The Jazz Singer (1927)

Warner Bros, 1927

Starring Al Jolson, May McAvoy, Warner Oland, and Eugenie Besserer

Directed by Alan Crosland

Music and Lyrics by various

Come with me this week, and explore the very first musicals on the silver screen. Experiments with melding film and sound go back almost to the dawn of cinema, but they weren't well-received until the 1920's. Warner Brothers took a chance on a series of sound short subjects. When those were successful, they added background scores and sound effects to feature-length films, using their Vitaphone process where the sound is recorded on a record, then played with the movie. This would be one of the first feature-length films with actual dialogue. Jolson wasn't the first choice for this tale of how a Jewish performer reconciles his culture and his love of popular music, but it's hard to see anyone else in this now. How does this look almost 100 years later? Let's begin with silent title cards explaining the central dilemma and find out...

The Story: Thirteen-year-old Jakie Robinwitz (Bobby Gordon) runs away when his strict orthodox cantor father (Oland) forbids him from singing popular music in beer gardens. Over a decade later, he's now Jack Robin (Al Jolson), a singer in local cafes. He's discovered by dancer Mary Dale (McAvoy), who insists on him appearing in the show where she's currently working, April Follies. He's a big hit, prompting him to return to his mother...but his father still disdains his singing "jazz" music. It isn't until his father's dying that Jack realizes where he belongs, and that he can be wholly Jewish and revel in his own kind of music, too.

The Song and Dance: The roots of The Jazz Singer go far deeper than it being one of the catalysts for getting dialogue on the big screen. You can see the foundation for everything from big star dramas like the many versions of A Star Is Born to biographies like last week's I Saw the Light in an embryonic form here. No wonder most critics praised Jolson's performance. While he's no actor, he is a personality. The screen lights up whenever he's there. The "Blue Skies" sequence, where he sings the Irving Berlin standard to his delighted mother, and the infamous "You ain't seen nothin' yet!" number near the end may be the best examples of his considerable talent. 

The Numbers: We open 13-year-old Jakie Robinwitz (Bobby Gordon) singing "Waiting for the Robert E. Lee" and "My Gal Sal," at the beer hall. The numbers so horrify the head of the temple's council (Otto Lederer) that he tells Jakie's parents what he's doing. The traditional Jewish song "Kol Nidre" is performed twice, by Cantor Rabinowitz (dubbed by a real Cantor, Rosenblatt) when he realizes he's lost his son, and later by Jakie when he realizes how much his religion is a part of his life. 

"Dirty Hands, Dirty Face" is his big number in the nightclub. The teary ballad prompts Mary to call him one of the few jazz singers who can elicit a tear along with a sigh. He's even more dynamic on his next number, leaping into "Toot Toot Tootsie Goodbye" with relish. The sequence where he talks to his mother while singing the Irving Berlin standard "Blue Skies" is likely the most famous now as the first dialogue sequence. He sings "Mother of Mine, I Still Have You" at the dress rehearsal and "My Mammy" at the actual performance in the Winter Garden.

Trivia: Jolson wasn't the studio's original choice for Jakie. The part was intended for the star of the original Broadway play George Jessel, but he wanted too much money and Jolson stepped in.

That's the real Winter Garden Jakie performs at during the finale. The Winter Garden still very much exists today, and in fact briefly became a movie theater shortly after this movie debuted. A revival of Mamma Mia! will be opening there this fall.

What I Don't Like: For all its influence, the melodramatic story hasn't really dated well at all. All of the actors pale besides Jolson and Oland as his strict father. Besserer doesn't have much to do besides look maternal (other than her slightly forced dialogue during the "Blue Skies" sequence), and McAvoy has even less as the lady who helps Jack become a success. It can all be a bit too much for many modern audiences, who may wonder what the fuss was about. 

There's also Jolson performing in blackface to contend with. Yes, it's history, it's part of Jolson's act, and it goes back to his days playing with minstrel troupes. That doesn't make it any easier to take for audiences today.

The Big Finale: No matter how dated this is or isn't, it's still history. Necessary viewing for cinema historians, musical fans, and major fans of Jolson and early talkie musicals.

Home Media: Easily found in all formats, including Tubi for free with commercials. The DVD is a three-disc set that also includes many sound shorts of the era. 

DVD

Blu-Ray

Tubi

Annie Get Your Gun (1950)

MGM, 1950

Starring Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Keenan Wynn, and Louis Calhern

Directed by George Sidney

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

Let's start the week of the 4th of July by celebrating some real-life American legends. Annie Oakley was a real person who toured the world with her rival, and then husband, Frank Butler doing trick shots in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. MGM bought the rights to the hit Broadway musical as soon as it's run ended.

The filming was anything but smooth. The original Annie, Judy Garland, was suffering from exhaustion an dealing with her drug problems and was eventually replaced by brash Hutton. They went through three directors and two Buffalo Bills after the first actor in the role, Frank Morgan, died shortly after filming began. For all that, how did the story of Annie, Frank, and their contemptuous relationship come off today? Let's begin with the arrival of Buffalo Bill's (Calhoun) Wild West Show to a small town in Ohio and find out...

The Story: Annie Oakley (Hutton) is the best shot in all of Ohio. She's so good, she accidentally shoots the bird off the hat belonging to Dolly Tate (Benay Venuta), one of the female performers in the Wild West Show. Manager Charlie Davenport (Wynn) offers her $5 to beat the show's major star Frank Butler (Keel) at a marksmanship competition. 

When Annie beats him hands down, Davenport and Butler convince her to audition for the Wild West Show. She's an unqualified success, and Frank is smitten...at least until Annie's star eclipses his own. He ends up joining Pawnee Bill's (Edward Arnold) show when he sees Annie's increasing popularity. 

Buffalo Bill's show tours Europe, and Annie is a smash with all the heads of state. She's even adopted into Chief Sitting Bull's (J. Carrol Naish) tribe. Frank's not as impressed and challenges her to another shooting competition. Annie's ready to beat him again, until Sitting Bull reminds her that "you can't get a man with a gun," or a relationship without sacrifice. 

The Song and Dance: For all the trouble they had making this movie, it didn't turn out too badly. I actually think charming Calhoun works out better as Buffalo Bill than blustery Morgan would have anyway. You believe Calhoun would go out and shoot buffalo and tame the west. Keel makes a smashing debut as Butler, equally believable singing and as the tough marksman who finds himself falling for the backwoods gal. 

The costumes in particular are gorgeous, from the ruffly dresses and ribbon-trimmed hats for the ladies who crowd around Frank in the opening to Annie's scarlet gown worn at the reception in England. Sidney does pretty well for someone who was brought in at the last moment to replace Busby Berkeley, especially with more intimate numbers like "They Say It's Wonderful" and the hilarious "Anything You Can Do." 

Favorite Number: We open with Dolly, Frank, and Charlie explaining how "Colonel Buffalo Bill" tamed the west and got their show together. Annie and her siblings explain how she's such a good shot in "Doin' What Comes Naturally." Frank tells Annie that "The Girl That I Marry" will be a dainty lady who will be pretty in his arms. Annie realizes after he leaves that "You Can't Get a Man With a Gun." 

Charlie, Buffalo Bill, and Frank tell Annie that "There's No Business Like Show Business" when she hesitates on joining the Wild West Show. We hear this famous anthem twice more, when Annie sees herself solo on the posters for the first time, and in the big finale as the two shows come together. She and Frank admit "They Say It's Wonderful" to fall in love, while Frank tells the men at the show that "My Defences are Down." "I'm an Indian Too" is the exhausting ritual that brings Annie into the Native tribe...or would, if she didn't try to hide from them! She exuberantly performs "I've Got the Sun In the Morning" for the heads of state in England. After challenging her to another marksmanship competition, Annie claims "Anything You Can Do," she can do, too, though Frank doesn't buy it.

Trivia: Judy Garland filmed "Doin' What Comes Naturally" and "I'm an Indian Too" before she was dropped from the production. They still exist and can be found on the DVD and Blu-Ray, along with a cut Hutton number, "Let's Go West Again." 

The original Broadway cast of Annie Get Your Gun in 1946 featured Ethel Merman in the title role and Ray Middleton as Frank. It was a smash hit, running over four years. There would be two short-lived revivals in 1958 and 1966, the latter featuring Merman. The heavily revised 1999 Broadway revival with Bernadette Peters and Tom Wopat also ran for four years, nearly as long as the original. It's been seen in London at least three times. The 1947 production with Dolores Gray outran the Broadway show, but three revivals were short-lived.

Annie made it to TV twice, in 1957 with Mary Martin, and in 1967 with Merman. Alas, the Merman version seems to be lost except for one clip and its audio. The Martin version does exist, and I'll likely cover it sometime later this year. 

Annie Oakley was a sharp-shooter in the 1880's and 1890's who did travel and perform with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. She did marry rival Frank Butler...but unlike what you see here, Frank knew his wife was the better shot and stepped down to manage her career. 

What I Don't Like: There's a reason the book for the 1999 revival was so heavily re-written. This show is neither good to its female characters, nor the Natives. In fact, one thing they got right in the 1999 revival was having Annie and Frank tie in that final match. It's more interesting and historically accurate. Hutton tries way too hard. Her belting and clowning works for comic numbers like "Indian Too" and "I've Got the Sun In the Morning," but her "Doin' What Comes Naturally" lacks intimacy, and she has no chemistry whatsoever with Keel except for when they're sparring in "Anything You Can Do." 

In the original show and 1999 revival, Dolly's sister Winnie and her boyfriend Tommy had a pair of major numbers that covered scene changes. They and their songs were deemed extraneous in 1950 and 1966 were deleted. Other songs that didn't make it into the film version include the ballad "I Got Lost In His Arms" for Annie, Frank's introductory number "I'm a Bad, Bad Man," and Annie's "Moonshine Lullaby" that she sings to her siblings on the train. Surprised they didn't retain at least the lovely "Lost In His Arms," which would have been gorgeous on Hutton and Garland. 

The Big Finale: Even with the multitude of problems and dated script, this is still worth checking out for fans of Berlin, Hutton, Keel, or the big MGM musicals of the 40's and 50's. 

Home Media: Legal troubles kept this off home media until the 1999 revival's overwhelming success prompted Warner Bros to finally release it in 2000. It's currently disc-only from the Warner Archives.

DVD

DVD - Silver Screen Icons: Broadway Musicals

Blu-Ray

Cult Flops - There's No Business Like Show Business

20th Century Fox, 1954

Starring Ethel Merman, Dan Dailey, Donald O'Connor, and Marilyn Monroe

Directed by Walter Lang

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

This was intended to be the biggest musical Fox ever made in every sense of the word. It's six main stars came from every corner of show business. Ethel Merman was one of the biggest stars on Broadway. Dan Dailey and Donald O'Connor were movie musical veterans. Johnnie Ray was a massively popular singer known for his emphasis on rhythm and blues and dark ballads a few years before rock really started. Do they all work together in this lavish cavalcade of Irving Berlin hits, or should this family be separated for good? Let's start at the height of vaudeville's popularity in 1919, as married act the Donahues have just added another member...

The Story: Molly (Merman) and Terry (Dailey) Donahue are show business troopers through and through, even raising their children to be part of the act. Though the children attend Catholic school, they eventually rejoin the act after high school as The Five Donahues. Even as the act expands, vaudeville contracts. Sound movies and radio cuts into their business, and then the Depression hits. 

Having their grown children in the act is good for business, but they don't remain there for long. Gentle pianist Steve (Johnnie Ray) joins the priesthood. Vivacious daughter Katie (Mitzi Gaynor) marries handsome lyricist Charlie Gibbs (Hugh O'Brian). Wayward oldest son Tim (O'Connor) pursues gorgeous dancer Vicky Parker (Monroe), but disappears when she's tired of him complaining about her career. Molly never trusted the sensuous Vicky and blames her for Tim running off. It seems that Tim is gone for good and The Five Donahues have gone the way of vaudeville, until the Hippodrome Theater in New York has one last benefit, bringing all the Donahues together one last time.

The Song and Dance: This is as big as a musical could get in the mid-50's. Huge numbers that fill a wide Cinemascope frame, gorgeous Oscar-nominated costumes, a cast of thousands, vibrant DeLuxe Color, an expansive story that covers pretty much all of popular culture from 1919 to 1939. Dailey puts in one of his best performances as the roguish father who will do anything for his family, and Merman also does well as his strong-willed wife. O'Connor would later call this his favorite of his films, and he certainly runs with the opportunity to play a character that's slightly darker than usual for him, including one of his best numbers with the statues. Gaynor is so charming when she is seen, I wish she had more to do.

Favorite Number: We open with the Donahue parents performing "When the Midnight Choo Choo Leaves for Alabam'" in vaudeville. It does give us a good idea of what a typical couple number was like, including them ending up as the front and back half of a train. Katie and Tim reprise it hilariously at Steve's party before he joins the seminary, complete with the same costumes and them as two halves of a train. "Play a Simple Melody" begins with Molly in old-fashioned hoop skirts and bloomers and Terry in stripes playing ragtime as they sing one of Berlin's signature two melodies at once, with Molly preferring old-fashioned ballads and Tim wanting something a little jazzier. "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" has a blonde Molly competing with a bevy of glittering chorus girls for Tim's attention.

The act breaks up briefly, with Merman performing "Let's Have Another Cup of Coffee" on the radio, and Dailey turning "You'd Be Surprised" into a girlie burlesque act. "Alexander's Ragtime Band" turns into a massive chorus routine when all the Donahues join in. Molly and Terry do a German dance in bright peasant costumes. Tim dons a kilt for a Scottish highland dance, while Katie joins the boys for a French can can, and Steve simply plays and sings it on the piano. Monroe's introduced in a barely-there glittering white gown with enormous feathers in her head for "After You Get What You Want, You Don't Want It Anymore." The chorus gets "Remember" at that party for Steve. He also gets to sing the ballad "If You Believe." 

Molly may not be happy that she lost the number (in the film or real-life), but Vicky sizzles in "Heat Wave," with its straight-legged dances and brilliant pinks and blacks. Vicky only sings "A Man Chases a Girl Until She Catches Him" off-camera, but it's enough to inspire Tim to do an amazing dance with moving statues around a moonlit park. Tim and Katie literally dances rings around Vicky, who would rather linger and be "Lazy" on a chaise lounge. Katie and Molly liven things up as sea salts in the city who claim "A Sailor's Not a Sailor ('Til a Sailor's Been Tattooed)." The movie ends with all of the principals, including Vicky, joining for a massive version of the title number, literally performed on a pedestal as dancers in colorful costumes representing different aspects of show business flitter around them.

Trivia: This was also Oscar-nominated for Best Score and Best Story. 

Berlin's second-to-last full film musical (White Christmas, released later that year, would be the last). 

Monroe initially refused to do this movie, but Fox promised her the lead role in The Seven Year Itch and a pay increase of $3,000 a week. They also gave at least two numbers planned for Merman to her, including "Heat Wave." 

What I Don't Like: The story is the same domestic melodrama Fox had been serving up in its musicals going back to their 1938 Alexander's Ragtime Band. It feels like they tried to throw every possible cliche in, including Ray joining the priesthood. Speaking of Ray, while he's not quite as terrible as critics claimed at the time, he's not great, either. His performance is stiff as a board, which is likely why he doesn't have much to do besides sing, look concerned, and perform the marriage ceremony for Katie and her beau. No wonder this would be his only film appearance. 

Monroe's not a whole lot better. It's obvious that, other than her numbers, she didn't want to be here and wasn't interested in any of this. She has no chemistry with the vibrant O'Connor, whom she seems to treat more like a kid brother than a lover. It also has the same problem with historical accuracy as Alexander's Ragtime Band. After they get out of the 1910's around the twenty minute mark, it looks like the 50's for the rest of the film. 

The Big Finale: Not the best musical Fox put out, but the numbers are good enough for me to recommend this for major fans of the cast or the big, bold musicals of the 50's and 60's. 

Home Media: Easily found in all formats.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Amazon Prime

Alexander's Ragtime Band

20th Century Fox, 1938

Starring Alice Faye, Tyrone Power, Don Ameche, and Ethel Merman

Directed by Henry King

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

By the time this came out, Faye was one of Fox's biggest stars. She had just made the semi-musical disaster film In Old Chicago with Power and Ameche, which was a huge hit. This one would be even bigger, Fox's biggest hit of the 1930's. Berlin himself wrote the story of how popular music changed in the years between the debut of his 1911 title song and 1938. In many ways, it also parallels Faye's career and how she went from platinum blonde Jean Harlow imitation to a warm honey-haired beauty who had a way with a ballad. How well does it look today? Let's begin in 1911, as Alexander (Power) plays classic music at a concert and find out...

The Story: What Alexander really wants to do is start his own band. He and his boys barely managed to get a job at a small-time club when another group quits. They grab the first sheet music they can find to play, which turns out to be a number that blowsy singer Stella Kirby (Faye) had been trying to push on the owner. She eventually joins them in the song, and later in the band. 

Alexander cleans up her low-down image as they go on to bigger and better clubs. Despite her initial resistance, she and Alexander end up falling in love. They're playing at the Cliff House when they try to get an audition with big-time New York producer Charles Dillingham. Turns out he only wants Stella. Alexander's angry and disappointed, but she does take the offer.

That's far from his only problem. The band breaks up when they're all drafted into World War I. Alexander does manage to put on a show for the Army that's a big hit, enough for the band to get back together after the Armistice. Their new singer is brash Jerrie (Merman), who not only lends her own unique sound to the Band, she falls for Alexander, too. Alexander, however, has never forgotten Stella, even though she's now a huge star on Broadway and is in love with former bandmate Charlie Dwyler (Ameche). Jerrie and the rest of the bad figure it's high time they brought Stella back into the fold, just in time for a huge jazz performance at Carnegie Hall.

The Song and Dance: It's the music and the cast who largely carry the day here. Faye and Merman may have opposing styles, but they both do equally well as the tough singer who starts as a floozy and ends up a star and the brassy belter who also loves Alexander...but understands better than him who he really cares about. Ameche is charming as the songwriter for the band who at least temporarily gets Stella, and Jack Haley gets a few good gags as a member of the band who keeps flirting with the same girl (Ruth Terry) for two decades. Fox spared no expense on the production, with gorgeous gowns for the ladies and spectacular recreations of San Francisco and New York  in the 1910's and 20's. 

Favorite Number: We kick off with the title song, played by Alexander at his band at that low-down bar. They start out playing it as a quieter parlor ballad, but by the time Faye kicks in with the lyrics, it's now the lively ragtime dance tune it was meant to be. We also get "Ragtime Violin," performed by members of the band. Stella defies Alexander and goes out dressed the way she wants for "International Rag." She does finally start to change her look for "This Is the Life."  Dancers Wally Vernon and Dixie Dunbar get a great duo ballroom routine here. 

Our first of two new songs is the ballad "Now It Can Be Told." Charlie first sings this for Stella after he's written it. She's so impressed, she brings it to the band, who perform it at the Cliff House this very night. Stella does "When the Midnight Choo Choo Leaves for Alabam'" so well, it sells Dillingham on her. A man at the recruiting station brings in the Band with "For Your Country and My Country." Jack Haley gets to sing "Oh How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning," the song Berlin himself introduced in the original Yip, Yip, Yaphank on Broadway in 1917. We also get two more authentic Great War era chorus numbers, "We're On Our Way to France" and "I Can Always Find a Little Sunshine at the W.M.C.A."

Jerrie first sings "Say It With Music" and "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" when she's trying to convince Alexander to give her a chance. She and Stella do sing "Blue Skies" together, but Stella never gets to Alexander. The next montage takes us through the 20's, with Jerrie getting the big chorus number "Pack Up Your Sins and Go to the Devil" and the new "My Walking Stick" and Stella performing "Everybody Step" and the darker laments "Remember" and "All Alone." We get a montage of Berlin favorites at Carnegie Hall. Charlie joins the female chorus for "Easter Parade," Merman blares "Heat Wave," and the chorus gets "Marie."

Trivia: Three numbers were cut from the final film. Merman had a second big number in the Carnegie Hall finale "Marching Through Time," Ameche  had "Some Sunny Day," and Haley had a second comedy number with Wally Vernon and another dancer, "In My Harem." All exist and are included on the DVD. 

Not only was this 20th Century Fox's biggest hit film of the 30's, it was the top hit of 1938. 

John Carradine can be spotted near the end as the taxi driver who takes Stella to Carnegie Hall. 

It was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Song ("Now It Can Be Told"), but only took home Best Scoring. 

The Cliff House was a real restaurant in San Francisco. It was rebuilt twice before the third version the band plays at opened in 1909. The restaurant closed in 2021, but the building still exists, and the exteriors look pretty much the same as they do in the movie.

What I Don't Like: When was this set again? It's historically accurate only for the first 20 minutes. Once the band starts getting popular, any attempt at history flies out the door of the Cliff House. After World War I, it looks like 1938 for the rest of the film. They don't even attempt to age the characters. You'd never know time passed at all if people didn't say it did. 

No matter how much Fox kept throwing him into them, Power never was comfortable in musicals. He's far stiffer here than either of his leading ladies. I suspect he'd be much happier with a sword than a baton. Haley and Ameche are far more at ease than he is. 

The Big Finale: If you love Faye, Merman, or Berlin, this lively look at some of his most popular songs is highly recommended. 

Home Media: It can only be found streaming at Vudu Fandango, but the DVD is readily available. 

DVD

Vudu Fandango 

Second Fiddle

20th Century Fox, 1939

Starring Sonja Henie, Tyrone Power, Edna May Oliver, and Rudy Vallee

Directed by Sidney Lanfield

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

By 1939, Henie's films were among the top box-office draws in the world, but she was hardly the only major story in Hollywood. From the moment it was optioned as a movie to the beginning of filming in 1938, most of the talk at the studios revolved around who would play the coveted role of Scarlet O'Hara in David O. Selznick's epic adaptation of the blockbuster novel Gone With the Wind. Almost every actress in Hollywood practically threw themselves at Selznick for a chance to audition. Given what a big deal this was at the time, it was likely inevitable that at least one musical would send up the chaos. How does the story of how a press agent falls for the Minnesota teacher he discovers look today? Let's begin with the search for an actress to play "The Girl of the North" and find out...

The Story: Consolidated Pictures has tried for months to find the right actress to portray that coveted role. Jimmy Sutton (Power) is sent to Bergen, Minnesota interview candidate 436, elementary school teacher Trudi Hovland (Henie). Trudi's shocked when they claim they want her. Turns out her boyfriend Willie Hogger (Lyle Talbot) sent in her photo and paperwork, thinking she'd be perfect. Jimmy convinces her and her Aunt Phoebe (Oliver) to give the audition a shot.

Trudi aces the audition. Public relations chief George "Whit" Whitney (Alan Dinehart) thinks she's perfect. Now he wants Jimmy to work on the reputation of his newest star, singer Roger Maxwell (Vallee). Jimmy cooks up a fake romance between Roger and Trudi, to the annoyance of Roger's actual girlfriend Jean (Mary Healy). Thanks to all the love letters Jimmy sends that are supposed to be from Roger and the hit song he writes, Trudi thinks Roger really is in love with her. Jimmy, however, is the one who is really in love, and he's the one who needs to bring her back when she returns home after she discovers the deception.

The Song and Dance: Some decent writing and an amusing and then-topical story puts this one far and above Happy Landing. Oliver steals the show as Phoebe's tough aunt, who hits it off with Jimmy as much as her niece does and gets some of the best lines. They have by far the film's funniest scene when they get drunk on champagne together and toss every glass in the hotel room into the fire. Dineheart also has a few good moments as Jimmy's even tougher boss. Some of the Hollywood satire still lands, especially in the first half when they're desperately searching for that elusive "Girl of the North." 

Favorite Number: Oddly, our first number features not Henie, but Vallee, who croons about "An Old-Fashioned Tune" on a giant song sheet while singers in historical costumes sing on the notes under him. We first meet Henie teaching her pupils, including the Brian Sisters, "The Song of the Metronome." She and the kids get an adorable instrumental number on ice as she teaches them how to skate and Jimmy tries to join her. "Back to Back" is a goofy chorus routine sung by Healy as she encourages everyone to dance with their backs to each other. Healy also gets the more typical ballad "I'm Sorry for Myself."

"When Winter Comes" is prompted by Trudi when she admits that she misses snowy Minnesota. Russell sings about the delights of snow and ice, leading Trudi to imagine his pool as an ice rink and her gliding with a handsome partner (Stewart Reburn). "I Poured My Heart Into a Song" is the number Jimmy wrote and said was from Russell, and indeed Vallee does get to perform the charming ballad. Trudi gets one last instrumental solo, skating and spinning on the ice on her own in Minnesota as Jimmy arrives to bring her back.

Trivia: "I Poured My Heart Into a Song" was Oscar-nominated, but lost to "Over the Rainbow." 

What I Don't Like: Power and Henie don't have much more chemistry here than they did in Thin Ice two years earlier. He does better and has more fun with Oliver than with her. As cute as the story is, it's also cliches of the highest order. It gets so bogged down in Trudi's romance, you really don't really get to see them filming "Girl of the North," or much of any filming at all. And while Berlin's songs are lovely, "Poured My Heart Into a Song" aside, they're far from his best.

The Big Finale - The score and cute Hollywood satire makes this one of Henie's better films. Worth checking out if you love Henie, Berlin, or musicals set in Tinseltown.

Home Media: Surprisingly, not currently on legitimate DVD in the US. I ran into a copy on YouTube with Spanish subtitles. 

YouTube

Election Day Special - Louisiana Purchase

Paramount, 1941

Starring Bob Hope, Vera Zorina, Victor Moore, and Irene Bordoni

Directed by Irving Cummings

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

While you wait for the election results to come in, here's a hilarious political satire to check out. Louisiana Purchase started life as a Broadway show the year before. This spoof of political corruption in general and the state of Louisiana dropping Huey Long's Share the Wealth program and supporting the Franklin Roosevelt and his New Deal was a huge hit in New York, but does it still earn the vote with viewers today? Let's begin with Paramount's lawyer (Emory Parnell) as he and his secretary (Iris Meredith) and the chorus explain in song that this is a spoof and none of this really happened...maybe...and find out...

The Story: Three Louisiana House of Representative members have been using the federal funds for the Louisiana Purchase Company to furnish their lavish lifestyles. They're horrified when they learn that Senator Oliver P. Loganberry (Moore) is coming to conduct hearings into their corrupt activities. They force the fourth member, Jim Taylor (Hope), to lure Loganberry into a trap that'll let them blackmail him into dropping the matter. 

Taylor's friend Madame Bordelaise (Bordoni) suggests European beauty Marina Von Minden (Zorina), who is trying to earn enough money to bring her mother to the US, to be used as bait. She seduces him and gets him drunk, but then has second thoughts and claims she's his fiancee. Now Jim is really in the senatorial dog house...until he can filibuster for three days and keep Loganberry from making those changes to the legaslature!

The Song and Dance: Hope is backed by a great supporting cast in one of the rare Broadway adaptations of the 40's to be a fairly accurate adaptation of the original. It's so accurate, Bordoni, Zorina, and Moore repeat their original roles. Gorgeous production, too. It was his first color film, and Paramount really threw everything they had into it. We even get a fashion show mid-way through when Jim insists on showing off the latest fashions to impoverished Marina. Moore takes top honors as the rigid politician who is so into his job, he barely knows anything but what goes on at Capitol Hill. 

Probably the most famous moment from this today is Hope's filibuster in the end. It's hilarious, with him reading everything from Gone With the Wind to Goldilocks and the Three Bears to keep everyone from leaving. Hope has a great time with it, especially towards the end as it's becoming obvious Jim is burning out. 

Favorite Number: We open with the "Lawyer's Letter" and "It's New to Us," possibly the first and only time in film history that a musical began with a chorus routine that says "this is fiction, don't sue us." We don't get another number until nearly half-way in, but it's the sweet "You're Lonely and I'm Lonely" as Zorina begins to realize that Loganberry isn't really a bad guy. Beatrice (Dona Drake), one of Madame's girls, joins the chorus for the title song at the Mardi Gras parade. "Dance With Me Tonight at the Mardi Gras" says Zorina in a lavish ballet as she and dancer Charles Laskey pirouette around the ballroom. 

The film's best number was also its only hit on Broadway. "It's a Lovely Day Tomorrow" begins with black waiters cleaning up in the kitchen, singing about their hopes for a new day. Jim, stripped of his king's costume after Marina turns on him, sings along, but his heart isn't really in it. It's a simple but effective moment in an otherwise overstuffed movie.

Trivia: Gaxton, Moore's usual stage partner, played Hope's role on Broadway.

The Broadway show ran almost two years, not bad for the early 40's. It largely vanished until a concert version with the complete score played Carnegie Hall in 1996.

What I Don't Like: There's a reason this disappeared for fifty years. The political satire was amusing then, but largely hasn't dated well. I wish it was even more of a musical. There were more songs on Broadway that are only used as underscoring in the film. They could have gone a long way towards fleshing out other characters, like the corrupt senators and Beatrice. Zorina had at least one more ballet that gave her more opportunity to show off her real talents, too. She never was much of an actress. Berlin's songs are far from  his best, with only "Lovely Day Tomorrow" coming anywhere near his more famous work. 

The Big Finale: Mainly for major fans of Hope, Berlin, or big Technicolor 40's and 50's musicals. 

Home Media: DVD only as part of the Universal Vault Series.

DVD

Kid Millions

Samuel Goldwyn Productions/United Artists, 1934

Starring Eddie Cantor, Ethel Merman, Ann Southern, and Warren Hymer

Directed by Roy Del Ruth

Music and Lyrics by various

Cantor's vehicles became an annual event for moviegoers in the early 30's. Every year in November or December, they could count on seeing Cantor clowning and dodging the advances of a crusty comedienne,  doing a blackface routine or two while Busby Berkeley created incredible chorus routines around half-naked Goldwyn Girls. Berkeley moved to Warners after the success of 42nd Street in 1933. The Production Code went into effect earlier in 1934, and among the things it forbid was scanty costumes. 

Goldwyn had to find other diversions to pair with Cantor. He came up with a new Broadway comedienne who had just made a splash two years before and an improved three-strip Technicolor process. How does all this reflect on the story of a young man who is literally chased to Egypt and back to get a fortune? Let's begin as singer Dot Clark (Merman) learns about the death of her ex-boyfriend Professor Edward Wilson (Cantor) at the shop where she works and find out...

The Story: Professor Wilson wanted his son Eddie (Cantor) to inherit the 77 million dollar fortune he found in the pyramids of Egypt. Eddie lives with his abusive adoptive father (Jack Kennedy) and stepbrothers on a leaky barge in Brooklyn, watching over the children who also live there. He only agrees to go so he can marry his girl Toots (Nora Davenport). 

Turns out, he's not the only one who thinks he deserves a cut of that cash. Dot and her current boyfriend Louie (Warren Hymer) claim to be Eddie's mother and uncle and try to kill him. Colonel Harrison Larrabee (Berton Churchill) says his company financed Wilson's explorations and should get a cut, too. Wilson's assistant Jerry Lane (George Murphy) just wants to marry Larrabee's niece Joan (Sothern), but she's angry when he tells her the money belongs to Eddie. And then after Eddie inadvertently rescues the daughter (Eve Sully) of a shiek (Paul Harvey), it turns out the money really belongs to his ancestors, and he intends to kill the son of the man who stole it!

The Song and Dance: Cantor gets a better supporting cast and a terrific production backing him this time. He and Merman are hilarious together, especially on the ship when she plays leapfrog and tickles him in order to get him to sign over the money. Sothern and Murphy have slightly more to do than usual for the young lovers in Cantor's films. Hymer's hilarious as the gangster who just wants to bump Eddie off and get the dough, and Harvey is a riot as the shiek whose sense of humor overrides the fact that he actually thinks Eddie is a nice guy. The finale in the ice cream factory of Eddie's dream is gorgeous Technicolor in shades of sherbet and candy straight out of banana splits. 

Favorite Number: We open right with Merman performing "An Earful of Music" at a song sheet store, backed by a chorus of Goldwyn Girls. Cantor sings "When My Ship Comes In" for the kids on the barge, promising them a better life with free ice cream and no spinach. The Nicholas Brothers and Goldwyn Girls give us a huge minstrel show on the barge, singing "I Want to Be a Minstrel Man." Blackface-clad Eddie gets Irving Berlin's hit "Mandy," while Murphy woos Sothern in massive hoop skirts with "Your Head On My Shoulder." 

The Goldwyn Girls amuse Cantor, Harvey, and the sheik's audience with "The Harem Dance." Cantor sings "Ok, Toots" to explain why he's devoted to his girl. The movie ends in blazing Technicolor with "The Ice Cream Fantasy," as the Girls mix the flavors in Eddie's massive streamline factory and the kids wait impatiently to get in.

Trivia: The music for "I Want to Be a Minstrel Man" would be reused as "You're All the World to Me" in the 1951 MGM film Royal Wedding. 

Look for Lucille Ball among the Minstrel Show Goldwyn Girls. 

Cantor originally introduced "Mandy" in The Ziegfeld Follies of 1919. 

What I Don't Like: This may be the strangest Cantor movie yet. Nothing makes the tiniest bit of sense, including the Egyptian setting. The second half is awash in the goofiest Middle Eastern stereotypes I've ever seen, and there's Eddie's blackface during the "Mandy" minstrel number, too. The lavish ice cream number is nifty to look at to this day, but the choreography misses Berkeley's creative and outrageous touch. 

The Big Finale: Strange as the plot is, Cantor's antics and the nice supporting cast makes this one of his better vehicles. Highly recommended if you're a fan of him or the wacky comic musicals of the 30's and 40's. 

Home Media: Easily found on DVD from the Warner Archives and on streaming. Like many Goldwyn offerings, it's currently free with commercials at Tubi. 

DVD

Tubi

On the Avenue

20th Century Fox, 1937

Starring Dick Powell, Alice Faye, Madeline Carroll, and George Barbier 

Directed by Roy Del Ruth

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

The backstage craze set off by 42nd Street in 1933 continued throughout the 30's. Each studio attempted to outdo each other with increasingly elaborate dance numbers set to music by house songwriters. 20th Century Fox figured, if you can't beat them, join them. They brought in Powell and Del Ruth from Warners and hired no less than Irving Berlin to do the music in this clash between classes. How does the story of a rich girl who falls for a singer and playwright look today? Let's begin with the show-within-a-show and find out...

The Story: Mimi Carraway (Carroll), the richest girl in the world, is insulted by a skit in the show parodying her. She goes to the show's writer and star Gary Blake (Powell) to convince him to remove it, but he refuses. It's too popular. He eventually dumps her on the sidewalk instead. 

Shocked that anyone would insult her, she asks him on a date. By the end of a long night, they've fallen in love. That doesn't sit well with his co-star and current girlfriend Mona Merrick (Faye). He re-writes the sketch to make it less offensive, but she's so upset, she plays it as even more ridiculous. That once again leads Mimi to tell him off and return to her explorer fiancee (Alan Mowbray), at least until Mona tells her the truth. It's up to Mimi's sassy Aunt Fritz (Cora Witherspoon) to make sure the right man ends up with the right woman, no matter what side of the class divide they're on.

The Song and Dance: This one is all about the music. Irving Berlin wrote one of his best film scores here, with at least one standard in "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm." Powell gets slightly more to chew on than usual in his musicals as the downtown songwriter who comes to realize the folks who live on Park Avenue aren't as silly as he thought. Great supporting cast, too. George Barbier has a lot of fun chewing the scenery as Mimi's blustery explorer father, and Witherspoon livens up the second half as eccentric Aunt Fritz, who takes acrobatic lessons from a trapeze artist (Sig Ruman) and actually thinks the sketch in question is hilarious.

Favorite Number: We open on "He Ain't Got Rhythm," as dancing scientists and the Ritz Brothers wonder how they can jazz up their social lives and their scientific discoveries. (Listen for a bit of "Cheek to Cheek" mid-way through the number.) Gary recalls a gentler time of barbershop quartets and street cars as he recalls his search for "The Girl on the Police Gazette." Mona goes "Slumming on Park Avenue" in polka-dots and tight skirts that contrast with the elegant white-clad dancers swirling around her and her colorful friends. The Ritz Brothers get their most effective moment in the film parodying this with one in drag and them falling all around the complicated sliding set. 

He takes Mimi through the park, rebuking her for her icy-cold demeanor by telling her that "You're Laughing at Me." This is heard again towards the end in an almost identical number onstage that Mimi has paid actors walk out on to get revenge for the skit. Mona wishes she could get more than "This Year's Kisses" from Gary before a show. "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm" starts out as a fashion parade of women in fur coats and ends with Mona and Gary bickering after Mona sabotages the "Richest Girl In America" skit. 

Trivia: Remade as Let's Make Love in 1960 with Marilyn Monroe in Powell's role and Yves Montand in Carroll's. 

What I Don't Like: I'm not sure what Gary saw in Mimi. She behaved like a spoiled baby through most of the film. Frankly, I agree with Gary and Mona, especially since both versions of the skit provided some of the film's funniest moments. Carroll's defrosting ice queen is more believable early-on and when she's pulling her stunt with paying the audience to walk out than when she's falling for Gary. Wish we could have seen less of the non-singing Caroll and more of the far warmer and more interesting Alice Faye, who doesn't have much to do outside her numbers and talking to Mimi in the end. 

Let's discuss the Ritz Brothers. They were a popular comic trio in 20th Century Fox comedies of the late 30's and early 40's, but nowadays, their jokes tend to be more hit-and-miss with audiences. I think a lot of it has to do with their not developing any individual personalities like The Three Stooges or The Marx Brothers that would distinguish them for modern audiences. Not to mention, a lot of their humor is based on goofy puns and slapstick that hasn't dated well. They can come off as dull or dumb rather than funny. 

The Big Finale: Worth checking out for the numbers alone if you're a big fan of Powell, Faye, or the big backstage musicals of the 1930's. 

Home Media: Not currently on streaming, but the original Marquis Musicals and 2018 Cinema Archives  DVDs are easily found and readily available. 

DVD - Marquis Musicals

DVD - Cinema Archives

Cult Flops - Glorifying the American Girl

Paramount, 1929

Starring Mary Eaton, Dan Healy, Edward Crandall, and Sarah Edwards

Directed by John W. Harkrider and Millard Webb

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin and others

Of course, operettas were far from the only - or the most popular - musical genre during the it's first flush of popularity in 1929-1930. Backstage films, which had existed even in the silent era, really exploded in 1929. Every studio rushed to make use of the new medium with tons of songs, dances, and acres of girls in plumed headgear and skimpy sequined costumes. Paramount and a cash-strapped Ziegfeld had been trying to get this one off the ground since 1928 By the time they settled on this mish-mash of cliches, it had been switched to all-talking. How does the story of a shop girl who learns how tough it can be to get "glorified" look almost a century later? Let's start with a nifty montage of women traveling across the country to New York to become the next Ziegfeld Girl and find out...

The Story: Gloria (Eaton) is a shop girl peddling sheet music in a department store who wants nothing more than to become the next big dancing star. Enter Danny Miller (Healy), half of a vaudeville dance team who just broke up with his partner. He meets Gloria at an employee picnic and, after doing a tap routine with her, convinces her to be his partner. She leaves behind her boyfriend Buddy (Crandall) and best friend Barbara (Olive Shea) to follow him to New York, only to discover that his real interest in her lays more in casting couches than her talent. Her conniving mother (Edwards) convinces her to sign a five-year-contract with him anyway. She does manage to get out of it, and even audition for the Follies...but she loses her Buddy in the process.

The Song and Dance: For all the elaborate dance routines and Two-Strip Technicolor, this is a pretty damn depressing movie, especially in the first half. It's surprisingly dark for the era, with it's small-time characters and low-down numbers contrasted with the more glamorous Ziegfeld image Gloria wanted so much to be a part of. It being filmed at Paramount's Astoria studios in Queens means there's a lot of location shooting at authentic New York landmarks, including Grand Central Station and on Broadway.

The second half is a lot more interesting. The Technicolor is a bit grainy, but it still adds a lot of spark to the Follies scenes. At the very least, it's easier to tell who everyone is in color. "The Lorelei" sequence, with dozens of actors (including Johnny Weissmuller) flitting about in various states of undress, is a lot easier to take and a bit less static in color, too. There's also Eddie Cantor's non-musical tailor skit. Other than a few Jewish stereotypes that may offend some folks, it mostly works pretty well today.

Favorite Number: The opening montage, set to "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody," really is nifty, with young women from all walks off life coming across a map of the US and dreaming of becoming a glamorous showgirl in feathers and ruffles. Gloria tells everyone how there's "No Foolin'" about what she wants as she sells sheet music to department store customers. One puts in a request for "Baby Face," which she gives him cheekily. Danny Miller and his partner Mooney (Kaye Renard) sing about "Spooning With the One You Love" at the company picnic, but they aren't feeling very romantic and spend the number arguing. Healy and Eaton do better with their tap routines to "Sam the Old Accordion  Man" at the picnic after Mooney stomps off and "Hot Feet" at the vaudeville house.

The film ends with those Technicolor Follies revue sequences. Eaton performs an elaborate ballet, flitting among showgirls in feathered animal costumes in a tutu. Rudy Vallee performs his signature "I'm a Vagabond Lover" with his orchestra. Helen Morgan comes off far better with her impassioned "What I Wouldn't Do for That Man!" Eaton finishes the film with the sad and bluesy "There Must Be Someone Waiting for Me In Loveland" while surrounded by showgirls in the most amazing glitter-and-feather costumes and headdresses. 

Trivia: Among the many real-life celebrities seen at the Ziegfeld Follies premiere are Noah Beery, then real-life New York mayor Jimmy Walker, Irving Berlin, producer Charles B. Dillingham, nightclub hostess Texas Guinan, and Ring Lardner. 

The most expensive movie made on the east coast at that time, it wound up being too costly to earn its money back and was a fair-sized flop for Paramount.

What I Don't Like: Edwards is the only member of the cast who makes even the least bit of an impression as Gloria's conniving, manipulative stage mother. Everyone else is either bland (Shea and Crandall) or obnoxious (Healy). Eaton tries hard, but other than showing a little spunk at her Ziegfeld audition, she mostly comes off as dull and vapid. No one is especially likable, not even Gloria, making it hard for you to root for her rise to the top the way you should. 

The plot is supreme melodrama of the most annoying and cliched type, and it contrasts badly with the glamorous Follies in the finale. Most current copies of the film don't include the color sequences or run them edited and in black and white. For the love of heaven, find those color sequences. The black and white copies look and sound terrible, tinny and blurry. The color, while not perfect, is still better than the black and white TV prints.

The Big Finale: Too dull to be for anyone but film historians or major fans of the movies made during the early talkie era. 

Home Media: If you're really interested in seeing this, look for the DVD or Blu-Ray Kino Lorber released in 2019 with the original blue tint and color sequences fully intact. The thorough bonus features alone make it worth checking out. All prints streaming online, including the one for free at Tubi, are the black-and-white TV versions.

DVD

Blu-Ray

Tubi

Election Day Special - Call Me Madam

20th Century Fox, 1953

Starring Ethel Merman, Donald O'Connor, Vera-Ellen, and George Saunders

Directed by Walter Lang

Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

While you wait for the returns to come in, here's a lively political tale to check out. This is one of only two times Merman got to recreate one of her Broadway roles on film. (The other is the rarely-seen 1936 version of Anything Goes.) Even Hollywood had to admit that no one else could get away with playing Mrs. Sally Adams, a widow who becomes the ambassador for a tiny European principality, with quite the same relish. How does she do alongside smooth Sanders and sweet O'Connor? Let's start in Washington DC, as Sally is being sworn in, and find out...

The Story: Sally's political connections gets her the job as the ambassador to tiny Litchenburg in Europe, even though she's the wealthy daughter of an Oklahoma oil driller who knows nothing about diplomacy. Kenneth Nelson (O'Connor), an out-of-work reporter, convinces her to bring him along as her press attache.

They arrive in Litchenburg to be greeted by the head of the Embassy Pemberton Maxwell (Billy De Wolfe), a fussy fellow who doesn't think much of Sally or her abilities. Prime Minister Sebastian (Steven Garay) and Grand Duke Otto (Ludwig Stossel) are hoping to get a huge loan from the US. They want Otto's niece Princess Maria (Vera-Ellen) to have a large enough dowry to marry Prince Hugo (Helmut Dantine). Foreign Minister Cosmo Constantine (George Saunders) would prefer his country to stay independent and self-sufficient...but the last thing he expected was to fall for Sally. Ken ends up in love with Maria as well, but she's still expected to go through with her political alliance.

The Song and Dance: This one is all about the numbers and a fairly unusual and then-topical story. Indeed, it's inspired by a real Washington hostess, Pearl Mesta, who was the ambassador to Luxembourg in the 1940's. Merman relishes her rare chance to be in the spotlight on film, not only clowning with O'Connor and doing some nice comedy bits with the stuffy ministers, but getting to play romance with smooth Saunders, too. O'Connor and Vera-Ellen are delightful as the younger lovers and DeWolfe has some funny bits as the head of the Embassy who thinks he knows everything about dealing with the locals. The colorful, Oscar-nominated costumes, in Washington and Litchenburg, add a great deal to the European charm-meets-American vivacity feel.

Favorite Number: We open with Merman explaining to the press how she got her new job - by being "The Hostess With the Mostess On the Ball." "It's a Lovely Day Today" is initially a cute duet for Maria and Kenneth when they meet in a department store. They later perform a gorgeous pas de deux to an instrumental version at the ball around a sparkling fountain. The day after the ball, O'Connor wonders why he feels like he does. Merman tells him "You're Just In Love" in what's probably this show's biggest hit. Maria joins the chorus for a colorful peasant dance at the fair to the melody of that most European of instruments, "The Octarina." Frustrated after Maria turns him down at the fair, Kenneth dances drunkenly around a beer garden - and nearly destroys the place - wondering "What Chance Have I With Love?" 

Trivia: Call Me Madam debuted on Broadway in 1950, with Russell Nype as Kenneth, Paul Lukas as Cosmo, and Galina Talva as Maria. It was a huge hit that ran almost three years, with Merman playing the whole run. It also did fairly well on the West End for such a red-blooded American show, running a year and a half with Billie Worth as Sally Adams. Interestingly, though it was revived briefly in London in 1983, the only time it's been seen in New York since it's initial run was in two (admittedly well-received) off-Broadway Encores! concerts in 1995 and 2019. 

What I Don't Like: Part of the reason it's now rarely seen on major stages is the story hasn't dated that well. Nowadays, I doubt any country in Europe would be asking for a loan - or anything else - from the US, and a lot of those peasant costumes and weird accents could be seen as European stereotypes. And why is Maria and Kenneth's second big duet, "Something to Dance About," set in a dark passage? It's too dreary a setting for the delightfully cheerful choreography.

The Big Finale: Dated story aside, if you love Merman, O'Connor, or Vera-Ellen or are a fan of the big Broadway adaptations of the 50's and 60's, you'll want to look out for this one.

Home Media: Unavailable on video and hard to find for years, it was finally released on DVD in 2004...which, at press time, is still the only way you can see this one.

DVD

Cult Flops - Carefree

RKO, 1938
Starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Ralph Bellamy, and Luella Gear
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

By the late 30's, Rogers had become one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, as adept with drama as she was with comedy. This began to seep into her vehicles with Astaire in this screwball comedy about a psychiatrist who tries to convince a woman she isn't in love with him, then changes her mind back when he realizes that he loves her. How does this screwball comedy work out? Let's begin just outside of the office of psychoanalyst Dr. Tony Flagg (Astaire) as he's talking to one of his patients and find out...

The Story: Stephan Arden (Bellamy) has been drinking because his singer girlfriend Amanda Cooper (Rogers) keeps breaking their engagement. He enlists his psychiatrist Tony to try to get her to agree to marry him. Tony finally gets her to eat a huge meal and dream...but her dream is about dancing with Tony. Horrified when she realizes she's fallen in love with him, she makes up a wild dream instead that makes Tony and his colleague Dr. Powers (Walter Kingston) believe she got enough psychiatric problems to fill a mental institution. Tony gives her drugs to make her act on her impulses...which leads to her breaking windows, kicking cops, and insulting her sponsor on the air.

At a party the next evening, Amanda gets Tony to dance with her, but she can't get him to see her as more than a patient. When he does realize she's fallen for him, he hypnotizes her to believe she loves Stephan and hates him. Trouble is, now he's in love with her. Tony and his nurse Tom (Jack Carson) have to figure out how to stop Amanda and Stephan's wedding, before she marries the wrong man.

The Song and Dance: Rogers has a great deal of fun as the seeming sensible young woman who is really looking for someone a lot more elegant than her overbearing fiancee. She's especially fun after she's been drugged and has let go of her inhibitions. The look on her face when she kicks the cop is priceless. Luella Gear and Clarence Kolb have their own fun as Amanda's sassy aunt who helps pair Tony with her niece and the judge flummoxed by all the lunacy.

Favorite Number: Fred and Ginger get their first on-screen kiss in Amanda's dream world, dancing through their fantasies in "I Used to Be Color Blind." Tony does some fancy golf moves to show off in front of Amanda in "Since They Turned Loch Lomond to Swing." "The Yam" is the big Fred-Ginger dance number with the chorus as Amanda tries to get together with Fred at the party. Tony brings Amanda out to hypnotize her again and get her to "Change Partners" in a duet the night before the wedding.

Trivia: Fred filmed the "Loch Lomond" number three weeks before the rest of the movie began shooting.

"Change Partners" was nominated for an Oscar.

The film was a minor flop at the box office in 1938 and became the first Astaire-Rogers film to lose money.

What I Don't Like: "Change Partners" aside, the score isn't one of Irving Berlin's better ones. Even Fred Astaire thought "The Yam" was silly, which is why Ginger Rogers sings it. I wish RKO filmed "Color Blind" in color, like they'd originally planned. It would have added to the number being "just a dream" and went along with the lyrics.

Psychoanalysis has long been controversial, leaving Tony's theories and claims about Amanda's behavior sounding like so much gobblety-gook today. Neither Tony nor Stephan particularly treat Amanda that well. Tony claiming he's in love with her seems a little sudden, considering he's spent the movie ignoring her other than as a test subject.

The Big Finale: Despite some good numbers, this is mainly for big Astaire/Rogers fans and fans of 30's comedy or musicals.

Home Media: Easily found on DVD from the Warner Archives and as part of several Astaire and Rogers sets.

DVD
DVD - Silver Screen Icons: Astaire & Rogers Vol. 1

Hallelujah! (1929)

MGM, 1929
Starring Daniel L. Haynes, Nina Mae McKinney, William Fountaine, and Harry Gray
Directed by King Vidor
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin and others

King Vidor wanted to make this one badly for a long time. He grew up in the south, watching black sharecroppers sing and work in the fields, and wondered about their lives and passions. He finally convinced MGM to give it a go after making a series of films that were either hits (The Big Parade), or were at least well-received critically (The Crowd). The arrival of sound gave him some pause, until he opted to film it as a silent and add the sound later. How did this work out, and how well does the tale of a sharecropper who's seduced by a wily woman - twice - fare nowadays? Let's head to the cotton fields of the south and find out...

The Story: Zeke (Haynes) and his little brother Spunk (Everett McGarrity) are cheated out of the 100 dollars they earned for their family's crop by con artists Chick (McKinney) and Hot Spot (Fountaine). Zeke fights Hot Spot for the money, but when Hot Spot retaliates with a gun, Spunk is the one who gets shot. Repentant, Zeke becomes a popular preacher who calls himself Brother Zekiel. Chick and Hot Spot taunt him when he rides through their area at first, but Chick eventually joins the church and claims to be reformed. She manages to seduce Zeke away from his fiancee Missy (Victoria Spivey), but ends up having an affair with Hot Spot again when Zeke ends up working in a log mill. Zeke isn't going to take her betrayal lying down, but his chasing after them ends in tragedy.

The Song and Dance: Vidor's filming this as a silent first, then adding the sound later makes this unique among static early talkies. There's more energy and movement in this film than you'll see in almost any other movie made that year. Hayes and McKinney do fairly well as the repentant preacher-turned-laborer and the lady who switches men as easily as she does silk stockings. There's a lot of complicated revivalist musical numbers and outdoor shooting, including a memorable sequence at Brother Zekiel's big meeting where a church member's baptized in a river and the shadow finale with Zeke pursuing Hot Shot through the swamp.

Favorite Number: The opening sequence is one great one, from the cotton pickers putting over "Old Folks at Home" while working to the kids tapping in two great solos at home to the down-home dancing at the impromptu wedding for a couple with 11 kids. McKinney shows why she became the first African-American woman to be given a contract with a major studio with her sexy, jazzy dance to one of the two Irving Berlin songs in the film, "Swanee Shuffle." Haynes and the chorus put over the other big Berlin song at the revivalist meeting, the dynamic "Waiting at the End of the Road."

Trivia: Like Love Me Tonight, the version currently available is the cut-down re-release from 1939.

The movie ended up being a surprise smash in 1929, one of the biggest hits of the year.

King Vidor so desperately wanted to make this film, he offered to give up his salary.

What I Don't Like: For all the vitality and complicated direction for a movie of this era, this is still an early talkie. The supporting cast is frequently not at the level of the leads and can overdo their southern accents. Syncing is occasionally off, with dialogue not moving in time with people's lips. The silent filming becomes more obvious when you see people moving a heck of a lot faster than they normally would in sound film stock. And there's the plot problems. Despite Vidor's good intentions, it can come off as condescending and annoyingly stereotypical, especially given how easily Chick seduces Zeke.

The Big Finale: If you have any interest in Vidor or the history of black and/or musical cinema, this is still highly recommended despite the dated story and early talkie bugs.

Home Media: It's popularity continues into the streaming era; it's one of the few movies of its time to be easily available on disc and streaming. The most recent DVD is a Warner Archives release.

DVD
Amazon Prime

Blue Skies

Paramount, 1946
Starring Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Joan Caulifield, and Billy De Wolfe
Directed by Stuart Heisler
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

Holiday Inn was a huge hit in 1943, and this one was even bigger, in fact the biggest blockbuster of 1946. It continued Crosby's winning streak and was to have been Astaire's swan song before his retirement. Is the movie "nothing but blue skies from now on," or do gray clouds rain on this Technicolor extravaganza? Let's head to a radio station, where Jed Potter (Astaire) is about to tell the story of his life, and find out...

The Story: Potter was once and up-and-coming hoofer in New York in 1919 who pursued pretty Mary O'Hara (Caulifield) while they were appearing in a show together. He took her to a nightclub owned by his former vaudeville partner Johnny Adams (Crosby). Johnny has a habit of buying one club he claims he adores, then selling it and buying another one elsewhere when he gets a better idea. Mary falls for Johnny, but he's not much for commitment, and she's looking for security. They eventually get married, but he keeps moving her around to bigger and better clubs. Fed up with his inability to stay in one place, she returns to Jeb...but ends up leaving again, causing him to turn to liquor. After an accident leaves Mary blaming herself and she flees, will either man ever see her again?

The Song and Dance: The first half is pretty fluffy, with Caulifield being pursued by both men. It's the second half where the story takes a surprisingly dark turn for a musical from this time, with it's fairly frank talk of divorce and the accident that ends Jeb's career. It gives this story a slight edge that even Holiday Inn lacked. The Technicolor cinematography is also quite good, with glowing colors and lush sets.

Favorite Number: The movie opens with the spectacular girls-on-the-staircase "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody." Astaire gets a solo dancing around the ladies in their elaborate gowns, then pulls Caulifield out for a brief duet. Dancer Olga San Juan gets two numbers, the suggestive "You'd Be Surprised" at one of Johnny's clubs and the hotter Hispanic-themed "I'll See You In Cuba" later in another club. Crosby introduces "You Keep Coming Back Like a Song" in a simple routine at the club, and does the adorable "(Running Around In Circles) Getting Nowhere" with his daughter (Kathryn Grimes) later. He and Astaire have a lot of fun with their duet recreating Johnny and Jeb's old vaudeville act, "A Couple of Song and Dance Men."

Astaire figures into the film's two biggest - and most famous - numbers. He'd been associated with "Puttin' On the Ritz" for years, and Paramount pulled out all the stops, from him dancing in slow motion to appear older to a dance done with what appears to be a whole chorus of Fred Astaires. "Heat Wave" is the number that ends that accident, with Astaire first dancing with the chorus, then San Juan, in a lush routine that somewhat resembles some of his routines from the more fantasy-oriented Yolanda and the Thief.

Trivia: Dancer Mark Draper was supposed to have been Crosby's partner in this film. His speech impediment and constant criticism of Caulifield's dancing lead to Crosby insisting that he be replaced by Astaire.

Astaire, tired and frustrated with his lack of good roles (like this one), retired after making the film...for two whole years, until he returned to MGM for Easter Parade.

What I Don't Like: Even with the slightly tougher second half, the story here is still pretty fluffy. Those looking for something more substantial will have to go elsewhere. It's supposed to be set in the Roaring Twenties...but you'd never know it from anything but Astaire's narration. The costumes and sets never change and never look like anything besides 1946.

The Big Finale: If you're a fan of either leading man, this is worth checking out for the dance routines alone.

Home Media: Currently only available as part of the Universal Vault direct-to-DVD series on Amazon.

DVD

Saluting Our Troops - Follow the Fleet

RKO, 1936
Starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Harriet Hillard, and Randolph Scott
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

This year's Veteran's Day review returns us to the glittering romantic comedy world of Astaire and Rogers. Scott's joining them again, this time for the tale of two gobs and their girls based the old play Shore Leave. How well does this nautical-themed backstage story hold up now? Let's head to a ship coming into port to find out...

The Story: Navy sailor Bake Baker (Astaire) is thrilled to be on shore leave with his buddy Bilge Smith (Scott). His former partner Sherry Martin (Rogers) wrote him and told him she was dancing in a fancy club. Turns out she's really a singer at a dime-a-dance hall. Her shy school teacher sister Connie (Hillard) is also seeking her. Bilge thinks she's cute but bland, until Kitty (Lucille Ball), one of the dance hall girls, finds her a gown and gets rid of her glasses. Now they're both attracted to each other. Connie claim she'll salvage her father's old sailing ship for him, even though it'll cost a bundle.

A few months later, Bilge is now being pursued by a glamorous widow (Astrid Allwyn) with a crush on him. Connie wants marriage, and he's afraid of commitment. Meanwhile, Bake attempted to set Sherry up with a job in a Broadway show, but a series of mistaken identities leaves her without a job and angry at him. He does a better with setting up a benefit show to earn the remaining money needed to raise the girls' ship...but he not only has to jump ship to do so, he needs to convince Bilge to help him do it.

The Song and Dance: The stars and the Irving Berlin score are the things here. Scott, while still a tad out of place, at least seems more comfortable as a seaman than he did as a football player in Roberta. Astaire and Rogers have a great time with their numbers, and Rogers even gets a rare solo dance routine. Lucille Ball has a short but fun role as the sarcastic dancer who gives Connie a dress, and later dealing with a sailor who tries to hit on her.

Favorite Number: Astaire and Rogers get three great duets here. "Let Yourself Go" at the Paradise Club begins with them competing with another couple, only to explode into a lot of kicks and prancing that's a lot of fun to watch. "I'm Putting All My Eggs In One Basket" is similar, only this time, they're challenging one another to keep up with their moves. Rogers gets her only solo in any of her movies with Astaire in an instrumental version of "Let Yourself Go" that shows she's no slouch in the dance department herself. Astaire challenges the entire fleet in his solo, "I'd Rather Lead a Band."

The big one is "Let's Face the Music and Dance." A mini-story within a story has Fred and Ginger as gamblers about to end it all before they find - and dance with - each other. It's by far the most dramatic number in any of the Astaire-Rogers films, and it comes off as a dark moment floating in a sea of fluffiness.

Trivia: Harriet Hillard became far better known when she married bandleader Ozzie Nelson and had two sons named Ricky and David with him. The four appeared on the radio and TV show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet for over a decade.

What I Don't Like: The plot is even more ridiculous than Top Hat and lacks that movie's hilarious supporting cast. The entire side plot with Hillard and Scott is cliched and very dated. Scott may be happier in the Navy, but Astaire isn't. He never really worked very well in uniform. The down-to-Earth setting makes things feel a little grittier than usual. Fancy costumes are limited to the nightclub scenes and the finale, and there's none of the elaborate sets that mark many of their other films.

The Big Finale: Worth sitting through the silly plot if you love Astaire and Rogers or the musicals of the 1930's.

Home Media: Available for streaming and on DVD solo or packaged with other Astaire/Rogers films.

DVD
DVD - Silver Screen Icons: Astaire & Rogers Vol. 2
Amazon Prime

Happy Easter! - Easter Parade

MGM, 1948
Starring Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, Ann Miller, and Peter Lawford
Directed by Charles Walters
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

This movie is a bit of an Easter tradition for me. I've watched it every year on Easter night or the night before Easter since I originally taped it off TCM in the late 90's. (I've since replaced that video with a DVD.) It took MGM long enough to get it off the ground in the 40's. Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse were originally supposed to appear, but they got hurt and were replaced with Astaire and Miller, and there were Garland's ongoing problems as well. Plus, Astaire had originally gone into retirement and had to be coaxed back. Was all the trouble worth it? Let's head to New York's Fifth Avenue, the day before Easter 1912, and find out...

The Story: Vaudeville dancer Don Hewes (Astaire) is looking forward to spending Easter with his partner Nadine Hale (Miller), but she tells him that she just took a part in the Ziegfeld Frolic and wants to go solo. Don's crushed, and his best friend Johnny Harrow (Lawford) thinks she's being selfish. She's more interested in him, but he knows Don still loves her. Angry, Don plucks singer Hannah Brown (Garland) out of the chorus of a bar show and tells her he's going to make her his partner. He tries to recreate his vaudeville ballroom dancing act with her, but as a furious Nadine points out, she's ill-suited to it. Meanwhile, Johnny has become smitten with Hannah, and she has feelings for Don.

Don finally comes to the conclusion that ballroom dancing doesn't work with vivacious Hannah. When he retools the act to emphasize comedy and her singing, it becomes a big success. Initially offered a role in the Ziegfeld Frolics, Don turns it down when he realizes that Hannah would be competing against Nadine, realizing that he's in love with her. Luck is with them - they're given an even bigger spot in a Dillingham show. Despite the show being a hit, Nadine decides she wants one dance with Don "for old time's sake," upsetting Hannah. It's Johnny who finally brings everyone together, just in time for New York's big Easter showcase on Fifth Avenue.

The Song and Dance: This charming confection wound up being the biggest hit musical of 1948, and the second-biggest movie at the box office that year. No wonder, with this cast. Astaire and Garland work beautifully together as the dancer who thinks he's trying to get his girl back and the girl he chooses to replace her. Miller, making her MGM debut after several years of doing B musicals at Columbia, is quite funny as Nadine, and Lawford's adorably dorky as Don's law-college buddy who is pursing Hannah while being pursued by Nadine. Jules Munshin has a running gag where everyone keeps walking out of the restaurant he works at, and another where he gets to describe his best salad to the diners.

Appropriately for a movie about Easter, there's some gorgeous period costumes here. Special kudos for the amazing hats, from the "Happy Easter" montage in the beginning with women showing off the latest haberdashery fashions for Astaire to Garland's lovely pink wide-brimmed number (and Astaire's top hat with the ribbons) in the finale.

Favorite Number: Of the songs written for the film, my favorite is Lawford and Garland's adorable duet in the rain, "A Fella With an Umbrella." Lawford may not be much of a singer, but he's so cute under that umbrella, you wonder how Garland can resist him. Astaire gets two of his best solos, "Drum Crazy" in the opening as he shows a little boy the delights of drums and "Steppin' Out With My Baby" with the chorus in the Dillingham show. The latter showcases some unusual special effects, including Astaire slowing down while the rest of the dancers continue at normal speed, that still look pretty good today. Miller has an incredible "Shakin' the Blues Away" solo in the Ziegfeld Frolic, and has a nice boys-and-canes routine at the end of the chorus number "The Girl On the Magazine Cover." (By the way, see how many magazine covers represented in that song you can find on newsstands or online today.)

Probably the most famous number from this one is "A Couple of Swells," with Garland and Astaire dressed as hobos pretending to be millionaires. Considering it apparently took Garland long enough to talk Astaire into the whole thing (he didn't like not being seen dressed up), it wound up being one of the funniest routines from any classic MGM musical.

Trivia: I give Miller a lot of credit for doing as well on "Shakin' the Blues Away" as she did. She wore a back brace during filming after being thrown downstairs by her abusive then-husband.

What I Don't Like: The plot is a mess of romantic comedy cliches and can be confusing about who's chasing whom at times, especially towards the end. Don and Johnny are right about Nadine being selfish. She should have at least told Don she wanted to leave well before she took that role, or given him some notice. As cute as "Drum Crazy" is, it's really extraneous, and was likely only there to give Astaire a solo without the chorus. And as much as I love the costumes, the movie doesn't really feel very historical, or Easter-ish, for that matter. It probably could have been set anytime in the early-mid 20th century and at any time of the year without missing a beat.

The Big Finale: Fluffy story aside, the delightful music and enjoyable performances are more than enough reason to make this one a part of your Easter traditions, too.

Home Media: Alas, my two-disc DVD set appears to be out of print, but the Blu-Ray is avalible, and it can be found on several streaming platforms.

Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime

Oscar Winners - The Great Ziegfeld

MGM, 1936
Starring William Powell, Luise Rainer, Frank Morgan, and Myrna Loy
Directed by Robert Z. Leonard
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin and others

This lavish biography of the most famous producer ever on Broadway was one of MGM's attempts to out-do the Busby Berkeley spectacles over at Warners, and it was huge in every sense of the word. The sets were enormous, it employed literally thousands of people and tons of costumes, it was the longest musical yet at almost three hours, and it wound up being one of the biggest hits of the year. Does the story of the man who "Glorified the American girl" still deserve a place in the theatrical pantheon? Let's head to the midway of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair to find out...

The Story: At the 1893 Chicago Colombian Exposition, Florenz Ziegfeld (Powell) finds himself barking opposite the flamboyant Billings (Morgan). Billings' attraction, the exotic dancer "Little Egypt," is more popular than Ziegfeld's strongman Sandow, until Ziegfeld gets the idea for women to actually be able to touch his muscles.

After his stint with Sandow fizzles out, he heads to England, where he learns that Billings wants to sign beautiful and vivacious French-Polish vaudeville star Anna Held (Rainer). He manages to sign her instead with promises of jewels and her name up in lights. She does appear onstage, but isn't a success. Ziegfeld generates publicity by claiming she bathes in gallons of milk. She's appalled, until he finds eight backup singers to add even more appeal to her number and all the women in the audience admire her supposed milk-fed complexion. He gives her jewels and offers to marry her, which doesn't impress her fellow chorus girl Audrey Dane (Virginia Bruce).

Ziegfeld does marry Anna and eventually makes stars out of even more beauties in his long-running, extravagant series of Ziegfeld Follies revues. He does try to make a star of Audrey, but she descends into alcoholism even as they conduct an affair. Anna walks out on him when she finds out what he's up to with Audrey. He rebounds, eventually marrying comedienne Billie Burke (Loy). His stage shows aren't going as well. Word in Times Square is he's all through...but then he has four hits simultaneously in the late 20's, including Show Boat, the first truly mature musical. The Depression finally wipes Flo out for good...but there will always be the memories of hundreds of showgirls on ever-expanding staircases...

The Song and Dance: Like another MGM musical from a year later, Rosalie, this movie is big. It was the biggest musical of the 1930's in every way conceivable. You can't fault MGM for not letting all that cash show up on screen. There's a lot to look at this movie, with everyone running around in acres of ruffles, sequins, and lace (designed by MGM's ace costumer Adrian). Rainer may have won the Oscar, but it's Powell as an urbane Flo Ziegfeld who really anchors the film. Morgan's also a lot of fun as his long-time rival, and Bruce comes across fairly well as the gold-digging chorus girl who cares more about liquor and diamonds and getting "Glorified" than anything.

Favorite Number: By far the most famous routine from this one is "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody." Set on a massive tiered wedding cake-like set lined with hundreds of dancers, with Bruce seated serenely on top, it's a glittering tribute to three centuries of "Glorifying" that's just as amazing for audiences now as it was in the mid-30's. Real-life Ziegfeld star Fanny Brice made one of her few film appearances singing another Berlin song "Yiddle On My Fiddle"; pity we didn't get to see the full rendition of her signature ballad "My Man." Rainer and those dancers have a lot of fun with a number by the real Anna Held, "It's Delightful to Be Married," and Ray Bolger gets a nice tap dance about mid-way through.

Trivia: Luise Rainer became the first person to win an Oscar for acting in a musical.

That "Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" number alone cost $220,000 to film in 1936, which is over 3 million in today's money.

The real Billie Burke was still very much active and alive in 1936, and in fact was an actress at MGM for years. (Most people know her as Glinda the Good Witch in the 1939 Wizard of Oz.) She was the one who sold the rights to a musical biography about her late husband first to Universal, then to MGM when Universal couldn't afford it. She acted as a consultant for the movie.

This is not the last time MGM would use the Ziegfeld name for their musicals. In 1941, the would do a backstage musical drama about showgirls called Ziegfeld Girl; in 1946, they debuted their own version of the Ziegfeld Follies (with Powell reprising his role as the showman briefly in the latter).

What I Don't Like: Rainer's histrionics may have impressed audiences in 1936, but between her yelling and her incomprehensible accent, she comes off as more overwrought than anything today. Between Ziegfeld still being a household in the 30's, Burke's involvement, and many of his former stars threatening to sue if they were mentioned, this is even more sanitized than most Hollywood musical biographies. You barely get a sense of any time passing. With the exception of Brice and ballerina Harriet Hoctor (who appears in the circus number towards the end), almost none of the stars had ever been in a Ziegfeld show, including Bolger.

Like Rosalie, the movie is really too big. All the flash tends to overwhelm the cliched and occasionally dull plot. It's also way, way too long at almost three hours. Some of the Follies musical numbers mid-way through that don't involve any of the stars are fun but do nothing other than pad out the run time and show how elaborate the Follies could get and probably could have been trimmed.

The Big Finale: If  you're a fan of Powell or the huge Busby Berkeley-style musicals of the 1930's, this is worth seeing for the cast and musical numbers alone if you have time on your hands.

Home Media: Not on Blu-Ray at press time, but the DVD is fairly easy to find, and it's on a couple of streaming platforms.

DVD
Google Play

Happy New Year! - Holiday Inn

Paramount, 1942
Starring Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Marjorie Reynolds, and Virginia Dale
Directed by Mark Sandrich
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin

I thought this was appropriate for my first review of 2019, as it covers most major holidays, including New Year's. This is the movie that introduced the evergreen "White Christmas," one of the most beloved holiday songs of all time. Does the movie live up to that legacy? Let's head to a nightclub in New York on Christmas Eve to find out...

The Story: Ted Hanover (Astaire), Jim Hardy (Crosby), and Lilah Dixon (Dale) are a popular act on the nightclub circuit in the early 1940's. Jim's tired of the grind of show business and wants to retire with Lilah to a farm in Connecticut. Lilah ends up insisting that she wants to stay with Ted and continue dancing. Broken-hearted, Jim moves to the farm of his dreams...only to discover that running a farm takes a lot more work than he thought. He ultimately turns the farm into an inn that's only open on public holidays. Linda Mason (Reynolds) is a flower-shop girl who wants to be a singer and comes to the farm to audition after encountering Jim in New York.

Ted ends up at Holiday Inn on New Year's Eve, drunk as a skunk after Lilah ran off with a Texas millionaire. He's so gone, he doesn't remember dancing a great duet with Linda. He and his manager Danny (Walter Abel) spend Lincoln's Birthday looking for her. When Ted does manage to find her, Jim finds himself competing with Ted for a girl's affections all over again.

The Song and Dance: For all the fluff, there's some real bite to this story. This is one of the few major movies I've seen deal with the grind of show business and what performers, even in the 21st century, often have to sacrifice to be able to do what they do. The romantic comedy devices here don't feel as forced as they would later in White Christmas. Crosby and Astaire work well together, and while we don't really see much of Dale, I rather like Reynolds as down-home Linda. Louise Beavers is also excellent as Jim's tough-minded housekeeper Mamie, and her kids are adorable.

I like that this is pretty scaled-down for a major musical. There's some medium-sized numbers at Holiday Inn, but most of the focus is where it should be, on the four leads.

Favorite Number: Astaire has two jaw-dropping dance routines that may be among his most underrated. His drunk duet with Reynolds is hilarious (rumor has it he really got drunk to prepare for that scene). The "Say With Firecrackers" solo may have taken 38 takes to get right, but it's a marvel, with Fred casually twirling around those dropping noisemakers, cigarette in his mouth. Crosby tries get to Astaire's goat in the Washington's Birthday number, "I Cannot Tell a Lie." It's supposed to be romantic Colonial, but Crosby keeps playing hot jazz instead of minuets, and the other two have to try to keep up with him.

"White Christmas" is introduced in a charming, quiet scene early in the film that has Linda and Jim talking about the inn, their families, and what they hope for the future. It's lovely and sweet. Other standards introduced here include "Happy Holidays" and "You're Easy to Dance With."

Trivia: The calendar page that introduces the November sequence has a turkey running back and forth between the last two weeks, before finally shrugging in confusion. This is a reference to President Franklin D. Roosevelt changing the Thanksgiving holiday to a week earlier from 1939 to 1941. After that, Congress officially made Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November, no matter where it falls on the calendar.

Apparently, everyone involved thought the Valentine's Day song "Be Careful, It's My Heart" would be the big hit. While that one did do well and is relatively well-known, it's "White Christmas" that was the smash hit, became one of the biggest holiday standards ever, and took home the Oscar for best song for Berlin.

The name of the Holiday Inn hotel chain was inspired by this movie.

What I Don't Like: Let's talk about "Abraham." This is the big number for Lincoln's Birthday that has Jim getting Linda into blackface to avoid being found by Ted and Danny. Not only is the song the worst in the film, but while the lyrics mean well (especially the section performed by Beavers and the kids), they do come off as condescending and a bit racist today. The blackface doesn't help at all. The whole thing can be anywhere from awkward to downright offensive for many audiences today. (There's a reason this song was done as a random instrumental jazz duet for Vera-Ellen and one of the male dancers in White Christmas.)

The Big Finale: While White Christmas is fun, I really prefer this one. It has a note of intimacy that the shinier movie from a decade later lacks. Crosby's better here, too, and he pairs well with Astaire. Honestly, if you're a big fan of Crosby or "White Christmas," I recommend grabbing both movies and seeing which one you like better.

Home Media: As the movie that introduced one of the most beloved holiday standards of all time, this one is quite easy to find on most platforms, often for under ten dollars.

DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime