MovieChat Forums > My Man Godfrey (1936) Discussion > Otchi Tschornyia (Carlo's song?)

Otchi Tschornyia (Carlo's song?)

posted 18 years ago by LincolnMarkV
8 replies | jump to latest

I always loved this movie and everybody in it. Gail Patrick, Eugene Pallette, Alice Brady, everybody. And Molly. God, she's great.

Well, I'm supposed to be working, but instead I've got my nose in a book I bought for fifty cents in a junk store. It's a bunch of essays from Vogue...early 40s. Anyway, don't mean to ramble, but one of the essays makes fun of this song, "Otchi Tschornyia."

Now, I've got a warped and probably seriously diseased brain, and while I can't remember someone's name two seconds after I've been introduced to them, I do have good grasp on unimportant, flighty matters. And I swear that "Otchi Tschornyia" is that dour little song that Carlo is playing to Mrs. Bullock.

The one where Mrs. Bullock says "What's the name of that song?" and he repeats the line, and she says something wonderfully dithery about the name being the same.

Does anyone know?

[–] Edmond_Bateman 18 years ago

I wasn't sure of the spelling until I read your post, but it's the same song.

[–] kuidot 18 years ago

Yes, it's the same song, but of course it has lots more words than the title Carlo is repeating. :) Old russian romance btw, meaning something like "Black Eyes".

[–] donrogers42 18 years ago

I think it's spelled 'Ochi Tchornya.' The same song makes more than a cameo appearance in another great comedy, The Shop Around the Corner (1940).

[–] carronstar-1 18 years ago

It is also mentioned in Shall We Dance (the Fred and Ginger One, not the Gere/Lopez one).

[–] NewtonFigg 14 years ago

And Spike Jones made a record of it retitled as Hotcha Cornea.

[–] MystMoonstruck 14 years ago

The song is commonly known as "Dark Eyes" aka "Black Eyes". Wikipedia has four sets of lyrics, including an English translation and a "metrical translation":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Eyes_(song)

This is one of my favorites to play on the bowed psaltery, and it's definitely one of the proverbial crowd favorites.

~~MystMoonstruck~~

[–] elena-28 13 years ago

Danny Kaye has fun with it during "Wonder Man".

[–] 13 years ago

[deleted]