IMDb RATING
6.7/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
An Iowa family finds adventure, love, and heartbreak when they spend a week at the state fair.An Iowa family finds adventure, love, and heartbreak when they spend a week at the state fair.An Iowa family finds adventure, love, and heartbreak when they spend a week at the state fair.
- Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 2 wins & 2 nominations total
Erville Alderson
- Martin - Hog Breeder
- (uncredited)
Joe Caits
- Baker A. Noblemable - Judges' Secretary
- (uncredited)
Hobart Cavanaugh
- Professor Fred Coin - Hog Judge
- (uncredited)
Judge Dike
- Contest Judge
- (uncredited)
Harry Holman
- Professor Tyler Cramp - Hog Judge
- (uncredited)
Edward Mundy
- Barker
- (uncredited)
Dike of Rosedale
- Blue Boy - a Hog
- (uncredited)
John Sheehan
- Barker at Aerial Act
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector Henry King and crew were invited to the 1932 State Fair and Exposition in Des Moines, Iowa to film background material, including the racing scenes and midway. After the fair, they purchased three hogs, including the grand champion, Dike of Rosedale, who was cast as Blue Boy.
- Quotes
Abel Frake: Wayne's got a girl.
Storekeeper: So did Henry VIII, eight of them, but he always showed up at every state affair with a new one.
- Crazy creditsMost of the credits appear as posters being put up on billboards by workmen. In the film's final scene, there is a heavy rain, and as it washes away the poster bearing the title "State Fair", we see that it was pasted over another poster that says "The End".
- Alternate versionsThe original version had a bedroom scene in which Emily and Wayne are heard talking offscreen with Emily's negligee lying on a chair, suggesting that they were in bed together for illicit sex. This scene was cut in 1935 from all existing prints in order to get an approval certificate from the PCA for a re-release. The scene is not included in the print that the Fox Movie Channel currently broadcasts.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Lest We Forget (1937)
- SoundtracksRomantic
(1933) (uncredited)
Music by Louis De Francesco
Lyrics by Val Burton and Will Jason
Played during the opening credits and often in the score
Sung offscreen by an unidentified male at the fair
Partially sung a cappella by Janet Gaynor
Featured review
One of the greatest depictions of Americana
This 1933 film of STATE FAIR is nearly impossible to see except on one Fox cable channel, but is the best of all versions, with genuine and unsentimental writing and acting. Director Henry King propels the leisurely plot with a thrilling moving camera that efficiently depicts the varied sensations of a state fair, from wholesome contest fun to the menace of barkers and carnies.
King has a consistent handle on the theme, that the state fair is a quick microcosm of life, an event that thrusts persons together in a venue that makes possible the "rollercoaster" of infatuation (and sex--this is pre-code pleasure), the tension of competition, and the diversion from hard work in this depression era America. Even "Blue boy" the hog and "self object" of Will Rogers' likeable character discovers the same conflicted feelings of sexual attraction. The cast is excellent, with standouts of Rogers, a most natural performer, in a film that is unpolluted by awkward stereotyped supporting players common to his films. A truly stunning-looking Lew Ayres is a dream of a roller coaster partner, and Victor Jory in his silk shirt perfectly embodies the carnie whom small children fear to encounter outside the midway. But it's the quiet moments that register the most--the pensive characters driving at dusk to the fair, full of private anticipation, still totally one as a family. Modern films rarely dare such introspective glimpses, but this film doesn't bore because it is so true. These rural citizens are proud and flawed, but like the wonderful characters in MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, they embrace the chance to take in the fun and mystery of life.
King has a consistent handle on the theme, that the state fair is a quick microcosm of life, an event that thrusts persons together in a venue that makes possible the "rollercoaster" of infatuation (and sex--this is pre-code pleasure), the tension of competition, and the diversion from hard work in this depression era America. Even "Blue boy" the hog and "self object" of Will Rogers' likeable character discovers the same conflicted feelings of sexual attraction. The cast is excellent, with standouts of Rogers, a most natural performer, in a film that is unpolluted by awkward stereotyped supporting players common to his films. A truly stunning-looking Lew Ayres is a dream of a roller coaster partner, and Victor Jory in his silk shirt perfectly embodies the carnie whom small children fear to encounter outside the midway. But it's the quiet moments that register the most--the pensive characters driving at dusk to the fair, full of private anticipation, still totally one as a family. Modern films rarely dare such introspective glimpses, but this film doesn't bore because it is so true. These rural citizens are proud and flawed, but like the wonderful characters in MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, they embrace the chance to take in the fun and mystery of life.
helpful•481
- nealvelgos
- Jul 11, 2002
- How long is State Fair?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Drzavni sajam
- Filming locations
- Des Moines, Iowa, USA(State Fair and Exposition exterior scenes)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 39 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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