Variety (May 1939)

U VARIETY FnUM REVIEWS Wedaesdaj, May 10, 1939 Ros« of Washiogton Sq. (MUSICAL) SOth-Fox ' rclcue ■' et' NonnaUy Jobiuon KiductkiD. fitan T>-rone Power,' 'AHca ye, M Jolaon, (ratuna William Fnwicy, Joyce Compton, Hobnrt Cavaiiansh, \>U rected by Gresoty Ratolt, Screenplay, Nun- nally Johnson from story by John Larkin and Jerry Horwln; dances, Seymour Felix; title mng by James F. Hanley and RaN lard Macdonnid: one original aong. Mnck Gordon and llnrry Revel; 13 other popn by 4lvera songsmltha: camera. Karl Freund; •ditor, Louis Loeffler; music, Louis Sil- vers. At Roxy. X. Y., week May 5i "39. Bunnlns time: M MINS. Bart Clinton Tyrone Power Hose Sarscnt Alice Fnye Ted Cotter ....Al Jolaon Horry Long William Fravtley Pexgy Joyce Compton Whitey Boone .Hobart CavannuKh Buck Russell >Ioronl Olren: Barouche Driver B. B. .Olive Band ticader....... Louis Prima UIke Cavonaugh Charles Wilson . (Hal K. Dawsm, Chumps : I Paul But4i Toby ;. Ben ■ Weldsn' Irving Horate MacMaho'n Slstrlot Attorney....'....' Paiil Stanton Mr. Mok 1 Maurice Cass Mr, Paunch .Bert-Roach Miss Lust Irma Wllsen. Dexter : Harry. Hayden Snm Kress Charles Lane Jim.,,. : ;^.',VAdrlan Morris JUilge ;,.;,Jobn Hamilton Mrs. Russell :..; iWloirrcd Harris teiir competition at a nearby 14th street vaudery, .doing 'I'm Sorry I Made You C^.V The ensuing shift in action Is episodic and at times ;be< wilderlng, but .seemingly accelerated to introduce Power in tiie jnountain retreat where he first meets Miss Faye, also there (or a rest. Most of the theatre stuff has Jol-. son in blackface and.clicking pro- gressively to stardom, including his accidental meeting with Cavanaugh as the box stoogej Miss Faye's New Amsterdam theatre dick in a Zleg- feld 'Follies' introduces her 'Heaven Could Speak' (Gordon and Bevel), tune, plus the tiUg song,- done with a n%o-Apach6"Daclcgrband - in the Latin quarter atmosphere. The 'My Man*' tune comes in after much hpopla and to-do in a music .pub4 lisher's office tliat she should sing this numi>er to show the world how she 'feels about her gteat 'romance! Seymour Felix's dance staging is cursory, and anything approaching a production flaish is confined to the 'Rose of Washington Square* se-^ quence. - ■ , . . Abet Invitation to Happiness Mimatore Reviews Of the three co-stars this .Is Jol son's picture. But it's not much of a filmuslcal, at least not to the ex' tent that Darryl Zah^c'c Intended it; Primed for the same nostalgic ap- peal as was 20th-Fpx's last season's cmash, 'Alexander's Raigtline ^nd'— and with Tyrone Power and Alice Fajre romantically paired again,, to ,(„ „ , further cement the lde»^the film mV. wfyne' misses fire. It's, .primarily a story deficiency/ Nuhnally Johnson did both the screehlilay and handled the production^'althouch' the basic Origi- nal by Joint .-(su'liin . and Jerry Hor- wln Is as-^ueh to blame, - ' A major,-solo title (^distinguished from the'usually casual, lower-case legend) emplisst2es that. the lilot structure Is flctiontj, hedrs no re- semblance to Persons living or dead, that any 'slnmarity is purely coinci- dental, etd But the fans, if only through the critics, are bound to put the title song^ the 'ft'v Man' excerpt and a coupte of other things to- fether for ■ their wn conclusions, [owever, the Fannle-BrlcerNicky Amstein sagc^ is an incidental to a show 'business romance where Al Jolson (billed as Ted Oitter, but be might just as well have been called Jolson In the iflrst'place) is the altru- istic patron of the beautieous and talented Alice Faye. She in turn is stuck on the personable, but wrong- ' g-jy, character plaved by Power; Which constitutes the primary plot deficiency. F /er 1-; so palp- ably a wroilg-gee that the audience -sympiathies are laddng, and that foes, ° in a measure, also for Miss 'aye's ml^laced romantic devotion. Jolson save for his dynamic song salesmanship, which is the quality that awards the film's individual laurels to him, is likewise a neutral audience quantity. The yesteryear pop song cavalcade Includes sUch familiars as 'Toot. Toot, Tootsie, (Joodbye,' 'The 'Vamp,' *Ja-Da,' 'Always Chasing Rainbows,' 'Rockabye' Your Baby with Dixie Melody,' ■California Her.- I Come,' •April Showers,' 'Wild About Harry, ^Everybody Loes a Baby,' 'My Mam- my,' 'Avalon,' 'I'm Sorry I Made 'You Cry,' 'Curse of an Aching Heart,* and the aforementioned "My Man' and the title song, Crordon and Revel's lone original contribution is 'I Never Knew Heaven Could Speak,' a pretty fair ballad done by Miss Faye In a stage sequence. Most of the tunes are Jolson's boffos at the 'New* Winter Garden as^he's fast climbing to solo stage success, follow- ing ah inopportune split with Miss Faye, his erstwhile stage partner, 'There's no denying the memory lane appeal of this song cavalcade, because it's a pretty good catalog in anybody's hit parade, Jolson's real- life association with the cream of the crop lends it extra values, BC' sides which, he's the singln* fool of the Winter Garden days of old, and so acknowledged by a pretty wise first night audience at the Roxy with Intermittent applause. But remem- bered or not, the singer's blackface specialties tire consistently socko. ilie rest is also-ran, however. Miss Faye Is stlU plenty on the s,a. side, excepting for a few unfortunate camera angles that don't fiatter her chin-line. Power's vacillating char- acterization is a mlssout and, while 20th-Fox might take a cue fri>m Metro's toughening' process with Robert Taylor, here he's too much of a larcenous sappolo. The Sing Sing exit scdne where she tearfully prom' ises 'I'll be ..waiting after his five year sentence is unconvincing. . Ot the feature players, Hobart Cavanaugh as the box stooge. Bill Frawley as the agent and Joyce Con(ipton as the femme star's gal pal are most prominent Louis Prima is himself as a bond leader, in a blind pig of the early Volsteadlan vintage: Ben Welden is a kind of silly plug-ugly; and Horace Mac- Mahon, .who usually dominates such tough-guy scenes, 'acts as if he de- liberately wanted to remain un- obtrusive.' The rest are bits. The backstage stuff starts In an Irving Place burlesquery where Jol- son is shown as a candy butcher singing and selling 'Everybody Loves a Baby' and Misa Faye Is in an ama- HoUywood, May 5, Paramount release o< Wesley Rugeles production. Stars' Irene Dunne and Fred MacMurray, Features Charlie RugKles, Billy. Cook, William Collier. Directed by Wesley Ruggles. Screenplay by -Claude BInyon; based on story, by Mark Jerome; camera. Leo Tovar; asat. director. Mel Ep- stein: editor. Alma Macrorle. Previewed nt Westwood Village. May 4, '89, Running timy 97 MIMS. Bleanor Vayje Irene Dunne Albert 'King' Cole Fred MacMurray Pop Hardy r,,.; Charlie Ruggles " " Jr..,.,,,,, Billy Cook ,, William Collier, rsr. Lola ' Mnrlon Mnrtln Divorce Judge ;Oscar O'Shea Butler ; Burr Coruth The Champ : ; Eddie Hogan ''Rose 'of fraahington Sqoare* (20th). Fair filmuslcal with Ty- rone Power, Alice Faye. and Al Jolson co-starred, 'InvlUtlen to Happiness' (Par). ■ Irene- Dunne and Fted MacMur- ray in hearthrob drama. Geared for good biz. ' 'Captain jPory' (UA). For ac- tion audiences. Fair biz in keys; better for subsequents. ' rSOrorlty Hotoe* (RKO). Co- eds' fraternity life' a tearful trifle. . 'Fixer Dagan' <RKO). A low- .er bracket or iSat rental picture 'that has virtually nothing. •Some Like It Hot' (Par). Gene Krupa for the jitterbugs. Bob Hope wlsecraclcing and Shirley Ross vocalizing. Fair program- ■ mer. 'Hotel Imperial' (Par). Weak offering of outmoded Continental drama, decidedly imconvincing. For the duals. The Bookie Cop' (RKO). Po- lice dog drama with familiar story. Acceptable for the liid matinees. 'Boys' Beformatory' (Mono). Tepid juve meller with .mild name rating; for bottom-billing. tempo kept at a good pace to over- come minor .shortcomings in the script Production layout Is okay, with camera work of Norbert Bro- dine standard .throughout SORORITY HOUSE ItKO Radio release of Robert SIsk pro- durlloD. l^-atures' Anne Shirley 'and James'Ellison. Directed by John Farrow. Adapted by Dnlton Trumbo from story by Mary Coyle Chase; camera, Nicholas Mu- suraca; musical director, Roy Webb; edi- tor, Barry Marker. At RKO Albee,. Brook- lyn, dual, week May 5, '30. Running time: •3 MINA. SOME LIKE IT HOT (WITH SONGS) '■Hollywood, May- e! Paramount release et William C. Thomna production. Features Bop Hope, Shlrlev Ross, Una Merkel and Qene Krupa band Directed by Qeorge Archalnbaud, Screen- play by Lewis R. Foster and Wllkle Ma- lioney; based on play by Ben Hecht and Gene Fowler. Camera, Karl StruBs: .aut director, Hal Walker; editor, Edward bniy- tryk; aongs, Frank Loesser and Burton tAne; Gene Krupa, R«mo Ulondl and Lore. — Previewed at Paramount. L. A., Mar SO, Running Ume, 63 MINH. ser, S, Alice'Plaher.,.: Bill Loomls.. Dotty .Spencer.. Merle Scot t.., .'.Anne Shirley ..Tames Ellison .Barbara Read . .Allele Pearce Nicky Nelson;. Lily Racquel... 1^0 'Saundfrs..; Qene Krupa... Stbney: '..... Stephen Hanratty Mme. President'. ' Helen Wood I,ew Fluber, Neva Simpson... Norma Hnncook. Mine. Scott Mrs. Dawson.... Mr. Grant, Mr. Johnson..:.' The director'^wrlter team of Wes- ley Ruggles and Claude BInyon has been responsible for several fine pro- ductions during the past few years. 'Invitation' to Happiness,' taken in stride by the duo, carries entertain- ing factors for general audience ap- peal ' It will provide acceptable box office. In addition to Irene Dtmne and Fred MacMurray In the top spots, Charlie Ruggles and William Col- lier deliver impressive performances. Fine work also Is done by 10-year- old Billy Cook. Latter demonstrates plenfy of dramatic flare and sincer- ity in performance that augurs much for his future. Picture is an emotional drama, with plenty of heart tugs. Ah admix- ture of romance in the '■-vlv stages, it swings into the heart-Interest sec- tor in the latter half when a father attempts to gain the love and respect of his son. Dramatic appeal Is engendered from several quarters. For the women, there's Ihe self-sacrificing wife who continually submerges her love for the husband-fighter that he might achieve his one objective of becoming champion of the world. For the men, there's a hefty punch in the situation of the palooka's at- tempts to gain his son s confidence after continual absences from the family fireside. The fight for the championship, when MacMurray rises from niockout blows only be- cause his kid Is at ringside, will pro- vide a kick to any father v/ho wants to be a hero in his youngster's eyes. Ruggles steers his cha '>rs with deftness and many human and inti- mate touches. Story opens with so- cialite Miss .Dunne falling in love with the egotistical pug, MacMurray after her father purchased a hall interest in his contract. Pair are married, and the wife reluctantly submits to his long absence in train- ing camps and on tour. When a son is bom, MacMurray is flfihting in Boston. After a 10-year lapse, he gets a crack at the champion, and comes home, a virtual stranger to his son. Youngster gives him the brushoff, and the burdened wife seeks a divorce. Facing the champ, MacMurray puts up goo^ fight but finally goes down. But in de- feat he gains the respect of his son and regains the love of his waiting wife. Miss Dunne switches to a straight dramatic role from her recent cycle of comedies and farces, and does a most capable job in the assignment MacMurray is splendid - - th; fighter who battled his way up the ladder and Into the heart of a spoiled but determined girl. Charlie Ruggles, in a straight dramatic part as the fighter's manager, is topnotch, as is William Collier as the girl's father. The fight at the finish is one of the most realistic and bruising that has ever been set up for llm purposes. Ruggles catches the tempo of the bout from the first gong, and has the battle whizz through for a melo- dramatic finish—dovetailing the re- actions of the son and wife during the^ encounter to heighten the tense- ness of the situation, Ruggles catches audience attention at the start and maintains a steady pace, with few slow spots, to the ultimate conclusion. It's a fine job of etching the characters humanly and realistically throughout Picture has been given advantages of top production mounting. Musical score by Frederick Hollander and camera work of Leo Tover is excel- lent CAPTAIN FURY Hollywood, May 3, TTnlted Artlet release of Hal Roach pro- ductlon-and direction, 'Stars Brian Aheme and victor McLaglen, Original and screen- play by Orover Jones, Jack Jevne, William De Mllle. Camera, Norbert Brodlne; photo- graphic efrects, Roy ' Seawrlght; editor, William Zlegler. Previewed at Warners Hollywood, May 2. '30, Running time, SI Captain Fury Brian Aheme Blackle victor McLaglen Francois Dupre '. Paul Lukes Jeanette Dupre June I.ang Coughy John Uaitadlne Arnold Trist George Zucco Preston Douglass Dumhrllle Mabel Virginia Field Mergon Charles Mlddleton Governor Lawrence Orossmlto Mr. Bailey Lumsden Hare Mrs. Bailey Maiy Gordon Bob John Warburton Suco Claude AUIster Bertie Will Stanton Governor's Aide Edgar Norton Teas Bailey ..Morgaret Roach Dully Bill Sevan Danny Bailey Edwin Brian Here Is lusty outdoor melodrama on the familiar Robin Hood format There's action, gunplay, fast riding, surprise attacks, some broad comedy and a'few dashes of romance. Geared to catch adventure-nUnded audiences, picture will do pretty good biz in the keys, but will hit a more profitable stride in the subsequents. Brian Aherne and Victor McLaglen are co-starred, and pair , supply fair marquee dressing. In the British Empire, 'Captain Fury' will catch profitable grosses. Picture's back^ ground is Australian and the char' acterlzations presented are English. 'Captain Fury' details the pioneer- ing days of the Australian bush country. Aherne, Irish patriot, is in group of prisoners shipped to Aus- tralia to serve sentences. Turned over to custody of George Zucco, despotic land baron, rebellious Aheme escapes with McLaglen and four other prisoners and wind up as a Robin Hood band of daredevils to save the neighboring ranchers from Zucco's attempts to chase, them from the valley. From there on it's a series of chases and harrassing at- tacks on Zucco and his henchmen, tmtil an obvious finish provides re- tribution for the despot and pardons for Aheme and his gang. Aherne dashes through danger with nonchalance and abandon, mir- aculously escaping death frequently for the convenience of the script Mc- Iiaglen is seen in a familiar role of a tough, two-fisted, lightflngered gent whose iron hand drops victims with one crack. In both story setup and direction, characters for right and wrong are definitely etched. Zucco and his la- bor bosses, Douglas Dumbrllle and Charles Mlddleton, are broadly drawn as heavies. In direct contrast are the heroics and humaneness of the Aherne-McLaglen cohorts who comprises John Carradine, John War- burton, Claude Allister and Will Stanton, Stanton, Allister and Car' radine provide some comedy mo ments on the broad slapstick side, easily recognizable as carryovers from silent comedy days. Three romances are inserted for minor attention. Jiine Lang gives Aherne a chance to lose his heart; McLaglen has a flirtation with bar' maid Virginia Field; and there is in cidental lovemaking between War burton and Margaret Roach, Story and direction provide lusty drama concocted in the old style. There are no detours for subleties or development of. characters. Yarn is a familiar westiern in setup, but switch of locale to ihe Australian bush country gives the rugged and easily-distinguished plot a freshness which will be generally accepted. Picture Is the first chore for Hal Roach as a director in several years. Job Is moderately successful, with .. J. ^L .Kerrigan Doris Joi^an :..June Storey .... Elizabeth Rlsdon .Margaret Armstrong Selmer Jackson ;..ChlU Wills Boy meets girl, in a collegiate backgroimd, laying stress on the trials of freshmen at a cored insti- tution. Theme concerns snob sorori- ties and the exclusion of all except those of socially accentable parents. More or less wholeso'^ie story treat- ment short on comedy and long on sentimental heart-break, should ap- >eal to feminine audiences, and at- xact considerable business as a l>et- ter-than-average 'B' for the family trade and college towns; Production suffers principally from a dearth of dramatic plot inci- dent Here is a colleg picture with- out campus activities or athletic rah-, rah, and virtually. no co-e:*. .doings except for the cute love interest de- veloped between Shirley .and Ellison, Only villaihs are the snobbish frat leaders. who reject a candidate If her folks aren't socialit<>.. Anne'Shirley is tops in an overly saccharine portrayal as the grocery- man's daughter who Hreams of a col- lege career. J. M. Kerrigan, her father, sacrifices his business .u raise money so she can realize her ambi- tion.' She loses no time in attracting the attention of the handsome foot- ball hero, James Ellison, who fur- thers her desire to get into a soror- ity by noising it about that her father owns a chain of stores. Two other girls share her quarters. One Is a plain, cynical type without any hope of getting into a sorority and the other a youngster who'll limply die if she can't land a bid. After a week's festivities and ''rush- ing* parties, the latter doesn't land,' but Miss Shirley does. Her father has decided to sell his store and lO' cate in the college town to. be near his daughter. At a swanky reception for parents of the girls who have b:c.i accepted' Into Gamma, he shows up only to i;et a cold shoulder from his daugh- er, who is somewhat ashamed of him. Realizing the enormity of her action, she leaves the snooty Gamma, seeks out her dad and begs forgivC' ness. Her roommates are consoled to their fate iand together all three organize their own - non-fratemlty club. Cast chiefly comprises a host of at- tractive yoimg girls, with Barbara Read and Adele Pearce doing fine work. Ellison is satisfactory in every way and Kerrigan gives an accept- ably restrainel performance. Picture shows careful attention to !iroductlon details in interior set ings, lensing and art work. As en tertamment it is mildly diverting, but apt to become too dreary for . 'SBS Who like action. FIXER DUGAN RKO release o( CIIS Reld production. Features Lee Tracy, Virginia Weldler, Peggy Shannon, Jack Arnold, Rita I,anoy, Directed by Lew. Landers. From play by H. C. Potter: adaptation, Bert Oranet and Paul Tawltz: editor, Henry Berman: pho- tography, J. Roy Hunt. At RIalto. N. T., week May 3, '30. Running time: 68 MINS, Charlie Dugan Lee Tracy Terry Virginia Weldler Adgle Modeno Peggy Shannon Owner Baryln Bradley Page Smiley William Edmunds Jake Edward Gargan Darlow Jack Arnold Patsy ...RIU LaRoy Jane ; ..Irene Franklin -<!teve John Dllson Mrs. Fletcher '. Edythe Elliott A low-bracket programmer of less than average importance for filler playdating. Belongs on double bills with the strongest possible lead fea ture obtainable. Except for Lee Tracy the casting Is brutal. Peggy Shannon looks and acts as much a lion-tamer as Shir- ley Temple, The same disregard for consistency applies to little Virginia Weldler,'the waif who carries along with the circus after her mother, a wire artist has fallen to her death. For Miss Weldler it's her poorest chance to get fan mail, Tracy is the fixer for the Barvin Circus, a fast talker and a rather likable character. He plays the ro' mahtic' angle strong with Miss Shan non but latter fizzes about as much as'leftover soda and her scenes with the lions are a panic the wrong way. Producer Cliff Reid and director Lew Landers have been entirely in- different to details in the production of 'Dugan.' For Instance, when the circus is at the Missouri-Kansas line, going Into Kansas with a view to escaping service of legal papers, nU' merous shots follow ' of Missouri dates. Then Tracy, a couple scenes later, does a line Indicating he's in Kansas. Where was editor Henry BermanT Char, Hob Hope Shirley Itosa ', Una Merkel >,i Gene Krupa Rute Davis riiavu naiitni^j,,Bemard Nedell or Burk.e .Frank Sully Miss Marble..: '...'.'Bernadene Hayes Weems..; Richard Denning — Ives -. Clarence H, Wilson Sam Dudley Dlekeraon Harry Harry Bnrrls Boss Fiddler. i.Wayne 'Tiny* Whitt Ma<jCrady ,-, Edgar Dearing '<'>••••• Jack Smart Here's one that was turned out deliberately to catch the jitterbug devotees, with Gene Krupa- and his swing band going to town for the rug-cutters. For general audiences, picture will slip ' liito ' the. second spots of the key dualers and satisfy moderately, 'Some Like It .Hot' presents oppor- tunity for profitable exploitation to attract the jivesters, and can be tied up easily for contests among local alligators and ickies, Krupa puts out some hot stuff for the rug-cut- ters in his various appearances. Story Itself is. just an excuse on which to hang Krupa's musical dis- play. It's built around the smart cracks and antics of Bob Hope as an ambitious, cockey, and small-tiriiey promoter of boarawalk amusement ventures. He has Krupa and a small band . ballylng a buried-alive pitch on the. boardwalk, but aims to put the aggregation in the pier dance hall operated by Bernard Nedell, Ir- responsible Hope Is closed up, and aced out of band management when Krupa and "his boys get the dance spot In between there's a rather synthetic romance between Hope and Shirley Ross; and ultimate fin- ish with the pair getting together to ride along, on Krupa's success. Aside from the frequent appear- ances of Krupa's band, picture has' little to offer. Miss Ross sings the two songs. The Lady's in Love With You* and 'Some Like It Hot' accept- ably, but. the vocal repetitions of both impart a song-plugging im- pression. Tunes will get over for normal radio attention. Krupa is on at the start for a fast shuffle ot 'Some Like It Hof with a trio including Harry Barris doing the vocal. Latier, the band does a free boardwalk ballyhoo to clinch the dance hall engagement .Inside, the band suddenly expands to full force of about 15 men, and the band leader gives out aplenty with three or four routines on the hot. side. Supporting cast 'Is acceptable. Krupa plays himself in the picture, and gets by satisfactorily. Una Merkel is lost In the shuffle, and has few scenes of Importance. George Archalnbuad's direction keeps things moving with a creditable job, consid- ering tough assignment of spotting Krupa and the band several times for numbers. HOTEL IMPERIAL (WITH SONG) Los Angeles, May 9. . Paramount production and release. Fea- tures Isa Miranda and Ray Mllland. Di- rected by Robert Florey. Screenplay by Gilbert Gabriel and Robert Thoeren; based on play by Lojos Biro. Camera, William Melior; asst. director, Stanley Goldsmith; editor. Chandler House; song, Frederick Hollander and Ralph Freed. Previewed at Paramount, L. A„ May 6, 'SO, Runnlns time: 78 MIMS. Anna Isa Miranda Lieut. Nemossy R.iy Mlllnnd General Vldenko Reginald Owen Ellas Gene Lockbart Kuprln,...: J, Carroll Nalnh Anton ; Curt Bols .Sullanov Henry Victor Sergeant Albert Dekker And the Don Coasaok Chorus, Serge Jar^ on, conductor. Nothing much to be done about this one. It's a weak sister to be slotted on lower brackets of the dualers where a filler is needed. Story is dated and inconclusive, mo- tivation is developed by some diy and extended dialog, and picture as a whole never seeins to generate any interest 'Hotel Imperial' remake of a Pola Negri silent, was originally set up by Paramount as a Dietrich starrer. After being In work several days, she walked and picture folded. Second start was made with Margaret Sul- lavan in the top spot but production halted when she broke her arm on the set. Completed version has Isa Miranda In the lead. She is unable to overcome the basic faults of the story and script The.Miranda name may carry the picture through to fair grosses in the foreign market, where she is better known than in this country. Girl shows capabilities in fiashes, but is unable to rise to the exotic and fiery requirements of the script Girl can- not be blamed for this condition, as direction falls to catch the dramatic elements apparently written orig- inally for Miss Dietrich. Action of the picture Is confined Almost entirely within the walls of (he Hotel Imperial, located in a (Continued on page 23)