Hollywood Party

Jimmy Durante spoofs Johnny Weismuller's Tarzan by playing a jungle film star who throws a lavish party for his Hollywood friends (complete with Zeigfeld style musical numbers). Lupe Velez (the real life Mrs. Weismuller) spoofs Maureen O'Sullivan's "Jane" character (controversial at the time for "Jane's" skimpy outfits). Durante is annoying but Velez shines with the best bit teaming her with Laurel & Hardy. The Three Stooges appear as autograph seekers. This MGM musical features an appearance by Mickey Mouse who spoofs Durante and introduces the Disney color cartoon "Hot Chocolate Soldiers." The 70 minute plot is a mess with the parts being better than the sum, however a must for fans and collector's of the aforementioned appearances.

Hollywood jungle king Jimmy Durante (as "Schnarzan") is getting a little lion in the tooth. After seeing Greta Garbo's famous close-up conclude "Queen Christina" (1933), audiences pan a preview of Mr. Durante's newest loin-cloth adventure "Schnarzan the Conqueror!!!" Durante concludes the film franchise needs livelier lions, and has a "Hollywood Party" to celebrate the fact. Contrary to the promotional and opening credits, this film does not star Laurel and Hardy. You will see The Three Stooges (Larry, Moe and Curly) and wonder where you missed Stan and Ollie. They are featured later, with Mr. Hardy wearing a torn suit jacket (understandably, considering). This is a "revue" picture hanged around a spoof of MGM's "Tarzan" with Durante starring. And Jimmy Durante's movie "Jane" is Johnny "Tarzan" Weissmuller's wife Lupe Velez...

The party goes on too long - well, it seems too long even in a short movie. After a good opening, highlights occur sporadically. Don't miss the clever "I've Had My Moments" song and dance sequence by Eddie Quillan (as Bob) and June Clyde (as Linda). It occurs after about 30 minutes, just before The Three Stooges appearance; this Walter Donaldson and Gus Kahn song became the film's only "new" hit, making the Hit Parades in a version by Lew Sherwood with Eddie Duchin's orchestra. The "I've Had My Moments" melody resembles the later hit "How About You?" (1941-42). Later, an animated Mickey Mouse introduces the color cartoon "The Hot Choc-Late Soldiers" by Walt Disney. Lastly, Laurel and Hardy become involved; some (not I) think their "breaking eggs" scene with Ms. Velez is a classic. For the end, MGM lions take over...

***** Hollywood Party (5/24/34) Allan Dwan ~ Jimmy Durante, Lupe Velez, Eddie Quillan, Stan Laurel

The hilarious Jimmy Durante, known for making fun of his own large schnozzola, sings his signature song in this film, "Inka Dinka Doo." Along the way some great songs by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart (before Rogers teamed with Oscar Hammerstein II to create some of America's greatest musicals), including the title song performed by Frances Williams, "Reincarnation" performed by Durante, and "Hello" performed by Durante and Jack Pearly. --Musicals on the Silver Screen, American Library Association, 2013

Hollywood Party is a strange film to be coming out of that Tiffany of studios MGM. Louis B. Mayer's operation specialized in high gloss drama and sophisticated comedy. This product would have been more like something from RKO or Hal Roach. Paramount with its Big Broadcast series and International House was also far more likely to have made a film like Hollywood Party.

But make it they did and Hollywood Party has that same surreal quality of International House. With about eight directors and about six writers involved it would have been guaranteed to be surreal like. There's no real plot to it, Hollywood's number one heart throb, the body beautiful from those Schnarzan films throws a blowout and invites whom he can. The body beautiful, the one and only Schnarzan is of course Jimmy Durante.

You know a film like this is going to be lots of fun. When you get the great Durante, the Three Stooges, and Laurel&Hardy in one film, the great stone face of New Hampshire will chuckle.

My favorites in this are Stan and Ollie who are dealers in wholesale jungle animals and crash the party to collect their bill from Jack Pearl as Baron Munchausen. The two of them get involved with an angry Lupe Velez who's been cut off by the bartender and they get into a slapstick duel. Can you imagine the Mexican Spitfire with Stan Laurel, turn that one over in your minds.

Charles Butterworth and Polly Moran play a nouveau rich oil millionaire and George Givot plays a fake baron/gigolo trying to promote himself with Moran. Lupe is also Jane to Durante's Schnarzan which audiences today might not get the whole gist of that joke since she was married to Johnny Weissmuller then.

All in all it's great fun and at the very end you'll see why the film has the surreal quality it does. No plot, just a lot of good gags and many laughs. This is one you can't go wrong with.

I don't often laugh out loud at movies but I found myself chuckling at several spots in this corny old film. It's one of those feel-good depression era flicks where they jammed lots of stars and production numbers together, without much of a plot, except for the fact that Jimmy Durante's having a party and everyone's invited.

But...who cares? Durante is hilarious, especially in the faux movie trailer for 'Schnarzan.' In a few of his scenes he comes across almost like Groucho in terms of lines and attitude. Lupe Velez is a hoot, especially when she gets excited and starts reaming people out in Spanish. And where else can you find the (uncredited) Three Stooges (with Ted Healy) and Laurel & Hardy under the same roof? With Mickey Mouse? And there's a very surreal color Disney cartoon right in the middle, with an odd song by Brown/Freed.

Use your fast-forward button to get through some of the tedious musical numbers, but make sure to catch the wild set with the orchestra members each on his own mini-balcony (and four pianists). There are some interesting special effects here and there, along with a heavy usage of "swipes" between scenes.

Robert Young and Arthur Treacher are in here, along with many others whom I suppose I would have recognized if I had been a moviegoer in the 30s. And there are a number of lines that must have slipped right past the censors, like Velez saying something about someone's "cook being goosed" or the closing barb by Durante's wife. He asks if he looks like a horse's head (based on an earlier dream sequence). She says, "No, not like a horse's HEAD" (very knowingly).

It's a hairbrained, silly plot but worth it just to watch all the stars go by.