The Blonde from Brooklyn (1945)

Director:

Del Lord

Writer:

Erna Lazarus (original screenplay)

Release Date:

21 June 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Musical

Tagline:

BROOKLYN BEAUTY TURNS SOUTHERN CUTIE!

Plot Keywords:

Brooklyn New York City | Color In Title | Singer | New York City | Place Name In Title

Cast

Bob Haymes	...	Dixon Harper (as Robert Stanton)
Lynn Merrick	...	Susan Parker aka Susanna Bellwithers
Thurston Hall	...	'Colonel' Hubert Farnsworth
Mary Treen	...	Diane Peabody

Runtime:

USA:65 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Okay time killer

Nothing special here. Robert Stanton plays a crooner looking for a gig singing on the radio for a sponsor named "Plantation Coffee." Considering the name of the company, he figures playing a "southerner" will get him the job, and he ropes singer Lynn Merrick into the idea with him (since he'd accidentally helped her lose her job earlier as a jukebox girl). But they find they need a coach and that's where Thurston Hall comes in as "The Colonel." He's a hustler himself and is willing to coach them in Southern ways in exchange for a "stipend." It looks like the kids get the gig, but complications ensue when the phony Southern-style name that the Colonel has given Merrick, "Bellwether", turns out to be mistakenly attached to an $800,000 inheritance. Merrick can't live with the fraud, so frantic farce ensues as she and the Colonel and Stanton attempt to find a way out of it, including a phony heir-for-hire (Matt Willis--an actor with a very goofy-looking puffed-out mouth). Of course everything works out in the end for all concerned. The title of the film is off: it should be called "A Southern Belle from Brooklyn" since the actual title is meaningless with regards to the story. Incidentally, Stanton is the brother of famed vocalist Dick Haymes and is also sometimes credited as Bob Haymes. He had a good speaking and singing voice, and okay looks, but his film and singing career never took off. But he did write the beautiful and successful song "That's All." As for this film, it certainly didn't help his career and for today's audiences it's dated and trivial (the jukebox-girl job especially a head scratcher for present-day viewers). It's a passable entertainment, nothing more.