The Big Broadcast of 1938

Paramount, 1938
Starring Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour, Shirley Ross, and WC Fields
Directed by Mitchell Leisen
Music by Ralph Rainger and others; Lyrics by Leo Robin and others

This was Paramount's answer to the Broadway Melody semi-revue series at MGM and Warner's Gold Diggers series. They pulled out all the stops for the final movie in the series, with a huge cast, major specialties from the worlds of both opera and popular music, elaborate dance numbers, and a unique setting. It was primarily considered to be a vehicle for WC Fields when it debuted...but Ross and newcomer Hope stole the picture with the touching Oscar-winner "Thanks for the Memory." How does the rest of the film look nowadays? Let's head to Pier 97 in New York as the S.S Gigantic and Colossal are preparing for "The Race of the Ages" and find out...

The Story: We mainly follow the crew and passengers of the S.S Gigantic as the huge, radio electricity-powered ship races the smaller Colossal across the Atlantic from New York to Cherbourg, France. The ships are owned by twin brothers T.F and S.B Bellows (Fields). T.F wants his accident-prone brother to land on the Colossal and wreck havoc, but S.B is late flying in his own home-made contraption from the golf course and lands on the Gigantic instead. Things get even worse when his even more accident-prone daughter Martha (Martha Raye) is rescued from a wrecked yacht. Meanwhile, radio announcer Buzz Fielding (Hope) is dealing with his three ex-wives, including caustic Cleo (Ross), and his girlfriend Dorothy (Lamour) is falling for the ship's first officer and the inventor of the Gigantic's radio power generator Robert Hayes (Leif Erikson).

The Song and Dance: This has one of the most unique settings and unusual casts of any musical. You're not going to see Bob Hope, Martha Raye, Dorothy Lamour, WC Fields, opera diva Kirsten Flagstad, Mexican singer Tito Guizar, and a bunch of animated ripples performing on a racing streamline cruise ship anywhere else. There's some stunning Art Deco sets, including the genuinely nifty ocean liners. I can think of other musicals set on ocean liners, but not ones that are in the middle of a huge race and broadcasting radio shows. WC Fields has some hilarious moments driving his caddies crazy on the golf course, and much later with a wacky billiards game.

Favorite Number: The big one here is the Oscar-winning ballad "Thanks for the Memory." Towards the end of the film, Hope and Ross reminisce about their failed marriage in a way that seems very natural for a musical, and the song is by far the most memorable in the film and became Hope's trademark. Raye gets an acrobatic dance routine with a group of rowdy sailors, "Mama, That Moon Is Here Again," that has them tossing her around the ship like a rag doll. "This Little Ripple Has Rhythm" is a cute blend of animation (directed by Leon Schlesinger of Looney Tunes fame) and a bouncy jazz tune performed by Shep Fields and his Rippling Rhythm Orchestra.

Trivia: This was Bob Hope's feature film debut.

The original Big Broadcast debuted in 1932; there were editions in 1936 and 1937 as well. Currently, the 1938 edition is the only one available on home media, probably due to the cast and "Thanks for the Memory."

What I Don't Like: For all the novel setting, the actual story is pretty dull. You care more about Hope and Ross and their renewed feelings for each other than the stiff Lamour and Erikson and their budding romance. Fields barely interacts with the rest of the cast and appears to have wandered in from another movie entirely. The rest of the score pales besides "Thanks for the Memory"; despite constantly reprising it, even Lamour's dulcet tones can't make "You Took the Worlds Right Out of My Heart" interesting. The final number "The Waltz Lives On" has nifty costumes and an interesting "through the years" theme, but it goes on for way, way too long. Everything feels like it was taken from other movies and just sort of tossed together.

The Big Finale: The numbers alone make this worth checking out for fans of Hope, Fields, Raye, Lamour, or the Busby Berkley imitations of the 1930's.

Home Media: Can be found on DVD as a solo release from the made-to-order Universal Vault series or as part of several Bob Hope and WC Fields collections.

DVD
DVD - College Swing/The Big Broadcast of 1938