The Singing Kid

The man who gave movies its voice, not only speaking but singing voice wound up his career at Warner Brothers with The Singing Kid. Although he did not intend to be so, this was Al Jolson's last film with Warner Brothers and also his last starring film as well.

In The Singing Kid, Al Jolson plays Al Jackson an entertainer who was not unlike the real Al Jolson in some respects. He's rather free with his money, Jolson was legendary for that, especially since he trusts his lawyer and business manager Lyle Talbot who is stealing from him and two timing him with Claire Dodd who usually played bad girls over at Warner Brothers in the Thirties.

When things go bad for Jolson and he loses his money, his girl, and his voice, he takes a long vacation at a cabin in Maine with two of his retainers Edward Everett Horton and Allen Jenkins. In real life Jolson had many of those, not unlike Frank Sinatra. He meets and falls for Beverly Roberts who has a real cute niece she has custody of, Sybil Jason. Jolson together with Jason have some Sonny girl moments on the screen hearkening back to The Singing Fool with Davey Lee.

Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg wrote the score which also interpolated some Jolson standards. Nothing memorable from the official composers and they must have felt like the songwriters from many of Jolson's Broadway shows who always had Al interpolate his own material in the show.

Cab Calloway and his orchestra appeared and Calloway did a typical Cab Calloway number in the film. It must have been really strange on that set with the entertainer who made his mark first in minstrel shows in blackface and who wouldn't leave it and one of the best entertainers who happened to be black around. Jolson does about half of his songs in blackface and half au natural.

As a grown woman Sybil Jason said she had fond memories of Jolson who threw her a birthday party on the set and gave her a bicycle.

The Singing Kid is a must for Jolson fans, but I doubt that too many other people would really be interested in it.

THE SINGING KID(1936) was a flop on initial release and Warner Brotehrs let their former No.1 moneymaker out of his contract. Maybe the problem was Jolson was 50 years old and still making movies with the word "Kid" in them.

So what if "I Love To Sing-a" is pretty much the same thing as his previous Irving Berlin hit "Let Me Sing And I'm Happy"? The opening number with Cab Calloway is electric to the 200th degree,and thank Heaven it was done without the blackface.

And there is the promo cartoon with "Owl Jolson"---the passage of time made that little guy a legend in his own right,even though it was his sole cartoon.

After his business manager walks off with his fortune,singing star Jolson has a nervous breakdown and his doctors tell him to go out in t he country and forget all about show business. This is an impossible feat for both the fictional AND the real-life Jolson. He finds romance and SOME peace and quiet,although with his knockabout entourage along complete quiet is a dream.

JOLSON--"Has there ever been a death in your family?"

MITCHELL&DURANT--"No"

JOLSON:"Well,why don't you go home and break the monotony?" But it's impossible to top that opening number---and I don't blame them for not trying.

I think the singing kid is a great film and my favorite musical numbers in the film Were save me sister you're the cure for what ails me and I love to singa reprised oh by the Busby Berkeley did more of the numbers than bobby Connolly' oh And wonderful cast members Al Jolson sybil Jason bravely Roberts allen Jenkins Edward horton and and the yacht club boys wini shaw Cab Calloway but 8/10 for blackface

This was the last of eight films that Jolson did for Warner Brothers between 1927 and 1936. Not many people have seen this one, but it is rather addictive with a great parody of Jolson as Jolson.

Jolson plays likable if irresponsible stage and radio star Al Jackson. He's given to trusting the people in his life to handle things for him just a little to much as he runs on overdrive from performance to performance. This gets him in trouble later in the film. Jackson lives at the top of a tall penthouse where he gives his most jubilant performance of "I Wanna Singa" along with Cab Calloway who happens to be practicing on an adjacent rooftop. Just in case you didn't know, that famous song comes from this movie, not the cute little cartoon with the singing Owl in it as most people think. Cab Calloway appears in several numbers with Jolson in this film.

One of the best scenes/numbers in the movie has Jolson rehearsing his radio show, starting out with "I Wanna Singa" and then segueing into "Mammy". At this point The Yacht Club Boys, playing representatives of the sponsor, tunefully interrupt and tell Jolson why he's out of date and can't sing his traditional Mammy songs on their show.

Being Jolson's leading lady didn't really help the film careers of the actresses involved (I'm excluding Mrs. Jolson here, AKA Ruby Keeler). Beverly Roberts - who plays the love interest here - is no exception. She worked for Warner Bros. in 1936 and 1937 and then went back to stage work. Lending strong support here is the ever-confused Edward Everett Hornton as the befuddled gentleman's gentleman to Jolson's character.

Definitely worth it for all Jolson fans. If you don't like Jolson I don't recommend it, as Jolson's films are usually all Jolson all the time, although this one has Jolson interacting with the rest of the cast a little more than his other films usually did.

This movie begins with a montage of Al Jolson's most famous tunes. This will no doubt shock many, as he's in his signature black-face during this sequence and during several other numbers. While today this would be clearly seen as patently racist, this was how it was back in the day. Plus, the film also had several numbers by Cab Calloway....and he was a black performer. My advice about all this is watch the movie and just understand the context....otherwise, your head might explode!

In "The Singing Kid", Al Jolson plays a guy who's practically a living saint...and he hits hard times. His agent has cheated him out of his fortune and things only get worse. Due to stress and overwork, he loses his voice and must quit show business...at least temporarily. Fortunately, his two sidekicks (Allen Jenkins and Edward Everett Horton) stick by his side...paycheck or no paycheck. Can Al possibly pull himself out of this rut and make something of himself once again?

Aside from the blackface, the film also has another strike against it....they make Jolson's character seem too nice to be real. First, his wife leaves him. Second, he gets cheated out of his fortune. Third, he loses his voice. Yet, through all this, he never loses his temper (except for a tiny second) and is so swell and sweet that the character drips of phoniness. I think toning this back a bit would have made the film better. Now I am NOT saying they needed to make him a snarling beast...just not quite to angelic as he is in this one. Plus, combined with Sybil Jason (the too adorable little girl), the movie is high on the saccharine scale!!

So is it still worth seeing? The music is certainly memorable and exciting to hear. And, Jolson isn't bad at all...he can't help it his character is this sickeningly sweet! I also enjoyed the Yacht Club Boys. This singing group was like the Ritz Brothers with talent. Also, the dialog between Jenkins and Horton was great...with Horton delivering a lot of great zingers. Overall, despite the film's strengths easily outweigh the deficits.