42nd Street (1933)

Director:

Lloyd Bacon

Writers:

Rian James (screenplay) &
James Seymour (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

11 March 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Musical | Romance | Drama

Plot:

A producer puts on what may be his last Broadway show, and at the last moment a chorus girl has to replace the star...

Plot Keywords:

Director | Chorus Girl | Broken Ankle | Opening Night | Jealousy

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win

US TV Schedule:

Sun. Nov. 15

12:05 AM

PBS

Cast

Warner Baxter	...	Julian Marsh
Bebe Daniels	...	Dorothy Brock
George Brent	...	Pat Denning
Ruby Keeler	...	Peggy Sawyer
Guy Kibbee	...	Abner Dillon
Una Merkel	...	Lorraine Fleming
Ginger Rogers	...	Ann
Ned Sparks	...	Barry
Dick Powell	...	Billy Lawler
Allen Jenkins	...	Mac Elroy
Edward J. Nugent	...	Terry
Robert McWade	...	Jones
George E. Stone	...	Andy Lee

Also Known As:

Forty-Second Street (USA) (alternative spelling)

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | Argentina:Atp | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #2718-R: 26 September 1936 for re-release) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | UK:U | Australia:G

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Henry B. Walthall originally had a large role including a key scene in which he died on stage during rehearsals. Almost all of his scenes ended up on the cutting room floor.

Goofs:

Continuity: While in Philadelphia, Julian's position relative to the girls changes as he dismisses them for the night.

Quotes:

Slim Murphy: Hey got a match?
Pat Denning: Yep... why I guess so... yeah.
Slim Murphy: Don't happen to know a guy named Pat Denning do ya?
Pat Denning: Why yes.
Slim Murphy: We got a message for him. This guy Pat Denning's a pretty wise mug but he ain't wise enough and if he don't lay off that Dorothy Brock dame, it's gonna be just too bad... for Denning, get me?
Pat Denning: Alright I'll tell him.
Slim Murphy: Yeah well...
[punches Pat in the mouth and Pat falls down]
Slim Murphy: that's so ya don't forget.
Mug with Murphy: Yeah
[...]

Movie Connections:

Featured in Thou Shalt Not: Sex, Sin and Censorship in Pre-Code Hollywood (2008) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Forty-Second Street

No Oscar Nomination for Bebe Daniels?

Perhaps the greatest musical of them all, this lively Warner Bros film boats a great cast and music and served as the prototype plot for scores of other films. Backstage drama in putting on a show when the star falls and breaks her ankle and must be replaced by a newcomer. It worked in film, and it worked in the Broadway stage version of this film. This film also served as a springboard to stardom for Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, and Ginger Rogers. Warner Baxter stars as the dyspeptic director who harangues his cast into making a great show. Bebe Daniels is his star who is seeing an old boyfriend (George Brent) while stringing along rube producer (Guy Kibbee). Ruby Keeler is the newcomer who has eyes for the show's "juvenile" (Dick Powell) and who is befriended by old hands, Ginger Rogers and Una Merkel. Toss in Ned Sparks, Allen Jenkins, George E. Stone, Louise Beavers, Charles Lane, Lyle Talbot, Henry B. Walthall, and the day's top chorus girl, Toby Wing. Great musical numbers boast the singing talents of Powell and the dancing talents of Keeler. Bebe Daniels also has a great number in "You're Getting to Be a Habit with Me." And Rogers does NOT make a mistake during the "Shuffle Off to Buffalo" number. She starts to say "belly" but changes it to "tummy." It's part of the show, folks! "Belly" was considered to be a vulgar term in 1933; her use of the word shows her character. It's not a mistake. But it is odd that Keeler stars in this number with Clarence Nordstrom rather than Dick Powell. Other songs include "Young and Healthy" and the superb "42nd Street." The best and oft repeated line belongs to Daniels speaking to Keeler: "Now go out there and be so swell …. that you'll make me hate you!" This line is also said by Glenda Jackson to Twiggy in 1971's The Boy Friend.