Mandolinen und Mondschein (1959)

On a flight from New York City to Venice, hotel heir Robert Küfner meets the famous singer Susanne Peters, who has made a name for herself under the stage name Anne Perusa. Susanne initially rebuffs Robert’s advances, but through persistence and helpfulness, he eventually wins her heart in the unfamiliar city. Robert has come to Venice because his father, hotel owner Küfner, has what is known as “manager’s disease” and therefore cannot run the business as usual. Küfner also wants his son to finally get married—to Karin, the daughter of Danish hotel magnate Gustafsson and Robert’s childhood friend. Robert cautiously hints that he has already chosen an artist to be his future wife, but Küfner brushes this aside, since artists are unreliable and he would never accept such a daughter-in-law. Susanne wants to win Küfner over, so she starts working at his hotel as a chambermaid under her real name. Through her manager Max Krank, who takes a room at the hotel, she is also able to keep her evening engagements at a concert hall on the Lido. Susanne becomes jealous when Karin arrives from Denmark, suspecting that she is a rival and believing Robert really intends to marry her. Karin, however, is secretly in love with Sven, a hotel employee who sings, regularly drives guests from the airfield to the hotel, and also offers musical sightseeing tours of the city. Karin keeps the relationship secret from her father because Sven has already been fired from his hotel several times. Karin’s father, Gustafsson, arrives for the planned public engagement of Robert and Karin in Venice. Sven is supposed to entertain everyone with music during a gondola ride, but he is so wary of meeting Gustafsson that Susanne steps in instead. Küfner immediately believes he has discovered a new musical talent and wants to make Susanne a star. To him, she is also the exception to the rule that artists are unreliable. Küfner and Gustafsson host a grand celebration for the public engagement, but by now the right couples have come together: Susanne—who reveals that she is Anne Perusa—and Robert, as well as Karin and Sven. After the initial shock, both fathers accept their children’s decision, and the evening ends with a grand fireworks display.