Pirate Party on Catalina Isle

I've only seen portions of the film on You Tube but it's really kind of like Avalon was in those days, with movie stars, big bands and plenty of Chamber of Commerce summer festivals which encouraged locals & tourists alike to dress up and be pirates, hillbillies, babies or whatever the current theme suggested. It offers glimpses of the Great White Steamers, the mahogany speedboats and stately St. Catherine Hotel, all long gone from 2008 Catalina.

The film's Technicolor is gorgeous, the musical numbers bouncy and cheerful. I always liked Buddy Rogers' music, & Johnny Downs' dancing & singing was fun to watch. JD always played the young college-types without a peer, later coming back to Coronado, CA to host local children's TV programs in the 50-'60s. He had a warm kind heart & gentle manner; it showed in his work. Please watch this film or Pigskin Parade and see for yourself.

Just imagine you're sitting in a movie theater in 1935 waiting for the feature to come on and suddenly this thing explodes on the screen in Full Color oh my gosh what a mindblower! Yes there were two strip technical color films but they are simply awful to look at muddy dull fake the worst. Yes the whole thing is kind of dopey with all these people dancing and singing with the big band playing, and cameos of famous stars just hanging around and smiling to the camera. I wonder if they got paid anything to do this? Maybe a trip to Catalina Island in the summer with food drinking music was enough. This is spectacular look how it survives now! Sort of like the first time I saw Star Wars in 1977 in Dolby surround that was something.

Here is another of the Lou Lewyn shorts in which various Hollywood celebrities dress up and attend a party. Lewyn had been doing sort of short since he had come up with the first successful property for Harry Cohan's CBC Pictures. 1920 was the year, and the idea was SCREEN SNAPSHOTS. After five years of that series, he was gone from what had become Columbia Pictures. He spent the next 15 years producing this sort of picture. Here, Metro is footing the bill for Technicolor, and the MGM performers get most of the screen time, except for Charles 'Buddy' Rogers. He was married to Mary Pickford, and you didn't annoy her, nor William Randolph Hearst, which explains why Marion Davies get good billing.

Some nice pictures, and ok musical numbers like "Smooth Sailing" round this out pleasantly.

If anyone is still seeing this, do you know if it was Mr. Rogers who also sang the Avalon song at the movies beginning title? Am thinking it must have been, the singer pronounced every word so clearly and had such a pleasant voice. I think this Mr. Rogers must have been a wonderful person, and so talented! Not only was he so lively and cheerful, but he played all those musical instruments! I read also that he was an flying instructor during the war. Really multi talented! Am sorry failed to write him a letter before he died to tell him how much he is admired in this house.

We have the Pirates Party on one of those disks that look like a 45rmp record. It is so clear, almost "HD," and in full color. Enjoyed it very much. I think also their version of We're in the money was even better than the one from the Warner Bros. movie.

Terrific historical document of Hollywood 1935. Not to be regarded for its entertainment value, necessarily, but a real 'curio' from MGM. It almost is a home movie, in a sense, and the close-ups of Randolph Scott and Cary Grant are priceless.