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Music for Merriment (Continued from page 61) lengthy glimpse. But her comparatively brief appearance was enough to ensure more. You couldn t miss her, no matter how brief her appearance was, and " That Night in Rio ” and “ Week-end in Havana" successively gave us more of the “ Brazilian Bombshell. All three of these films were in the group of big, spectacular musical films on which no expense and trouble is spared, and all of them were in colour. It is, of course, no new thing for musicals to be photographed in colour, for this was also done in some of the early ones, notably " Broadway Melody. But the colour has improved, like the recording, out of all knowledge, and its use has become comparatively extensive only during the past two years. Before that the colour films produced in one year could be counted on the fingers. These big spectacles, which go all out to delight the eye, please the ear and set laughter ringing, have put many stars in the front rank of popularity, among them Alice Faye, Don Ameche, John Payne, Betty Grable, Eleanor Powell. Fred Astaire was already tremendously popular on the musical comedy stage before he went to films, but his public now is tremendous, and his films have been typical of the spectacular brand. Not even his best friend could claim that Fred has a good voice, but he makes skilful use of what he has, com- bines it with his brilliant dancing and whimsical humour. His films, without exception, have been beautifully and lavishly staged, with lilting musical numbers that have provided at least one really big hit per film. For instance, “ We Joined the Navy ” in “ Follow the Fleet," " A Fine Romance ” in “Swing Time” and “You’ll Never Get Rich," which gave us several good numbers. " Week-end in Havana ” was one of the latest and most successful of the coloured spectacular musicals. With the natural beauties of Cuban landscape and the glittering gaiety of casinos as back- ground, it told a gay, romantic story of a young shipping magnate and a shop-girl brought together by a wrecked luxury cruise ship, with complications introduced by the inimitable Carmen Miranda as a casino singer and Cesar Romero as her fraudulent manager. Mexican dancers and singers brought their colourful native songs and dances to the screen in another Technicolour musical, “ Fiesta,” with Mexico’s screen and radio idol, George Negrete, in one of the leading roles. The majority of popular dance tunes have either originated in a film or else have been included in one, and if films are any criterion of the public’s musical taste, then there’s no question about the modern musical fashion—it is swing. John Payne, Alice Faye, Carmen Mir- anda and Cesar Romero i n “ Week- end in Havana.’’ John , Carroll and Kathryn G ray son Rio Rita.’’ Below: Martha Raye Allen Jenkins, Rudy Vallee and Ann Miller Time Out for Rhythm."