Legacy of Gilbert and Sullivan – in the Movies
Gilbert and Sullivan’s delightful comic operas were first performed in the 1870s, 1880s and 1890s, but their influence is still felt in Western culture.
Both American and British musical theater traditions owe a great debt to the duo. Fans of G&S include P.G. Wodehouse, Irving Berlin, Ivor Novello, Oscar Hammerstein II, and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Even today, Gilbert and Sullivan’s works pop up in the most unlikely places.
The legacy of Gilbert and Sullivan still endures today. As it turns out, it’s so extensive that I got worn out just chasing down all the references to their works that can be found in books, songs, plays, musical theater, children’s shows, movies, television programs, and video games (in the games Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3, the lizard-like alien character Dr. Mordin Solus sings a short pastiche version of the Major-General’s song: “I am the very model of a scientist Salarian”.
So for this post, here is a partial list of the references, pastiches and parodies of Gilbert and Sullivan’s works that have appeared in the movies:
- The Parent Trap (1961)
- The Cool Mikado (1962)
- The Producers (1967)
- Dick Deadeye, or Duty Done (1975)
- Foul Play (1978)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- Chariots of Fire (1981)
- The Pirate Movie (1982)
- Never Cry Wolf (1983)
- An Englishman Abroad (1983)
- Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
- Topsy Turvy (1999)
- Kate & Leopold (2001)
- Peter Pan (2003)
- Brick (2005)
- The Good Shepherd (2006)
I was going to include television shows, too, since there have been references to Gilbert and Sullivan in everything from Doctor Who, to Blackadder, House, The West Wing, The Simpsons and The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, but I will save those for later posts.
What other movies can you think of that have Gilbert and Sullivan references? Leave me a comment and let me know!
