The Belle of New York (1952), 7+ Color

In squeaky-clean New York at the turn of the century, playboy Charlie Hill falls so much in love that he can walk on air. The object of his affections is beautiful Angela Bonfils, a mission... 
1h 22min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 22 February 1952 | Color
Director: Charles Walters
Stars: Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen, Marjorie Main, Keenan Wynn, Alice Pearce, Clinton Sundberg.
Robert Alton ... musical numbers staged and directed by

Marilyn Christine ... assistant choreographer (uncredited)

Alex Romero ... assistant choreographer (uncredited)
Helen Rose ... (costumes: women)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044408/

In the Tap! Appendix for Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen.

Songs performed (24 chapters with menu):

• ch1. When I'm Out With the Belle of New York, Sung by chorus 
• ch3. Who Wants to Kiss the Bridegroom?, Danced by Fred Astaire, chorus 
• ch4. Let a Little Love Come In, Sung by Alice Pearce, Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis) 
• ch6. Seeing's Believing, Sung and Danced by Fred Astaire 
• ch9. Baby Doll, Sung by Fred Astaire, Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
• ch11-2. Oops, Sung by Fred Astaire, Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
• ch14-5. A Bride's Wedding Day Song (Currier and Ives), Sung by Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis), Danced by Fred Astaire, Vera-Ellen 
• ch19-20. Naughty but Nice, Sung and Danced by Alice Pearce, Vera-Ellen (dubbed by Anita Ellis) 
• ch22. I Wanna Be a Dancin' Man, Sung and Danced by Fred Astaire 
• ch24. When I'm Out With the Belle of New York, Sung by chorus, danced by FA, VE

Notice that nearly every song is danced. And danced by experts. With lovely & lively choreography. And a chroma key gimmick (which didn't look much better in 2017's La La Land). I'm particularly fascinated when FA is jumping between the horizontal flagpoles(?), how his feet manage to show under the pole.

I really noticed the cop (familiar face Henry Slate) who walked Alice P down the aisle in the rehearsal. What a great face and voice. This is his 7th film of 48, spanning 1938-1985.

When the gowns get fancy, they are terrific. The best is reserved for VE when she decides to sample the sinful life.

MM provides an excellent cranky-aunt-with-money persona.

So why not a higher rating? I was aware of thinking, during the film, "funny that it doesn't bother me that FA (b. 1899) is so much older than VE (b. 1921)." If it were a thoroughly engaging film, I shouldn't think about that at all.

I also wondered whether this was some sort of Guys and Dolls (original B'way run Nov 24, 1950 - Nov 28, 1953) derivative, without the Damon Runyon characters. FA is just a playboy, not shown to be involved in the underworld.

It's not just me; among FA's 39 films, this ranks 36 in IMDb average rating (6.2).

But I like the dancing.

MGM, dir. Walters; 7+

Sailor Beware (1952), 6

Although allergic to kissing girls, Seaman Melvin Jones, through a fluke TV appearance, gets the undeserved reputation of a great kisser dubbed "Mr. Temptation" and is pursued by amorous young females.
1h 48min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 24 January 1952
Director: Hal Walker
Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Corinne Calvet

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043989/
Watched online; horrid copy, very blurry even on small screen.

Amazing that we get no choreographer credit. M&L definitely do a well-rehearsed tap dance (with some possible improv included), but maybe that was from their live act.

No idea why the line at the Navy Recruiting office is so long out the door and down the block, not even clear whether we're at war in their world. We're still in the Korean conflict as of the release date.

8 songs in the Soundtracks, with no performers credited, but the song titles look familiar as those sung by DM.

The comedy is what you expect from M&L, with them feeling a little like Abbott & Costello at times (mostly the straight man hitting the comic, not the actual comedy routines.) I don't understand how DM could stand having JL sing loudly over his own efforts, all in the name of comedy. JL does still throw in some vulnerability to balance his manic side.

This is only film #6 of 16 in their partnership.

Wallis-Hazen, distr. Paramount, dir. Walker; 6

The Lemon Drop Kid (1951), 6

A New York City swindler has until Christmas to come up with the $10,000 he owes a gangster, prompting him to go into scamming overdrive.
1h 31min | Comedy, Crime, Music | 8 March 1951
Directors: Sidney Lanfield, Frank Tashlin (uncredited)
Stars: Bob Hope, Marilyn Maxwell, Lloyd Nolan, Jane Darwell.
Len Hendry ... dance director

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043733/

1st screen credit for Xmas song Silver Bells.
Only 2 other songs in the Soundtracks, but adding the debut of Silver Bells is sufficient to get tagged Music in my book. All 3 are by Livingston and Evans.

This is a Damon Runyon tale. So we get betting on horse races, other illicit gambling, and funny quips.

The '34 antecedent had different character names. William Frawley is in both. (Didn't find that one online; I'd like to see it. Helen Mack is 2nd billed.)

This is pleasant enough, and plays on our sympathies with old ladies at Xmas in the cold. And to bring colorful Runyon characters to life, we get colorful character actors, many whose names I don't know, but they look familiar.

Hope has a new scar on his lip mostly upper (and a bit on the chin) in the left corner of his mouth. No mention of a cause in his trivia.

Hope Enterprises, Paramount, dir. Lanfield, Tashlin; 6

The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), 7- Color {nm}

The dramatic lives of trapeze artists, a clown, and an elephant trainer are told against a background of circus spectacle.
2h 32min | Drama, Family, Romance | 10 January 1952
Director: Cecil B. DeMille
Stars: James Stewart, Charlton Heston, Betty Hutton, Cornel Wilde, Gloria Grahame.
John Murray Anderson ... stager: circus musical and dance numbers

Richard Barstow ... choreographer

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044672/

Watched online; blurry print.

Really not sure why I added this to my list of films to watch. Perhaps because it won Best Picture when Singin' in the Rain wasn't even nom'd. Perhaps for Cornel Wilde's athleticism. Betty Hutton looked like she was doing some stunts too. Wow, just read in the IMDb trivia that CW was afraid of heights and did some of these stunts, and tore a ligament on the kiss on the trapeze scene. 

Previously (2015) rated this 5. No idea why I would have been so annoyed. This documents a now vanished (as of last year) company: Ringling Bros et al has shut down. And this is the old days when they erected the big tent everywhere they performed.

Terrific train crash scene, apparently with model train cars.

Amazing how recognizable JS is behind the clown makeup.

2.5 hours is a big investment, but this was definitely entertaining.

Paramount, dir. DeMille; 7-

Double Dynamite (1951), 6+

An innocent bank teller, suspected of embezzlement, is aided by an eccentric, wisecracking waiter.
1h 20min | Comedy, Music | 25 December 1951
Director: Irving Cummings
Stars: Jane Russell, Groucho Marx, Frank Sinatra

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043476/

Was this a poster from '51? Was FS already on the outs, with On the Town ('49, his immediately prior release) filmed with mobs trying to see him? Notice this is not MGM, and his next film is '52 for Universal. And I thought From Here to Eternity ('53) was a comeback for him. Per IMDb trivia, this was filmed in '48.

Only 2-3 songs in the Soundtracks. I think the 3rd song was actually a poem GM recited. This is NOT a musical, and not worthy of the Music tag either. But I won't fight it.

I like the principals here, and I like them together. The plot is cute, with FS coming into a large sum of money from a gambler, but the bank has a shortage on the books for roughly the same amount. The solution to the crime is almost too cute, but the journey is fun. Amazing that JR's cleavage is not exploited, especially since this is a Howard Hughes production.

RKO, dir. Cummings; 6+

Two Tickets to Broadway (1951), 6+

Nancy Peterson and her friends want to get a spot on Bob Crosby's TV show, but their agent has linked them.
1h 46min | Musical, Romance | 20 November 1951
Director: James V. Kern
Stars: Tony Martin, Janet Leigh, Gloria DeHaven, Eddie Bracken, Ann Miller, Barbara Lawrence, Bob Crosby.
Busby Berkeley ... musical numbers created and directed by
Busby Berkeley ... choreographer (uncredited)
Larry Ceballos ... dance director (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044158/

In the Tap! Appendix for Janet Leigh, Tony Martin (Bobby Scheerer was Tony's dance-in), Ann Miller. That was the most dancing I've seen TM do, and if that was a double, I'm amazed at the resemblance. (Just watched his dancing again; hard to believe that's a double, and the dancing is not fancy, and definitely not tap).

Songs performed (32 chapters, no menu):

• ch3. Pelican Falls, sung by JL with large ensemble
• ch5. There's No Tomorrow, sung by TM
• ch10. Manhattan, sung by TM, JL, with variety acts by housemates (including Joan Shawlee, but don't blink)
• ch13. Baby, You'll Never Be Sorry, Sung by Eddie Bracken and Gloria DeHaven 
• ch15. It Began in Yucatan, danced by AM with other 3 as chorus; very brief rehearsal
• ch16. The Closer You Are, Sung by Tony Martin  (rehearsal)
• ch17. The Worry Bird, Performed by Janet Leigh, Ann Miller (big tap number), Barbara Lawrence and Gloria DeHaven (primary singer)
• ch20. The Closer You Are, Sung again by Tony Martin (rehearsal again)
• ch24. aerial/acrobat act The Charlivels to music, some in slo-mo; one of the acrobats looks like TM.
• ch27. Let's Make Comparisons, sung by BC at a dummy of Bing; tacky
• ch28. The Prologue from Pagliacci, sung by TM with original & English lyrics
• ch30. Big Chief Hole-in-the-Ground, Performed by Janet Leigh, Ann Miller, Tony Martin, Barbara Lawrence and Gloria DeHaven 
• ch31. Are You a Beautiful Dream? sung by TM, danced by JL
• ch32. Pelican Falls, reprised by large ensemble
• ch32. The Closer You Are, reprised by large ensemble, TM, JL

I loved some of the dresses with the skirt lining matching the blouse or some color in the print, nice and wide, and they twirled well as though the hem were weighted slightly.

IMDb lists Eve Arden (b. 1908) as a showgirl; that is highly unlikely, not just because of her age, but her standing in the industry is too high. I certainly didn't spot her.

TM is 5'11", and JL looks almost as tall but is 5'5.5", BL is 5'8", AM 5'7", GD 5'1"; GD really stands out as short when lined up with the other 3. JL had gorgeous hair then.

In one scene, the girls are in a gym with exercise equipment (auto-bucking horse, auto-bike, hip-shaker, rowing machine). GD is smoking while on the rowing machine.

This should have been titled Two Tickets to TV, because the immediate target is Bob Crosby's TV show, not a B'way show. And why 2 tickets, when 5 leads are involved (although BL has little to do but be onscreen after the opening bus ride; she does do mild dancing.)

This has a good pace, a sunny outlook, enough tension with the manager (EB) lying and cheating his way to getting them a break (but it's not his tactics that actually get them that break), and enough music to satisfy me. The dancing is good, but not terrific (except AM in ch17, of course).

RKO, dir. Kern; 6+

My Favorite Spy (1951), 6- {nm}

Peanuts White, a burlesque comic, is recruited by U.S. agents to impersonate international spy Eric Augustine (whom White resembles) in a mission to purchase a million-dollar microfilm in ... 
1h 33min | Comedy, Crime, Music | 25 December 1951
Director: Norman Z. McLeod
Stars: Bob Hope, Hedy Lamarr, Francis L. Sullivan

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043827/
Watched online.

Per the Soundtrack, 2 songs performed: 1 by HL (dubbed), 1 by BH. So this should not have the tag Music.

And it's the usual BH persona: cowardly yet in over his head in something dangerous. Lots of lame jokes. Comedy is hard, and with insufficient music, it's not my thing.

This doesn't hold my attention, so I probably shouldn't rate it. I'll be generous.

Paramount, dir. McLeod; 6-

Starlift (1951), 6

To impress a movie star, a U.S. Air Force pilot pretends he is soon to see combat. When his lie gets out, chaos ensues.
1h 43min | Musical | 14 December 1951
Director: Roy Del Ruth
Stars: Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Virginia Mayo, Gene Nelson, Ruth Roman, Janice Rule, Phil Harris.
LeRoy Prinz ... musical numbers staged and directed by

(also has on-camera credit)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044070/

In the Tap! Appendix for Gene Nelson.

Well, I remember disliking this, and my memory serves. However, there is some good dancing here: 2 numbers from GN and a tropically-costumed & themed dance with VM. (Next time, figure out who's dancing with GN to What Is This Thing Called Love: JR or Virginia Gibson. Soundtracks say JR.) At least 12 songs are performed.

DD disappears after the first third of the film, and GM, VM & GN are only specialty acts. The film is about JR and a pilot from her hometown. Ruth Roman is there for a while, organizing the stars to come entertain the departing and returning service men. But all other stars just do a specialty or a walk-on. This is the kind of thing Paramount does well. Unfortunately, this ain't Paramount, and this script makes the JR+pilot story primarily a drama, so that brings things down.

Totally unclear to me what war this is about. Are they harkening back to WW2, or is this the Korean conflict (Jun 25, 1950 – Jul 27, 1953)? I saw a banner about the Continental and Pacific forces. The pilot was transporting troops to/from Honolulu. BTW, the "pilot" is a corporal; seems like a low rank for a pilot, especially in the Air Force. 

Too much time is given to an unpleasant story (the deception is discovered soon, and JR holds a grudge. Then they get thrown together again at her parent's house, and official functions she can't dodge. JR is very good at disapproving looks.) But the musical numbers are worth it.

Warner, dir. Del Ruth; 6

Crime Wave (1953), 6 {nm}

Reformed parolee Steve Lacey is caught in the middle when a wounded former cellmate seeks him out for shelter.
1h 13min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir | 6 March 1954
Director: André De Toth
Stars: Gene Nelson, Sterling Hayden, Phyllis Kirk, Ted de Corsia, Charles Bronson

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046878/

Watched because this disc was replaced by Warner for rot, and GN was a lead.

Noir filmed in '52 but released in '54 (the '53 release dates are in Europe; no mention of this in commentary track).

Surprise ending left my mouth agape.

GN is the semi-innocent victim; ex-con who's gone straight, married to straight-arrow PK, but he's contacted by a hood who's been shot by a cop, and then by a former doctor and the hood's compatriots in the crime wave. So he's trapped into helping them, despite the cops being wise early on. Very strange to see him this way, but GN's acting is perfect for this, and he does emote.

This is more interesting than a police procedural, and with SH as the lead detective, the bad guys are sure to get hurt. He's his menacing best here.

Warner, dir. De Toth; 6

I'll See You in My Dreams (1951), 6+

The success and decline of songwriter Gus Kahn is portrayed, with his wife, Grace Kahn, sticking by him the whole time.
1h 50min | Biography, Comedy, Musical | 6 December 1951
Director: Michael Curtiz
Stars: Doris Day, Danny Thomas, Frank Lovejoy, Patrice Wymore, James Gleason, Mary Wickes.
LeRoy Prinz ... musical numbers staged and directed by
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043669/

About 17 songs performed, with a bunch more listed in Soundtracks.

This is another songwriter biopic. Widow Grace Kahn is listed an uncredited technical advisor, but I won't assume that makes this more accurate.

DT and DD are well-matched, both singers who can act. Although DD is playing a song-plugger/composer who eventually marries Kahn, she sings a few times for us. DT sings too.

Some of these songs are very familiar, and include Jolson/Cantor signature tunes.

I like the film, but see no reason to recommend it, other than to see DD and/or DT.

Warner, dir. Curtiz; 6+

The Milkman (1950), 6- {nm}

Roger Bradley, son of a milk magnate, isn't allowed to work for his dad's company because of a lingering war trauma: in moments of stress he quacks like a duck. Desperate to escape from ... 
Approved | 1h 27min | Comedy | 17 October 1950
Director: Charles Barton
Stars: Donald O'Connor, Jimmy Durante, Piper Laurie, Joyce Holden, William Conrad.
Harold Belfer ... choreographer

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042733/
Watched online; fuzzy print on small screen.

In the Tap! Appendix for Donald O'Connor.

I can't be sure that I checked for this during '50 because it's not tagged as a Musical (and I won't add it), but saw it on Jerry Lewis' filmo, and found it today. (Didn't see JL, but wasn't watching for him.)

4 songs in the Soundtrack, 3 with dancing by DO. The dancing is pleasant, but no thrills. Although Piper Laurie does her few moves well, the steps weren't much.

I'm surprised they still have milkmen in '50; I wonder how long that service endured.

As a comedy, this is shrug-worthy; plenty of physical comedy, but not interesting. And the plot with the stolen necklace is grim; murder of a dowager for profit ain't funny. Or maybe I just wasn't watching closely enough.

Universal, dir. Barton; 6-

The Stooge (1951), 6-

Egotistical vaudevillian Bill Miller basks in the limelight with his successful musical-comedy act, but his success is due to his unheralded second banana.
1h 40min | Comedy, Drama, Musical | 15 November 1951
Director: Norman Taurog
Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Polly Bergen.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045192/
Watched online, ok print for small screen.

7 songs in the Soundtracks, only 1 with performer attached.

This is a strange film to watch with the hindsight of knowing M&L will break up, and how they do. The big difference is that DM was able to make it just fine as a single, and that JL supposedly had plenty of ego too.

DM plays an arrogant performer who thinks he doesn't need a partner, but after flopping with his single act, hires a stooge to sit in the audience and heckle/perform with him. JL plays the stooge as a very naive chap who tries to help DM at every turn, even when he starts abusing alcohol. PB plays DM's wife, who quit her own showbiz career at DM's request, but now gets to sit home alone (and do what? We don't see.) while he goes on the road to build his "single" act. He makes it back home to NYC and The Palace. When he finally gets so abusive that his agent, his wife, and his stooge walk out, and he falls flat with the audience, he confesses his mistake, and JL is there to bring the act back to life. The End.

Paramount, dir. Taurog; 6-

Golden Girl (1951), 6 Color

Against the background of the Civil War, sixteen-year-old song-and-dance artiste Lotta Crabtree works her way across America, becoming ever more popular.
1h 48min | Drama, Musical, Western | 1 November 1951
Director: Lloyd Bacon
Stars: Mitzi Gaynor, Dale Robertson, Dennis Day, James Barton, Una Merkel.
Seymour Felix ... dances stager

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043592/

Bootleg copy, blurry, faded color.

Should be in the Tap! Appendix for Mitzi Gaynor, James Barton.

At least 8 songs performed: some sung by DD, some sung/danced by MG, a couple danced also by JB.

Most of the screen time is dedicated to MG's ambition, work and performances. The romantic interest of DR, plus the mild intrusion of the Civil War on her life add some tension. JB & UM play her performing parents; DD is a performing friend.

The music is old-timey, but the dances have a male chorus line, which seems new-timey to me. And their dance moves seem so too. But the dancing isn't modern enough that I'll put this on the "worthwhile dancing" list.

3rd of 17 films for MG.

Fox, dir. Bacon; 6

Let's Make It Legal (1951), 6 {nm}

The nearly-final divorce of the Halsworths suddenly gets complicated when Miriam's old flame comes to town.
1h 17min | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 31 October 1951
Director: Richard Sale
Stars: Claudette Colbert, Macdonald Carey, Zachary Scott, ..., Marilyn Monroe.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043736/
Watched online, mediocre print.

Another comedy of remarriage. Watched because of MM, who is 6th billed, and she barely appears in 2 or 3 brief scenes. She has most of her persona intact, maybe even showing a tinge of the vulnerability because she doesn't make any headway with her object, ZS.

CC performs as usual: a trouper. It's just not that interesting, because I don't like either of her love interests, neither the actors nor the characters written. And the young couple is truly annoying. CC's character has no depth; she only reacts to those around her, and she does little to control who lingers around her.

So here we are in '51, and instead of Fred MacMurray and Don Ameche, we get Macdonald Carey and Zachary Scott.  Would Fred and Don cost too much for this film? Fred has 2 mediocre releases this year; Don is hosting a TV show with Frances Langford, and her name is first in the title. 

5th of 67 films for Robert Wagner.

MC was spraying his roses with DDT. Rachel Carson's Silent Spring comes out in '62.

Fox, dir. Sale; 6

Honeychile (1951), 6+

Publishers discover they've given Judy's song to another composer, without their owning the rights yet. Judy's personal life complicates her decisions about the song and about competing in a covered wagon race.
1h 29min | Comedy, Musical | 20 October 1951
Director: R.G. Springsteen
Stars: Judy Canova, Eddie Foy Jr., Alan Hale Jr., Walter Catlett.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043653/
Watched online; mediocre print.

I rather like this; it rings my feminist chimes.

Judy is a very accomplished lady. She appears to be raising her niece and nephew, running her ranch, cooking for her own large birthday party, writing and singing songs, trying to decide if she should be/look more feminine, and wondering whether to throw the covered wagon race to let her fiance (AH) win.

Meanwhile, her fiance is pleasant-looking, but inconsiderate of her: he plum forgot to get her a birthday present. He's also very weak: he heard that she'd decided to throw the race, and immediately got together with his friends to bet on himself, and chose to use the cattlemen's union money (embezzlement) to fund the bet. Then he decides he needs to make sure JC will lose, so he explains what he's done, and she seems disappointed, yet takes steps to get the money he needs to cover his embezzlement, and reverses her decision to hold back at the race.

The race itself is action-packed, and there's an extra dose of thrills when JC's kids are placed in jeopardy. JC heroically saves the day in multiple situations, and sings 4 songs. While her style of music is not to my taste, her high notes/yodels are fascinating to hear: will she climb that scale, transpose or screetch?

I was aware of JC in my childhood, I think from movies on TV.  I'm very glad to have seen this one today.

Republic, dir. Springsteen; 6+

Love Nest (1951), 6+ {nm}

Two married New Yorkers purchase an old, run-down building full of colorful tenants.
1h 24min | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 10 October 1951
Director: Joseph M. Newman (as Joseph Newman)
Stars: June Haver, William Lundigan, Frank Fay, Marilyn Monroe, Jack Paar, Leatrice Joy.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043759/

Watched online; mediocre print.

Not a musical; just tracking MM's development. This is definitely progress on the path to her final persona. This character is not yet frivolous, breathless and vulnerable. She plays a model who was a WAC in the war, so she didn't always make her living off her looks. She is a bit free with her body: she sees WL asleep on her couch, and whips off her blouse en route to the shower. She's gorgeous and compelling to look at, but hasn't much screen time despite 4th billing. She has a leitmotif that signals she is a worldly, manipulative woman.

This is a very cute story, with JH buying an apartment building to find a place to live for herself and her soon to return soldier husband (WL). We get involved with the tenants, too. FF plays a bunko artist who bilks rich widows out of some of their money. But he finds love in this house, and helps our young couple to bring it up to code.

JH is sunny and charming as always, even when she plays angry. WL plays smitten well, even when he's angry. 

Fox, dir. Newman; 6+

Texas Carnival (1951), 6- Color

A showmen team is mistaken for a cattle baron and his sister.
1h 17min | Comedy, Music, Romance | 5 October 1951 | Color
Director: Charles Walters
Stars: Esther Williams, Red Skelton, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Keenan Wynn.
Hermes Pan ... choreographer

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044117/

Bootleg, good print.

In the Tap! Appendix for Ann Miller.

Dreadful comedy with musical performers stuck acting a bad script. Another comedy of mistaken identity, then deception (when the mistake is not corrected.) 

Songs performed (7 chapters, no menu):
ch1. The Carnie's Pitch, Performed by Red Skelton
ch1. Whoa, Emma!, Sung by Howard Keel
ch3. It's Dynamite, Sung and Danced by Ann Miller
ch3. Deep in the Heart of Texas, Sung by Howard Keel and chorus

ch4. Whoa, Emma!, Sung by Foy Willing and Foy Willing's Orchestra 

ch4. Young Folks Should Get Married, Sung by Howard Keel

Really, no musical numbers after this? Or did I just get so bored that I didn't notice? At some point EW dances in HK's fantasy in his room, but she's under water; makes for some nice movement of her gown, but I'm gasping for air watching it. Not sure if it was the ch4 Married song, or just unidentified instrumental.

There was a big chuckwagon race that occupied a lot of time. Kind of cute: how the wagon lost more and more of its structure, but RS kept on racing.

No explanation for the attraction of EW/HK; I suppose looks is enough. Why AM is attracted to RS is beyond me, especially after she finds out he's not rich.

I should really give this a 5, but I'll stick with my prior rating.

MGM, dir. Walters; 6-

Here Comes the Groom (1951), 6-

Foreign correspondent Pete Garvey has 5 days to win back his former fiancée, or he'll lose the orphans he adopted.
1h 53min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 20 September 1951
Director: Frank Capra
Stars: Bing Crosby, Jane Wyman, Alexis Smith, Franchot Tone, James Barton.
Charles O'Curran ... dance director

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043633

5 songs in the Soundtrack. 1 was a specialty by Anna Maria Alberghetti in her second of 9 films. The rest involve BC as soloist, duet, or combined cast.

The plot is tedious: foreign correspondent BC gets involved with war orphans in Paris. Two of them attach to him, so he decides to settle down instead of roaming the world, even though his eyes lit up when an Asian assignment was offered. The problem: his fiancee (JW) gets tired of waiting for him, so she agrees to marry a millionaire (FT). BC arrives, has a 5 day deadline to get married or the children will be deported, and that deadline corresponds to JW's wedding day. AS plays 4th cousin and wannabe wife to FT. BC helps her attract his attention while he manipulates JW. I'll give you 1 guess about what happens, and he wins by deception. But she is such a hot-head, she deserves it. I pity the kids.

The duet with BC & JW is perhaps the only reason for the choreographer; it's cute, but not worth the price of admission.

I like BC's singing, but the story (and the kids) are annoying. Astonishing that Frank Capra directed.

Paramount, dir. Capra; 6-

Painting the Clouds with Sunshine (1951), 6 Color

Tired of her boyfriend's gambling, a young woman joins two vaudeville performers on a trek to Las Vegas to search for millionaires to marry.
1h 27min | Musical | 31 August 1951 | Color
Director: David Butler
Stars: Dennis Morgan, Virginia Mayo, Gene Nelson, Lucille Norman, S.Z. Sakall, Virginia Gibson, Tom Conway, Wallace Ford.
LeRoy Prinz ... numbers staged and directed by

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043896/

In the Tap! Appendix for Warner/ Virginia Mayo, Gene Nelson, +Virginia Gibson.

Remake of The Gold Diggers (1923)*{nm}, Gold Diggers of Broadway (1929), and Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933), 8.

This version is really dull. LN/DM are a couple, but she hates his gambling. VG wants GN who wants LN. VM is the cynic who just wants a man with money. But when they find out GN has $$, she's happy to pair him with LN. TC is GN's uncle who doesn't want him to marry a showbiz girl, and VM targets him. And then WF claims half-ownership of SZS's casino due to his deceased brother being partner. Skip the story, and forward through to the dancing.

Songs performed (9 chapters, no menu):

• ch1. When Irish Eyes Are Smiling, Performed by Dennis Morgan at Harry's nightclub
• ch1. Man Is a Necessary Evil, Sung by Bonnie Lou Williams (uncredited) dubbing for Virginia Mayo, Lucille Norman and Virginia Gibson
• ch1. Tiptoe Through the Tulips, Performed by Gene Nelson, Bonnie Lou Williams (uncredited) dubbing for Virginia Mayo, Lucille Norman and Virginia Gibson
• ch2. Vienna Dreams, Performed by Dennis Morgan and Lucille Norman
• ch2. With a Song in My Heart, Performed by Dennis Morgan and Lucille Norman
• ch4. The Mambo Man, Sung by Bonnie Lou Williams (uncredited) dubbing for Virginia Mayo, Lucille Norman and Virginia Gibson
• ch6. You're My Everything, partial Performed by Dennis Morgan
• ch6. The Birth of the Blues, Sung by Bonnie Lou Williams (uncredited) dubbing for Virginia Mayo and Gene Nelson
• ch7. Jalousie 'Tango Tzigane', Performed by Lucille Norman and Dennis Morgan
• ch9. solo & ensemble western dancing by Virginia Gibson and Gene Nelson
• Arkansas Traveler
• Little Brown Jug
• Buffalo Gal Won't You Come Out Tonight
• I Like Mountain Music
• ch9. We're in the Money, sung by cast in parade
• ch??. Painting the Clouds with Sunshine, Sung by Dennis Morgan and Lucille Norman; I only heard this song under the opening credits.

Warner, dir. Butler; 6

An American in Paris (1951), 10 Color

Three friends struggle to find work in Paris. Things become more complicated when two of them fall in love with the same woman.
1h 54min | Drama, Musical, Romance | 26 August 1951 (London)
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Stars: Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Georges Guétary, Nina Foch.
Gene Kelly ... choreographer

Jeanne Coyne ... dance-in (uncredited) 

Carol Haney ... assistant dance director (uncredited) 

Gene Kelly ... director: Lise introduction dance sequence (uncredited) 

Alex Romero ... assistant choreographer (uncredited) 

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043278/

In the Tap! Appendix for Gene Kelly.

Nominated for 8 Oscars, won 6, including Best Picture.

Songs performed (27 chapters with menu; Wikipedia):

• ch3. "Nice Work If You Can Get It" – Sung by Georges Guétary 
• ch4. "Embraceable You" – Danced by Leslie Caron 
• ch5. Fascinating Rhythm, Played by Oscar Levant on Piano 
• ch5. "By Strauss" – Sung by Gene Kelly, Georges Guétary, and Oscar Levant (dubbed by Mack McLean) 
• ch8. "I Got Rhythm" – Performed by Gene Kelly and children 
• ch14. "Tra-la-la (This Time It's Really Love)" – Performed by Gene Kelly (vocal and dance) and Oscar Levant (vocal and piano) 
• ch16. Our Love Is Here to Stay, Sung by Gene Kelly, Danced by Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron 
• ch17. "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise" – Sung and Danced by Georges Guétary in his show 
• ch19. Concerto in F for Piano and Orchestra – Played by Oscar Levant and The MGM Symphony Orchestra conducted offscreen by Johnny Green, and onscreen by Oscar Levant 
• ch22. " 'S Wonderful" – Sung and Danced by Gene Kelly, Sung, Whistled, and Hummed by Georges Guétary 
• ch26. An American in Paris Ballet – Danced by Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, and Ensemble 

Gershwin meets Impressionism meets Gene Kelly & Vincente Minnelli, with Oscar Levant's personality and piano work, Leslie Caron's dancing, Georges Guétary singing, and with all the experts behind the scenes. What's not to like?

OK, here's a quibble: I don't think LC is pretty enough for GK to fall for her in the jazz club. If he had seen her move, yes, but just based on her face, no. But her dancing is a big asset, so I agree with her being here.

The featurette on disc 2 is worth watching even if you've listened to the commentary track.

MGM, dir. Minnelli; 10

Meet Me After the Show (1951), 6+ Color

Delilah Lee is the star of husband Jeff Ames' Broadway show when she starts to suspect he has been exchanging more than contracts with the show's vampish backer. Alimony and amnesia become the order of the day.
1h 27min | Comedy, Music, Musical | 15 August 1951 | Color
Director: Richard Sale
Stars: Betty Grable, Macdonald Carey, Rory Calhoun, Eddie Albert, Fred Clark, Irene Ryan, Steve Condos, Jerry Brandow, Gwen Verdon.
Jack Cole ... choreographer
Angela Blue ... dance instructor: Betty Grable (uncredited)
Marie Bryant ... assistant dance director (uncredited)
Billy Daniel ... dance director (uncredited)
Al Siegel ... dance manager (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043795/
Bootleg copy; pretty good print. I'd hope an official release is better.

In the Tap! Appendix for Jerry Brandow, Steve Condos, Betty Grable.

Songs performed (7 chapters, no menu):

• ch1. MEET ME AFTER THE SHOW, Sung and danced by Betty Grable, Steve Condos & Jerry Brandow with chorus 
• ch3. BETTING ON A MAN, Sung and danced by Betty Grable with chorus 
• ch4. MIAMI (OH, ME! OH, MI-AMI), Sung by chorus 
• ch4. IT'S A HOT NIGHT IN ALASKA, Sung and danced by Betty Grable with chorus 
• ch5. (EV'RY DAY IS LIKE) A DAY IN MAYTIME, Sung by Macdonald Carey 
• ch5. NO TALENT JOE, Sung and danced by Betty Grable with Gwen Verdon and chorus 
• ch6. I FEEL LIKE DANCING, Sung and danced by Betty Grable and Gwen Verdon with chorus 
• ch6. NIGHT MUSIC, Danced by Betty Grable and chorus 

This is Steve Condos' 1st of 2 films with Jerry Brandow as his partner; they have several TV credits before and after this ('50-'57). They perform in the opening number of the title song; they're in old-man makeup and tuxedos, dancing with BG. Everything is in unison, no improv, and no 5-tap wing. The sound of the taps is marvelous; BG's footwork doesn't match the sound, but the men do.

Gwen Verdon gets some face time dancing in 2 numbers to Jack Cole choreography. That's the best reason to own this film. She's terrific. When she dances in unison with BG, she has that extra dance versatility and expressiveness that attracts the eye.

The leading man is MC, with rivals EA and RC. MC is the most boring of the 3, and none of them are terribly interesting.

The plot is that MC married BG and turned her into a stage musical star. The backer of their latest production is a young rich widow with designs on MC. BG catches them, and sues MC for support (this is a separation?); BG also gets a doctor's letter to quit the show for exhaustion, so the show falters and MC can't pay the court-ordered support.

I'm getting too deep into the details, but let's not forget that BG and MC each develop amnesia for part of the film.

There were several moments in Miami where BG talks and acts like MM's persona, which hasn't fully emerged yet. BG has none of the vulnerability of MM.

Watch this for the musical numbers, not the plot.

Only 4 more BG films remain: 2 in '53, 2 in '55.

Fox, dir. Sale; 6+

Comin' Round the Mountain (1951), 5

Bud and Lou get mixed up with hillbillies, witches and love potions.
1h 17min | Comedy, Musical | 26 July 1951
Director: Charles Lamont
Stars: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Dorothy Shay, Margaret Hamilton.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043425/

As a musical, this is horrid. We get Dorothy Shay singing 5 story-songs about strange mountain folk. She's got a nice voice, and I marvel at her memory for tho long variety of lyrics, but they ain't stories I'm a want'n' t'hear.

The dialog is worse, because it's really thick H'wood hillbilly dialect, without the music.

The plot (to save me from watching this again): BA is agent to DS, the booked singer, and to LC, a stooge pretending to be a magician with LC as his emcee. His act fails, and the nightclub owner fires the lot of them. When LC saw a mouse in the club, he let out a special yelp that DS recognized as her clan's special call for help; they share a grandfather.

The grandfather left a secret to his direct descendants about buried treasure, but only grannie back home knows where 'tis. So they hed for the hills, and rekindle the feud with a rival clan by their presence.

DS meets a city man in the music biz who's a member of the rival clan, but she falls for him, and vice versa.

Grannie decides LC should be married before he can become the head of the clan and learn the secret of the hidden treasure. A young cousin sets her sights on LC as her intended. But LC wants DS, so grannie hooks him up with a witch (MH) to provide a love potion. After some mutual voodoo doll stabbing, and cash payment, LC gets the potion and feeds it to DS, who falls for him. Then he drinks the potion, and falls for the young cousin. Then she drinks the potion, and falls for BA. Later, a feud-rival drinks some and balls for BA (eyebrow up! This is a couple of decades before Deliverance ('72)); nothing sexual is displayed, but he leads LC to the mine that grannie revealed as the secret location. (The info was hidden in the concertina passed from grampa to LC.)

Everyone recovers from the potion just before gettin' hitched. At the mine, LC's cousins and A&C vie for access to the mine, and finally an elevator falls through the bottom of the shaft into Fort Knox. A&C are arrested. The End.

Then there's a congressional hearing about why two guys in a wooden elevator operated with counterweights was sufficient to break into Fort Knox. Testimony from architectural engineers, physicists and mathematicians just confuse the committee, so they pass a law that pi has value 3, and thousands of professionals are jailed for using 3.14159 or other approximations more precise than 3. Textbooks are burned, and no new technology works. Society eventually runs out of devices and electricity, and regresses to the iron age. Ayn Rand laughs her ashes off.

Universal, dir. Lamont; 5

On Moonlight Bay (1951), 6+ Color

During World War I, a teenage girl begins a romance with a college student, but his unconventional attitudes cause friction with her father.
1h 35min | Comedy, Family, Musical | 26 July 1951 | Color
Director: Roy Del Ruth
Stars: Doris Day, Gordon MacRae, Jack Smith, Leon Ames, Rosemary DeCamp, Mary Wickes, Ellen Corby, Billy Gray.
LeRoy Prinz ... musical numbers staged and directed by

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043880/

Watched online; good print. (This is one of those rotted dvds.)

The music here is all old-timey (as are the costumes). My favorites begin with the jazz age, and this ain't that.

However, the story is cute, and because they are not playing showbiz people, GM comes through much better than in prior films, or maybe he's learning how to act. He's annoyed me in the past because he's so artificial, and seems to be showing off when he sings. Here he's singing like ordinary people did before radio, singing along with others to entertain those present. 

Billy Gray (b. '38) contributes well here. Father Knows Best begins in '54.

Not sure what musical numbers needed staging. The only movement was social dancing.

Warner, dir. Del Ruth; 6+

Show Boat (1951), 8- Color

The daughter of a riverboat captain falls in love with a charming gambler, but their fairytale romance is threatened when his luck turns sour.
1h 48min | Drama, Family, Musical | 17 July 1951 | Color
Director: George Sidney
Stars: Kathryn Grayson, Ava Gardner, Howard Keel, Joe E. Brown, Marge Champion, Gower Champion, Robert Sterling, Agnes Moorehead, Leif Erickson, William Warfield.
Robert Alton ... dances
Alex Romero ... assistant choreographer (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044030/

Remake of Show Boat ('36, Universal); MGM bought the rights to the film as well as the play.

Cast comparison:
Irene Dunne::Kathryn Grayson
Helen Morgan::Ava Gardner
Allan Jones::Howard Keel
Charles Winninger::Joe E. Brown
Queenie Smith::Marge Champion
Sammy White::Gower Champion
Donald Cook::Robert Sterling
Helen Westley::Agnes Moorehead
Paul Robeson::William Warfield
Hattie McDaniel::no similar character

Songs performed (28 chapters with menu; from Wikipedia):

• ch1 Main Title — MGM Studio Orchestra and Chorus ("Cotton Blossom" and an instrumental version of "Make Believe")
• ch2. "Cotton Blossom" — Cotton Blossom Singers and Dancers
• ch3. "Capt' Andy's Ballyhoo" — danced by Marge and Gower Champion (MGM Studio Orchestra)
• ch7. "Where's the Mate for Me" — Howard Keel
• ch8. "Make Believe" — Kathryn Grayson / Howard Keel
• ch9. "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" — Ava Gardner (dubbed by Annette Warren) 
• ch9. "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" (Reprise #1) — Kathryn Grayson / Ava Gardner (dubbed)
• ch10. "I Might Fall Back On You" — Marge and Gower Champion
• ch11. Julie Leaves the Boat ("Mis'ry's Comin' Round" — partial) - MGM Studio Orchestra and Chorus
• ch12. "Ol' Man River" — William Warfield and MGM chorus
• ch13. Montage sequence ("Make Believe") — MGM Studio Orchestra and Chorus
• ch15. "You Are Love" — Kathryn Grayson / Howard Keel
• ch16. "Why Do I Love You" — Kathryn Grayson / Howard Keel
• ch19. "Bill" — Ava Gardner (dubbed by Annette Warren) 
• ch20. "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" (Reprise #2) — Kathryn Grayson
• ch21. "Life Upon the Wicked Stage" — Marge and Gower Champion
• ch22. "After the Ball" — Kathryn Grayson
• ch24. "Cakewalk" — danced by Joe E. Brown and Sheila Clark (MGM Studio Orchestra)
• ch25. "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" — (partial reprise by Ava Gardner, using her real singing voice)
• ch27. "Make Believe" (Reprise) — Howard Keel
• ch28. Finale: "Ol' Man River" (Reprise) — William Warfield / MGM Chorus

Although this film has color and Marge & Gower Champion (the dancing couple in '36 was very vaudeville, and were described as a comedy team), the '36 film has far more charm. It did much more to develop the romance between Nola and Ravenal, and much more development of Nola's affection for her black friends (not just Julie) and black culture (she sang more than 1 "black" song), and provided us with the couple of Joe & Queenie (Robeson & McDaniel), the drama of Kim's birth during a storm, Nola's career, Kim's adult career, and the much later reconciliation of Ravenal with his wife and daughter. The '36 version was only 5 min longer, and had 3 extra songs written specifically for the film by Kern & Hammerstein to do 3 of the things I mentioned: "I Have The Room Above Her", a duet for Magnolia and Ravenal; "Gallivantin' Aroun'", and "Ah Still Suits Me".

So it's not just the presence of Robeson and Dunne that makes the '36 version a superior film; it's the writing choices of which characters to develop. The majority of the storylines are the same.

MGM, dir. Sidney; 8-

Alice in Wonderland (1951), 5- Color

Alice stumbles into the world of Wonderland. Will she get home? Not if the Queen of Hearts has her way.
1h 15min | Animation, Adventure, Family | 28 July 1951 | Color
Directors: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Stars: Kathryn Beaumont, Ed Wynn, Richard Haydn, Sterling Holloway, Jerry Colonna.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043274/
Watched online; good print for a small screen.

I wonder if a good version can be made, and if so, would I like it. This rates 7.4 among ~109k users, and I all but ground my teeth while running this.

I remember liking the story as I a child, but I remember reading it, with the old (original?) illustrations. I'm sure I owned a copy of the book.

I don't know if it would help to have recently read the story and observed how they adapted it. I only vaguely remember the characters and "plot". To me, this film seems slow and boring, which the story should not. The songs especially decelerate things to a crawl/halt.

Try it again at your own peril. I'm warning you now to avoid this in future.

Disney, distr. RKO, dir. Geronimi, Jackson, Luske; 5-

Rich, Young and Pretty (1951), 6 Color

Jim Stauton Rogers, a Texas rancher turned international diplomat, takes his young daughter, Elizabeth Rogers, on a trip to Paris. He is concerned that his daughter might come in contact ... 
1h 35min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 9 July 1951 | Color
Director: Norman Taurog
Stars: Jane Powell, Danielle Darrieux, Wendell Corey, Vic Damone, Fernando Lamas, Marcel Dalio, Una Merkel, Richard Anderson.

Nick Castle ... stager: musical numbers

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043968/

This time the father (WC) has protected his daughter (JP) from her mother (DD), who abandoned the family when JP was 2, going back to France because she's homesick.

Songs performed (10 chapters, no menu):

ch2. Deep in the Heart of Texas, Sung by JP, WC

ch2. L'amour toujours (Tonight for Sure), Sung by DD, dancing with male chorus.

ch3. There's Danger in Your Eyes, Cherie, Sung by Danielle Darrieux 

ch4. Wonder Why, Sung by Jane Powell and Vic Damone separately

ch4. I Can See You, sung by JP, VD 

ch5. Paris, sung by FL

ch5. We Never Talk Much, sung by DD, FL

ch6. Wonder Why, Sung by Jane Powell and Vic Damone together

ch7. We Never Talk Much, sung by JP, VD

ch7. Dark is the Night, Sung by DD

ch8. Old Piano Roll Blues, sung by JP, VD, FL

ch8. How D'Ya Like Your Eggs in the Morning, Sung by Four Freshmen (as The Four Freshmen) 

ch10. Paris, sung by the cast

Somehow this comes across as dull. I'd say part of it is the lack of close-ups; I feel like we rarely see anyone emoting up close. Maybe DD, and maybe that's the only face worth watching for emotions. But I feel a distance from the characters; maybe they're just flat actors. (Marcel Dario could act them all under the table, but I haven't seen him in that kind of role in America - only in France with Jean Renoir.)

The other reason it's flat: there's no tension about JP learning that DD is her mother. WC is concerned and tries to prevent it, but when JP finally overhears WC & DD arguing about it, she acts mildly pleased. We know from her prior films she can splatter histrionics about corsets, so this is a writer/director choice.

And this is VD's 1st of 9 films, so expecting him to act is a stretch. As a singer, he has a beautiful voice, but I don't think of him delivering a story with his songs.

So, this is shrug-worthy.

MGM, dir. Taurog; 6

Yes Sir, Mr. Bones (1951), 5- (clips only)

A young boy finds himself in a home for retired minstrel acts. He's anxious to find out as much as he can about them, and flashbacks show what it was like back in the days of the minstrel shows.
54min | Comedy, Music | 13 July 1951
Director: Ron Ormond
Stars: Chick Watts, Cotton Watts, Ches Davis, Scatman Crothers.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044222/
Watched clips online, ok print.

I would like to see the whole thing. Most clips were of whites performing in blackface, and that was all very mediocre and painful, reminding me why blackface is so offensive.

The thing I'd like to see is the black performers, of whom there were only 2 clips, and 1 was comedy that I've seen done by others (conversation where no idea is completed, interrupted by the other as though they knew what was about to be said. Scatman C was one of the participants here.)

The interesting clip was of Brother Bones, who whistled and played "bones" like a different culture's version of castanets. He whistled well and for a long time, and the rhythms from the bones made me want a closeup in slow motion to see what the bones were doing, if they were joined (like castanets), and how his hands were moving.

It is available for sale, but not at a price I'd be willing to pay (about $6). Unfortunately it's paired with something country/western, which is outside of interest zone.

indies, dir. Ormond; 5-

Excuse My Dust (1951), 6- Color

Joe, inventor in an American Small town of 1895 has problems with his new invention, a car, driven with a gasoline motor. Everybody is making fun about his "crazy invention", only his girl ... 
1h 22min | Comedy, Musical | 29 June 1951 | Color
Directors: Roy Rowland, Buster Keaton (uncredited), Edward Sedgwick (uncredited)
Stars: Red Skelton, Sally Forrest, Macdonald Carey
Hermes Pan ... choreographer

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043514/

With great foresight, the characters here imagine the "future", even predicting that clothes will weigh less, and all sorts of other things.

The race includes early cars with different power sources: gasoline, ether, steam, electric (wet battery). Steering is a bit of a problem, as is the car running away once started by crank or especially by pushing. Probably supposed to be funny. The race is long and tedious, occupying the last 20-30% of the film.

As a musical, this disappoints. The singers did not make careers of singing on film, and the ensemble dances are closer to the old-timey way of the time portrayed. They do "jass" music (the early name for jazz), and the style is early. The exception is a fantasy in ch6, which comes from MC daydreaming about the future.

Songs performed (9 chapters, no menu); no performers on Soundtracks; these are from Wikipedia:

• ch2. I'd Like to Take You Out Dreaming, Performed by Macdonald Carey and Chorus
• ch3. Lorelei Brown, Performed by Monica Lewis and Chorus, introduced by Herbert Anderson and Sally Forrest
• ch3. Goin' Steady, Sung by Macdonald Carey, Monica Lewis, Sally Forrest, Red Skelton and Chorus
• ch4. Spring Has Sprung, Performed by Red Skelton and Sally Forrest (dubbed by Gloria Gray)
• ch4. Get a Horse, Performed by Macdonald Carey, William Demarest and Chorus
• ch5. That's for Children, Performed by Monica Lewis, Red Skelton and Chorus
• ch6. Lorelei Brown (reprise), Danced by Sally Forrest and Chorus in modern clothes and dance style
• ch7. Spring Has Sprung (reprise), Sung by Sally Forrest (dubbed by Gloria Gray)

Except for the mildly interesting dance in ch6, and the variety of cars in the race, this is tedious, and goes a long time without musical numbers after that dance. (The ch7 reprise is brief.) Per the Wikipedia article linked above, this lost a bunch of money; I can see why.

MGM, dir. Rowland, Keaton, Sedgwick; 6-

As Young as You Feel (1951), 7 {nm}

A 65-year-old printer hatches an elaborate scheme to avoid forced retirement.
1h 17min | Comedy | 15 June 1951
Director: Harmon Jones
Writers: Paddy Chayefsky (story), Lamar Trotti
Stars: Monty Woolley, Thelma Ritter, David Wayne, Jean Peters, Constance Bennett, Marilyn Monroe, Allyn Joslyn, Albert Dekker, Clinton Sundberg, Minor Watson, Wally Brown, Russ Tamblyn

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043299/

Watched because I'm tracking MM's persona development. Before this, I skipped watching the entire films All About Eve ('50) and Home Town Story ('51) because someone has compiled clips of her scenes and posted them online. In ...Eve she plays a wannabe starlet escorting George Sanders to Bette Davis' party, and seeking an audition later. She is very close to her persona there. Hard to pinpoint what's missing there, perhaps the vulnerability isn't quite so raw. Or perhaps it's just that she's playing a stereotype, so there's not sufficient depth to get that vulnerability. In HTS, she's a pretty secretary at a small town newspaper who gets a near-proposal from reporter Alan Hale Jr, but she fiercely defends her fiancee (whom we don't meet). I'd say ...Eve is the closest she's gotten to the MM persona so far.

In this film, she plays an excellent executive secretary, dressed exquisitely, seemingly unfettered by sexual harassment despite looking like very decorative icing on a cake (or perhaps pheasant under glass, for a low-carb analogy). Unfettered that is, until she shows up at the country club frequented by company executives, with her boss' underling, and is seen by her boss. Then she and the junior exec scurry away, and she gets a call at home from her boss asking some very personal questions, phrased to make it clear they've discussed something like this before. So the strictly professional veneer was false, and she had some sort of personal relationship with the boss too. At any rate, this is not quite her persona, since she competently took dictation, a skill I don't associate with her. 

Without MM, the film would still be recommended. This is all about ageism, with MW playing a man forced to retire at 65 with no warning (pink slip in the pay envelope). He finds a clever way to alter the rules, and makes a heroic speech about dignity for workers joined with uplifting the economy. (Was writer Paddy Chayefsky ever brought before HUAC?) In addition, he awakens some feelings in CB, who is married to MM's boss. So he improved everyone's life with his scheme.

TR is delightful (of course), playing a "former singer" with scrapbook to prove it... but not the voice. She semi-sings something as she's working around the house.

This is RT's (b.'34) 10th of 63 films already. He doesn't have a lot to do, but he does it well. He looks his age, and plays a neglected but not rebellious teen. He gives excellent reactions to the self-absorbed actions of the adults around him. Almost all the characters are incredibly narcissistic.  

Recommended for this early assault on ageism, and MW's charm throughout.

Fox, dir. Jones; 7

That's My Boy (1951), 6

The greatest player in Ridgefield College history uses his influence and reputation to get his only son, a sickly, uncoordinated nerd, on the college football team with comic results.
1h 44min | Comedy, Music, Sport | 31 May 1951
Director: Hal Walker
Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Ruth Hussey, Polly Bergen.
Eddie Prinz ... dance director (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044119/

Watched online, ok print.

No way would I tag this as Music/al. We get 3 songs, one of which is just the college fight song. DM sings I'm in the Mood for Love, and DM/PB sing/dance Ballin' the Jack with an ensemble at the high school graduation celebration.

Yeah, DM/JL/PB play new high school graduates. DM (b. '17), JL (b. '26), PB (b. '30). JL can act young, of course, but DM is 34 in '51. Good thing this is in b/w with no extreme closeups.

PB was in the last M&L film, and she's barely in this one; only in the first and last bits.

The story is rather sweet. DM is kind to JL, looks out for him, and even though he's being paid to, he develops genuine affection for the geek. 

JL is using his loud awkward guy persona to good effect here, and the script shows us how his parents contributed to his awkwardness. He evolves in the film too.

DM/JL form a romantic triangle with a girl which gets resolved satisfactorily.

I like when people are nice to each other. I don't really recommend this film, but I was happy to have watched it, and I have higher hope for the remaining M&L films now.

Yes, the Wallis in the production company name is Hal Wallis. No idea what the Hazen is.

Wallis-Hazen, distr. Paramount, dir. Walker; 6

On the Riviera (1951), 7 Color

An American entertainer impersonates a wealthy aviator and flirts with his lookalike's neglected wife.
1h 29min | Comedy, Musical | May 1951 | Color
Director: Walter Lang
Stars: Danny Kaye, Gene Tierney, Corinne Calvet, Marcel Dalio, Gwen Verdon.
Jack Cole ... dances stager

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043882/

Third musical version of The Red Cat: Folies Bergère de Paris (1935), That Night in Rio (1941), On the Riviera (1951). Cast comparisons (*first billed):
Maurice Chevalier*::Don Ameche::Danny Kaye
Merle Oberon::Alice Faye*::Gene Tierney
Ann Sothern::Carmen Miranda::Corinne Calvet

Songs performed (21 chapters with menu):

• ch1. On the Riviera, Performed by Danny Kaye 
• ch4. Duran impression with dancing by GW, DK & chorus, leading to...
• ch5. Rhythm of a New Romance, Performed by Danny Kaye, GW & chorus
• ch7. Ballin' the Jack, Performed by Danny Kaye and band, GW & chorus
• ch14. Popo the Puppet, Performed by Danny Kaye, GW & chorus
• ch20. Happy Ending, Performed by Danny Kaye, GW & chorus

As a musical, this is significant as the first appearance of GW in this quest, and this is the ethnic-blended choreography that I identify with Jack Cole (who is the DD). And this dvd includes a featurette about him, so I could probably now identify him onscreen.

This is less a musical than a comedy of deception. It's a fun deception, and DK executes it well. He dances well too. Just wish there's been more of it.

Fox, dir. Lang; 7

The Great Caruso (1951), 6+ Color

This highly fictionalized film traces the life of tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921). He loves Musetta, in his home town of Naples, and then Dorothy, the daughter of one of the Metropolitan ... 
1h 49min | Biography, Drama, Music | 10 May 1951 | Color
Director: Richard Thorpe
Stars: Mario Lanza, Ann Blyth, Dorothy Kirsten.
Peter Herman Adler ... operatic numbers staged by

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043599/

Watched online; ok print for small screen. (I started with another, on an off-brand streaming site, and it stuttered and sputtered, ruining the film.)

After going to two Live at the Met performances last month, enjoying them, and not wincing at the price, I can tell that I have missed opera. (Just checked Amazon Prime, and they have a lot of free performances. No idea how good they are, although restricting to 4-star ratings still gives a lot of listings.)

ML has a very nice voice, but his troubled personal history gets in the way of my enjoying this. And this gives one aria from an opera at best, sometimes only a snippet of an aria. And he had to get fitted for different costumes for all those scenes. Ugh.

So this is a Whitman's Sampler of tenor roles, and a fictitious biography to boot. Better to invest time in watching a whole opera.

MGM, dir. Thorpe; 6+

Double Crossbones (1951), 5 Color

After being falsely accused of dishonesty, a young man decides to become a pirate.
1h 16min | Adventure, Comedy, History | 26 April 1951 | Color
Director: Charles Barton (as Charles T. Barton)
Stars: Donald O'Connor, Helena Carter, Will Geer.
Harold Belfer ... choreographer (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042411/

Watched online, good print. Also on AmazonPrime.

In the Tap! Appendix for Donald O'Connor. He does a song/dance routine in a tavern to raise money for sea passage away from that town. Among other good moves, he does his somersault off a wall.

Although there are 3 songs in the Soundtracks, I only correlate 1 with his singing/dancing. But he danced to at least 1 other tune before singing about Percy, so maybe that accounts for another.

Rated 4 on 2014-06-03; I think I've seen other extra low ratings around that date, which is when I retired.

It's not that bad, but I would NOT classify this as a Musical; I'll not contest it though. Nor do I understand why it's tagged as History.

I'm not an aficionado of pirate films, and this one doesn't strike me as being all that interesting. Just the plot twist that we have a ship of innocent prisoners acting as pirates doesn't grab me, and having a woman among the pirate captains who congregate on Tortuga doesn't impress me either. (She's the actress who did the strength stunts in court during Adam's Rib ('49).)

Shrug-worthy.

Universal, dir. Barton; 5

Lullaby of Broadway (1951), 7+ Color

A showgirl returns to her New York home to visit her alcoholic mother, where she catches the eye of a Broadway producer.
1h 32min | Comedy, Musical, Romance | 26 March 1951 | Color
Director: David Butler
Stars: Doris Day, Gene Nelson, S.Z. Sakall, Billy De Wolfe, Florence Bates.
Eddie Prinz ... choreographer
LeRoy Prinz ... choreographer
Al White Jr. ... choreographer (as Al White)
Eddie Graham ... assistant dance director (uncredited)
Gene Nelson ... choreographer (uncredited)
Miriam Nelson ... assistant dance director (uncredited)

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043762/


Songs performed (26 chapters with menu)
ch2. Just One of Those Things, Sung by Doris Day
ch5. In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town, Sung by Gladys George
ch7. You're Dependable, Sung by Billy De Wolfe and Anne Triola
ch8. Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart, Played by Page Cavanaugh Trio, Sung and Danced by Gene Nelson (dubbed by Hal Derwin),
ch11. You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me, Sung by Doris Day, Danced by DD & GN
ch16. Somebody Loves Me, Sung by Doris Day and Gene Nelson (dubbed by Hal Derwin), Danced by DD & GN
ch20. I Love the Way You Say Goodnight, Sung by Doris Day and Gene Nelson (dubbed by Hal Derwin), Danced by DD, GN & mixed chorus
ch22. some brief rehearsal dancing: DD/GN, then mixed chorus
ch24. Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone, Sung by Gladys George
ch26. Lullaby of Broadway, Sung by Doris Day, Danced by DD, GN, mixed chorus
ch??. We'd Like to Go on a Trip, Sung by Billy De Wolfe and Anne Triola

Lullaby of Broadway is begun as B.Berkeley did it in Gold Diggers of '35: with an isolated head growing in size while singing. That's where the similarity ends. 

This is another mother trying to hide her true self from daughter, who she's sent away to grow up in Europe. Somehow she's prosperous enough to support this upscale foreign living, but this one is working in a clip joint, which doesn't look like a lucrative income.

Warner, dir. Butler; 7+