Starring Janet Leigh, Tony Curtis, Eddie Bracken, and Gloria DeHaven
Directed by James V. Kern
Music by Jules Styne and others; Lyrics by Leo Robin and others
By 1951, Hollywood was in panic mode. Audiences were flocking to that new device in their living room called television and away from aging downtown and neighborhood theaters. RKO was in the worst shape of the major studios. It had never been the most prosperous to begin with, and it's new owner and producer Howard Hughes did nothing to help with his constant fussing over the tiniest details. One of the projects he produced was this big, bright musical tale with one foot in an old-fashioned "everyone put on a show!" plot and the other in the future of media. Let's start on the road, with three chorus girls on their way back from a disastrous job, and find out just how old-fashioned...and new-fangled...this is...
The Story: Also on the bus is Nancy Peterson (Leigh), the pride of Pelican Falls, Vermont. She's hoping to become a major star on the stage, but she doesn't have an easy start. Her suitcase gets mixed-up with the one belonging to singer Dan Carter (Martin). She chews him out about stealing her things before she figures out they have the same suitcase, then takes off with his. He brings it back and learns that she too is interested in singing.
Dan and the dancers are represented by Lew Conway (Bracken), an unscrupulous agent who will lie about anything to get his clients work. He tells Dan, the ladies, and deli owners Harry (Joe Smith) and Leo (Charles Dale) he can get them on Bob Crosby's (himself) TV show, then hires a man (Taylor Holmes) to play Crosby's producer and convince the others they can get a spot. Trouble is, Lew can only lie for so long before the others start to realize they're rehearsing for nothing...and Nancy goes to Crosby herself...
The Song and Dance: Hughes wanted to get the film as close to the major musicals made by larger studios like MGM and Paramount, and he mostly succeeded. Busby Berkeley choreographed the numbers, and while they're not as spectacular as some of his earlier ones, they're probably the best thing about this along with the cast. DeHaven enjoys a rare chance to play a tougher singer than her usual dainty ladies. She, Miller, and Barbara Laurence have a fine time as the trio of been-around-the-block chorus dancers who are about ready to throttle Lew if he doesn't give them a chance. This would also be a rare chance to see stage comedians Smith and Dale's work and Bing's bandleader brother Bob as well.
Favorite Number: Our first big number has Nancy's high school insisting she sing a salute to her hometown of "Pelican Falls" as she's about to be sent off to the big city, complete with cheerleaders tossing people around and a marching band. The Richard Rodgers-Lorenz Hart song "Manhattan" begins as Martin singing with the ladies at Nancy's boarding house on the piano, and ends with them turning it into a spoof of New York types and shows.
Martin and Leigh perform "The Closer You Are" on a piano in the rain; Martin does surprisingly well as a dancer. DeHaven reminds the ladies that being like "The Worry Bird" won't help their problems in a delightful number in the park tapped by Ann Miller. Bob Crosby jokes about his relationship with his more famous brother Bing, singing "Let's Make Comparisons" to a cardboard Bing come to life. The film ends on a romantic note with "Are You In a Beautiful Dream?" as Martin performs the sweet ballad and Leigh flits around in a filmy yellow dress, against pink feathers.
Trivia: Laurel and Hardy were originally intended to play the deli owners, but Stan Laurel got sick after filming Atoll K and they weren't able to do it.
What I Don't Like: First of all, RKO's financial problems means Berkeley couldn't play with the camera or do a lot of the tricks he's known for. I wouldn't have known he directed this if they didn't mention it at Wikipedia and Imdb. Second, while Bracken is a wonderful comic performer, his Lew is an annoying, whiny idiot who does nothing but lie to every single person within earshot. I have no idea why anyone would ever stick by him or why his girl remains with him. For all its TV setting, the story is your basic "put on a show" that had been done before and would be done again, with little that's original. The score is also not terribly memorable, other than the aforementioned dance routines.
There's also one of the numbers at the TV show, "Big Chief Hole-In-the-Ground." This Native American spoof with Martin as an Indian who struck oil and the ladies as his wives may have been amusing in the 50's, but it's offensive, awkward, and incredibly tacky for most viewers today.
The Big Finale: Really for fans of the cast, Berkeley, or the big musicals of the 40's and 50's only.
Home Media: Currently DVD-only in a remastered edition from the Warner Archives.
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