Broadway Melody of 1938

Broadway Melody of 1938 is a 1937 American musical film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and directed by Roy Del Ruth. The film is essentially a backstage musical revue, featuring high-budget sets and cinematography in the MGM musical tradition. The film stars Eleanor Powell and Robert Taylor and features Buddy Ebsen, George Murphy, Judy Garland, Sophie Tucker, Raymond Walburn, Robert Benchley and Binnie Barnes.

Broadway Melody of 1938
Theatrical release poster
Directed byRoy Del Ruth
Written byJack McGowan
Produced byJack Cummings
StarringRobert Taylor
Eleanor Powell
Judy Garland
CinematographyWilliam H. Daniels
Edited byBlanche Sewell
Music byNacio Herb Brown
(songs-music)
Arthur Freed
(song-lyrics)
Production
company
Distributed byLoew's Inc.
Release date
  • August 20, 1937 (1937-08-20)
Running time
110 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,588,000[1]
Box office$2,846,000[1]

The film is most notable for young Garland's performance of "You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It)", a tribute to Clark Gable which turned the teenage singer, who had been toiling in obscurity for a couple of years, into an overnight sensation, leading eventually to her being cast in The Wizard of Oz (1939) as Dorothy.

Plot

Young horse trainer Sally (Eleanor Powell) befriends Sonny (George Murphy) and Peter (Buddy Ebsen), who have been hired to look after a horse her family once owned. Concerned for the horse's well-being, she sneaks aboard a train taking the horse and its caretakers to New York City. En route she meets talent agent Steve Raleigh (Robert Taylor) who, impressed with her dancing and singing, sets her on the road to stardom and romance blossoms between the two. A subplot involves a boarding house for performers run by Alice (Sophie Tucker), who is trying to find a big break for young Betty (Judy Garland).

Cast

Songs

The majority of songs in Broadway Melody of 1938 were written by Nacio Herb Brown (music) and Arthur Freed (lyrics):[2][3]

  • "Broadway Melody" (1929) - in opening credits
  • "You Are My Lucky Star" (1935) - in opening credits
  • "Follow in My Footsteps" (1937) - sung and danced by George Murphy, Buddy Ebsen and Eleanor Powell (dubbed by Marjorie Lane)
  • "Yours and Mine" (1937) - sung by Eleanor Powell (dubbed by Marjorie Lane); danced by Eleanor Powell and George Murphy; danced by Judy Garland and Buddy Ebsen
  • "Everybody Sing" (1937) - sung by Judy Garland, Sophie Tucker, Barnett Parker and chorus
  • "I'm Feeling Like a Million" (1937) - sung and danced by George Murphy and Eleanor Powell (dubbed by Marjorie Lane); recorded by Judy Garland but cut from the film
  • "Your Broadway and My Broadway" (1937) - sung by Sophie Tucker and Charles Igor Gorin, danced by George Murphy, Eleanor Powell, Buddy Ebsen and Judy Garland; recorded by Judy Garland and chorus but cut from the film
  • "Broadway Rhythm" (1935) - sung by a chorus and danced by Eleanor Powell
  • "Got a Pair of New Shoes" (1937) - sung by a chorus and danced by Eleanor Powell in the finale
  • "Sun Showers" (1937) - recorded by Charles Igor Gorin but cut from the film
Other songs

Production

This was the third of the "Broadway Melody" series, and had the working title of Broadway Melody of 1937.[4] When it was released, late in 1937, it was advertised with the tagline So new it's a year ahead!.

MGM borrowed Binnie Barnes from Universal Pictures for the film.[4]

The film was in production from late February to 20 July 1937, and was released on 20 August.[5] Its initial running time was 115 minutes, compared to the final running time of 110 minutes.[4]

Judy Garland's number, "You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It)" has been cited as her first great film success. The song was specially prepared by Roger Edens for Clark Gable's 36th birthday as a present, and Garland sang it at the party given by MGM. Producer Louis B. Mayer was so impressed he ordered that it be included in the next possible musical MGM was producing.[4] Following the sensational audience reaction to the song, Garland was rushed into shooting two more films back to back, Thoroughbreds Don't Cry (1937) and the more musically elaborate Everybody Sing, which was held for later release in 1938.[6]

The finale of the film takes place on a giant set upon which neon signs are visible showing the names of famous stage and screen stars. During Sophie Tucker's final number, all of the signs in the background actually change to read "Sophie Tucker" in tribute to her.

Accolades

The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:

Box office

According to MGM records the film earned $1,889,000 in the US and Canada and $957,000 elsewhere resulting in a profit of $271,000.[1]

References
  1. The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
  2. TCM Music
  3. IMDB Soundtracks
  4. TCM Notes
  5. TCM Overview
  6. Hirschhorn, Clive (1991) [1981]. The Hollywood Musical (2nd ed.). New York: Portland House. p. 139. ISBN 0-517-06035-3.
  7. "AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs Nominees" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  • Green, Stanley (1999) Hollywood Musicals Year by Year (2nd ed.), pub. Hal Leonard Corporation ISBN 0-634-00765-3 page 73
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