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The Sun Comes Up facts for kids

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The Sun Comes Up
The Sun Comes Up.jpg
VHS cover
Directed by Richard Thorpe
Produced by Robert Sisk
Screenplay by Margaret Fitts
William Ludwig
Eric Knight
Starring Jeanette MacDonald
Lloyd Nolan
Claude Jarman Jr.
Pal (credited as "Lassie")
Music by André Previn
Cinematography Ray June
Editing by Cotton Warburton
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date(s) January 27, 1949 (1949-01-27)
Running time 93 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $1,659,000
Money made $1,280,000 (Domestic earnings)
$764,000 (Foreign earnings)

The Sun Comes Up is a heartwarming 1949 movie from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was filmed in Technicolor, which means it had beautiful, vibrant colors. This film is famous for starring Lassie, the amazing dog, alongside the talented actress Jeanette MacDonald. While Jeanette MacDonald had returned to movies a year before, The Sun Comes Up was her very last film role. After this, she continued to perform in concerts and on TV.

What Happens in the Movie?

The story follows Helen Lorfield Winter, a former opera singer played by Jeanette MacDonald. Helen moves to a small town called Brushy Gap in the hills of Georgia. She brings her loyal dog, Lassie, with her. Helen is dealing with a very sad time in her life after her son passed away.

In Brushy Gap, Helen meets a young orphan boy named Jerry, played by Claude Jarman Jr.. Helen and Jerry quickly become friends. Even though she cares for Jerry, Helen isn't ready to have children in her life so soon after her loss. Because of this, she decides to leave Brushy Gap and go back to her singing career.

While Helen is away, Jerry is caught in a big rainstorm while taking Lassie home. He gets very sick with pneumonia. Helen soon returns to Brushy Gap and finds that the house owner, Thomas Chandler (Lloyd Nolan), is taking care of Jerry.

After Jerry gets better, a scary fire breaks out at the orphanage. Both Lassie and Tom bravely rescue Jerry from the burning building. Seeing how much she cares for Jerry and how much they need each other, Helen decides to adopt him. She chooses to stay in Brushy Gap with Jerry and Lassie.

Meet the Main Characters

Here are the main actors and the characters they played in The Sun Comes Up:

The Movie's Music

The beautiful music for The Sun Comes Up was composed by André Previn. A film's music, also called its score, helps tell the story and makes you feel different emotions. In 2010, a special collection of music from seven Lassie movies was released on CD. Many of the original music recordings from this time were lost, so experts had to carefully put the music back together from other sources.

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