Television

Rare Musicals on TCM – May 2015

A nice variety of musicals on TCM this month, including a few famous flops alongside some beloved classics. Click away for MacDonald and Eddy, Joan Crawford, Doris Day, Gene Kelly, Irene Dunne, Mario Lanza, and more!

tenthousandbedrooms
Eva Bartok and Dean Martin in TEN THOUSAND BEDROOMS

Monday May 4
8:00am / Happy Go Lovely (1951)
Chorus girl Vera-Ellen turns musical star when she’s romantically linked with a millionaire (David Niven)… only problem is, she’s never actually met him.

Friday May 8
6:15am / Ten Thousand Bedrooms (1956)
Get your mind out of the gutter, Dean Martin’s just playing a hotel manager in Rome who happens to have a lot of rooms to look after, ok? Surely he gets no other use out of them. Surely.
8:15am / The Seven Hills of Rome (1957)
Mario Lanza plays a TV star trying to get away from it all Rome, a city of course well known for its quiet, pastoral scenery and people.

Saturday May 9
12:45am Show Boat (1936)
It’s Show Boat! This version features Irene Dunne, Allan Jones, Paul Robeson, and Hattie McDaniel.

imarriedanangel
Jeanette MacDonald truly a vision in I MARRIED AN ANGEL

Wednesday May 13
6:45am / I Married an Angel (1942) [my review] A playboy proclaims the only woman he could ever marry would have to be an angel… but when his prayer is literally answered, he realizes that that scenario comes with a few issues. MacDonald and Eddy.
8:15am / Sing Your Way Home (1945)
Wartime RKO musical, whose cast Leonard Maltin describes as having only a “modicum of singing talent.” Yowch. Anyone seen it and care to counter?
11:00am / Ding Dong Williams (1946)
A jazz star who can’t read music tries to complete a film score, with the help of two arrangers.

Saturday May 16
12:45am / Invitation to the Dance (1956)
Ambitious, three-part ballet film starring and directed by Gene Kelly. Last part features animated dance partners, courtesy Hanna-Barbera.

Sunday May 17
8:00am / Seven Sweethearts (1942)
Seven sisters must marry in chronological order per their father’s wishes; Kathryn Grayson plays the oldest.

Wednesday May 20
1:45pm / The Ice Follies of 1939 (1939)
An ice skating team made up of Jimmy Stewart and Lew Ayres breaks up when they both fall for Joan Crawford. Includes a big Ice Follies centerpiece.

onmoonlightbay
Make sure you save ON MOONLIGHT BAY for after the kids go to bed. Things get a little… raunchy.

Thursday May 21
Today is Doris Day… Day, including easily available flicks like: Romance on the High Seas, My Dream Is Yours, Tea for Two, and I’ll See You in My Dreams. Also:
2:45pm / On Moonlight Bay (1951)
Tomboy Doris falls for her neighbor, Godron Macrae, in this wholesome musical set in the 1910s.
6:15pm / By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953)
Annnd the sequel, in which Doris’s sweetie has now returned from WWI and is readjusting to civilian life.

Thursday May 28
7:15am / Street Girl (1929)
Early musical featuring a rough-and-tumble girl (Betty Compson) who becomes manager of a jazz band. Featuring music from the Cocoanut Grove orchestra.

Friday May 29
11:45am / The Singing Marine (1937)
Shy Marine Dick Powell becomes a bit big in his britches after winning a talent competition.

Leave a Reply