The Broadway Melody (1929)

Director:

Harry Beaumont

Writers:

Edmund Goulding (story)
Norman Houston (writer) ...

Release Date:

1929 (Turkey)

Genre:

Musical | Romance

Tagline:

The pulsating drama of Broadway's bared heart speaks and sings with a voice to stir your soul!

Plot:

Harriet and Queenie Mahoney, a vaudeville act, come to Broadway, where their friend Eddie Kerns needs...

Plot Keywords:

Audition | Stuttering | Flapper | New York City | Speech Impediment

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Charles King	...	Eddie Kearns
Anita Page	...	Queenie Mahoney
Bessie Love	...	Hank Mahoney
Jed Prouty	...	Uncle Jed
Kenneth Thomson	...	Jock Warriner
Edward Dillon	...	Stage Manager
Mary Doran	...	Flo
Eddie Kane	...	Francis Zanfield
J. Emmett Beck	...	Babe Hatrick
Marshall Ruth	...	Stew, Mr. Zanfield's assistant
Drew Demorest	...	Turpe, Costumer (as Drew Demarest)

Also Known As:

The Broadway Melody of 1929 (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

110 min | 101 min (TCM print)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System) | Silent

Certification:

Australia:G | Brazil:Livre | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Eddie Kane starred as a big shot Broadway producer named Francis Zanfield, which is an obvious take on Broadway legend Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.. While the character name Jock Warriner (played by Kenneth Thomson) was meant to sound like Jack L. Warner who was the head of Warner Bros. Studio, the main rival of MGM studio at that time.

Quotes:

Eddie Kearns: Those men aren't going to pay ten bucks to look at your face; this is Broadway!
Hank Mahoney: Yeah, "Broad's way!"

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Broadway: The American Musical" (2004)

Soundtrack:

The Wedding of the Painted Doll

The Granddaddy Of Them All

A song & dance sister act strives for happiness and fame on the Great White Way.

Hailed as Hollywood's first true musical, THE Broadway MELODY shows its age, but ought to be judged by its own era, not ours. When it premiered in 1929, the movie industry was still releasing its last silent films. To see a hundred-minute movie full of music & talk, with a storyline that made sense, some good acting and genuinely hummable tunes - this was all tremendously exciting. That the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture of the year is hardly surprising. From this source the mighty American Movie Musical would spring.

Some of the acting is a bit awkward, illustrating the rough transition from silents to talkies - the Microphone was a Monster that would completely devour some actors - but most of the performances are adequate. Of special note is Miss Bessie Love. Pert & pretty, as well as a most engaging actress, she dominates the proceedings as the tough, realistic half of the sibling duo. Able to show joy or despair with equal conviction, she amply demonstrates her mastery of the new medium. Her Academy Award nomination was well earned.

As her younger sister, Anita Page is lovely to look at. Her ease with the microphone would increase with her next few acting assignments. Broadway singing star Charles King plays the composer/performer loved by both young ladies and he is quite agreeable in this role. Mr. King had the distinction of being America's first male musical movie star, aside from Jolson, but his film career would be very short, covering only six pictures from 1928 to 1930.

The team of Arthur Freed & Nacio Herb Brown supplied the tunes, including the classics 'The Broadway Melody,' 'You Were Meant For Me' & 'The Wedding of the Painted Doll,' which is unfortunately missing its original Technicolor hues. Mr. Brown can be spotted as a piano player in the film, while movie mavens should recognize James Gleason as a music publisher in the opening sequence and Jed Prouty as the girl's stuttering agent - both uncredited.