Born to Sing

It's been suggested that the ending of "Born to Sing" was some sort of jingoistic war- promoting effort spliced on the end of this film--and it certainly was badly spliced, especially since we are not shown its effect on the audience, which up until the end has been a living part of the film. It should be said, though, that the piece "Ballad for Americans" which concludes the film actually was written for a WPA Theatre production, "Sing for Your Supper," in 1939. This show, 18 months in rehearsal, brought about the end of WPA's "Federal Theatre Project" and never reached much of an audience.

"Ballad for Americans," though, was written by John Latouche and Earl Robinson, who later produced one of the best American operas, "The Ballad of Baby Doe." The "Ballad for Americans" was introduced on radio by Paul Robeson, who recorded it as did Bing Crosby, and both recordings were best-sellers. The piece was actually performed at the 1940 Republican AND American Communist Party Conventions, and remained in the repertoire through the 1960's. The piece seems rather dated and jingoistic today, though oddly enough it was considered pretty left-wing at the time! I've always had a soft spot for it, as did my high school choir director. The shouted/spoken parts of the piece were a popular device of the time, another practice that lingered through the 1960's in various guises. I think that its inclusion in the film was meant to show just what a fine composer the Virginia Weidler character's father (Henry O'Neill) was (although it stretches the imagine a bit to think that in a couple of evenings Virginia could play it out a few notes at a time on the harmonica and have it transposed by an eight-year-old kid ("Mozart"--Richard Hall) who has to draw his own staff paper.) Unfortunately, we don't know whether it did that or not, because the film ends abruptly at the end of the piece--almost as if the production had run out of money so everybody went home.

Actually, I think it was pretty spiffily staged by Busby Berkeley, in a way that is reminiscent of his "Forgotten Man" number at Warner's and in a way that recalls the Deco/Moderne style of much of WPA art.

It should also be noted that Joe Yule is featured in a (very) minor role here at a time when his son, Mickey Rooney (AKA Joe, Jr.), was MGM's biggest meal ticket.

In the late 1930s and early 40s, MGM made a string of Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney films featuring young people putting on a show. Movies like "Babes in Arms" and "Babes on Broadway" were popular with audiences....so it's not surprising that Warner Brothers would try their hand with this formula. Aside from having different actors...the formula is pretty much the same here in "Born to Sing".

When the film begins, Snap (Leo Gorcey) gets out of reform school and he goes back to see his old friends. Soon, they smell gas and find a guy trying to kill himself. They save his life and to prevent his nice daughter (Virginia Weidler) from knowing the truth, they make up a lie...though she sees through their ruse. Soon, to help her and her dad, the gang does what they can to help out...and ultimately it results in them creating a show using various kids in the neighborhood. Can the gang manage to pull it all off or are they destined to flop?

Aside from a brief scene with Weidler in blackface, the film is charming and fits the formula almost exactly. While I am not particularly a fan of these sorts of musicals, it's pleasant entertainment and worth a look if you love the old musicals. A couple folks who I really liked in the film were Sheldon Leonard (as a thug who wants to help make the show a success) and Darla Hood of the Little Rascals fame...who had a remarkable singing voice!

I agree with the previous comment. The film was quite entertaining. My sister and I laughed through much of it. It may not have been a Mickey and Judy "Let's put on a show!" but I think it was just as good. I only found one fault with it. The finale with Douglas McPhail was completely out of place. It just doesn't fit in this movie. McPhail had no other part in the movie except to sing this piece, which he was well chosen for (He has a nice baritone voice). It just didn't belong in this film. It brought down the light and fun atmosphere and made us long for the end. The better points were Virginia Weidler, Ray McDonald, Larry Nunn and Leo Gorcey. And of course the kid who played the piano; he's amazing! Weidler grew into a lovely young lady and it's a shame she's not in more of the movie. It's nice to see McDonald in a leading role instead of a sidekick. Larry Nunn was very funny as the kid obsessed with suits, he had some great lines on that subject. I especially enjoyed the number with McDonald and Weidler towards the end. It was stuck in my head long after seeing the film. Definitely recommended for a light comedy, but you might want to turn it off right before the finale.

'Snap' Collins (Leo Gorcey) is released from the New York State Reformatory. He and his friends, Grunt and Steve, find composer Frank Eastman trying to kill himself. Apparently, crooked promoter Cartwright had stolen Frank's songs. Frank's daughter Patsy Eastman (Virginia Weidler) recruits the boys to talk to Cartwright who in turns gets the boys arrested for extortion.

If I had to guess, the Nazis are a late addition to the script. Considering the times, I do understand, but it doesn't really fit. Still, I would give them allowance to make this change. It does tie this movie completely to this specific era. Now, little kids are battling them with songs and in black-face no less. It has not aged well. I would like to recommend this, but it's not nearly good enough to overlook its problems.

"Born to Sing" (1942) could be summarized as "The Bowery Boys Put on One of Those Garland/Rooney Shows". Basically it is a "Bowery Boys" feature with a neighborhood talent show tacked onto the end. But this is not as bad as you might think. The boys are represented by Leo Gorcey; as a character named Snap Collins, pretty much his standard Slip Mahoney stuff. The budget is a bit larger so the technical production elements are better-the cinematography/lighting actually has a nice flare and the production design is quite good.

But the best part is that the show is quite entertaining, at least until the super patriotic finale, out of place at best-drifting into pathetic several times, despite some slick staging and excellent use of lighting. This silly song features baritone Douglas McPhail who up to this point has looked totally embarrassed about appearing in the film. Overwrought as it is, the real problem is that it destroys the unity of the main production, which up to then had a lot of charm with the neighborhood children playing all the adult roles on the stage. Suddenly there is a group of actual adults inexplicably parading on stage like something out of "Triumph of the Will".

This was Virginia Weidler's last real chance to go from child to adult star, she made a couple other films during the war but nothing that had this much potential. But the grown-up Weidler just didn't have much charisma. In fact, she gets completely upstaged by another teenage actress/singer Beverly Hudson who has a lot more energy and personality than Weidler. Hudson's big number is good enough to justify watching the entire film.

"Born to Sing's" premise revolves around Patsy Eastman (Weidler) and her father, a songwriter who wrote a show while in prison. Much like "House of Wax", a greedy promoter steals the material. Snap and his friends try to pressure the promoter but are charged with extortion. Fortunately they meet a gangster named Pete Detroit (Sheldon Leonard) who is sympathetic and helps them open their show before the promoter can premiere his; with Pete going so far as to use his fleet of taxicabs to ferry unsuspecting drama critics from the promoter's show to the kid's show.

Watch for appearances by Darla Hood (Little Rascals) and Margaret Dumont (Marx Brothers). One notable scene for inclusion in "Blacks in Hollywood" has token black Eightball (Ben Carter) escorting Weidler (in black-face) to the jail to visit her father. They fool the guard by engaging in the extreme stereotypical behavior early audiences seemed to enjoy. Which makes the finale's attempt of rally all Americans (all races, faiths, and occupations) behind the war effort even more hollow.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.