The Duke Is Tops

This all black film was Lena Horne's screen debut. Made for black audiences, it was re-released after the cross-over success of her two great 1943 films, Cabin in the Sky and Stormy Weather. The Duke Is Tops is a typical film about stage performers, and it is certainly a B movie. Duke Davis (Ralph Cooper) and Ethel Andrews (Horne) are a songwriter/singer team. When Ethel gets bigger offers, Duke can't come with, so he breaks it off hard with her so she'll have no regrets. He travels to the South with an old friend who is selling cure-all elixirs from his wagon; meanwhile, without Duke's behind-the-scenes work, Ethel is a flop in New York. It's all fairly mediocre. Horne would become a much better actress in her later films. Fans of the singer will probably be disappointed anyways, as she is only in the film for about 15 minutes. Cooper is the star. But there are several wonderful musical performances that make the film much more worth watching than it otherwise would have been. For a much better film of the same time, definitely check out Stormy Weather, which is probably the pinnacle of the all-black films of this era. 6/10.

Duke Is Tops, The (1938)

** (out of 4)

Decent race movie has producer Duke Davis (Ralph Cooper) breaking it off with partner Ethel Andrews (Lena Horne) so that her career will have a chance to take off. He hits the hard times before eventually getting what might be a break by bringing Andrews back to form. If you're familiar with race films then you know they don't feature the style, budgets or talents of those films being released in Hollywood. You also shouldn't go into a Musical like this expecting something like you'd see from MGM. With that out of the way, this is pretty much what you'd expect as we get a straight-forward story without any twists or turns and a predictable ending that you'll see coming from a mile away. There's really nothing overly special here but people will want to check out Horne who made her film debut here. I don't think anyone could watch this and see the talent that would come in future films but at the same time this was her first stab at acting. The screenplay really doesn't do her any justice but she does have that wonderful voice that she gets to show off several times. The songs themselves aren't going to be found on Horne's greatest hits package but they aren't too bad. I thought Cooper was pretty good as well, although, again, the screenplay does his character no justice. While the part wasn't the best written I thought Cooper kept things moving and made his character fun to watch. There's not too much imagination in terms of direction but I'm sure a lot of this could be blamed on the screenplay and the fact that there wouldn't have been much time to shoot this thing. The low budget is very apparent with several dance/musical sequences, which just come off looking very cheap. The numbers aren't overly bad, it's just that they aren't impressive either. Fans of race movies or those wanting to see the 21-year-old Horne might want to check this out but others should stay clear.

Duke Davis has invested all his savings to back his sweetheart, Ethel, in a road show over the old T.O.B.A. circuit, on which they have both been performers since childhood.

Marshall, a New York talent scout, makes an offer to Ethel as a single and, to induce her to take it, Duke writes a fake check, made out to him, for $5000 pretending he has sold his contract with Ethel to Marshall.

Resentful and heartbroken, she accepts and becomes a big hit in New York. Marshall then books her at the swanky Century Club, plans her show himself, and it flops miserably.

Meanwhile, Duke has used his last resources to start a new show, but without Ethel it also fails.

He joins the Doc Dorando medicine show, and with him as the speiler for the quack elixir sold by Dorando, it is successful.

He becomes Doc's partner with an elaborate trailer and a company of entertainers, including Willie Covans, the Basin Street Boys, The Cats and the Fiddle, "Rubberneck" Holmes and Joe Stevenson.

Money is rolling in.

LIght skinned blacks in a black only produced film from days gone by. Fairly typical of the genre. Largely important for Lena Horne.

This is worth watching simply because it is Lena Horne's first movie and she only appeared in six or seven. Although, the plot centers around her character, Ethel Waters, trying to make it as a singer, she is only in the movie for about 20 minutes. The main story is about her manager, Duke Davis (Ralph Cooper), who sacrifices himself to make sure that she becomes a success.

Ralph Cooper was the creator and host of amateur night at the Apollo starting in 1937 for over 25 years. This multi-talented man also starred in and wrote several movies. This is the first one I've seen, and it is a fun ride.

Cooper is handsome smart and funny, "the Dark Gable" was a good nickname for him. His best scenes come with Lawrence Criner who plays a salesman of a universal tonic that cures all ills. Criner was one of the founders of black theater in America and stared in a dozen movies from 1926-1948. He was also in some Hollywood films like "The King of the Zombies," and "The Jackie Robinson Story." Cooper and Criner make a great comedy team. They also appear together in "Gang War" and "Gangsters on the Loose" Black cinema in the 30's and 40's was a true alternative to Hollywood films which almost invariably portrayed blacks in submissive, lowly secondary roles. Because of the law budgets, shooting was usually done in four or five days with restricted sets. The technical qualities varied, but in the best films, as here, they rivaled some Hollywood "B" movies.

I watched this on CUNY TV. I was curious and stayed because it had enough elements to be entertaining. Ralph Cooper is handsome and likable. I didn't even realize that Lena Horne was the beautiful singer. I thought she was a Lena Horne knock off. She seems to have been required to slim down and had better glamour treatment in Hollywood films. Interesting because of its use of black actors and performers in ways they couldn't be shown in film other than those made for black audience. Talented singers and dancers and a window into what the TOBA houses were like in the south. And an extended snake oil routine of the rural south. Even the diner with its ham and eggs special is interesting as an historic window on life eighty years ago. I'm glad Lena Horne was able to make it out of this niche market even if she was still relatively isolated in the roles she could play.