Godspell

Columbia, 1973

Starring Victor Garber, David Haskell, Katie Hanley, and Lynne Thigpen

Directed by David Greene

Music and Lyrics by Steven Schwartz

We celebrate Holy Week with this adaptation of the smash hit 1971 off-Broadway musical. The life of Jesus Christ is seen through the eyes of a group of young people in New York City as they frolic, cavort, and spend a day acting out parables of the Gospel of St. Matthew. How well does this very theatrical conceit work on film? Let's start on the streets of New York, as those young people hear the call of Jesus (Garber), and find out...

The Story: John the Baptist (Haskell) pushes a colorful wagon filled with props through the streets of New York City, calling the faithful to be baptized in the waters of Bethesda Fountain. They then dance across Manhattan to a junk yard. cleaning up and repainting the barn and a junked car in rainbow colors. Here and in locations across New York, they retell biblical allegories using nothing but props and silent movie sequences at the off-Broadway Cherry Lane Theatre. Jesus meets his match in the non-believing Pharisee Monster on the ferry docks. His faith shaken after he attacks the odd creature, he and the others return to the junk yard for one last supper together...and to find out who intends to betray Jesus to the police.

The Song and Dance: The glorious shots of a glowing New York in the 1970's - including the almost-completed Twin Towers - some great music, and the sheer joy radiating off every cast member carries the day here. Everyone's having a wonderful time turning New York into their personal playground. Particular kudos to Thigpen, who belts out "Bless the Lord" with considerable energy, sweet Robin Lamont putting over the show's big hit "Day to Day," and Gardner and Haskell as the central trio who start out as friends and end up being broken apart by doubt and mistrust. Love how they used sequences from silent movies to tell the story of the The Prodigal Son at Cherry Lane Theatre, too.

Favorite Number: John the Baptist calls the faithful to take a dip in the fountain as Jesus appears before them to guide the way in the opening number "Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord." "Day By Day" takes everyone to the junk yard, where they play with the discarded items and paint their faces, then the barn and junked car. Lynne leads "Bless the Lord" to praise Jesus' gifts in front of a shining silver backdrop. Ballet dancer Joanne vamps it up in her attempts to seduce Jesus amid the decadence of the Andrew Carnegie Mansion in "Turn Back, O Man." Jesus and Judas perform "All for the Best" on the rooftops of of New York and in front of a digital sign on Times Square. "Light of the World" takes them aboard a barge as they all work together to make it across the Hudson and show what their lights can do. The entire cast returns to the junk yard amid the golden landscapes of New York in the late afternoon, cavorting through a truly "Beautiful City."

Trivia: Among the locations seen in this movie, in addition to the ones already mentioned, are the Brooklyn and Hells Gate Bridges, the central fountain at Lincoln Center, the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument at Riverside Drive, and the top of the North Tower at the Twin Towers buildings.

The off-Broadway show did originally debut at Cherry Tree Theatre in 1971. It ran there and at the Promenade Theatre until 1976. It then transferred to Broadway, where it ran another year. It's been revived twice off-Broadway in 1988 and 2000 and once on Broadway in 2011. 

What I Don't Like: Honestly, if you don't know your St. Matthew, you probably won't have any idea of who is who or what they're acting out at times. Like Jesus Christ Superstar, this is controversial for not showing Jesus' resurrection and for the clownish clothing coming off too much like hippies. It comes off more like a revue than a typical film, with the cast dancing from one number to the next, without much structure until Judas and Jesus' relationship starts to unravel towards the end.

The Big Finale: Breathtaking cinematography and a cast of theater pros singing the joyous music of Steven Schwartz and the Bible makes this a must-see during the Easter holidays. 

Home Media: Finally released on Blu-Ray last week, this is also easily available on DVD and streaming.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Amazon Prime

Family Fun Saturday - Bugsy Malone

Paramount, 1976

Starring Jodie Foster, Scott Baio, Florrie Dugger, John Cassisi

Directed by Alan Parker

Music and Lyrics by Paul Williams

This may be the most unique family musical I'll review at this blog. I've seen musicals with all-black casts and all-Asian casts, but this is likely the first and only musical film with an all-child cast. Parker was apparently inspired to make this one after his son was too young to see The Godfather, but not to be interested in 30's gangster stories. During a family trip, he told his kids the story of a gangster named Bugsy Malone, and it was his son who said kids should be the heroes. How well does this idea work today? Let's begin on the shorter-than-usual mean streets of New York in the late 20's and find out...

The Story: Fat Sam (Cassisi) is the top gangster in town and the owner of the Grand Slam speakeasy, but he's worried that it won't be for long. His rival Dandy Dan (Martin Lev) has a new type of "spurge guns" that shoot rapid-fire balls of cream. When a kid is "creamed," they're out of the running. He keeps claiming he's too busy to see Blousey Brown (Dugger), a pretty little blonde who hopes to be a singer. Bugsy (Baio) does see her, and he thinks she's wonderful. She thinks he's annoying at first, especially after Fat Sam's singer moll Talluah (Foster) gives Bugsy a kiss on his forehead. 

After he helps Fat Sam out of a cream-covered trap set by Dandy Dan and his boys, Bugsy now has the money to take Blousey out for a boat ride and to dinner. He loses the money, but is helped out by a sweet-natured tramp named Leroy Brown (Paul Murphy) he wants to train to be a boxing champ. Meanwhile, Fat Sam hires Bugsy again after he loses his last man. Bugsy and Leroy need to recruit a group of local bums to find those splurge guns and get them out from under Dapper Dan's nose, before they're all out of the game for good.

The Song and Dance: This is one of the most adorable musicals I've ever seen. The details are hilarious. Even the sets are scaled to the size of the kids. They brew bootleg root beer instead of booze and drive little antique cars that move by pedal power. Not only is everything kid-sized, but it's historically accurate to the late 20's-early 30's, too. Baio makes a nice debut as the wise guy boxing promoter who gets caught up in the action. Dugger make a lovely little aspiring movie star, too. Too bad this was her only film. Williams' score is even better here than in Phantom of the Paradise, with two nice spoof ballads and one of the strangest finales in musical history.

Favorite Number: We open with the mini-chorus girls and Talluah showing their stuff for the adoring crowd of well-dressed youngsters at "Fat Sam's Grand Slam." "Tomorrow" is the big solo for Fizzy (Albin "Humpty" Jenkins), the sweeper who desperately wants to be a dancer for Fat Sam, and one of Talluah's girls Priscilla (Sarah E. Joyce). Fat Sam's boys (Donald Waugh, Jeffery Stevens, Pete Holder, and Michael Kirkby) sing about how they love to be "Bad Boys" while wrecking havoc on the street. "So You Want to Be a Boxer?" Cagey Joe (Davidson Knight) asks Bugsy and Leroy when they come to his gym for a musical fighting lesson. "My Name Is Talluah" is Foster's big moment, as she vamps it up for the crowd in the speakeasy with her chorus girls. Bugsy encourages the "Down and Out" boys at the soup kitchen to help him and Leroy with Dandy Dan's goons in a rousing march. 

Trivia: Scott Baio's debut film. 

There's apparently two stage versions of this that turn up occasionally on children's theaters, especially in England. Both include two songs cut from the film, "That's Why They Call Him Dandy" and "Show Business." 

What I Don't Like: My biggest complaint is that finale. Most of the cast gets covered in cream, and then...they all make up and sing and dance? Sounds like they couldn't figure out how to end the movie on a lighter note. There's also times when the novelty of kids being gangsters doesn't work - one of the kids overdoes it or sounds awkward, or the story starts to get a little too maudlin for something featuring 12-year-olds throwing cream pies. 

I really wish they let the kids sing with their own voices, rather than dubbing them with Williams and other adults. First of all, one women sings all of the girls' numbers, and while she's passable as Dugger, her high voice sounds nothing like Jodie Foster's deep-for-her-age one. Second, it makes the numbers look a little awkward and disconnected. 

The Big Finale: Worth digging through the cream for if you or your kids have any interest in the cast, gangster tales, or 30's musicals.

Home Media: It was never released on disc in North America. Streaming and looking for it occasionally on TCM are your best bet on this side of the Atlantic.

Amazon Prime 

Street Girl

RKO (Radio), 1929

Starring Betty Compson, Jack Oakie, John Harron, and Ned Sparks

Directed by Wesley Ruggles

Music by Oscar Levant; Lyrics by Sidney Claire

RKO began in 1929 as the first major studio created expressively to make sound films. Their first release was the (now rare) backstage comedy Syncopation. Though this was filmed first, it was pushed back to summer. It wound up being the sleeper hit of the year, a small-scale smash that charmed audiences with its sweet and touching story. Is "The Viennese Charmer" still just as lovely almost a century later, or should it be sent back to Europe? Let's start at a dive cafe in New York City with the jazz quartet The Four Seasons and find out...

The Story: Fredricka "Freddie" Joyzelle (Compson) joins The Four Seasons after pianist Mike Fall (Harron) rescues her from a man harassing her outside their apartment building. He and his fellow musicians Joe Spring (Oakie), Pete Summer (Guy Buccola), and dour Happy Winter (Sparks) offer her food, then take her in when they learn she has no place to live. She returns the favor by convincing Keppel (Joseph Cawthorn), the owner of the Little Aregon Café, to hire them. Turns out she's a wonderful violinist, and they offer her a spot in their act.

Prince Nicholas (Ivan Lebedeff) of Aregon comes to the café one night and is enchanted by Freddie's violin number. Having remembered seeing her play for the court before she came to America, he gives her a kiss on the forehead. Newspaper articles documenting that innocent peck makes the café overwhelmingly popular, but it also brings a lot of trouble. Mike is deeply jealous of the prince and quits...but it's Prince Nicholas who figures out how to bring him and Freddie together.

The Song and Dance: I can see why this sweet little film went over so well in 1929. It's very different from other backstage movies of the era like The Broadway Melody. No color, no wild comics, no one desperately seeking fame and fortune, and the only big dance routine is the one in the café at the end. The focus is where it should be, on Freddie and the guys making music together. Kudos to director Wesley Ruggles for keeping everything moving at a pretty fast pace, with unusually quick editing and camera movement for 1929. 

Favorite Number: We hear "Loveable and Sweet" at least four times in the movie; my favorite version was the first at the Little Aregon Cafe, where Freddie gets to enchant the Prince with her lovely violin solo...and bring the green-eyed monster out in Mike. "My Dream Memory," the song Freddie performed for the prince in Aregon, also turns up several times. The best performance is the simplest, when the Four Seasons and Freddie perform in the boys' shabby apartment and discover how good her playing is. Doris Eaton dances a brief but wild "Broken-Up Tune" near the end of the film at Keppel's new Club Joyzelle with the chorus. 

Trivia: This would be RKO's first big hit, one of the biggest of 1929, bringing in half the money RKO made that year alone.

Compson did play the violin professionally when she was younger, but her playing and Sparks' solo were dubbed by a young Russ Columbo. 

It was remade as That Girl From Paris in 1936 with Lily Pons and Oakie and Four Jacks and a Jill in 1942 with Anne Shirley and Ray Bolger.

What I Don't Like: This may be too small for those who prefer their musicals on the bold, colorful side. There's also Compson's rather silly attempt at a European accent hampering her otherwise good performance. All the decent editing in the world can't mask the fact that the movie falters in the second half, when Mike's jealousy takes over. It bogs the story down until he finally confronts the Prince. 

TCM really needs to throw some money towards restoring this one. The "Broken-Up Tune" number in particular looks soft and out-of-focus, and one frame seems to have been cut in from somewhere else and is in terrible shape. 

The Big Finale: Lovely little movie is worth looking up for fans of early sound cinema, romantic comedies with music, or Compson. 

Home Media: Alas, the only place you can see this one at the moment is occasionally on TCM. 

Watch TCM

The Show of Shows

Warner Bros, 1929

Starring Frank Fay, Myrna Loy, John Barrymore, Nick Lucas, and many others

Directed by John G. Adolfi

Music and Lyrics by various

MGM's Hollywood Revue of 1929 was such a huge hit, all of the other major studios in Hollywood went to work on their own all-star variety shows. Warners' debuted first, hoping it would become a major showcase of all the wonderful song and dance talent then on the lot and just how big their musicals were. It was a showcase, all right, but not always the kind they hoped. How weird are some of these acts almost a century later? Let's begin in the theater, with a very strange French Revolution prologue, and find out...

The Story: It's a revue, so there isn't one. Masters of Ceremonies Frank Fay introduces acts featuring almost everyone at Warners in 1929. What he really wants to do is introduce his own singing, but various acts and comedy skits keep getting in the way.

The Song and Dance: Of the non-musical routines, the only one that even remotely comes across is John Barrymore, playing Richard III in an excerpt from Henry VI, Part 3. As static as it is, it's also a marvelous record of Barrymore in his acting prime, and is reason alone to see this. Some of the solo artists come across pretty well, too. Winnie Lightner may have been too rowdy for the movies, but here, she blasts through the static like a noisy cannonball. Nick Lucas and Irene Bordoni also come off fairly well, and Sid Silvers does a pretty decent Jolson imitation for "If Your Best Friend Won't Tell You." 

Favorite Number: Lightner has a great time blasting out her big "Pingo Pongo" cannibal solo. She has even more fun with the goofy "Singin' In the Bathtub." It gets the perfect number for it, too, with men in women's old-time bathing suits proving a nutty chorus and wrestler Bull Montana showing up to attempt to serenade Lightner with "You Were Meant For Me" from The Broadway Melody. Guitarist Nick Lucas gets the sweet "The Only Love I Know." French chanteuse Irene Bordoni's "Just an Hour Of Love" adds a little touch of elegance to the first half.

Along with "Singin' In the Bathtub," I have a soft spot for "Meet My Sister." Like most of the big chorus routines, it goes on for way too long and the song is silly and childish. Not to mention, two of the "sisters" (Marion Byron and Harriet Lake, later Ann Sothern) aren't real siblings. The "around the world" costumes are adorable, though, and it is cute to see the ladies do their little routines and hear them talk about their real or adopted country. I also found the Pirate Number, with Ted Lewis and His Orchestra rescuing Mary Astor and a bevy of damsels from a group of Warners baddies lead by Noah Beery, to be hilarious, especially if you're a fan of swashbucklers like me. 

"Li-Po-Li" is the big "Chinese Fantasy" number mid-way through. It's also the only number that still exists in its original two-strip Technicolor in the copy currently on TCM. The color looks absolutely gorgeous, with soft corals, orange, and turquoise enhancing some really lovely Asian costumes. Too bad the number has dreadful lyrics ("rice cakes" and "spice cakes?") and is riddled with Asian stereotypes, starting with the casting of white Nick Lucas and Myrna Loy, along with some of the worst dancing in a film filled with bad dancers.

Trivia: As mentioned, the movie was filmed almost entirely in two-strip Technicolor. (A few of the solo routines were in black-and-white.) Along with "Li-Po-Li," "Meet My Sister" also apparently exists and has been restored. Bits of "Bicycle Built for Two" and Frank Fay's solo and his number with Sid Silvers have apparently turned up as well.

Al Jolson was supposed to have appeared here, but wanted too much money. 

If you're a Looney Tunes fan, you may recognize "Singin' In the Bathtub." Warners used it as background scoring for any character scrubbing in a tub for 30 years. 

What I Don't Like: First of all, what in the heck was going on with that French Revolution prologue? It has nothing whatsoever to do with the rest of the show, and even comes off as a little depressing. Really dark and very bizarre way to begin a variety show.

Warners is so determined to focus on pageantry, they don't let us know who anyone is. No one in the chorus numbers is introduced (besides the women of "Meet My Sister," who introduce each other). The many, many blurry long shots also make it difficult to recognize anyone. Genuinely talented folks like Beatrice Lille, who only turns up in a comic recitation with three other sophisticated comics, don't have enough to do, and others like French boxing champ Georges Carpentier don't belong in musicals period. 

As mentioned, the big numbers go on for way beyond too long. The opening military march is boring, the "Lady Luck" finale has too much going on, and Larry Cellabos' black-and-white girls are even duller until they complain to Fay about their costumes. Speaking of Frank Fay, comments on IMDb and YouTube prove that people either really like him, or think he's obnoxious. Put me in the latter category, I'm afraid. He does have a few good lines with the chorus girls, but other than that, he's so awkward, pushy, and annoying in front of the camera, it's a relief when other performers interrupt him. 

The Big Finale: In the end, this is only for the most ardent fans of Barrymore or the movies of the early talkie era. 

Home Media: DVD only from the Warner Archives. 

DVD

Animation Celebration Saturday - Gay Purr-ee

Warner Bros/UPA, 1962

Voices of Judy Garland, Robert Goulet, Red Buttons, and Paul Frees

Directed by Abe Levitow

Music by Harold Arlen; Lyrics by E.Y Harburg

United Productions of America (UPA) began to make industrial and training films during World War II. They eventually became the in-house studio for Columbia Studios, winning awards for their unique use of limited animation and their two major characters, Mr. Magoo and Gerald McBoing Boing. This was their second and last attempt at a feature length film, and their only one not to feature Magoo. Chuck Jones of Looney Tunes fame also had a hand in it...and it got him fired from Warners when they realized he was working for another studio. Was all the fuss worth it? Let's head to a farm in 1895 Provence in the south of France and find out...

The Story: Mewsette the Angora cat (Garland) is tired of quiet rural life and her handsome but loutish suitor Jaune Tom (Goulet), an orange tom cat. Tom's kitten friend Robspierre (Buttons) wishes he'd forget Mewsette and stick to chasing mice. Mewsette finally takes the train to Paris, with Tom and Robspierre following on the tracks.

On the train, Mewsette encounters Meowice (Frees), a slick con-man tuxedo cat who claims he'll take her to Madame Rubens-Chatte (Hermoine Gingold) and have her made over into a society beauty. What he really wants to do is sell her to a rich American cat. He gets Tom and Robspierre drunk and sends them on a boat to Alaska. Mewsette flees when she figures out Meowrice's true intentions, but now she's alone and on her own. Tom, however, has had more luck in the Alaska than anyone could have guessed, and now he and Robspierre are on their way back to Paris to rescue poor Mewsette from ending up on a slow boat to Pittsburgh.

The Animation: Gorgeous...to a point. The backgrounds, with their glowing rainbow colors and sketchy style, look very much like the artwork Mewsette appears in at one point. Trouble is, the backgrounds remain stationary the entire time. They don't move or flow, and the characters don't always move the best, either. Chuck Jones' hand can be seen in the cats' expressive faces and wide eyes and mobile eyebrows that convey more than words ever could.

The Song and Dance: Charming enough to make me wish Garland did more animated films. She and Frees play very well off each other as the sweet farm cat looking for excitement in the big, glamorous city and the evil kitty who cares about nothing but money. Arlen and Harburg wrote a lovely score, too, with Garland calling "Little Drops of Rain" one of her favorite songs from her movies along with "Over the Rainbow." Buttons and Goulet also have a few cute moments as the country ginger cat determined to find his sweetheart and the pugnacious kitten who wishes he'd forget love and settle into chasing mice. 

Favorite Number: Goulet gives us a good start on the farm as he croons the praises of his beautiful "Mewsette." Mewsette dreams of glamor and elegance in the big city in "Paris, Take My Hand." Meowice takes Mewsette on a ride in a buggy through Paris, claiming "The Horses Won't Talk." "Little Drops of Rain" is Jeune Tom's fantasy on the boat to Alaska, as he hears Mewsette encouraging him to return to her over a gorgeous montage of water scenes; Goulet gets a lovely reprise on the ship's mast. Towards the end of the film, Mewsette laments that "Paris Is a Lonely Town" when she's lost and homeless in a gray wintry City of Lights.

Trivia: Robert Goulet's first movie. 

What I Don't Like: The cliche story is likely intended to poke fun at old-time melodramas from the late 19th century, but it just seems ridiculous nowadays. Even then, audiences didn't know what to make of it - the movie was a major flop in 1962. No wonder Mewsette complains about Tom. Other than his extraordinary mouse-catching ability, he's not exactly long on personality. Robspierre can be more than a little annoying, too. There's also the animation, which is lovely but still limited. Those artistic backgrounds remain just that, backgrounds. You never really believe the characters inhabit them. 

The Big Finale: For adults who love the cast and younger kids who'll enjoy the cats' antics and be able to overlook the occasionally dark and cliched plot and the colorful but limited animation and enjoy the excellent music and performances. 

Home Media: Easy to find on streaming and on disc, the latter currently from the Warner Archives.

DVD

Amazon Prime

Cult Flops - Everything I Have Is Yours

MGM, 1953

Starring Gower and Marge Champion, Dennis O'Keefe, and Monica Lewis

Directed by Robert Z. Leonard

Music and Lyrics by various

Married dancers Marge and Gower Champion had success as the second leads in MGM musicals of the early 50's like Show Boat and Lovely to Look At, usually performing a dance or two while the main couple sang their hearts out. Executives decided they'd done well enough by 1953 to be featured in a showcase of their own. The story they concocted for them hit a little close to home for the Champions...and we start in a theater on Broadway with a show that's in rehearsal to find out just how close...

The Story: Pamela (Marge) and Chuck (Gower) Hubbard are a married dance couple who are about to have their first big show on Broadway. He always claims to get whatever pains or illness she gets...and she's had aches and pains and has felt dizzy. What they think is nerves turns out to be a baby on the way. She gives birth to their daughter Pamela, prompting them to move to a larger house in the country. Chuck insists that his wife be the one to take care of their child and give up her dancing for a while. 

Meanwhile, her understudy Sybil Meridan (Monica Lewis) takes over her spot in the show...and the next one...and the next one. Pamela's concerned that she's also taking over her spot in her husband's life as he's away for increasingly longer intervals. He hits the roof when she insists on returning to the stage. She eventually asks for a divorce...but all she really wants is to be dancing with him again.

The Song and Dance: And given the Champions' main occupation, "dance" is the operative phrase here. This is an interesting small-scale musical with a couple of nifty routines and a fairly dramatic and intimate story for a musical from this era. Musicals don't often follow the creation and growth of one family in a few years. For all the backstage talk, this has a homey feel that's rare in musicals and is most welcome. Some of the discussions about who should be in charge of child-rearing, who should work outside the home, and the importance of both parents in a child's life makes this almost more relevant now than it was then. 

Favorite Number: Chuck tells Pamela that, no matter how many pains or upset stomachs she has, he'll always follow her "Like Monday Follows Sunday" in a charming dance set on a dark city street. "Seventeen Thousand Telephone Poles" is Sybil's big number in the first show with Chuck, as a lady counting poles on a bus until she gets back to her boyfriend. "Derry Down Dilly" is Marge's big solo on her patio, as she performs a goofy comic dance with a multitude of hats to prove she's still got the dancing moves in her. Chuck's solo is a "Serenade for a New Baby" as he amuses his tiny daughter when her mother is out of the room. The film concludes with a dreamy ballet, Pamela imagining her taking Chuck back and dancing with him again in a soft world of pink clouds.

What I Don't Like: The story may be unusual for musicals (maybe too much for the time), but the solution is extremely 50's. Nowadays, men are expected to do more of their share with taking care of a household and raising children, and most families have both parents working with few complaints. There's less of a stigma against divorce, too. The Champions are wonderful dancers, but they're not actors and aren't really up to some of the heavier moments later in the movie. The supporting cast is dull too, especially O'Keefe and Dean Miller as the Hubbards' producer and agent.

The Big Finale: Worth checking out if you're looking for something smaller and more intimate than the usual MGM spectacles or are fans of the Champions or the musicals of the 1950's.

Home Media: DVD-only from the Warner Archives.

DVD

Happy St. Patrick's Day! - My Wild Irish Rose

Warner Bros, 1947

Starring Dennis Morgan, Arlene Dahl, Andrea King, and Alan Hale Sr.

Directed by David Butler

Music and Lyrics by various

We celebrate the most Irish of all holidays with a biography of one America's early great Irish songwriters and performers. Chauncey Olcott was one of the great Irish tenors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, writing and performing his own songs like "When Irish Eyes are Smiling" and traditional Irish melodies such as "How Many Miles to Dublin Town?" How does his story come off now? Let's begin with Olcott boasting of how he'll talk to Lillian Russell (King) and find out...

The Story: Olcott wants to be a great singer and actor, though he comes from a family of tugboat workers. His mother (Sara Allgood) objects at first, then gives her blessings when she realizes how determined he is. He starts out singing in saloons, and ends up being co-owner of one when he's swindled by a bartender who wanted out. While working at the bar, he saves a young lady named Rose Donovan (Arlene Dahl) from a runaway horse. They fall in love, but she already has her fiancée Terry (Don McGuire). 

Chauncy finally gets a chance to sing with a minstrel troupe, where he befriends exercise fan Duke Muldoon (George O'Brian) and dancer and comic Hopper (Ben Blue). He gets arrested for fighting goons who attacked him in his room and loses his job with the Minstrels...but manages to gain a role as leading man in Lillian Russell's new play. Rose thinks he's in love with her and gives up on him. 

Chauncey's really in love with his career. He finally gets a chance to go on for the great Irish tenor William Scanlon (William Frawley), whose voice and health is declining. After Scanlon gives him his approval, he becomes the darling of Broadway with his Irish operettas and hits like "Mother Machree" and "One Little, Sweet Little Girl." He hasn't quite forgotten his wild Irish Rose, though, and has a way to get through to her father (Alan Hale Sr.) and show him that he's as fine and upstanding as any Irish-American who ever made his way in New York.

The Song and Dance: This is the second week in a row I checked out a biography of a 19th century performer I only read about before and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Charismatic Morgan is a lot of fun as the singer who is determined to show what he can do, even if he has to pull some shady stunts to get his voice heard. Blue has a few good gags as his goofy dancer buddy, and even gets to show off some amazing moves. I didn't know William Frawley had such a great singing voice; the one time he's heard singing with his own pipes actually sounds pretty darn good. The gorgeous costumes and sets show off the worlds of minstrel shows and Irish operettas in glowing shades of green.

Favorite Number: Morgan sings "Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie" and "You Tell Me Your Dream, and I'll Tell You Mine" to encourage producers to consider his pipes at the bar. "Come Down, Ma Evenin' Star" is King's elegant version of Lillian Russell's real-life signature ballad, as she dances with chorus boys in a glittering gown and Chauncy watches rapturously. He performs Scanlon's We don't really get to hear much of Chauncy's actual music until the end in a montage of his successful Irish operettas. He finally sings one of his biggest hits, the sentimental "Mother Machree," to his own mother to assure her that she did a fine job raising her son.

The big finale is about as Irish as you can get, with a clog dancer, Blue and his troupe doing acrobatic stunts, and Morgan showing up to sing "There's Room In My Heart for All" surrounded by pretty colleens in kelly green. 

Trivia: Arlene Dahl's debut film. 

What I Don't Like: Yes, this is another manufactured biography. On one hand, Olcott did start out in minstrel shows, Lillian Russell really did have him appear as her leading man, and he did replace Irish tenor William J. Scanlan and become one of the great Irish tenors. His relationships with Lillian and Rose are likely total fiction, and the melodramatics do bog down the first half.

Let's discuss those minstrel show sequences. They're pretty accurate to the time period, right down to the burnt cork makeup and men in women's roles, with some great dancing and an energetic performance of "Waiting for the Robert E. Lee." They're also incredibly offensive to many people nowadays, with the white grins and broad stereotypes. Keep in mind that the sequence is a reflection of the time period this film is set in and really is where Olcott got  his start. 

The Big Finale: Minstrel sequence aside, this is another atmospheric and charming biography of a 19th and early 20th century stage star who deserves to be better-known. Worth checking out if you love Morgan, the Technicolor musicals of the 1940's, or old Irish ballads.

Home Media: DVD only from the Warner Archives. 

DVD

Family Fun Saturday - Captain January (1936)

20th Century Fox, 1936

Starring Shirley Temple, Guy Kibbee, Slim Summerville, and Sara Haden

Directed by David Butler

Music by Lew Pollack; Lyrics by Sidney B. Mitchell and Jack Yellen

Captain January came out at the height of Temple's popularity, when she was the biggest star of any age in the world. Most of her movies were escapist melodramas with music, often based after children's books or set in some exotic location like India or Northern Canada. This adaptation of a children's book set at a little town by the sea gives us a little of both, along with two of the cute cheer-up ditties that are still associated with her movies. How does the story of a lighthouse keeper (Kibbee) who fights with a stuffy truant officer (Haden) to raise a foundling (Temple) look today? Let's head to the lighthouse as Star (Temple) begins her day and find out...

The Story: Star loves living at the lighthouse with Captain January (Kibbee), whom she calls "Cap." The 8-year-old girl is the darling of all the sailors at the wharf, including Paul Roberts (Buddy Ebsen), who teaches her to sing and dance. Truant officer Agatha Morgan (Haden) catches their routine with teacher Mary Marshall (June Lang) and demands to know why the child isn't in school. 

Morgan finally convinces January to let Star take a test to see if she's good enough to enter school. To the relief of January and his friend Captain Nazro (Summerville), she passes with flying colors. All is not well, however. Not only does Morgan not appreciate being made a fool of, but the lighthouse is being automated. When Nazro writes Star's only living relatives, January has to deal with not only the loss of his duty as lighthouse keeper, but his beloved daughter, too.

The Song and Dance: One of Temple's most charming vehicles gives her a chance to show off all her talents, including two nice routines with lanky Ebsen. Summerville and Kibbee also have a lot of fun as the two "frenemies" who spend as much time fighting each other as they do helping keep and eye on Star. Love the sequence with Star taking the actual test, proving to Morgan and her equally stuffy know-it-all nephew (Jerry Tucker) that a good imagination is just as important as book knowledge.

Favorite Number: We open with "Early Bird," Temple's ditty that explains her daily routine and how much she enjoys it. The cheerful fantasy "At the Codfish Ball" is the hit here, and Ebsen and Temple have a lot of fun with their jaunty little tap routine to it early-on as the sailors hoot and holler and sing along. Temple, Kibbee, and Summerville have a lot of fun tossing nonsense words into the "Sextet" aria from the opera Lucia di Lammermoor after Star turns up in her mother's old dress. 

What I Don't Like: Like most of Temple's films, this one piles on the melodrama towards the end, when Kibbee loses his job and runs before he can lose Star, too. It follows the clichés of her films - Temple is an orphan raised by loving but eccentric guardians who is nearly taken away by a stern authority figure - to a T. I'm just glad they didn't go with the original scripted ending, where January actually dies in the end. The finale is maudlin enough as it is. 

The ballad "The Right Somebody to Love" is cute when Temple performs it solo to her doll after she's taken from her "Cap," but the earlier version with her singing it as she takes care of Kibbee dressed as a giant baby in a bib and a huge high chair is more than a little creepy and weird. 

The Big Finale: One of Temple's better full musicals, with decent songs and some good performances. Check it out with your favorite little sailor or beachcomber. 

Home Media: As a public domain title, this is easily found in all formats. Look for the 20th Century Fox disc that comes in black and white or color. 

DVD

DVD - The Shirley Temple Collection, Vol. 1

Amazon Prime

Tea for Two

Warner Bros, 1950

Starring Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Billy De Wolfe, and Gene Nelson

Directed by David Butler

Music and Lyrics by various

Doris Day's career began to pick up steam in the early 50's with fluffy hit musicals like Lullaby of Broadway. She became Warner Bros' number one musical star in the 1950's, especially in nostalgic romps like this one. Nostalgia for the 20's and 30's was also becoming big business at this point, with silent films showing up on late-night TV, older musicals adapted for the big and small screens, and vintage ballads recorded by popular doo-wop bands of the era. Day appeared in several musicals that looked back to an earlier, gentler era, including this one. How does this Roaring 20's backstage tale look now? Let's begin in 1950 with a group of kids making fun of the clothes and music of an earlier time and find out...

The Story: Their Uncle Max (S.Z Sakall) scolds them for their teasing, telling them the story of how their parents got together in 1929. Nanette Carter (Day) is hoping to back a show put on by smarmy Larry Blair (Billy De Wolfe), her ex-boyfriend. He told her he's going to give her the lead role, to the annoyance of his current girlfriend Beatrice (Patrice Wymore). However, the Stock Market just crashed, and Nanette is now broke. She makes a bet with Uncle Max that she can't say 'no' to every question that comes along that weekend, even as she invites the cast of the proposed show to her house for rehearsals. Now she has to figure out how to earn the money for the show, and explain to handsome singer and songwriter Jimmy Smith (MacRae) that she likes him as more than a singing teacher.

The Song and Dance: And the song and dance carry the day here. Day broke her leg in a car accident in the early 40's, ending her originally planned dance career. Gene Nelson and his choreographer wife Marian helped her regain her confidence to tackle the routines here. They did a splendid job. There's some really cute and vibrant dance numbers here, and Day more than matches Nelson in them. Billy De Wolfe has a few funny moments as the smarmy Billy, especially when he tries to climb into Nanette's second-story window at her house on a ladder and gets pushed into a tree by the jealous Beatrice. There's also him showing off his amazing flexibility to several chorus girls, to Uncle Max's surprise! Sakall also has some good moments as Nanette's flustered uncle.

Favorite Number: Nelson joins Wymore for the jungle themed "Crazy Rhythm," with chorus members playing bongos and Nelson dancing on a huge drum. MacRae performs the lovely "I Only Have Eyes for You" to show Nanette and the investors what the show's ballads will sound like at the backer's audition. Billy De Wolfe gets to show off some pretty damn good dancing skills himself as he leads the cast through the "Charleston." The actual songs from the original No No Nanette turn up in the finale, including "The Call of the Sea" with Wymore and the chorus in flowing ribbon-like bathing outfits and the title song, with Nelson, Day, and the chorus tapping frantically around suitcases.

Trivia: The original No, No Nanette did appear on Broadway in 1925...but it was a huge hit in Chicago and London months before it made it to New York. It was successfully revived on Broadway in 1971 and in London in 1973. It hasn't been seen in New York since, though the 1971 version continues to be popular with regional and school productions.

What I Don't Like: This has nothing to do with No No, Nanette besides a few songs and the 20's setting. The energetic finale makes me wish they'd adapted the original show, rather than concocted a silly and often dull story. It also has nothing to do with the 20's, no matter how much they play it and the clothes the kids wear up in the opening prologue. Other than references to mah jong (a major fad at the time) and the stock market crash, the costumes and sets pretty much stay in the 50's up until that finale. 

The Big Finale: Pleasant bit of nostalgia if you're a fan of Day, MacRae, or the Technicolor confections of the 1950's. 

Home Media: Easy to find on disc and streaming. The DVD is currently released by the Warner Archives. 

DVD

Amazon Prime

Golden Girl (1951)

20th Century Fox, 1951

Starring Mitzi Gaynor, Dale Robertson, Una Merkel, and Dennis Day

Directed by Lloyd Bacon

Music and Lyrics by various

Many beloved entertainers of the 19th and early 20th centuries who existed before film and record could permanently capture their talents are all but forgotten today. Case in point is the titular subject of this biography. I never heard of Lotta Crabtree until I read about this movie in a book on classic films as a teenager. Is her story worth hearing now, almost 160 years after this movie's Civil War setting? Let's begin in the little California gold rush boom town of Rabbit's Creek as the dancing star Lola Montez (Carmen D'Antonio) is passing through and find out...

The Story: Charlotte "Lotta" Crabtree (Gaynor) is the schoolgirl daughter of Mary Ann (Merkel) and John Crabtree (James Barton), who own a boarding house in Rabbit Creek. Lotta wants nothing more than to be a great performer like her idol Montez. Determined to see her despite the protests of her mother and her guy friend Mart Taylor (Day), she goes out to the local saloon with handsome southern gambler Tom Richmond (Robertson). Her mother is mortified when Mart catches her. She's even more horrified when her husband gambles away their money and their boarding house. 

Lotta knows Lola earned a pile of money riding through miner's camps and playing for the men there. She, Mart, her mother, and a group of local musicians opt to do the same. It's here that Lotta develops her vivacious, child-like stage persona. Richmond follows the troupe from camp to camp, watching every performance. She falls in love with him, before he claims he's a gambler, and then a Confederate spy stealing gold for his cause. Lotta turns him away after that, but she can't forget him. Even after her father wins a theater in San Francisco, where she becomes the most popular dancing star in the west, and a tour that makes her the hottest thing going from coast to coast, he's always on her mind and in her heart.

The Song and Dance: The authentic California Gold Rush setting and numbers and Gaynor's excellent performance as Crabtree makes this one unique among musical biographies. I love the colorful period costumes, outdoor shooting, and lively routines to real songs of the time. Gaynor has a wonderful time as Lotta, dancing up a storm, making a passable stubborn teen, and even managing to pull off her dramatic scenes with Lotta and Tom late in the film. Merkel and Barton also have a lot of fun as Lotta's prudish mother who may not approve of her daughter's dancing, but knows a gambler when she sees one, and her easily swayed gambler father.

Favorite Number: We get to see Barton show off his own dancing chops with Gaynor in the charming "California Moon" in the opening sequence in the boarding house. Later, he joins her for Day sweetly performs the Oscar-nominated ballad "Never" as part of their first mining camp show, before he and Gaynor take over for the ruffles-and-parasol romp "On Sunday Morning." Hoping to get the miners to throw gold, Gaynor returns for a wild danced reprise in tights and a far shorter skirt, to the shock of her mother! She gets another sexy-cute number, "Kiss Me Quick and Go," with a male quartet a bit later, after she's discovered Tom's deception. 

Gaynor performs a heartfelt "Dixie" in the finale as a tribute to Alabama-born Tom. She's booed by the victorious Union crowds, until Mart reminds them that they're all one country now. 

Trivia: The fountain mentioned in the opening sequence that Lotta donated to the city of San Francisco still exists today, though in a different spot from where it was when this movie was filmed. 

Lotta did tour miner's camps before and during the Civil War...but she actually started in show business as early as 6, and her parents had no trouble with her choice of careers. Her father owned a bookshop in addition to the boarding house. Lola Montez was a family friend, and she died in 1861, before the movie starts. 

Gaynor would later call Golden Girl one of her favorites of her films. 

What I Don't Like: For all the authentic setting and music, the biography is a little too manufactured. In real life, Lotta Crabtree focused entirely on her career and never married, or even had a great romance like the one depicted with the fictional Tom Richmond. Doubt she ever carried gold for the Union, either, no matter how much of a lift that sequence gives the middle of the film. Day always came off a lot better on TV and radio than he did on film. He's just as annoying here as he was in other movies I've caught him in like Music In Manhattan. 

And despite being the film's more-or-less theme song, "Oh Dem Golden Slippers" wasn't written until 1879. 

The Big Finale: Charming western musical with enjoyable period numbers that's worth a watch if you love Gaynor or the big Technicolor films of the 1950's.

Home Media: DVD-only from the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archive.

DVD

Animation Celebration Saturday - Home on the Range

Disney, 2004

Voices of Rosanne Barr, Dame Judi Dench, Jennifer Tilly, and Randy Quaid

Music by Alan Menken; Lyrics by Glenn Slater

Directed by Will Finn and John Sanford

By the mid-2000's, Disney was in the middle of a slump. They had overwhelming success with their historical and fairy-tale musicals the decade before...but then the animated film market became saturated with imitation musical fantasies. Their attempts to follow other paths were frequently ambitious, but with the exception of Dinosaur and Lilo and Stitch, largely unsuccessful. Home on the Range combines the "animals make a comic rescue" story of 101 Dalmatians and The Rescuers with the Alan Menken songs of Beauty and the Beast and sets the entire thing in the Wild West. How does the story of three cows who hope to turn in a cattle rustling gang look now? Let's begin with cowboys and settlers heading towards the farm A Little Patch of Heaven and find out...

The Story: Maggie (Barr) is the newest arrival at A Little Patch of Heaven, a "showcow" whose farm was sold after rustler Alameda Slim (Quaid) and his gang stole the cattle. Heaven is also in trouble. If it's owner Pearl Gesner (Carole Cook) doesn't come up with $750 in three days, she'll also lose her farm at auction. Maggie recruits Pearl's cows Grace (Tilly) and Mrs. Calloway (Dench) to find out about the local county fair. 

While in town, Maggie notices that the reward for capturing Alameda Slim is exactly what they need to pay off the farm. She suggests they capture Slim themselves and turn him in. Sweet Grace is game for anything, but proper Mrs. Calloway is less keen on the idea. They're also in competition with Buck (Cuba Gooding Jr.), a horse who is thrilled to partner with his hero, bounty hunter Rico (Charles Dennis). It'll take a full farm's worth of critters (including an ornery jackrabbit named Lucky Jack and steers with crushes on Maggie and Grace) to reveal this yodeling bandit for the phony he is.

The Animation: About as cartoony as you'd expect a movie about cows trying to rustle a yodeling bandit would be. At times, the sharp edges and bright desert greens and dusty tans makes it more closely resemble a Disney animated short of the 50's and 60's than one of their more recent films. Some of the action sequences, especially when the cows are in town and towards the end with the train, are very well-done...but the mine cart chase towards the middle of the film is definitely done in CGI and clashes badly with the hand-drawn animation. 

The Song and Dance: This was a lot better - and funnier - than I expected. A decent script and nice songs really give this one life. There's also that all-star cast, with Tilly the stand-out as peaceful Grace, who hates violence and just wants everyone to get along. Not to mention, the plot is one of the more original I've seen in a western. How many westerns have been made from the cow's point of view and features a yodeling cattle rustler? 

Favorite Number: "A Little Patch of Heaven" introduces Maggie - and us - to Pearl's farm and the animals who live there. Bonnie Raitt performs the touching country-flavored ballad "Will the Sun Ever Shine Again?" as Pearl sadly packs up to leave the farm and the animals wonder what happened to the cows. 

What I Don't Like: This is not one of Disney's grand fantasy adventures. It's a goofy western action musical about three cows who want to catch a yodeling outlaw and save their farm, and it doesn't pretend to be anything else. The wacky slapstick and modern references may annoy people who prefer their westerns and Disney movies to be a tad darker or more romantic. 

The Big Finale: Too silly and short for older kids, but younger guys who can handle some scary or sad moments and adults who enjoy westerns and the leading ladies may get a big cow kick out of this.

Home Media: Easy to find in all formats, often for under five dollars. Disney Plus has it for streaming with a subscription.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Disney Plus

Ziegfeld Girl

MGM, 1941

Starring Lana Turner, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr, and James Stewart

Directed by Robert Z. Leonard

Music and Lyrics by various

MGM wasn't finished making use of the Ziegfeld name and the idea of "Glorifying the American Girl" after the Oscar-winning success of The Great Ziegfeld in 1935. Instead of going the biographical route, they opted to showcase three of their biggest up-and-coming female stars with this tell-all behind-the-scenes melodrama on the lives of three very different showgirls who get that "glorifying" treatment. How does it come off today? Let's begin at the New Amsterdam Theater in New York, where those girls wait to be "glamorized," and find out...

The Story: We follow the lives of three showgirl hopefuls as they're discovered and become famous in the Ziegfeld Follies. Sheila Regan (Turner) is spied by Ziegfeld's right-hand man Noble Sage (Edward Everett Horton) while operating an elevator in Brooklyn. Susan Gallagher (Garland) has been trying to get into the Follies for months, but only makes it in when Sage catches her vaudeville act with her father "Pop" Gallagher (Charles Winninger). Sandra Kolter (Lamarr) takes the job when her violinist husband Franz (Phillip Dorn) is considered to be "too good" for the pit of a Ziegfeld show and they need the money.

All three women attract beaus right away. Susan dates Sheila's brother Jerry (Jackie Cooper), but is worried about her father, especially when he goes on tour without her. Sandra's pursued by lead singer Frank Merton (Tony Martin), but they both have spouses who love them. Sheila rejects her truck driver boyfriend Gil (Stewart) in favor of a wealthy suitor (Ian Hunter). Stung, Gil gives up trucking and becomes a bootlegger. That sends Sheila on a downward spiral of alcoholism and bad decisions that ends in tragedy, even as Susan's star ascends and Sandra realizes whom she really cares about. 

The Song and Dance: Not hard to tell Busby Berkeley choreographed this one. His often flamboyant and outrageous dances take flight, even as the melodramatic plot remains earth-bound. I especially appreciate Sandra's story. It's rare to see a woman choose not to go with the life of glamor in a backstage musical. Sandra had a good head on her shoulders, and Lamarr did very well with her. 

We also get an early taste of the type of melodrama Turner specialized in later in her career towards the end of the film, when Sheila hits the skids. Look for Dan Dailey as a gambler who comes on to Sheila twice, first when she has money, and later after she becomes a drunk, and for Eve Arden as a supremely sarcastic showgirl who likes to show off the jewelry she got from her five husbands. 

Favorite Number:  "You Stepped Out of a Dream" would be the last hit song for Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed before Freed switched to full-time producing, and it's a great way to go. Berkeley gives us a full-on view of what a real Ziegfeld glitter-and-staircase number was reportedly like, with Martin crooning the romantic ballad to a gala of ladies in amazingly creative (and brief) costumes representing stars, clouds, and air. Garland and Winninger give us a glimpse at old-time vaudeville with their corny-but-cute dance and joke routine to "Laugh? I Thought I'd Split My Sides." 

The costumes are even briefer and wilder - literally, given some are trimmed with tropical birds or aquatic life - in Martin's "Caribbean Love Song." Garland joins the chorus for the rollicking tropical tragedy of "Minnie from Trinidad." Not only does this foreshadow Sheila's eventual fate, it's probably the best number in the movie along with "Dream." Berkley really has fun with the camera here, as the dancers rhumba and wiggle in their odd tan makeup. 

Trivia: There was originally one more song for Garland, "We Must Have Music." It was deleted after the film was finished and is mostly now lost. A fragment of it exists in the short A New Romance of Celluloid: We Must Have Music.

If the finale looks familiar, it was recycled from the "Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" cake-tier number from The Great Ziegfeld, dubbed over with new music. 

What I Don't Like: There's a reason Ziegfeld himself is never seen. The real Florenz Ziegfeld died in 1932. The Ziegfeld Follies were a regular Broadway attraction from 1907 until 1931. They appeared sporadically thereafter through the 1950's, including a 1943 edition. By 1941, women turned to other media, including movies, to be "glorified." Vaudeville was in heavy decline by this point as well, which is likely why Susan mentions her father is stuck in Omaha. 

The biggest problem is the plot. It's mawkish claptrap of the highest caliber, and it goes on for way, way too long. The numbers and the histrionics should have been trimmed way back, especially in the second half. You know darn well where at least Susan and Sheila are going to be by the end of the film, especially after Sheila drops Gil. Sheila's sudden heart problems towards the end and her death nearly fall into camp territory. It doesn't help that Dorn and Stewart are wasted in thankless "love interest" roles. 

(This is also the second big 40's musical this week I'm surprised was filmed in black-and-white. Ziegfeld showgirl parades practically shriek for color.)

The Big Finale: Check this one out for the great numbers alone if you're a fan of any of the stars involved and have time on your hands. 

Home Media: Easily found on DVD and streaming. 

DVD

Amazon Prime

Footlight Serenade

20th Century Fox, 1942

Starring Betty Grable, Victor Mature, John Payne, and Phil Silvers

Directed by Gregory Ratoff

Music by Ralph Raninger; Lyrics by Leo Robin

Betty Grable had just become a major headliner in hits like Moon Over Miami and Song of the Islands when she starred in this movie. Fox backed their newest leading lady with a great cast that included beefy Victor Mature, singer John Payne, wacky burlesque comedian Phil Silvers, and another up-and-coming leading lady, Jane Wyman. How does this unusual blend of boxing and backstage shenanigans look today? Let's head to New York City for a major fight and find out...

The Story: Comedian Slap (Silvers) convinces stage promoter Bruce McKay (James Gleason) to hire charismatic current heavyweight champion Tommy Lundy (Mature) for a Broadway show. Tommy in turn brings along his girlfriend, singer Estelle Evans (Cobina Wright Jr.), for the leading lady. Dancer Pat Lambert (Grable) is hired as her understudy, and Pat manages to get her fiancee Bill Smith (Payne) the role of Tommy's sparring partner in the boxing act. 

Tommy's smitten with Pat and tries to court her, but he's given to practical jokes and is immature and obnoxious. Pat's far more interested in level-headed Bill. They do manage to get a quick marriage, but Slap convinces them to hide it so as not to upset Tommy. Estelle, however, figures it out when she sees Bill and Pat together at a hotel and spills the beans. Now Pat has to keep the two men from killing each other in the ring...for real.

The Song and Dance: The gritty black-and-white cinematography and unique boxing backdrop sets this apart from other Grable musicals. This may be her only vehicle where the real focus is on the men. Grable doesn't even appear until almost 20 minutes in. I do like that the film acknowledges that Mature is no song-and-dance man (even though he kept landing in musicals during the 40's and 50's), which is the reason for that big onstage boxing fight to begin with. And how many musicals can you name end in a genuinely suspenseful boxing match? The supporting cast is pretty decent, too, with Gleason and Wyman the stand-outs as the skeptical promoter and Grable's cynical best friend. 

There's also the fact that, for all of Tommy's silly and annoying behavior, he's painted as a playboy, not a villain. This is the second Grable movie I know of after Coney Island that ends with the leading men laughing the whole thing off and everyone friends in the end. 

Favorite Number: Pat auditions to "Are You Kiddin'" onstage, ending with a sensational tap routine. "I'm Still Crazy For You" is an adorable duet for Pat and Bill as she gives him a rub-down before rehearsal and asks him about the possibility of marriage again. Grable and choreographer Hermes Pan get a great quick dance routine to the instrumental "Land On Your Feet," and she has hilarious routine where she boxes with her shadow to "I Hear the Birdies Sing." 

What I Don't Like: The setting may be unique, but the backstage plot with Pat replacing Estelle and Estelle tattling on her and Bill are the same old cliches that have turned up in musicals since the early talkies. There's also the fact that both leading men were never really comfortable in musicals, and that does show here. Silvers is so obnoxious and grating as the comedian with the terrible jokes who pushed for Tommy in the show in the first place, he deserved the beatdown he got from Tommy and Bill in the end. 

I'm shocked that this is in black and white. Almost all of Grable's 40's vehicles were in color. Maybe they thought black-and-white would work better for the boxing milieu. Those expecting Grable's typical Technicolor capers set in exotic lands or other times may be more than a little surprised, too. The music also isn't the most memorable in the world, and in fact, is rather dull for one of her films. 

The Big Finale: This wound up being a pleasant surprise, an unusual blend of backstage romance and boxing hype that ends up being a fun watch for fans of Grable or 40's musicals. 

Home Media: Currently DVD-only from the 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives. 

DVD