The Unsinkable Molly Brown

MGM, 1964

Starring Debbie Reynolds, Harve Presnell, Ed Begley, and Hermione Badderly

Directed by Charles Waters

Music and Lyrics by Meredith Wilson

We end our Women's History Month reviews with this rousing biography of one of Colorado's great ladies, featuring one of MGM's biggest stars of the late 50's and early 60's. Though the stage version wasn't quite as big of a hit as Wilson's The Music Man, it was still popular enough for MGM to option it as a huge vehicle for Reynolds and Presnell. Presnell was a big, strapping baritone not unlike Howard Keel the decade prior. MGM was willing to give him a big build-up and Reynolds the role of her career as the scrappy backwoods girl who rises first to Denver society, then to one of the heroines of the Titanic disaster. How does this story look today, especially as a far campier Titanic-based musical spoof prepares to hit Broadway next month? Let's begin with a tiny baby being flung along in raging rapids...and surviving...and see why this was so popular in the early 60's...

The Story: Brassy tomboy Molly Tobin (Reynolds) has big dreams. She heads to Leadville, Colorado to make enough money for a trip to Denver and marriage to a wealthy man. Her plans are derailed when she falls in love with Johnny Brown (Presnell), a poor miner with no desire to ever work the mine he owns. He's equally in love with Molly, teaching her to read and write and even building a cabin for her. 

When he does finally have a big strike at the mine, it propels them into Denver high society, just like Molly wished and hoped for. Denver high society, however, isn't ready for them. Gladys McGraw (Audrey Christie), the queen of wealthy Denver matrons, rejects them as being too vulgar. Mrs. McGraw's mother Buttercup Grogan (Badderly) suggests the duo go to Europe for some "polish." Molly loves it, but Johnny feels out of place among the princes and duchesses. Molly invites them to Denver, but Johnny brings his mining friends around too and ruin the introduction. 

Furious, Molly returns to Europe, only to realize she misses Johnny and Colorado. She returns on the S.S Titanic...and becomes not only one of the survivors when the ship hits an iceberg, but one who encouraged morale and kept at the captain to rescue more people. She returns to Denver as one of its greatest heroines, and to Johnny as the one man who could really keep up with her. 

The Song and Dance: Reynolds never had more fun than she did in this movie, especially the first half when she's brawling with her brothers, with drunk miners, and with J.J Brown. She had such a blast playing Molly, she got an Oscar nomination. Presnell and Begley nearly match her as the laid-back miner who preferred the simple life in Colorado to his wife's ambitions and her hilarious father. Gorgeous cinematography filmed in the actual Colorado and stunning costumes beautifully depicting backwoods Colorado and Denver and European high society in the 1900's and early 1910's help too.

The Numbers: We open with Molly brawling with her brothers, telling them "I Ain't Down Yet." She teaches herself to play "Belly Up to the Bar, Boys," competing with other local dancers and ladies of the evening for their attention. Johnny claims "Colorado, My Home" twice, in his introductory sequence when he's looking over his land, and later when he and Molly return to Colorado after their European trip. "I'll Never Say No," Johnny tells Molly as he teaches her to read and write, builds her a bigger cabin, and even gets the brass bed she wanted. "He's My Friend," says Buttercup, Mr. Tobin, Molly, and Johnny as half the royals in Europe sing awkwardly along. "Johnny's Soliloquy" is a brief reprise of "Colorado My Home" as he admits that he misses Molly.

Trivia: Molly Brown was no backwoods girl when she married "Leadville" Johnny Brown in 1886, but a spirited young lady of 18 who, indeed, had been looking for a wealthy husband. She actually ended up much-beloved in Denver society, as an early and ardent feminist and crusader for worker's rights. Yes, she not only survived the Titanic disaster, she pushed her lifeboat captain to look for more survivors, though the "unsinkable" nickname apparently didn't become more common until after her death in 1932. Unlike in the movie, she and Johnny legally separated, though Molly didn't remarry after Johnny's death in 1922. Their home in Denver and their summer home at Bear Creek, Colorado still exist today as museums.

The original Broadway show opened in 1960 with Tammy Grimes as Molly and Presnell as Johnny and ran for two years, pretty respectable for the time. Alas, despite the success of the film, it's rarely been seen again. It didn't make it to London until 2009. It was heavily reworked to include more of the real-life story of Molly Brown for a run at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts in 2014. This heavily revised version turned up briefly off-Broadway in 2020, and it's also available for regional productions. 

What I Don't Like: First of all, this takes forever to get where it's going. Those two hours can drag at times, especially during Molly's European jaunts in the second half. Second, note the historical inaccuracies above. This also isn't for people who like their musicals on the quieter or more introspective side. This musical is as noisy and brash as its heroine. Meredith Wilson's score isn't bad, but it's not quite at the level of The Music Man, either. And I wish we could have heard more of it. All but five numbers were cut. "He's My Friend" was written for the film (and has since been added to stage versions).

The Big Finale: If you love the brash, brassy musicals of the 50's and 60's or are a big fan of Reynolds, come on down and get to know the toughest, funniest lady to ever come out of Colorado.

Home Media: Easily found on all formats. The Blu-Ray is from the Warner Archives.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Amazon Prime

Animation Celebration Saturday - Willy McBean and His Magic Machine

Magna Pictures Distribution Corporation, 1965

Voices of Billie Mae Richards, Larry Mann, Alfie Scopp, and Paul Kligman

Directed by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Kizo Nagashima

Music and Lyrics by Edward Thomas, Gene Forrell, and James Polack

We kick off November with Rankin-Bass' first foray on the big screen. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer had just been a sensation about six months before they released this. Unfortunately, Rankin-Bass doesn't seem to have ever had the same luck in the theaters that they did on TV. All of their theatrical films were eventually relegated to children's matinees and after-school showings on local stations, but does that mean they're without merit? To find out, we begin not with the title character, but with the evil Professor Von Rotten (Mann), who is gloating about his inventions to the talking monkey Pablo (Scopp).

The Story: Professor Von Rotten has invented a magic time machine that'll allow him to change history and become the first to do something great. Pablo breaks loose and runs off to find help. He ends up at the home of Willy McBean (Richards), a young boy who loves tinkering with his own inventions and finds studying history to be boring. He gets an eye-opener when Pablo tells him about the Professor's plan. Willy is able to create his own "magic machine," allowing him and Pablo to go back in time and stop the Professor and discover that history is a lot more exciting than it looks in school books.

The Animation: Actually a bit disappointing for Rankin-Bass. You can tell this one of their earlier efforts. The characters aren't as expressive as they are even in Rudolph. They move jerkily, and sometimes limbs or pieces will be missing or in the wrong place. That said, everything is fairly detailed, especially the backgrounds in the Wild West and Camelot.

The Song and Dance: Decent first movie effort from Rankin-Bass is anchored by some really fun performances. Mann in particular has a blast as the overly dramatic Professor, who is less evil than determined to be the first at something, anything, and leave a lasting legacy to history. Richards has some funny moments as skeptical Willie, while Kligman and Claude Rae throw themselves into their many characters with relish. And yes, that is a young James Doohan, just a year prior to Star Trek: The Original Series, as the voices of General Custer and Merlin. 

The Numbers: The chorus begins and ends the movie by describing "The Magic Machine" and what it can do. "Professor Rasputin Von Rotten" introduces himself and his desire to be remembered through history for something major shortly after the opening credits. Sitting Bull (Kligman) and Pablo admit "We Got Showbiz." Christopher Columbus (Kligman) and the sailors claim "Gotta Go West to Go East." The Professor tells Queen Isabella "I Am For Hire." Arthur (Claude Rae) and his men introduce themselves as "We're Knights of the Round Table (Not the Square)." The dragon (Scopp) they're supposed to fight claims "I'm the Most Exciting, Horrible Dragon In All of Camelot"...but he's really far from it. King Tut (Bunny Cowan) listens to his chorus girl queen (Corinne Conley) complain about being the "Poorest Queen" in all of Egypt. "A Caveman's Lot" is a difficult one for the neanderthals Willy and Pablo encounter.

What I Don't Like: First of all, this hasn't dated well at all, and not just the jerky animation. Name your stereotype, from Italian to Native American to Chinese, and it's probably here. Not to mention, I think this is intended to be a spoof of history. People knew the world was round years before Christopher Columbus, his men mutinied because he was a lousy sailor and a bad captain despite his ambitions, and though the Arthur legends may have their basis in fact, they're really more myths than history. 

Second, the whole idea is just too bizarre for words. Couldn't the Professor have found a far more evil reason for wanting to go back in time than just being first at something? Like most Rankin-Bass villains, he's rather easily reformed in the end, too. Pablo and his silly Mexican accent get really annoying really fast, too. 

The Big Finale: Bizarre bit of lunacy is mainly for Rankin-Bass completists and those trying to amuse their elementary-school age children for an hour and a half online.

Home Media: Which makes it just as well that, to my knowledge, this has never been released on disc in North America. The only way you can currently find it is on YouTube. 

YouTube

Frankie and Johnny (1966)

United Artists, 1966

Starring Elvis Presley, Donna Douglas, Harry Morgan, and Nancy Kovack

Directed by Fredrick de Cordova

Music and Lyrics by various

Our next western heads to the Mississippi River for another historical comedy adventure. Elvis Presley's southern heritage and his "dangerous" reputation may have been the inspiration for this version of one of the most famous "she done him wrong" songs of all time. How did this tragic ballad look played as a comic historical-set riverboat romp? Let's begin on that riverboat with compulsive gambler Johnny (Presley) and find out...

The Story: Johnny would do anything to have one lucky payout. He's borrowed money from everyone, including his best friend Cully (Morgan) and his girl Frankie (Douglas), and now he needs just a little more to get that one lucky break. He learns from a gypsy and her tea leaves (Naomi Stevens) that a beautiful redhead will give him good luck. He never expected that redhead to be Nellie Bly (Kovack), his boss Clint Braden's (Anthony Einsley) ex-girlfriend. She touches the chips while he's at the roulette wheel. He keeps winning, and now he thinks the gypsy was right. This doesn't tickle Frankie, Braden, or Braden's current girlfriend Mitzi (Sue Ann Langdon). 

Frankie tries shooting Johnny when Cully's performing his latest song, prompting him to turn it into a ballad. It's a big hit with a Broadway producer, who suggests they take the show to New York. Johnny wants to earn the money to go east at a masked ball in New Orleans. Nellie, Frankie, and Mitzi inadvertently wear the same costume, playing a trick on Johnny to make him think the wrong girl is bringing him luck. Braden thinks Johnny is still after Nellie and orders his goon Blackie (Robert Strauss) to switch bullets on Frankie's gun in the number and make the song a reality. Johnny, however, isn't out of luck yet...

The Song and Dance: Elvis is backed by a lavish production for his films and a not-bad supporting cast. Morgan and Audrey Christie are the stand-outs as Johnny's henpecked best friend and his wife who knows better than to let him get away with anything, and Kovack makes a sly and witty Nellie. The costumes are gorgeous, a riot of rainbow stripes, checks, ruffles, and sequins. We even get shooting in the real New Orleans during the ball sequence. 

The Numbers: We open with Elvis inviting us to "Come Along" over the credits. "Petunia the Gardener's Daughter" is Frankie and Johnny's first number on the riverboat, with Frankie prancing in a short pink dress among huge smiling cardboard flowers. "Chesay" is our first major chorus number, a salute to the gypsy drink that supposedly gives good luck. Elvis believes he's "What Every Woman Lives For" on the riverboat. "Frankie and Johnny" is heard twice as a chorus number. The first time, there's only blanks in that gun. The second in the finale is when Blackie replaces the blank with a real bullet. 

"Look Out Broadway" says the cast as they sing about how they're going to make it in New York. Elvis sings about his "Beginner's Luck" before attempting to win money for the trip east. The traditional "Down By the Riverside" and "When the Saints Go Marching In" are the riverboat troupe's parade in New Orleans to announce their arrival. Elvis' "Shout It Out" in New Orleans is an incongruous full-on rock number among the somewhat more historically-accurate number. Elvis laments his "Hard Luck" in New Orleans, then begs Frankie to "Please Don't Stop Loving Me." He says "Everybody Come Aboard" for the last show.

Trivia: Eileen Wilson dubbed Donna Douglas. 

What I Don't Like: On one hand, I appreciate that this isn't a typical Elvis vehicle, with costumes and a supporting cast far above the norm for his movies. On the other hand, the story is more than a little ridiculous...and what does Elvis being a gambler and their going to Broadway really have to do with the song "Frankie and Johnny?"Anyone could tell you they're not really going to kill off Elvis in the end, either. This is not going to have the same tragic ending as the song. Speaking of, the new songs aren't horrible, but they're not terribly memorable, either. 

The Big Finale: One of Elvis' more interesting films is still worth checking out for his fans or fans of big 60's musicals. 

Home Media: The DVDs are currently expensive, but like most of Elvis' movies, this can be found pretty much anywhere on streaming, often free with commercials.

DVD

DVD - Elvis Prestley Movie Legends Collection

Tubi

Family Fun Saturday - Aladdin (1967)

CBS, 1967

Starring Fred Grades, Will B. Able, Avril Gentles, and Victoria Mallory

Directed by Nick Havinga

Music by Jim Eiler and Jeanne Bargey; Lyrics by Jeanne Bargey

Let's return to television and revisit the Prince Street Players for their fourth and final musical special from the mid-60's. In fact, if this seems familiar, I've already covered the Disney Channel remake from 1990. I wasn't crazy about the cheap-ish cable movie, but now that I finally have the chance to compare it to the original, how well does the Prince Street Players' version hold up? Let's begin with the stage manager in Asian dress (Don Liberto) as he explains the story and his role...or roles...in it and find out...

The Story: Aladdin (Grades) falls for the Princess Mei Ling (Mallory) when he chases his kite into the Emperor's garden. They fall for each other right then and there, but Mei Ling is promised to a wealthy man, and Aladdin has no money. Desperate to win her hand, Aladdin follows a man claiming to be his uncle (Robert Dagney) into a cave full of treasures. The man, who is really an evil magician, is more interested in the lamp among the jewels than any treasure chest. Fortunately, Aladdin isn't able to get it to him before he's shut up in the cave. 

Rubbing the lamp produces a genial genie (Able) who is not only able to free him, but gives him and his beloved mother (Gentles) more than enough money to win Mei-Ling. He also gives him a life-sized dancing doll named Fatima (Graziella Able) who impresses the sultan. Aladdin does marry Mei-Ling, but the magician isn't finished with his treachery just yet. Tricking Aladdin's mother, he convinces her to give him the lamp and takes the genie and castle for himself. Fortunately, Fatima has a ring that contains one last genie (Able) who is able to help Aladdin get rid of the evil magician for good.

The Song and Dance: Lovely music and a genuine attempt to recreate Asian theater tropes are the saving graces here. It's kind of fascinating what they do with limited resources, from the nifty effects for the Genie to how the Genie moves the castle. I also appreciate that they stick to the original Aladdin as told in the Arabian Nights. In Arabian Nights, Aladdin is set in China, and there were two genies, one of the lamp, one of the ring. Will B. Able is having by far the most fun here as the lovable Genie, though Grades does make a charming and determined Aladdin, too.

The Numbers: We open with Aladdin singing about "Flying My Kite" as the Station Manager plays his father scolding him and a neighbor discussing Aladdin with his despairing mother. Mei-Ling singing about "A Lovely Morning In China" turns into a chorus number for her, Aladdin, and her ladies-in-waiting in the garden. Mei-Ling reprises it with the ladies after Aladdin leaves. The magician gives us an instrumental dance routine as he verbally describes the reason he needs Aladdin to get the lamp for him. His mother admits that she loves "Aladdin," but he's also terribly lazy. 

"The Magician's Chants" opens the cave and lets Aladdin find the treasure. The Genie does his own spirited dance as he explains to Aladdin that he's "A Good Genie." He releases them from the cave "In the Wink of an Eye." "Fatima's Dance" is intricate and charming enough to impress the Emperor into giving Aladdin Mei-Ling's hand in marriage. "Lovely Evening In China" becomes a chorus number as all of China attends Aladdin and Mei-Ling's wedding. Mei-Ling sings at her "Tea Time" with Aladdin. She's not as happy with her "Tea Time" with the magician after he gets his hands on the Genie. It ends with everyone returning to China to a reprise of "A Wink of an Eye." 

Trivia: Bless Will B. Able for nailing that dance in "A Good Genie!" The entire cast got a flu bug, and he apparently had a 103 degree fever when he filmed it. 

What I Don't Like: The flu bug may explain some of the lackluster performances, particularly from Mallory, who overdoes her Chinese accent to the point of being annoying. Oh, and as in the 1990 remake, there's not an Asian actor to be seen. These are all whites in (bad) Asian makeup. Though they do manage to make the most out of the limited production, the fact remains that this is a TV musical for kids from the 1960's and looks it. You're not getting a recent live extravaganza. Plus, there'a a few points where someone, usually the Genie, will talk directly to the camera or encourage the kids to play along. It's likely leftover from the original stage show, but it comes off as kind of odd on TV.

The Big Finale: This is cute, but it also hasn't dated that well. It's not my favorite of the Prince Street Players musicals, but they all have their good points if you have younger kids (and can explain the thing with people in Asian makeup). 

Home Media: As with the other Prince Street Players musicals, this can currently only be found on YouTube.

YouTube

Cult Flops - When the Boys Meet the Girls

MGM, 1965

Starring Connie Francis, Harve Presnell, Sue Ann Langdon, and Frank Faylen

Directed by Alvin Ganzer 

Music by George Gershwin and others; Lyrics by Ira Gershwin and others

Let's head back to the US for our last vacation of the summer season. We're also honoring Connie Francis, who passed away last month. She - and her performance of its title song - was a big part of the reason Where the Boys Are was one of the biggest hits of 1960. Though her recording career continued to do well, MGM failed to find an appropriate follow-up film. Her next two movie vehicles were both flops. MGM banked on this one, a remake of their 1943 Judy Garland-Mickey Rooney vehicle Girl Crazy, to revive Francis' flagging career and give their newly-minted musical leading man Presnell a boost. How well did they do updating Girl Crazy to the Beach Party-addicted mid-60's? Let's begin at an all-male college, where Danny Churchill (Presnell) has just replaced the all-male chorus in drag with a very female one, and find out...

The Story: Danny is expelled and sent to another school in the Arizona desert, one with absolutely no girls in it. Actually, it does have one. Ginger Grey, who delivers the mail, almost literally runs into Danny and his friend Sam (Joby Baker) in Danny's sports car. He helps Ginger retrieve her father Phin (Faylen) from Reno, where he's gambled away every cent they have. They'll lose the ranch if they don't make the money to pay them off soon. Danny finally brings in other local kids to turn the ranch into a hotel for divorcees. It does help a lot of women going through a bad time, like Kate (Hortense Petra), but it also attracts Danny's gold-digging ex-girlfriend Tess Rawley (Langdon). Danny fled to avoid paying her hush money, and now it looks like she wants him to pay up, and now.

The Song and Dance: As weird as this is, there are some things that work. Like Summer Holiday, this is a full-on musical, with ballads, duets, and big chorus numbers. Some of the songs work, and there's a few performances that at least have the right goofy spirit. Faylen has a great time as Ginger's well-meaning, gambling-addicted father, Baker has some hilarious moments as Danny's best friend, and there's Petra as the frequently-married hotel resident Kate and Fred Clark as Phin's wealthy friend Bill Denning. There's gorgeous Technicolor here, too, and some really nice desert shooting. 

The Numbers: We get "Treat Me Rough" twice. The chorus girls hired for the boys' college stage show in the opening sing it before the dean (Bill Quinn) finds out and shuts the show down. Tess reprises it as a comic solo number later, when she's singing at the divorcee hotel. Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs perform "Monkey See, Monkey Do" at a nightclub in full mystical and mustaches regalia. Presnell and Francis also each get a go at "Embraceable You." Louis Armstrong does "Throw It Out of Your Mind" at the casino in Reno. Connie Francis makes a "Mail Call" at the boys' college, handing out dreams of home along with letters. 

Herman's Hermits, who are exchange students at the school, perform their own "Listen People," along with "Bidin' My Time" with Ginger while they're building the ranch. Liberace gives an example of why he was so beloved among older people in his glittering gold suit as he plays his own "Aruba Liberace." Danny and Ginger lament "But Not for Me" after she thinks he's still in love with Tess and he thinks she's marrying someone else. The film ends with everyone paired off and Armstrong performing his own version of "I've Got Rhythm."

What I Don't Like: What does any of this have to do with Girl Crazy? In the original show, Danny was sent to manage his family's ranch, and he saves it by turning it into a dude ranch. That would have made a lot more sense than the whole "haven for divorcees" sub-plot. The new orchestrations do the Gershwin songs no favors, and the rock numbers are completely out of place with them. Presnell is dull, Francis shrill and annoying, Langdon whiny. None of them are as much fun to watch as the rock groups or their elders. It seems like MGM just tossed in whatever they could get their hands on to see if it would stick. Herman's Hermits do get to sing two numbers and take part in others, but they vanish after "Bidin' My Time" without explanation. 

The Big Finale: Mainly for fans of Herman's Hermits or any of the acts involved. Everyone else will probably be fine with the Garland-Rooney Girl Crazy or Francis and the Hermits' solo albums. 

Home Media: At least this one is easier to find. It's currently on DVD in a beautifully remastered copy from the Warner Archives and can be found on streaming.

DVD

Amazon Prime

Summer Holiday (1963)

Associated British Picture Corporation/American International Pictures, 1963

Starring Cliff Richard, Lauri Peters, Melvyn Hayes, and Teddy Green

Directed by Peter Yates

Music and Lyrics by various

We finish the summer season with one more dive into the Beach Party well. Here, however, we have a romantic shindig from across the Atlantic that actually predated Beach Party in the United Kingdom by seven months. Unlike the AIP films, with their barely-relevant music and wacky casts, this is a full-on musical, more like what Elvis was appearing in around this time. Cliff Richard was one of the biggest movie and recording stars in England during the early 60's. His previous musical, The Young Ones, was a huge hit, and ABPC wanted to keep his streak going. How does the story of four bus repairmen from London who run into everything from a mime troupe to a starlet on the way to the French Riviera compare to Elvis' movies and the other teen musicals on the other side of the pond? Let's begin with everyday England in black and white, before switching to glorious Technicolor, and find out...

The Story: Don and his friends Cyril (Hayes), Steve (Green), and Edwin (Jeremy Bulloch) make over a two-decker bus into an RV, complete with shower and kitchen. They want to flee the wet English summer and enjoy warmth at the French Rivera, but pretty much everything possible interrupts their holiday. They first pick up a girl singing group trio after they accidentally run them off the road, then a mime troupe led by The Great Orlando (Ron Moody). 

In Paris, a boy named Bobby stows away in the bus. He turns out to be a she, American star Barbara Winters (Peters). Barbara's overbearing mother (Madge Ryan) and her driver Jerry (Lionel Murton) chase them from rugged Switzerland to hot, sunny Athens, each time finding a way to stop or detail them. There's the Yugoslavian farmers who think the boys want to marry their women, too. The Great Orlando helps them out in France, while they're lucky that Barbara is able to claim the locket the Austrian authorities claim they stole. Their luck runs out in Athens, when Mrs. Winters claims they've kidnapped her daughter. It's there that they relate their journey, and not only admit they've had a heck of a summer, but Don realizes how much he's come to care for Barbara, too.

The Song and Dance: I'm impressed. For a movie with a plot that fluffy, this wound up being a real treat. Richard falls somewhere between Elvis and Pat Boone, not quite so dangerous as the former in his early films, but more swaggering than the latter. The Technicolor blazes with the real and gorgeous scenery of a Europe on the move, dominated by that cherry-red bus that becomes increasingly scraped and battered the more wild encounters the boys have. American choreographer and later director Herbert Ross did the dances, assuring that they fit in well and radiate sheer joy. 

The Numbers: We open with the boys building their mobile bus home as they sing "Seven Days to a Holiday" and dream of getting away from dreary England. They say "Let Us Take You for a Ride" after they run the girls' lavender roadster off the highway. We get two numbers from Richard's group the Shadows, the hit "Foot Tapper" and "Round and Round." Our second big dance number is an instrumental routine in a smoky French cafe, "Les Girls," where the girls and boys dance with grotesque African masks. Don sings about being "A Stranger In Town" to a bevy of well-dressed French beauties in his imagination...who turn out to be angry older women in reality. 

"Orlando's Mime" is an elaborate series of skits revolving around Orlando as a hair cutter, in love with a girl who prefers a young artist. It ends with a bang...literally...that gets them out of the courtroom. "Bachelor Boy" is Don, the boys, and the Shadows declaring their desire to remain single during a rest stop. Don would rather have "A Swinging Affair," but so would Barbara, who eagerly dances with a group of young men. Everyone is "Really Waltzing" during a huge chorus number in an Austrian nightclub. In Austria, Don declares he's fallen in love with Barbara "All at Once." 

Don and the Shadows put on their "Dancing Shoes" for a crying shepherdess. They want to get bread from her, but she thinks they say "bride." That gets the boys get caught up in that muddy "Yugoslav Wedding,' which comes off more like the European version of a hillbilly wedding here in the US. Don laments after Barbara returns to her mother that he'll be more careful "The Next Time" he falls in love. The boys finally end up at their trial, claiming their crazy holiday is "Big News."

Trivia: This was the second-biggest hit of 1963 in England, but flopped in the US, due to being released there two days after the assassination of John Kennedy.

In fact, Richard had only sporadic success in the US. He did manage to have some big singles over here, notably "Devil Woman" and "We Don't Talk Anymore" later in the 70's, but it never matched his enormous following in his native lands. 

Jeremy Bulloch is best-known in the US for playing Boba Fett in the original Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Novice director Peter Yates went on to specialize in action movies like Bullitt and dramas like Breaking Away. 

What I Don't Like: Did I mention that "fluffy" thing up there? While the story is of more consequence than it usually is in the average Beach Party frolic, it's still pretty goofy. If you're looking for a darker or more meaningful 60's musical, this isn't it. It also may not appeal to those who don't understand some of the more overtly European stereotypes, from that smoky French coffee shop, with its bongos and African gew-gaws, to them being held up at the Yugoslav borders by guards (Yugoslavia was a communist and Soviet satellite country at the time.) 

The Big Finale: This wound up being a lot more fun than I figured from the simple premise. If you love Richard, early 60's rock, or big widescreen extravaganzas of the 50's and 60's, you'll want to head across the pond and take a wild summer holiday with Don and his friends too.

Home Media: Which makes it disappointing that the only place to find this currently in the US is on the Internet Archive (albeit in a pristine, glowing Cinemascope copy). 

Internet Archive

Family Fun Saturday - The Emperor's New Clothes (1967)

CBS, 1967

Starring Fred Grades, Will B. Able, Marcie Stringer, and Robert Dagny

Directed by Nick Havinga

Music by Jim Eiler; Lyrics by Jeanne Bargy

We stay in television, but jump ahead a decade for another hilarious children's musical from the Prince Street Players. This time, we trade the fantasy for a slightly more realistic story from Hans Christian Anderson about two con-men who teach a clothes-obsessed ruler that there's more to life than looking the part. How does this one compared to the previous two specials from the troupe? We begin with Chester the Jester (Grades), who explains his place in the court and what we're about to see, and find out...

The Story: As Queen Carlotta the Least (Stringer) explains to her husband Emperor Maximilian the Most (Able), their kingdom is so broke, Carlotta took up trumpet to announce herself. Between Sinister the Prime Minster (Dagny) skimming money off their reserves and the Emperor's lavish spending, they barely have the money to pay anyone. The Emperor, however, must have new clothes. Carlotta claims she'll sell her jewels to hire new tailors to make him something spectacular. 

They end up with Mr. Stitch (Alan Klass) and Mr. Sew (Don Potter), swindlers who claim to be tailors. They've made an invisible cloth that can only be seen by someone intelligent. No one in the kingdom, including the Emperor, will admit to not having seen the cloth. Chester has fallen for the scullery maid Verity (Victoria Mallory), who owns a pair of glasses that can reveal the truth when one looks through them. Not only do they give away the swindlers' plot, but they reveal the truth about Sinister...and Chester too, who looks an awful lot like the prince who was stolen as an infant.

The Song and Dance: Oh boy, is this one fun. This time, the costumes and sets are a riot of color and a bit more lavish, as per the story of a free-spending ruler. Stanger by far steals the show as the hilarious Carlotta, who has no trouble doing things for herself and sees through deception a lot quicker than her doddering husband. Mallory and Grades make a charming couple as well in their sweet ballads, while Klass and Potter have their own fun as the Abbott and Costello-like con men. The big chorus numbers really stand out here, with Carlotta's "You Gotta Blow Your Own Trumpet" a show-stopper. 

The Numbers: We open with "I'm Chester the Jester" introducing himself and showing how he has to make everyone in the court laugh. Carlotta, who has taken over for the royal trumpeter, insists that "You've Gotta Blow Your Own Trumpet" and do what needs to be done yourself. Sinister and the chorus announce that "The Emperor Needs New Clothes" when he insists that the ones he has simply won't do for the royal procession the next day. The pages announce "The Royal Proclamation," which the con-men hear. They become "Stitch and Sew" to pull the wool over the eyes of the court. 

Verity wonders what would happen "If I Could Be a Princess" as she and Chester look through the glasses and see themselves as they really are. They reprise it after Stitch and Sew leave, and they suspect they're up to no good. The courtiers are excited the next morning about how "They're Making Invisible Clothes." Stich and Sew say "Behold the Clothes" for Carlotta, who thinks the whole thing is a load of hogwash. They reprise this with the court later that morning before the procession. Verity insists "Look Through the Glasses" and see people as they really are. The show ends with a spirited reprise of "Blow Your Own Trumpet."

What I Don't Like: Once again, this is a family TV special in the 1960's. While it looks better and is a bit more lavish than Jack and the Beanstalk, it's still not even the live spectacles many are accustomed to seeing on TV today. For all his clothes obsession, the Emperor doesn't really have as much to do as in other versions of this story. It's the supporting cast who really shine here.

The Big Finale: This is far and away my favorite of the three Prince Street Players musicals I've watched so far. In fact, this might be a nice starting point for introducing your kids to this series. Highly recommended and absolutely hilarious. 

Home Media: Alas, like the other Prince Street Players musicals, this is only available on YouTube at press time.

YouTube

Family Fun Saturday - Jack and the Beanstalk (1966)

CBS, 1966

Starring Will B. Able, Hal Holden, Robert Dagny, and Joan Roberts

Directed by Nick Havinga

Music by Jim Eiler; Lyrics by Jeanne Bargy

Our second Prince Street Players special adapts a more traditional fairy tale. The tale of the boy who climbed the beanstalk and the giants he found in the clouds has turned up everywhere from the Sondheim pastiche Into the Woods to one of Abbott and Costello's least-likely vehicles. What do the Prince Street Players bring to the tale? Let's travel to a far more fanciful land than early 1900's Italy to meet Jack (Holden) and his mother (Roberts) and find out...

The Story: Jack is tricked into trading his cow Betsy for magic beans by the evil Black Baron (Dagny), who wants the Giant's (Able) golden hen. Jack plants the beans over his mother's protests...and indeed, they do grow into a massive beanstalk by the next day. He climbs them, only to discovered worried residents of the land in the clouds warning him about the Giant (Will B. Able). The Giant does capture him and tries to force Jack to tell the truth and remain in his domain. He even shows him his Golden Harp (John Joy) and Golden Goose (Marcie Stringer). Jack, however, is more worried about his mother and the Black Baron, who will take their home for taxes. He and the Giant's assistant (David Lile) finally return to the ground...but the Giant is right on their heels...

The Song and Dance: Unlike Pinocchio, this one gets a lot more creative with the source material. I've rarely seen the Giant played as a relative good guy, or at least, not entirely bad. Holden is a delightfully curious and charming Jack, especially protesting the Giant's attempt to keep him in the clouds, and Able is a riot as the Giant. Dagny is having a great time channeling his inner silent screen villain as the obviously evil Black Baron, too. We also get some really fun songs, notably some of the songs heard in the Giant's realm. The colorful sets look rather like children designed them, adding to the fanciful nature of the story.

The Numbers: We open with "It's a Magical, Musical Day" as we meet Jack, his mother, and their neighbors. Jack and his mother lament "Goodbye, Betsy" when they realize Jack has to sell the cow at market. The Black Baron, masquerading as an old peddler, sells Jack on the "Magic Beans." Jack's going to "Climb Up" the beanstalk and find out who lives there. 

The residents of the Land of the Giant encourages Jack to "Go Away, Away, Away," before the Giant captures him. The Giant wonders "Where oh Where Can He Be?" as he looks for Jack. Giant explains that he's not really a bad guy, but he will "Take a Giant Step" to his castle, where he creates fantastical inventions. The Giant even does a goofy tango with his housekeeper (Dorothy Greener). The Golden Harp plays "Plinka Plunk," while The Golden Goose (Marcie Stringer) sings about "Oh Dem Golden Eggs!" Jack and the Assistant finally flee after nightfall, claiming "It's Time." The Housekeeper thinks "It Must Have Been the Wind." We end with reprises of "Take a Giant Step" and "It's a Magical Musical Day" down below.

What I Don't Like: This is one of the strangest versions of Jack and the Beanstalk I've ever seen, and that includes the live-action Jack the Giant Killer from a decade ago. The Giant is a scientist who wants to pick Jack's brain? And, once again, this is not an elaborate production. Able looks more like the really tall guy in weird giant brain makeup he is than a Giant. The sets are even chintzier than the ones for Pinocchio, and even the costumes are simplified here. This is, once again, not for those expecting a massive modern Disney TV musical.

The Big Finale: I'll admit, I liked Pinocchio slightly better, but this one still has a lot of its own charms for families with younger kids who will likely enjoy the weirdness. 

Home Media: Currently, the Prince Street Players musicals can't be found anywhere but YouTube.

YouTube

Family Fun Saturday - Pinocchio (1965)

CBS, 1965

Starring Will B. Able, Jodi Williams, John Joy, and David Lile

Directed by Nick Havinga

Music by Jim Eiler; Lyrics by Jeanne Bargy

On Saturday for the rest of this month, we're going to dive into the series of family musicals put out by New York's Prince Street Players. They were a popular troupe of actors who specialized in children's shows in New York in the 60's and 70's. They were successful enough for some of their best-known shows to be broadcast on CBS as family specials. We're going to start with their version of the beloved Italian fantasy novel. How well do they pull off the story of the puppet who learns to become a real boy? Let's begin with woodcarver Antonio (Able) and find out...

The Story: Geppetto (Lile) is regarded as eccentric by the townspeople and his housekeeper (Marcie Stringer) for speaking to his puppets as if they were alive. He's especially enamored with his latest creation, a life-size puppet that resembles a real boy he names Pinocchio (Joy). The Blue Fairy (Williams) brings Pinocchio to life after Geppetto is kind to her. 

She promises that he can be a real boy if he's good and obeys his father, but there are far too many temptations in town. Two bad boys from town encourage him to join the Coachman (Eiler) and have fun at the Land of Toys, but the wicked Coachman turns him into a donkey. After the Blue Fairy frees Pinocchio from that and gives him five coins, he ends up letting a cat (Robert Lussier) and fox (Robert Dagny) talk him into burying the coins, which they proceed to steal. He flings himself into the water, where he finally finds Geppetto swallowed by a whale. It's Pinocchio who ends up rescuing them from the belly of the creature, proving once and for all that he loves his father...and are a truly good boy, wood or not.

The Song and Dance: If this is typical of the Prince Street Players shows, no wonder many of them still turn up in regional theaters to this day. The songs are tuneful, the Italian costumes colorful, and the actors quite charming. Joy makes an adorable Pinocchio with a beautiful voice, especially singing the all-Italian number during Geppetto's show. Williams is a sweet and sensible Blue Fairy, and Hal Holden and Fred Graves are a riot as the naughty boys who pull Pinocchio off the straight and narrow the first time. I'm also impressed with how relatively well this sticks to the original book. Geppetto's show with Pinocchio replaces Stromboli's show, but otherwise, this is pretty close to the original book.

The Numbers: We kick off with our narrator Antonio introducing us to the typical Italian small town where much of the story is set with the chorus number "Bonjourno!" Geppetto sings of his desire for a "Boy to Love" to love him more than any puppet could. The Blue Fairy shows Pinocchio how he's an "Almost Real Little Boy." The townspeople and Geppetto explain to Pinocchio "That's a Show!" and join Pinocchio at Geppetto's puppet show for the title number. 

Gino and Candlewick explain to Pinocchio why "I Don't Want to Go to School." The Coachman encourages them to join him at "The Land of the Toys." Geppetto sadly reprises the title song when he's searching for his missing son. The toys sing of all the wonders they'll see...until the boys realize that the other kids have gone missing. Senor Volpore and Senior Gatto introduce themselves with their own operatic spoof, "The Cat and Fox's Song." Pinocchio laments "Everything I Do Goes Wrong" after he loses the money the Blue Fairy gives him. The special ends with a joyful reprise of the title song after Pinocchio has been turned to a real boy.

What I Don't Like: Pretty typical TV production of the 50's and 60's. The costumes are colorful, but the sets are nothing special. and the effects that probably looked decent enough in 1965 come off as chintzy today. None of the actors are terribly well-remembered, either. This is not a huge extravaganza and isn't for those looking for widescreen spectacles or a big, loud show. There's also a few things cut from the original story, likely for time and because they didn't have the budget for it on TV (notably Jiminy Cricket isn't mentioned).

The Big Finale: If this is what all of the Prince Street Players musicals are like, no wonder they were so popular in the 60's. Recommended for families with elementary-school age kids looking for a fairly no-frills version of the famous story.

Home Media: Alas, the only place you can see any of the Prince Street Players musicals at the moment is YouTube. 

YouTube

For Those Who Think Young

United Artists, 1964

Starring Pamela Tiffin, James Darren, Paul Lynde, and Woody Woodbury

Directed by Leslie H. Martinson

Music and Lyrics by various

United Artists dove into the Beach Party waters for the first of two times with this vehicle for then-popular crooner James Darren. Starlet Pamela Tiffin was also being groomed as the next big thing in Hollywood in the early 60's, while Woody Woodbury had a series of popular (and risque for the time) comedy albums and Lynde and Bob Denver were on their way to starring in two of the biggest sitcoms of the mid-60's. How did they all come together for this story of a playboy whose pursuit of a teen girl almost ends with her guardians' night club being shut down? Let's begin with Darren singing the title song over actual footage of kids in the water (and some clever surfboard designs) and find out...

The Story: Gardener "Ding" Pruitt III (Darren) is in hot pursuit of pretty, smart teen Sandy Palmer (Tiffin). His grandfather B.S Cronin (Robert Middleton) doesn't approve and wants to not only keep her from his millions, but shut down the teen club where her guardians Sid Hoyt (Lynde) and Woody Woodbury (Himself) work. Cronin convinces the college administration that Woodbury is selling liquor to minors. They send prim Dr. Pauline Swenson (Ellen Burstyn) in to take notes and figure out what's going on. She ends up getting drunk and falling for Woodbury. Cronin's furious, but it's Sandy, his grandson, and their friends who end up reminding the older man that he had more truck with liquor in his dim, dark past than he'd like to admit.

The Song and Dance: I will say this is infinitely more interesting - and better to look at - than Wild On the Beach. For one thing, they actually get on the beach...and when they do, it's a riot of some truly stunning color. Those bikinis and the weird face man-crazy Karen Cross (Nancy Sinatra) keeps drawing on local goofy guy Kelp (Bob Denver) almost pop off the screen. As smarmy as he is, Darren is also a lot more interesting than most of the interchangeable love interests in these Beach Party imitations. Burstyn (then listed as Ellen MacRae) and Lynde have more fun than they should as the prim professor who learns to have fun and the whiny former vaudevillian who finds a second act in the clubs. Tiffin's also a lot better here than she was playing ingenue in the State Fair remake from two years before. 

The Numbers: The film opens with Darren singing "For Those Who Think Love" over shots of the kids on the beach between colorful stylized surfboards in the credits. The club's singer and dancer Topaz McQueen (Tina Louise) is seen performing several instrumental numbers, wiggling with reckless abandon to the crowd. "Oh Daddy" is sung twice, in a big number on the beach for Kelp (with that weird painted mouth) and in the finale. Jimmy Griffith (later one of the founders of the 70's group Bread) sings "I'm Gonna Walk Over This Land" at the club.

Trivia: There's product placement all over this film to nearly modern levels, starting with its title. "For Those Who Think Young" was a slogan of Pepsi at the time, and everyone can be seen slugging Pepsis throughout the movie. 

What I Don't Like: First, see the obvious product placement above, especially with Pepsi. If that kind of thing bothers you in modern movies, you won't like it in this one. Second, this movie feels like it was created by the United Artists board of directors to be something that adults assumed would appeal to teens. Woodbury's risque stand-up act may have been hilarious in 1964, but I doubt many college students would find his annoying and dated jokes funny now. Denver and Sinatra barely have anything to do, and Lynde comes off as more creepy than funny. Darren's so smarmy, you honestly enjoy seeing Tiffin attempt to beat him at his own controlling game.  The few songs are dull and totally forgettable.

The Big Finale: While infinitely better than the dull Wild On the Beach, this is still mainly recommended for fans of Darren, the Beach Party movies, or the comedians in question.

Home Media: It's also easier to find than Wild On the Beach. It's on DVD and Blu-Ray via Kino Lorber. MGM + currently has it on their site with a subscription.

DVD

Blu-Ray

MGM+

Wild On the Beach

20th Century Fox, 1965

Starring Frankie Randall, Sherry Jackson, Gayle Caldwell, and Jackie Miller

Directed by Maury Dexter

Music and Lyrics by various

This week, we're gonna hit the beach with two lesser-known imitations of the wildly popular Beach Party films, starting with 20th Century Fox's third and last contribution to the genre. By 1965, the wave of Beach Party imitations was starting to crest, with small, silly imitations like this one flooding the market. How does the story of how two groups of college students spend their summer arguing over the last house left in their area look now? Lets begin with shots of waves and surfers and college students doing the Watusi at once certain beach house and find out...

The Story: Lee Sullivan (Jackson) inherited the beach house from her late uncle and intends to turn it into a boarding house for girls. She and her two friends Marsie (Caldwell) and Toby Carr (Jackie Miller) turn up at the house, only to find that party in progress. Turns out the house is already occupied by Adam Miller (Randall) and his buddies sound-obsessed Vern Thompkins (Jerry Grayson) and Jim Bench (Marc Seton). The boys apparently got permission to stay from Lee's uncle before his death. 

Adam puts in a permit on the house, but Dean Parker (Booth Coleman) is wary of all of they living together and has local housing inspector Mr. Terwilliger (Justin Smith) check them out. There's also music producer and former singer Shep Kirby (Russ Bender) who initially puts out the complaints against them, due to Vern's sound effects being turned up way too high and the partying. Now Lee and Adam have to figure out what's going on here and how to keep everyone from being found out, before they're all expelled and ended up expelled.

The Song and Dance: It's some unique details that make this even tolerable to watch. Vern's sound effects prove to be very useful, both in keeping the boys and girls from wandering over "The Iron Curtain" (a rope set out to keep the boys and girls from trying anything fresh. There's also Kirby and his own obsession with technology and finding the right group to showcase. And yes, Sonny and Cher are in this movie, singing one song. Their "I Got You Babe" was a huge hit when the movie was being filmed, and the producer must have thought they could bring the same kind of laid-back vibe to the film.

The Numbers: Adam sings "The House On the Beach" and "The God of Love," the latter while on a walk on the beach with Lee. The surf group The Astronauts get four numbers, "Rock This World" after the college students first arrive, and "Pyramid Stomp," "Snap It," and "Little Speedy Gonzalez" later on. Sonny and Cher have a cameo singing the sweet "It's Gonna Rain." Real-life pop singer Cindy Malone tries to test Shep's new recording equipment with "Run Away From Him," but Vern's sound effects keep intruding. Shep gets "Yellow Haired Woman" with the kids at a party at the house later. The girls record "Winter Nocturne" for Shep. Drummer Sandy Nelson has a dynamic "Drum Dance."

What I Don't Like: Pretty obvious low-budget B-tuner from this era. The Astronauts and Sonny and Cher are the only things that stand out in any way. The use of Vern's sound effects are mildly amusing, and I do give them credit for a slightly creative plot that deals with housing shortages during an era when college was becoming more important, but this is mostly as cheap as it looks. It's not even in color. The boys in particular other than Vern are interchangeable, and Randall comes off as more of a jerk for trying to throw the girls out than remotely romantic.

The Big Finale: Silly and dull, this is only for the most ardent Sonny and/or Cher enthusiasts.

Home Media: On DVD via the made-to-order 20th Century Fox Cinema Archives and on YouTube.

DVD

YouTube

The Girls On the Beach

Paramount, 1965

Starring Noreen Corcoran, Linda Marshall, Ahana Capri, and Steve Rogers

Directed by William Witney 

Music and Lyrics by various

We're going on Spring Break this week with our first two reviews. Paramount jumped onto the Beach Party bandwagon with their first of two teen musicals released in 1965. This is the one that came out first, and the one that owes more to Beatlemania and cartoon gags than the beach. Although the Beatles were wildly popular, they were hardly the only band around in the mid-60's. The Beach Boys had been pumping out surf-rock hits since 1962. Given they were the preeminent surf-rock band of the time, it was probably inevitable that they'd turn up in one of these movies. How well do they and two of their biggest hits work in this tale of a sorority who desperately try to earn the money to save their frat house? Let's begin with the title song over views of, well, girls on the beach and find out...

The Story: The ladies of Alpha Beta are all ready for fun in the sun on their spring break when they learn that they owe the bank $10,000 for their sorority house. They think they have the money, but their kindly house mother gave it to every person in need she ever came across. Desperate to keep their house and their housemother out of trouble, sorority president Selma (Corcoran) comes up with a variety of different schemes to earn money in a week, from entering a cake recipe contest to their prettiest member Patricia (Lori Saunders) joining a beauty pageant. 

Their biggest idea is turning their after-Easter dance into a concert and inviting big-name talent. Three boys who are smitten with Selma and her friends claim they know the Beatles and can get them to appear. The girls are thrilled, but the boys have no intention of doing anything but running out...until they see what a big deal everyone makes of the Beatles being in their show. The girls, however, are the ones who end up having to cover when it turns out that the boys might have fibbed slightly.

The Song and Dance: The girls on the beach may not spend much time on the beach, but I do like how the focus is on them. Their schemes and ideas to earn money are what drives the film, and they're all pretty funny, from the constantly-changing cake to what they convince Patricia to do for the talent portion of the pageant (and how she ends up making use of it later). Of the Beach Party imitations, only Get Yourself a College Girl puts as much emphasis on its female characters. I also like that it's more about their relationships and the one with their sorority than with the guys. Some great music too, including two big hits from the Beach Boys, the title song and "Little Honda." 

The Numbers: We open with the Beach Boys performing the title ballad over the credits (though it doesn't really work with the girls running around on the sand), and then for college students at a local hangout. The Crickets give us a weirdly re-written "La Bamba" as our first chorus number and we meet the Alpha Beta members. Alpha Beta member Lesley Gore performs "Let Me Alone" to an attentive young man at the first sorority party. I don't know why the boys came down on one of the Beach Boys' prettiest ballads, "Lonely Sea," which they perform at an outdoor party at night. 

"Little Honda" provides the backdrop for another dance routine as the college kids finish the party at their hangout, right before the boys claim they know the Beatles. Patricia may be embarrassed about her "Dance of the Seven Veils," but the judges sure like it...and so do the concert-goers near the end of the movie. The girls really get into Gore's "It's Gotta Be You" at the sorority house, right before the three guys come down dressed as women. Gore does even better with "I Don't Want to Be a Loser" at the concert. The girls regret having told the Sigma Fi freshman pledges to get a lock of the Beatles' hair as an initiation when they imitated the Beatles and perform "We Want to Marry a Beatle." They later pacify the crowd by reprising it as themselves.

What I Don't Like: First of all, the boys were not only jerks for lying and almost letting the girls hold the bag, they were interchangeable. I don't know how the girls could tell them apart. None of them were remotely interesting. Sometimes, the girls could be pretty interchangeable, too. Any girl who didn't take part in a side plot, like the cake contest or the beauty pageant, were almost as dull. And I have to agree with a reviewer who pointed out how ridiculous it is for everyone to be fussing over the Beatles when they have two other major acts of the era, the Beach Boys and Lesley Gore, right there. (In fact, this would ironically be the Beach Boys' only appearance in a Beach Party movie.)

The Big Finale: Harmless hour and a half worth of fun for nostalgic Baby Boomers and classic rock fans.

Home Media: One of the more obscure Beach Party imitations, this can currently only be found on YouTube.

YouTube

All Night Long (1962)

J. Arthur Rank, 1962

Starring Patrick McGoohan, Paul Harris, Marti Stevens, and Keith Mitchell

Directed by Basil Dearden

Music and Lyrics by various

This week, we head across the Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea for two vintage movies exploring the black experience in England and Jamaica. We begin with this low-budget English take on the Shakespearean drama Othello. Dearden had been specializing in tight little dramas and comedies like this one for over a decade. He had no fear in delving into tough topics like racism, juvenile delinquency, and homophobia, or realistically depicting violence and sexuality onscreen. How well do his sensibilities work with the story of an ambitious drummer who almost comes between a black bandleader and his white singer wife? Let's begin with wealthy jazz lover Rod Hamilton (Richard Attenborough) as he heads to the warehouse-turned-performance space where the anniversary party for Aurelius Rex (Harris) and his wife Delia Lane (Stevens) is taking place and find out...

The Story: Johnny Cousin (McGoohan) is Rex's ambitious drummer who hopes to start his own band. Rod and booking agent Lou Berger (Bernard Braden) will back his new venture, but only if he can get Delia to be his singer. Delia is perfectly content the way she is and fears joining a band will cause strain in her marriage. 

Johnny desperately tries to break up her and Rex by reediting a tape of her conversation with Rex's saxophone player and Delia's friend Cass (Mitchell) to make it sound like they're in love. The truth is, they were discussing his relationship with Rex's current singer Benny (Maria Velasco). Johnny's manipulation leads to a web of lies, deceit, and betrayal, until his faithful wife Emily (Betsy Blair) reveals the truth.

The Song and Dance: This is worth checking out for some terrific performances, both from the cast and the jazz men making rare film appearances. David Brubeck and Charles Mingus were at the height of their popularity when this movie was released. We even get an improvised number from them, "Non-Sectarian Blues." Though Stevens and Mitchell also do well as the close friends who look like more, McGoohan walks off with the movie as the talented drummer who is so determined to have his own band, he's willing to turn his boss and his wife on each other. We also get not one, but two happy interracial couples who manage to stay together even after all the trouble Johnny caused. That would be rare in the US nowadays, let alone in a low-budget melodrama from 1962.

The Numbers: Most of the numbers are jazz instrumentals, including the afore-mentioned Mingus and Bruebeck jam "Non-Sectarian Blues." Bruebeck plays his own "Blue Shadows On the Street," and we also get "It's a Raggy Waltz" from him. There's also "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" and Mingus' "Peggy's Blue Skylight." Rex plays "Mood Indigo" and "In a Sentimental Mood," two pieces usually associated with another bandleader, Duke Ellington. Stevens is finally coerced into singing the title song and "I Never Knew I Could Love Anybody Like I'm Loving You" for her husband near the end of the movie.

Trivia: Patrick McGoohan did learn to play the drums for the film, though he was ultimately dubbed. He kept the drum set he used after filming.

What I Don't Like: First of all, this isn't for Shakespeare purists. There's a lot of changes to the original Othello, including a happier ending where all three couples survive. Second, this is a black and white melodrama performed largely in one set, with no huge dance numbers or lavish costumes or chorus. It's not for those who prefer their musicals on the happier, fluffier, more extravagant side. Third, those who aren't jazz aficionados like me may find the hepcat lingo and slightly arrogant attitudes on many of the musicians to be rather grating after a while. 

The Big Finale: Worth a night on the town to check out if you're a fan of vintage jazz, are looking for a unique Shakespeare adaptation, or love anyone in the cast or smaller black-and-white dramas from the 60's.

Home Media: Alas, the Criterion Collection set featuring this and three other well-regarded Dearden dramas from this time period is out of print and incredibly expensive at this writing. Streaming is far and away your best bet. It can currently be found for free with ads on Tubi.

DVD - Eclipse Series 25: Basil Dearden's London Underground

Tubi

The Young Girls of Rochefort (Les Demoiselles de Rochefort)

Comacico, 1967

Starring Catherine Denveuve, Francoise Dorleac, George Chakaris, and Gene Kelly

Directed by Jacques Demy

Music by Michel Legrand; Lyrics by Jacques Demy

After the massive success of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Demy went back to the musical form for something far lighter. This time, he borrowed from classic American musical film, even using two of its stars, Kelly and Chakaris. Danielle Darrieux, who played Denveuve and Dorleac's mother, had also done several Hollywood musicals. How does this effervescent story of two sisters who fall in love during their seaside town's spring fair look today? Let's begin with the caravan of carnival barkers and performers as they dance and drive their way to Rochefort and find out...

The Story: Twins Delphine (Denveuve) and Solange (Dorleac) Garnier run a small ballet school in Rochefort, but what they really want is to try their wings as a dancer and composer in Paris. Delphine is also hoping to meet the man she's been dreaming about there...and so is Maxence (Jacques Perrin), a sailor just out of the Navy who wants to become an artist. Solange eventually falls for American dancer Andy Miller (Kelly) after she encounters him while picking up her little brother Booboo (Patrick Jeantet) from school. 

The girls agree to dance for carnival barkers Etienne (Chakaris) and Bill (Grover Dale) after their original dancers run off with sailors. They're hoping it will lead the guys to take them to Paris after the Carnival ends. Delphine is also hoping to avoid her obnoxious and egotistical ex-boyfriend Gulliaume Lancien (Jacques Riberoles), who is more interested in making money than being in love with her. There's also Simon Dame (Michel Piccoli), the owner of the music shop where Solange works...and whose description of the woman who loved him but couldn't stand his last named and walked away with his children. Madame Garnier's description off her ex sounds mighty familiar, too....

The Song and Dance: This is a gorgeous movie with an excellent performance by Catherine Denveuve, and stunning use of color...and that's about where the resemblance to Umbrellas ends. Unlike through-sung Umbrellas, this is a more traditional musical that thrives on its dance sequences. We see people dancing before we hear a word of dialogue or anyone singing. The dances are everywhere, among everyone from basketball players to lovers on the street. They inform everything that everyone does, and their energy really keeps the movie hopping. 

The lovely colors here are warm and airy pastels rather than the dark, saturated shades of Umbrellas, but they're just as pretty to look at. We get a good mix of French and American sensibilities, with the two male dancers and Kelly giving this the feel of an especially elegant MGM production of a decade before. Dorleac matches her real-life sister Denveuve as the slightly more practical sister, while Darrieux and Piccoli are fine aging lovers who don't realize their sweethearts have been in the same town all along and Perrin is a strapping sailor-turned-artist.

The Numbers: We open before a word has been sung with Etienne, Bill, and the other carnival performers doing two lively group dances on the pier done to the instrumental "The Ferry Bridge" and "Arrival of the Truckers Ballet" as they prepare to cross the Bay of Biscay. After they cross the Bay, we move to "The Ballet Lesson" and see the twins teaching their young charges. What they really want to do is move to Paris and pursue their passions as they explain what "A Pair of Twins" can do. 

We first meet Maxence at their mother's cafe as he explains why "You Must Believe In Spring" and he believes in his dream of the perfect girl. "From Delphine to Lancien" is Delphine explaining why she no longer wants to continue seeing Guilliame. Etienne and Bill tell their girls that "We Travel From City to City," but they're far from impressed. "Simon's Song" and "Yvonne's Song" gives us their not-so-different views on why she left him over his name. Delphine reprises "Must Believe In Spring" as she explains her own dream lover. "Andy In Love" is Kelly's number after he meets Solange and finds the pages she lost from her concerto. 

Bill manages to get the girls to dance for them with "Sailors, Friends, Lovers, and Husbands" as the girls explain they have none of the above. Having returned to the cafe, Maxence once again talks about his dream lover with his reprise of "Must Believe In Spring." "Solange's Song" talks about her desire to become a great composer. She and Delphine talk about what will happen when they go "From Hamburg to Rochefort" and reprise "Pair of Twins." Their mother sings of "Lola Lola."

"The Basketball Ballet" takes us to the carnival as we see a basketball team practice before the crowd. "Woman Cut to Pieces" and "The Meetings" are instrumental dance numbers for Delphine's dance troupe and a group of chorus dancers in the town square. "Andy's Song" gives him a dance routine and a chance to admit his feelings for Solange. "Kermesee" is Bill and Etienne's number as they leap around their motorcycle onstage. Dressed to kill in fire-engine red, the twins dance to a sultry "Summer Day Song," with Solange a bit more awkward than a delighted Delphine. When Bill and Etienne admit they love them, the girls say men "Always Never" will respect them and their feelings. "The Concert Ballet" brings Solange and Andy together in a pas de deux bathed in white, while the film ends with "The Fairground Departure Ballet" as people clean up and the townspeople rejoice in their new relationships and "The Truckers Departure Finale."

Trivia: Sadly, this was Dorleac's second-to-last film. She died in a car accident in Nice three months after the movie's release. 

Apparently, the English language version of this seen in the US wasn't a hit, which may be why it's even harder to find than the one for Umbrellas of Cherbourg today. The soundtrack and two video clips are all that remain of it.

What I Don't Like: The music is as charming and bubbly as the film, but while "A Pair of Twins" wound up being a hit, I don't think the songs are quite up to the haunting score from Umbrellas of Cherbourg. This is a more traditional musical, with numbers between spoken interludes. Those who are looking for something more experimental and less dance-heavy will want to go elsewhere or back to Umbrellas. And same caveat from Umbrellas applies here. If you don't speak French and don't want to use subtitles, you may have a hard time understanding what's going on. 

The Big Finale: That said, while I think Umbrellas is the slightly better film, both of these movies are definitely must-sees for their lovely scores, stunning use of color, delightful performances, and in the case of this one, fabulous dancing. Check these out this holiday season with your sweetheart or your favorite sister. 

Home Media: Easily found on disc and streaming, the former from the Criterion Collection.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Amazon Prime

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies de Cherbourg)

American International Pictures, 1964

Starring Catherine Denueve, Nino Castelnuovo, Anne Vernon, and Marc Michel

Directed by Jacques Demy

Music by Michel Legrand; Lyrics by Jacques Demy

This week, we take a holiday trip to France in the 1960's with our first two reviews. Umbrellas was Demy's third film and first of three musicals. He made copious use of the new Eastman color stock to turn the real-life French town of Cherbourg into a riot of color, light, and shadows, giving the story of two young lovers parted by fate and circumstance a melancholy fairy-tale feel. How does the story of a mechanic and the daughter of the owner of the title shop look now? Let's begin with bright umbrellas in the rain showing off those eye-catching primary colors and find out...

The Story: Genevieve Emery (Denueve) is passionately in love with Guy Foucher (Castelnuovo), a mechanic in Cherboug. Her mother Madame Emery (Vernon) believes they're too young to wed, as Genevieve is only 17. Guy lives with his aging Aunt Elise (Mirrelle Perrey) and her caretaker Madeline (Ellen Farner), who has a crush on him. Genevieve is devastated when Guy is called to the Algerian War. She writes him constantly, but after a while, his letters become fewer. Her mother finally convinces her to wed handsome young diamond merchant Roland Cassard (Michel) after they discover she's pregnant. 

Meanwhile, Guy returns home from the war and takes to drinking after he learns his beloved has married another and his aunt has died. Madeline is happy to be there for him and to take care of him. Even though their lives eventually take very different paths, when they encounter each other again one cold, snowy Christmas night, Guy and Genevieve can't help but wonder what would have had happened if things were different...

The Song and Dance: This is one of the most breathtaking musical films I've ever seen. Bless everyone who restored the Eastman color negatives, because they did a sensational job. The color almost literally pops off the screen, blasts of scarlet, shocking pink, olive green, and robin's egg blue. Genevieve and Guy wander through a fairy tale France where umbrellas come in every color of the rainbow, Christmas Eve is pure white, and even little shops and gas stations are a riot of primary hues. The performances are magnificent, too, despite everyone being dubbed. Denveuve is so radiant and heartbreaking, she became an international star after her performance here. Castelnuovo and Vernon nearly match her as her adored mechanic sweetheart with big ambitions and her mother who just wants to see her and the shop taken care of.

The Numbers: This is more-or-less an opera. Every note is sung-through, making it hard to separate songs the way you would for a regular musical. Two songs in particular became standards. "Recit De Cassard," Roland's solo when he's explaining his difficulty courting women to Genevieve and her mother, would be translated into English as "Watch What Happens." Guy and Genevieve's theme that runs throughout their numbers became the Oscar-nominated "I Will Wait for You" in English.

Trivia: The building that stood in for the umbrella shop still exists in Cherbourg today. It's currently marked with a plaque that commemorates the film.

When Roland Cassard tells Madame Emory he once loved a woman named Lola, he's referring to Demy's previous comedy Lola, where Michel played the same character. 

Madame Demy wasn't kidding when she referred to how young Genevieve was. Denveuve was only 19 during filming. 

What I Don't Like: First of all, the English-language dub for this is extremely rare today. If you don't speak French or aren't willing to use subtitles, you may have a hard time with the lyrics. Second, this is not a feel-good musical. It's a bittersweet melodrama with a relatively unhappy ending. If you're not in the mood for a sad love story, this isn't for you, no matter how pretty it is to look at. 

The Big Finale: One of the most exquisitely gorgeous musical films ever created. Highly recommended for musical lovers, romantics, fans of the French New Wave, and those who either speak French, have a passing acquaintance with the language like me, or are willing to use subtitles. 

Home Media: Easily found on disc and streaming. The Blu-Ray is from the Criterion Collection, and even the DVD (which I've seen) has a marvelous transfer.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Amazon Prime

Happy Thanksgiving! - Alice's Restaurant

United Artists, 1969

Starring Arlo Guthrie, Pat Quinn, James Broderick, and Michael McClanathan

Directed by Arthur Penn

Music and Lyrics by various

Arlo Guthrie's epic folk song "Alice's Restaurant" debuted on his album of the same title in 1967 and was a hit, making it into the top 20 that year. It isn't Thanksgiving for many people without the twenty-minute folk song playing somewhere in the background before dinner. Penn knew the story more intimately than most, being a resident of Stockbridge, Massachusetts where the incidents occurred and having heard the full story from the real Ray Brock. How does the tale of how Arlo's attempt to help the owner of the title establishment on Thanksgiving turn into disaster look today? Let's begin at a college in Montana and find out...

The Story: Arlo went to college to avoid the draft, but his long hair and Bohemian lifestyle doesn't go over well in rural Montana. After run-ins with the local police and students who make fun of him for his looks, he finally hitchhikes to the East Coast. His first stop is New York, where he visits with his sick father Woody Guthrie (Joseph Boley) and performs in a few folk venues.

He finally heads north to Great Barrington, Massachusetts, where his friends Ray Brock (James Broderick) and Alice (Pat Quinn) live with assorted friends and hangers-on in an abandoned church. Alice has started a restaurant, which is popularized by a jingle Arlo writes for her. Alice is fed up with Ray's treatment of her and first has an affair with his friend Shelly (McClanathan), then follows Arlo and his friend Roger (Geoff Outlaw) to New York. Ray comes to bring her home, and she invites the guys along for Thanksgiving dinner.

The dinner itself goes just fine. Things go sideways when Alice asks Roger and Arlo to take garbage from the church to the town dump. The town dump is closed for Thanksgiving, so they drop it off on a cliff with other garbage. That gets them a visit from Officer Obie (the real officer, William Obanheim), who thinks they dumped a lot more than junk. Alice bails them out, and the blind judge (the real blind judge, James Hannon) can't see the evidence at their trial and gives the boys a fine and an order to find another place for the junk instead. 

Arlo does briefly end up drafted for Vietnam, but he doesn't make it due to the littering conviction. He's free to return to the church with his new girlfriend Mari-Chan (Tina Chen), where things are starting to go haywire. Shelly's high as a kite and has been keeping heroin in the church. Ray's furious and beats him, but he runs off and dies in a motorcycle accident. Woody passes on as well, leaving Arlo regretful that he didn't get to say good-bye. Even Alice and Ray's wedding is full of regrets, as Alice wonders what she's gotten herself into.

The Song and Dance: You can't get much more "you were there" than a story that more-or-less happened as it's shown onscreen. Broderick and Quinn are probably the best of the cast as the sometimes-dynamic, sometimes-violent owner of the church and his strong-willed wife. There's some gorgeous shots of New York, Montana, and the Berkshire Mountains in Western Massachusetts as they looked in the late 60's, too, including that lovely old church. Penn's straightforward approach works well with the wild, frequently meandering plot. 

The Numbers:  Our first numbers are instrumental classical piano pieces, performed by a class at the Montana college. Arlo's teacher is offended by him playing a folk number instead of what the rest of the students are doing. He's much happier playing a jam session on guitar and kazoo with Roger, until the landlady and police turn up to ask questions. He plays "Car-Car Song" and "Pastures of Plenty" with none other than folk legend Pete Seeger in his father's hospital bedroom. Ray really gets into the traditional folk song "Boiling Cabbage Down" with everyone at the church, and they sing "Amazing Grace" after Thanksgiving dinner. "Alice's Restaurant"turns up on the radio as a jingle. Tigger Outlaw sings the Joni Mitchell song "Songs to Aging Children" as the members of the church lay Shelly in the ground.

Trivia:  Though the film is based on a real incident, it plays very fast and loose with facts. The subplot with the Shelly/Ray/Alice triangle was fictional, as was Mari-Chan (Guthrie was actually dating an English girl at the time) and him being forced out of the Montana school (he was still attending it then). 

What I Don't Like: The movie is too meandering for its own good. It bounces from incident to incident with no real rhyme or reason. Quite frankly...the story behind the song isn't nearly as compelling as the song continues to be. Gurthrie's sweet-faced and endearing, but also not much of an actor (especially compared to the magnetic Broderick) and comes across as too goofy or annoying at times. The treatment of Guthrie because of his long hair and lifestyle and the discussions of the Vietnam War and the then-current generation have dated this movie very badly. The slightly bitter worldview doesn't help, either. 

The Big Finale: Recommended mainly if you're a huge fan of Guthrie or the original song, or are interested in movies from the late 60's and early 70's that go into some of the same themes. 

Home Media: Easily found on DVD and Blu-Ray

DVD

Blu-Ray

Saluting Our Veterans - Sergeant Deadhead

American International, 1965

Starring Frankie Avalon, Deborah Walley, Eve Arden, and Fred Clark

Directed by Norman Taurog

Music by Guy Hemric; Lyrics by Jerry Stymer

Let's honor those men and women who explore the final frontier and travel to the far reaches of space this Veteran's Day with this unusual war comedy. Though it features many regulars from the Beach Party series, this one has more in common with the fluffy musicals Taurog directed from the 30's onward. How strange is this story of a soldier whose accidental trip into orbit ends up changing more than his knowledge of the stars? Let's begin at an Air Force Base, where the title soldier (Avalon) is trying to set off his own rocket, and find out...

The Story: Sergeant O.K Deadhead (Avalon) constantly ends up in the brig, thanks to his experiments and antics. His fiancee Airman Lucy Turner (Walley) works on the base as well and is frustrated when he turns up in the brig again. They were to have been married that day. After fellow prisoners Private McEvoy (Harvey Lembeck) and Private Filroy (Johh Ashley) break him out, he flees for what turns out to be an experimental rocket carrying a chimpanzee into space. After Deadhead ends up in orbit, General Fogg (Clark) and his assistant Lieutenant Kinsey (Arden) have no choice but to pretend that was the plan all along.

When Deadhead returns to Earth, he's a changed man. Turns out that his trip through space has blended his personality with that of the chimp. He's now egotistical and aggressive, to the annoyance of Fogg and disappointment of his fiancee, who preferred him when he was gentler. Fogg and Admiral Stoneham (Cesar Romero) hire look-a-like Sergeant Donovan (Avalon) to take his place with his fiancee at their wedding. After he ends up in the brig again, Deadhead begins to realize that he's changed and breaks out to take Donovan's place. Captain Weiskopt (Gale Gordon) still wants Donovan in his place, but no less than the President of the United States (Pat Buttram) is fine with Deadhead the way he is.

The Song and Dance: Avalon gives one of his better performances, both as the goofy Deadhead and the smoother Donovan, in this extremely peculiar attempt to cross the antics of the Beach Party films with a more traditional military-based musical. In fact, I'm impressed with just how much of a musical this is. No randomly-inserted rock bands or goofy dance routines here. There's a march number for the military ladies in the opening, a number for the girls, duets for Walley and Avalon, and even a comic number for Arden. Of the adults, Clark and Arden have the most fun as the exasperated head of the base who just wants his plans to work and the head of the women's corps who loves him. Also look for Reginald Gardiner as a distracted officer and Buster Keaton doing his own material as the base handyman.

The Numbers: We open with that march number performed by the women's corps over the credits as Lieutenant Kinsey leads Deadhead to the guardhouse, "Hurry Up and Wait." The girls wonder "How Can You Tell?" the guy is right for you in their barracks at night. Lieutenant Kinsey tells the girls that "You Should Have Seen the One That Got Away" at Deadhead and Lucy's wedding, while Donna Loren sings about that "Two Timing Angel." Lucy insists "Let's Play Love" on their honeymoon night to the shy Donovan...and Deadhead turns it around and chases her when he replaces him. When Lucy wonders why Deadhead acted so differently after he returned from space, he insists that "The Difference In Me Is You."

Trivia: There was to have been a sequel, Sergeant Deadhead Goes to Mars, but it was canceled after this was a disappointment at the box office. 

What I Don't Like:  Did I mention how strange and fluffy this is? The romantic comedy stuff with the kids getting married doesn't really seem to fit with the military story or with the shenanigans from Beach Party regulars like Harvey Lembeck and Buster Keaton. It's also a little unusual for one of the American International musicals. As mentioned, this is a full-out musical. There's the brief wedding party, but no rock groups, and no one goes to the beach. The military setting also explains the increase in character actors and the lack of Annette Funicello. She doesn't even turn up in a cameo. The music is ok, but not terribly memorable.

The Big Finale: Not the best of the American International teen musicals of the early-mid 60's, but worth a look once on Veteran's Day if you're a fan of Avalon or the Beach Party films.  

Home Media: Easy to find on DVD and streaming.

DVD

Amazon Prime                  

Musicals On TV - The Canterville Ghost (1966)

ABC, 1966

Starring Sir Michael Redgrave, Tippy Walker, Peter Noone, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

Directed by John Robins

Music by Jerry Bock; Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick

The Oscar Wilde short story The Canterville Ghost has been adapted for television almost since the medium began, but this was the first musical version. ABC Stage 67 was their attempt to revive the anthology format that had been so successful in the 50's. It didn't take, but the show did produce four hour-long musicals. We've already seen one, the supremely strange Stephen Sondheim horror show Evening Primrose. Is this one just as good...and weird? Let's begin with Lord Canterville showing Mr. Otis (Fairbanks Jr.), the American ambassador, and his wife (Natalie Schafer) and children a beautiful old English manor and find out...

The Story: When Mr. Otis buys Canterville Manor, he also picks up a genuine ghost. Sir Simon Canterville (Redgrave) has haunted the halls for four hundred years, and is very upset when Mr. and Mrs. Otis and their sons Matthew (Mark Colleano) and Mark (David Charkham) refuse to believe in him. Their daughter Virginia (Walker) and her sweetheart Duke David of Cheshire (Noone) do believe, and she's genuinely concerned about the ghost. Sir Simon first tries to scare them away...but then Virginia discovers his hiding place and why he's haunted the house for so long...

The Song and Dance: Surprisingly sweet comedy actually does a really good job updating the original short story. It's actually pretty accurate, other than adding Noone as Virginia's laid-back nobleman boyfriend to sing ballads. Redgrave gives Sir Simon a great deal of gravity and even a note of humor that makes you understand why Virginia finds him so fascinating. The Harnick-Bock score is really cute, too, including the three parodies of TV jingles (which, amazingly enough, also come from the original book). Love the filming in a real British manor house, too. Thank goodness the color exists for this one, as it's exquisite, with the bright colors of the Otis' mid-60's wardrobes contrasting with the gray castle and Sir Simon's wispy pastels and grays. 

The Numbers: The opening number "Canterville Hall" sets up the premise as the servants explain the legend of the Hall and the ghosts to the Otises. Mrs. Otis doesn't take the stain that keeps reappearing seriously. A little "Undertow" cleaner will remove that. "I Worry" is Virginia's song as she admits that she's concerned about pretty much everything that goes on around her, while David reminds her that she won't get a kiss from him "If You Never Try." 

"Rattletrap" is another singing ad, this time from Mr. Otis as he oils a squeaking door. Sir Simon is more interested in getting "Vengeance" against this tacky and non-believing family. All David can tell Virginia when she asks for him to talk romance to her is "You're Super." "Overhead" is another jingle parody, this time from Virginia. The lovely "Peace" is the writing on the tomb of Sir Simon's wife, which they sing together.

What I Don't Like: This is pretty typical of TV programs at the time. Noone was clearly added for the teen market, as his role is basically to sing ballads with the daughter and not do much else. Wispy Walker is a bit spacey as the teen who actually does believe in Sir Simon. As a TV production, some of the special effects, particularly the ghost moving around, can occasionally look chintzy. 

The Big Finale: Charming horror comedy features terrific music and a lovely performance by Redgrave and definitely deserves to be better-known.

Home Media: To my knowledge, the only way to see this one is on YouTube and the Internet Archive. The YouTube version comes complete with the original commercials for Singer sewing machines and Burlington Industries.

YouTube

Internet Archive