Thursday, February 2, 2023

Juke Joint

Sack Amusement Enterprises, 1947
Starring Spencer Williams, July Jones, Inez Newell, and Dauphine Moore
Directed by Spencer Williams
Music and Lyrics by various

We switch gears from celebrating winter to celebrating Black History Month with a movie made by one of the true unsung characters of American film. Williams came to Hollywood in 1923 after a stint in Mexico and France during World War I and doing intelligence in France. He's best-known today for playing Andy in the early 50's Amos & Andy TV show, but he started out doing sound shorts for segregated theaters with black audience in the late 20's. After tries at other jobs during the Depression, his script for a "race movie" horror film and his appearances in several black westerns brought him to the attention of Alfred N. Sack. His Texas Sack Amusement Enterprises produced and distributed "race films." After the success of Williams' religious fantasy The Blood of Jesus, he contracted Williams to make more movies for him, of which this is the last. How well does this tale of two con men who help a girl prove she's beauty contest material work today? Let's start with those two guys on the road and find out...

The Story: Bad News Johnson (Williams) and his buddy July (Jones) drive into Dallas, Texas with only two cents to their names. They convince Mama Lou Holiday (Newell) that they're acting teachers from Hollywood under the name Whitney Vanderbilt and Cornbread Green who will exchange room and board for teaching her daughter Honey Dew (Moore) social graces. She's hoping Honey Dew will win a big local beauty contest and get to Hollywood herself. Meanwhile, Honey Dew's sister Melody (Melody Duncan) just wants out of town by any means necessary.

The Song and Dance: Not much song here. It's mainly dance and comedy, and admittedly, they both deliver pretty well. Williams and Jones have natural chemistry together and some very funny lines. Newell is hysterical as the tough-minded matriarch who keeps the rest of the family under her thumb, including her shiftless husband Papa Sam (Leonard Duncan). Stylish Melody Duncan comes off the best of the younger woman as the determined and intelligent young woman who wants out from under her mother's domineering rule yesterday. 

Favorite Number: The big - and really only - number is admittedly a lot of fun. There's a jitterbugging contest before the big beauty show, and it's pretty darn awesome. I'd give the entire crowd an award. They're all jumping and jiving and having a terrific time swinging around to the hot instrumental music. 

Trivia: Was considered a lost film until it reappeared in Texas around 1983. 

What I Don't Like: This is an independent B movie made in the late 1940's. First of all, despite being billed as such, it's barely a musical. There's one major number and not much else. Second, it's pretty easy to tell how long this was lost. The copy at Tubi is in horrible shape, just barely watchable. Wish someone would take a crack at restoring these movies. This is history, too, and it's as important as what came from Republic or Monogram at that time. Third, a lot of the dialogue is terribly stiff, the acting isn't much better, and the sets and costumes all too plainly show their low-budget origins. 

The Big Finale: Worth checking out at least once if you're interested in the history of black cinema, Williams, or looking for something different to kill an hour with on streaming and can get around the terrible shape the copies currently circulating are. 

Home Media: It's in the public domain, so it can be found pretty much anywhere. Tubi currently has it for free with ads.

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