan as Andre
• Parley Baer as Col. Williams
• Marie Windsor as Mrs. Sutton
• Rebecca Sand as Miss Trumble
• Frances Robinson as Miss Harrington
• Henry Slate as Sattler
• Norman Alden as Dubin
• Susanne Cramer as Anna
• Cynthia Lynn as Frieda
• Ilse Taurins as Hilda
• Francine York as Gina

}}

Principal photography began on April 16, 1963, with filming taking place on the French Riviera for 12 days before returning to the Universal Studios backlot in Universal City, California, for the remainder of the shooting schedule. A few days later, Marlon Brando was hospitalized due to recurring kidney ailment. He had since resumed work by late May 1963, shooting a scene on location in Malibu, California. Filming wrapped on July 16, 1963, and Brando returned to the hospital the next day.{{cite web |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/18645 |title=Bedtime Story (1964) |website=AFI Catalog of Feature Films |access-date=March 18, 2025}}

In a contemporary review for The New York Times, critic Bosley Crowther wrote: "Bedtime Story is a very funny picture, and Mr. Brando is a first-class farceur. To be sure, the film is lightweight and vapid—just a clever succession of japes and jokes, nothing to cherish in the memory. Neither is the sweet performance of Miss Jones. ... Ralph Levy's direction is temperate, not as wild as you would expect, praise be. And the sets and colors are superior. Mark this one down as good crisp fun."{{Cite news |last=Crowther |first=Bosley |author-link=Bosley Crowther |date=1964-06-11 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/06/11/archives/comedy-is-presented-at-palace-theater.html |title=Comedy Is Presented at Palace Theater |page=27 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=March 17, 2025 |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190510081333/https://www.nytimes.com/1964/06/11/archives/comedy-is-presented-at-palace-theater.html |archive-date=May 10, 2019 |url-status=live}}

The film earned $2.1 million in distributor rentals in the United States and Canada.{{cite magazine |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_variety_1965-01-06_237_7/page/38/mode/2up |title=Big Rental Pictures of 1964 |magazine=Variety |date=January 6, 1965 |volume=237 |issue=7 |page=39}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb title}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20190324232306/https://www.allmovie.com/movie/bedtime-story-v4574 Bedtime Story] at AllMovie
• {{Rotten Tomatoes}}
• {{AFI film}}
• {{TCMDb title}}

Category:1964 films

Category:1964 comedy films

Category:1964 directorial debut films

Category:1960s American films

Category:1960s English-language films

Category:American comedy films

Category:English-language comedy films

Category:Films about con artists

Category:Films directed by Ralph Levy

Category:Films scored by Hans J. Salter

Category:Films set in hotels

Category:Films set in West Germany

Category:Films set on the French Riviera

Category:Films shot in France

Category:Films shot in Malibu, California

Category:Universal Pictures films