Movie Cosmos - Tin Pan Alley

Description:

Songwriters Calhoun and Harrigan get Katie and Lily Blane to introduce a new one. Lily goes to England, and Katy joins her after the boys give a new song to Nora Bayes. All are reunited when the boys, now in the army, show up in England.

Top Cast >

Alice Faye

As Katie Blane

Betty Grable

As Lily Blane

Jack Oakie

As Harry Calhoun

John Payne

As Skeets Harrigan

Allen Jenkins

As Casey

Esther Ralston

As Nora Bayes

Harold Nicholas

As Dancer

Fayard Nicholas

As Dancer

Ben Carter

As Boy

John Loder

As Reggie Carstairs

Elisha Cook Jr.

As Joe Codd

Fred Keating

As Harvey Raymond

Billy Gilbert

As Sheik

Lillian Porter

As Telephone Operator

Princess Vanessa Ammon

As Specialty

Betty Brian

As Singer

Doris Brian

As Singer

Gwen Brian

As Singer

Roberts Brothers

As Specialty

Tyler Brooke

As Bert Melville

Hal K. Dawson

As Hotel Clerk

William B. Davidson

As Hotel Manager

Lionel Pape

As Lord Stanley

Billy Bevan

As Stage Doorman

Dewey Robinson

As Dumb Guy

Robert Emmett Keane

As Manager

John Sheehan

As Announcer

George Watts

As Mike Buckner

Ted Billings

As Recruit Poster Peddler in Montage (uncredited)

Bobby Callahan

As Newsboy (uncredited)

Maurice Costello

As (uncredited)

Franklyn Farnum

As Man in Audience (uncredited)

James Flavin

As Army Sergeant (uncredited)

Bess Flowers

As Nightclub Guest (uncredited)

Kit Guard

As Ringsider (uncredited)

Eddie Hall

As Man Reading Headline (uncredited)

John Indrisano

As Kid Skeets' Cornerman (uncredited)

Larry McGrath

As Referee (uncredited)

Pat McKee

As Two Punch Hogan (uncredited)

Bud Mercer

As Dancer (uncredited)

Jim Mercer

As Dancer (uncredited)

Louis Mercier

As (uncredited)

Charles R. Moore

As Porter at Railroad Station (uncredited)

Jack Roper

As Nick Palerno (uncredited)

Mary Stewart

As Dancer (uncredited)

Harry Strang

As Marching Doughboy (uncredited)

Dorothy Tuttle

As (uncredited)

Charles C. Wilson

As Desk Sergeant (uncredited)

Top Crew >

Walter Lang

Director

Cyril J. Mockridge

Original Music Composer

Kenneth Macgowan

Associate Producer

Robert Ellis

Screenplay

Richard Day

Art Direction

Roger Heman Sr.

Sound

Leon Shamroy

Director of Photography

Helen Logan

Screenplay

Thomas Little

Set Decoration

Travis Banton

Costume Design

Walter Thompson

Editor

Joseph C. Wright

Art Direction

Eugene Grossman

Sound

Alfred Newman

Original Music Composer

Gene Bryant

Assistant Director

Reviews:

CinemaSerf (6/10)

Songwriters "Calhoun" (Jack Oakie) and his pal "Harrigan" (John Payne) meet up on the theatre circuit with the "Blane" sisters - "Katie" (Alice Faye) and "Lily" (Betty Grable) and they embark on some escapades as the lyricists try to find success. That happens, believe it or not, but as ever there is collateral damage and that comes in the form of the relationship between "Harrigan" and his devoted "Katie" - the former too obsessed with success to appreciate what is right in front of his eyes! Will the romance sort itself out? Well, oddly enough the plot doesn't really matter. It's really just a vehicle for Alice Faye (and her lovely voice) to shine. For Oakie to throw some one-liners around and see where they stick and for charming ditties "You Say the Sweetest Things" and "America, I Love You" from the pens of Mack Gordon and Harry Warren that show a distinct chemistry between Payne and Faye (and Oakie on the former song, too). It's quite fun for the most part, it jogs along well marrying comedy and romance with a little wartime spirit and it does give us an enjoyable insight into just how variety theatre worked. I could have done with a bit more from an underused Grable, and maybe a few more numbers and a bit less chatter, but it's held up well and is still quite entertaining.

2022-04-26