Stage Struck

STAGE STRUCK (Warner Brothers, 1936), directed by Busby Berkeley, is a backstage musical that reunites the three principle players from GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 (Warners, 1933), Warren William, Joan Blondell and Dick Powell. This time, Powell gets the promotion with top-billing (and a pencil-thin mustache) playing George Randall, the director of an upcoming musical show, LADY OF THE MOON. Also getting a promotion is Busby Berkeley, who was choreographer in the earlier film now director of entire production.

Following the pattern of other earlier 1933 hits, 42nd STREET and FOOTLIGHT PARADE, Joan Blondell is featured as blinky-eyed Peggy Revere, a temperamental actress with a bad reputation with men (she shoots them, but only giving her victims flesh wounds); Warren William as a smooth-talking promoter, Fred Harris, who tries to get George and Peggy on friendly terms; Frank McHugh as Sid, the harassed assistant dance director typically calling out, "Quiet!" "On stage!" etc.; and newcomer Jeanne Madden as a Ruby Keelerish-type young hopeful named Ruth Williams from East Weekaukeegan who wants a job in the show. As fate would have it, George takes an interest in Ruth, and because she's just a sweet young kid unlike the other girls in the chorus line, he tries to encourage her to forget about show business and take a job at a flower shop instead. But Ruth is insistent and goes against his advise. But George has his hands full with Peggy and will do anything to get rid of her, especially after a three day out-of-town tryout of the new show, WORDS AND MUSIC, in which newspaper critics report that "audiences laughed at all the wrong places" and that "Peggy Revere's performance disappoints." Eventually, Peggy does something on on opening night in her dressing room that involves her jealous fiancé (Craig Reynolds) and a shooting that prevents her from appearing (she gets arrested), and George must find himself a last minute replacement or the show won't go on.

STAGE STRUCK is a forgotten musical by all means, remembered, if at all, as the movie Busby Berkeley directed while going through courtroom trials for manslaughter (drunk driving that causes his car to swerve into another car after his tire blew out, killing three passengers.) This unfortunate incident was covered in the documentary presented on TCM: BUSBY BERKELEY: GOING THROUGH THE ROOF (1998), or the one in which Dick Powell and Joan Blondell got married during film production. Anyone expecting any lavish musical or a grand show-stopping finale Berkeley-style from STAGE STRUCK would be disappointed, because there aren't any. Good songs, however, by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg, including "Lady of the Moon" (sung by chorus girls during rehearsals, with Frank McHugh); "Fancy Meeting You" (sung by Dick Powell and Jeanne Madden); "In YOUR Own Quiet Way" (sung by Powell) and "In HIS Own Quiet Way" (a try-out, sung by Jeanne Madden). What stands out here are the comedy antics from The Yacht Club Boys as The Mexican Serenaders, who wrote and sing their own songs, "The Government Takes Away" (titled in opening credits as "The New Parade") and the most bizarre of them all, "The Body Beautiful," the latter as an audition in Warren William's office. This wild and crazy music number relies mostly on special effects and defying the law of gravity. It must be seen to be believed. The Yacht Club Boys are at times reminiscent to The Ritz Brothers, another crazy bunch then making comedy antics in 20th Century-Fox musicals about the same time.

Also featured in the cast are: Spring Byington and Carol Hughes as Powell's mother and sister; Hobart Cavanaugh, and a young Jane Wyman who can be seen briefly as Bessie Fiffnick, one of many auditioning chorus girls, but it's Jeanne Madden (1917-1989), in her movie debut, who's the central character. Cute and a likable personality, she has a pleasing singing voice in the Deanna Durbin-style. Sadly, Madden's screen career would come to an end after appearing in two more forgettable films in 1937, becoming only a name for the memory book. STAGE STRUCK is worth a look only as a curiosity, if not much else. It's available for viewing on Turner Classic Movies. (***)

This is a delightful backstage comedy/musical in the same vein as Warner Bros.' other 1930s Busby Berkeley fare. Dick Powell is great, Warren William is great, Joan Blondell is terrific, and even Frank McHugh is great. The weak link, unfortunately, is Jeanne Madden as the fresh-faced romantic lead. She can't perform at the level of experienced co-stars like Powell, and the romance suffers. But this was her first movie and she was probably hired for her voice.

I've seen several of these 1930s comedies (musical and otherwise) featuring the Warner Bros. contract players, and I haven't thought much of them as a rule. But for whatever reason I was very receptive toward STAGE STRUCK (1936). The movie is a lot of fun. It's comedy all the way through, with swell performances from the stars and some genuinely funny gags. It's the kind of pleasant movie you can sit back in your comfy chair and just enjoy. A nice distraction for an hour and a half.

Although directed by choreographer extraordinaire Busby Berkeley, STAGE STRUCK does not feature any of the major stylized production numbers that characterized his work earlier in the decade. As impressive as those larger-than-life dance sequences were, they brought the main story to a halt for an extended period of time. The closest thing here is an overlong, irrelevant, and increasingly bizarre song and dance number by the Yacht Club Boys in the middle of the film. A few songs are sprinkled about, but the movie is mostly a straight-up comedy set around a Broadway show.

Dick Powell played juvenile tenors in GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 (1933) and FOOTLIGHT PARADE (1933), but here has matured into his more adult persona, complete with trademark sarcasm and a dapper mustache for good measure. In this Broadway story, Powell is not one of the young stars; he is the director, trying to keep the show together amid the chaos.

That chaos is played by one of my favorite actresses: Joan Blondell. Blondell was great playing sweet and wisecracking dames who'd often win the man in the end. It's a little different this time around, as she plays a crazy tabloid queen brought in to star in the show as a publicity stunt. Hilariously over-dramatic, Blondell's wealthy character adopts an air of sophistication that fools nobody and her lines are filled with amusing malapropisms. Initially at odds with director Powell, she is placated into cooperation by producer William's knowledge of Freudian psychology.

One scene that I enjoyed was when Powell sings through "In Your Own Quiet Way" at the piano while Blondell (convinced by William that she really loves Powell) tries to cozy up with him. As she inches closer, he calmly inches away and keeps on singing through the music. The body language is great as the two end up circling around the piano.

STAGE STRUCK is a pleasant way to spend an afternoon or an evening. If you're a fan of Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, or the kind of mid-1930s comedies they made for Warner Bros., you should give this one a try. As of this posting the film has not been released on DVD for purchase, so catch it on TCM if you can.

The above is an E.Y. Harburg couplet in a nimble ballad called "Fancy Meeting You," and it distills as well as any other lyric Harburg's huge gift for hyperbolizing hoary sentiments into fresh ones. The movie could use a little more of his wit and whimsy.

It's a slightly off-key Warner Brothers musical that wants to be a screwball comedy, with director Powell fending off wacky relatives and the advances of untalented diva Blondell, while producer William employs Freudian psychology to unite the mismatched pair, while Powell pursues an on-again-off-again-on-again romance with maddeningly fresh-faced ingenue Madden. (Her flat line readings make Ruby Keeler sound like Bette Davis.) Oh, the Yacht Club Boys are in it, too, with two endless specialty numbers that may have had resonance in 1936 -- one's about income taxes, the other about physical culture -- but their forced goofiness has dated badly.

Most surprisingly, despite the Berkeley imprimatur, there are no production numbers here; Warners, one has to assume, was on a budget binge. So the saving graces are the nice Arlen/Harburg songs, and Blondell, in an uncharacteristically broad and unsympathetic role. You don't believe her for a moment, yet she's terrific, batting her eyes and flashing her teeth and cavorting like an over-the-top Carole Lombard. This lady could do anything, but she doesn't really save this all-too-middling musical.

George Randall (Dick Powell) is the new dance director of a Broadway show. The producer is out of money and has taken on rich but untalented performer Peggy Revere (Joan Blondell). She's willing to pay to become the new lead. Needless to say, George and Peggy do not get along. Ruth Williams (Jeanne Madden) comes in looking for work just as the show breaks up.

Busby Berkeley is the director. I expected a fun behind the scenes of a Broadway show with big song and dance numbers. I would have preferred not stopping the show in the first half and having the two leads battling it out while falling in love. That seems to be the simpler and best story. George and Ruth have good chemistry. I like sending her away to the flower shop. I do like their story, but they're not the star pairing. Joan Blondell is the star. She's meant to be funny, but she is annoying and wasting time. There are some moments to like, but this is problematic.

Weak musical comedy kept afloat by a great cast. Joan Blondell is amazing as usual. In addition to being a great comedienne, she was a curvy beauty. Joan is one of my favorites from the 30's and here she outshines everybody else by a mile. Mustachioed Dick Powell tries to get away from the boyish roles he had been playing up to this point. He's OK here but this isn't one of his better roles. Warren William is lots of fun as a producer with probably the only good lines that didn't go to Blondell. Solid support from Frank McHugh playing a character type he's played many times over and always to perfection. Carol Hughes is a hidden gem in a tiny part as Powell's sister, pretty and funny. Unknown Jeanne Madden plays Powell's love interest. Madden had a brief three picture career. It's easy to see why. She's not bad just unexceptional. Also look for Jane Wyman in a cameo.

Forgotten comedy and singing quartet Yacht Club Boys provide a couple of weird songs. The first is about taxes. It's really more of a rant than a song. A real oddity. The second song is "The Body Beautiful," a bizarre number about having muscles. It's the highlight of the film. Lackluster direction from Busby Berkeley. Even the aforementioned "Body Beautiful" number was poorly staged by his usual standards. Add to this a predictable script and tepid songs from Powell and Madden. However, I would still say it's watchable for fans of the period and genre. That recommendation is solely because of the personalities of the cast, particularly Blondell, and the odd musical numbers of the Yacht Club Boys.