Warner
Like MGM and other Hollywood studios during the War, Warner mobilized all of its available talent in a song-and-dance revue, relying on star names for popular appeal, for a patriotic showcase.
Grade: C+ (** out of *****)
The slender plot concerns Dennis Morgan and Joan Leslie as a couple of down-and-outers trying to land parts in a charity show produced by Edward Everett Horton and S.Z. Sakall.
Eddie Cantor plays a dual role as himself and also a Hollywood tour-bus driver who abets Morgan and Leslie in their efforts.
The show and the film consist of singing by Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, John Garfield, Ann Sheridan, Dinah Shore, Olivia De Havilland, George Tobias, Hattie McDaniel, Willie Best, Joan Leslie, Dennis Morgan and Eddie cantor. And there’s also dancing by Ida Lupino, Alexis Smith, De Havilland, and vaudeville by Alan Hale and Jack Carson.
Oscar Nominations:
Song: “They’re Either Too Young or Too Old,” music by Arthur Schwartz, lyrics by Frank Loesser
Oscar Awards: None
Oscar Context:
The Song Oscar went to the popular tune, “You’ll Never Know,” by Harry Warren and Mack Gordon from the movie, “Hello, Frisco, Hello.”
Cast:
Humphrey Bogart
Eddie Cantor
Bette Davis
Olivia de Havilland
Errol Flynn
John Garfield
Joan Leslie
Ida Lupino
Dennis Morgan
Ann Sheridan
Dinah Shore
Alexis Smith
Jack Carson
Alan Hale
George Tobias
Edward Everett Horton
S.Z. Sakall
Hattie McDaniel
Ruth Donnelly
Don Wilson
Willie Best
Henry Armetta
Joyce Reynolds
Spike Jones and His City Slickers
Credits
Produced by Mark Hellinger.
Directed by David Butler.
Screenplay by Norman Panama, Melvin Frank and James V. Kern, from an original story by Everett Freeman and Arthur Schwartz
Release date: October 1, 1943
