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LULLABY OF BROADWAY Milton Kraus One might paraphrase that old platitude - "the play's the thing" -by saying - "the music's the thing", - in summing up this picture. For here, in effect, the music saves the picture from being a complete washout. Given a very •weak, maudlin plot to work with, containing implausible situations, it is to the credit of the music department and the two principals, Doris Day and Gene Nelson, that they rose above the morass they might have fallen into,and turned out a very listening result. Culling some of the best tunes from Tin Pan Alley, the producers have evolved an ear and eye-filling spectacle,- if we forgive the plot. The dance routines are all fresh and lively and the music aids and abets them to the hilt, Ray Heindorf, the musical director, is no doubt responsible for the ex- cellent background music, and Frank Perkins has done a first-rate job on the orchestrations. Stylistically, the music runs the entire gamut from Hollywood lushness to present day Bop, And while we are on the subject of credits, kudos are due the wonderful Page Cavanaugh Trio, who are spot- ted in this picture. The boys sing as well as play, and do a great job of backing Doris Day and Gene Nelson in one big scene. Also, a great big vote for the excellent piano work done by Buddy Cole in the "Somebody Loves Me" number with Dopis Day, In closing,! would like to digress for a moment and talk of the abuse of poetic license that has been taken by Hollywood time and time again, I refer to the"reality vs. imagination" situation that arises -when one sudden- ly hears an orchestral background that comes out of nowhere to accompany a vocalist or dancer. This was especially disconcerting, at least to me, when the scene started with a piano or the Page Cavanaugh Trio,for example, and was then taken over by a Ptudio orchestra on sound track, while the eye still saw the original accompanying piano or-trio, Why? The piano and trio were very believ- ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^_ able in the specific scenes. They did not have to be augmented by the unseen studio orchestra on sound ^ track, which, to my mind, spoiled ^4 the reality of the scene, . VAHV 1! dA. •L^^FT On the other hand, in the opening scene of the picture, when the studio did have a chance to be musically faithful to reality, we saw an orches- tra, evidently accompanying Doris Day, but heard instruments on the sound track which were not in the orchestra. Mr, Somebody or other,your musical slip is showing I If this is picayune quibbling, I can only defend it by saying that in my opinion,such licenses and slips de- tract from the artistic merit that this picture possesses. LULLABY OF BROADWAY,. Warner Brothers. Doris Day,Gene Nelson. Director,David PAGE CAVANAUGH TRIO Butler. Music Director,Ray Heindorf, 12