Tin Pan Alley (1940) User Reviews (16)

Great showpieces

[mik-19 · 7/10 · 2 May 2005]

"All good-lookin' like he is, there's no use in getting' yourself all messed up", a black boy ponders, when 'Skeets' Harrigan (John Payne) drops out of a promising boxing career to pursue his dreams of becoming a renowned Tin Pan Alley song publisher with his friend from the Midwest, Harry Calhoun (Jack Oakie). On their way to the top they meet the Blane sisters, Katie (Alice Faye) and Lily (Betty Grable). 'Skeets' and Katie fall in love, but he is adamantly focused on his career and when he gives a song meant for Katie to a famous musical star, she has had it and leaves for London with her sister. That is when World War I erupts ...

'Tin Pan Alley' has more charm than it has plot, and it's a delightful watch with charismatic actors. Faye and Grable are a wonderful pair of tap-dancing sisters, Oakie is genuinely funny as the befuddled average Joe playing at being a tough guy, and John Payne, a Robert Taylor look-alike, clearly in a role that must have been written for typical Faye co-star Tyrone Power, rises to the occasion and delivers his all, a perfect mix of athletic hunkiness and crooning abilities, not the easiest performance to pull of, as 'Skeets' is quite callous in the way he presses forward.

The film abounds with great music and showpieces, 'Honeysuckle Rose' in Faye's very nice rendition with a boy chorus, 'The Sheik of Araby' featuring glorious tap-dancing by The Nicholas Brothers, the rousing "America, I Love You", and the only song actually written for the film, Harry Warren's 'You Say the Sweetest Things (Baby)", utilized to the fullest in a clever montage.

A case of visiting my elementary school auditorium years later...

[AlsExGal · 6/10 · 22 March 2022]

... in that it seemed so big and grand in my memory, but is actually quite small and underwhelming when revisited.

It had been years since I saw Tin Pan Alley, definitely over a decade. It was on the Fox Movie Channel back when that channel used to play classic Fox titles around the clock, but now relegates older films to twelve hours a day, and usually it is about the same twenty titles all of the time and pre 1960 titles? Forget about it.

So when it popped up available to see I decided to jump on it, and the production as a whole left me disappointed. It pretty much amounts to this - In 1915 pretty chanteuse (Alice Faye) meets two struggling song writers/publishers. They catapult to success based on a title they buy off of a performer in a restaurant, then success goes to the head of the publisher Faye loves (John Payne). Complications ensue, but none you won't see coming from a mile away. And the musical numbers are too bland and too long.

But it does have its charms. Alice Faye is great as the wholesome girl next door with the wonderful voice. Jack Oakie doesn't look or sound like somebody who would be a net positive in a musical, but he works great as long as he has somebody to bounce one liners off of, and John Payne fits the bill for that duty. Then there is Elisha Cook Jr of the noirs as a geeky gifted composer. If that doesn't sound weird then I assume you could see Hoagy Carmichael playing a psychopathic killer?

Finally there is the one really good song in this film - "You Say The Sweetest Things" by Gordon and Warren performed by Alice Faye. Fortunately, Fox knew this was the best song because it becomes a kind of background score as the plot unwinds. With a second billed Betty Grable who hardly has a line and a great cameo appearance by the Nicholas Brothers, this is probably worth your time.

Lot's of Good Music

[LeonardKniffel · 7/10 · 9 April 2020]

Alice Faye and Betty Grable team up in this costume musical as a pair of singing sisters. You have to hear the classic tune "K-K-K-Katy," sung by Jack Oakie using different lyrics throughout the movie, then sung and danced at the end by the sisters on stage and by marching World War I doughboys. --Musicals on the Silver Screen, American Library Association, 2013

The Sheik of Araby

[Kalaman · 12 April 2003]

"Tin Pan Alley" is a serviceable if slightly undernourished musical extravaganza starring Alice Faye, John Payne, Betty Grable, Jackie Oakie. I thought it would turn out to be as memorable and enchanting as Faye's greatest musicals like "That Night in Rio" or "Hello Frisco Hello" also co-starring John Payne, but it is nowhere near them. There is a sense that something is missing; the idea is there but somehow it doesn't quite coalesce, even despite the luminous presence of Faye. Nevertheless, it has one of the most spectacular dance and musical numbers ever staged: "The Sheik of Araby" - featuring Faye, Grable, and the Nicholas Brothers who also appeared in Grable's previous hit wonder, "Down Argentine Way". The dance number has a spark and excitement most of the movie lacks.

K-K-K-Katy

[AAdaSC · 6/10 · 8 December 2014]

Jack Oakie (Calhoun) and John Payne (Harrigan) are a couple of songwriters on Tin Pan Alley. They need a hit to pay their rent and Oakie puts in a call to a friend Alice Faye (Katie) to come and help them out performing songs. She brings along her sister Betty Grable (Lilly). They achieve success but things don't go as planned especially with the romance between Payne and Faye. Can they all get together again by the end of the film? Have a guess…

The cast are fine with Betty Grable coming across as the most likable. Alice Faye is a bit precious, John Payne is a bit negative while Oakie has loads of energy. He is, however, a good balance for Payne who can be a bit moody. As for the songs, I liked them all, especially the first one that Faye and Grable sing and dance to. There is a running joke throughout the film as Oakie keeps changing the words to the song but I reckon it needs no improvement from this opening number. "Moonlight Bay" is another standout as is the whole "Sheik of Araby" sequence with the Nicolas Brothers doing their thing! I disagree with other reviewers in that I found "America I Love You" to be the worst offering.

As regards the story, the Nora Bayes reference was lost on me and, unfortunately, will be lost on many others. However, it was made clear that she is big news, and if she comes knocking at your door to sing one of your songs, then you don't turn her down. And this is where the film gets a little silly. Payne gives her the song to sing and Faye seems hostile to the idea. Faye should be supportive of this move – what a coup! The next bit also doesn't make sense, as success for Payne doesn't seem to take off for him once Faye leaves to join her sister. The whole point of giving Nora Bayes the song was to gain instant success on the back of it.

The story is slight but it is the musical segments that bring the score for this film into a higher bracket. They are the only memorable parts of the film and the only parts worth re-visiting.

Alice and her singing Ty

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 7 June 2004]

Tin Pan Alley was the first try at a successful experiment Darryl Zanuck was trying. An actor who was as good looking as Tyrone Power and could contribute musically to the film. He found one in John Payne this was the first of four films that Payne and Faye did together. They were scheduled to do a fifth with The Dolly Sisters, but Alice retired after being offered that script.

Payne slipped very well into Ty Power's hero/heel character that he patented at 20th Century Fox. Payne's character Skeets Harrigan and his partner Jack Oakie are trying to hit it big in the music publishing industry pre World War I. He meets Alice Faye and her sister Betty Grable doing a vaudeville act and he falls for Faye bigtime. He loves her, but he wants success more. How they resolve their ambitions is crux of the movie.

Alice Faye and Betty Grable in their only film together play the Blane sisters. Alice is in good voice as always and she gets the best songs in the film. Payne partners her in the film's best number America I Love You and he also reprises with her in the only original song for the film, You Say The Sweetest Things, Baby.

You Say The Sweetest Things Baby was written by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Mack Gordon. Gordon had written with Harry Revel a whole group of songs that Faye introduced. But Revel left Fox and Darryl Zanuck teamed Gordon with Warren who had just left Warner Brothers. It was a felicitous teaming and Gordon and Warren wrote a whole group of some of the best loved tunes of the 40s, Chatanooga Choo Choo being the most famous and also You'll Never Know, probably Faye's best loved song.

In watching films like Tin Pan Alley something is lost unless you're an amateur historian like me. Esther Ralston does a cameo as Nora Bayes who was one of the best loved vaudeville stars pre-World War I. In 1940 people still knew who Nora Bayes was. Now I'm sure she draws a great big "who" from most people if they're asked who she is. A key scene in the movie is after Faye has delivered a smash version of America I Love You, Payne gives in to Nora Bayes request for the song because of his ambition. That's totally lost on younger viewers.

Actually Nora Bayes did introduce a very famous World War I era song, written by a guy who normally introduced his own material. She gave the first public performance of Over There written by George M. Cohan and documented nicely in Yankee Doodle Dandy.

You never ever go wrong watching an Alice Faye film.

John, Jack, and Alice again

[HotToastyRag · 5/10 · 28 April 2019]

In Tin Pan Alley, John Payne and Jack Oakie play pals and songwriters in the years before WWI. When no one buys their songs, they turn to purchasing other songs from other songwriters, then jazzing the tunes up for the vaudeville stage. In one scene, they buy a song from Elisha Cook, Jr. They give him a very low offer, but he insists on a better price, quipping, "I know I look dumb, but that's an advantage." Then, when John and Jack buy his song, they change the temp and time signature, much to his disgust. He, like anyone whose work has been bought and altered, has no choice but bury his head in his hands and lament that he's "only the composer."

John Payne sure lucked out with Miracle on 34th Street, because in many of his earlier roles, he wasn't very likable. In all the Alice Faye movies I've seen him in, he plays a bit of a jerk, someone who values his work far more than the woman who loves him. Tin Pan Alley is no different, and even though he's very handsome, I was on Alice's side during their fights. For example. John promises her a romantic date after nonstop performances, and once there, he spills champagne all over the singer's gown and spontaneously suggests Alice sing instead. It was all on purpose so his new song would be exposed at the swanky nightclub!

During Alice's performances, the girl next to her swung her hips with three times the gusto and tap danced with twice as much flair, I wondered why she didn't become a big star, and why Alice didn't put more into her performance with someone trying so hard next to her. Turns out, the matching blonde was Betty Grable! Still, I don't know why Alice didn't try harder, when a replacement was being groomed right in front of her.

If you like the cast or want to see a pre-wartime Betty Grable, you might want to try out Tin Pan Alley. John, Alice, and Jack teamed up for two more movies later in the 1940s, so if you like their chemistry together, you can see them again in Hello, Frisco, Hello and The Great American Broadcast.

Great stars, great music, what more could you want?

[eastofeden87 · 9/10 · 17 July 2000]

This is a delightful film with some of the best stars from the 40's. Alice Faye has been a personal favorite of mine for years and her beautiful contralto singing voice is only one reason. She is also charming and beautiful, and it's no wonder she was 20th Century Fox's top blonde star for many years (until Betty Grable, who is, of course, also in this film). Alice and Betty make believable sisters and perform some knockout numbers together (especially "The Sheik of Araby", which also boasts the talents of the marvelous Nicholas Brothers). Alice is paired romantically in the film with John Payne (a frequent costar), and their chemistry makes you understand why Fox paired them often in film. The songs are delightful and the movie captures the image of Tin Pan Alley that may not have existed in reality, but isn't the image on film more romantic and lovely to look at? The only quibble I have: why, oh why wasn't this filmed in Technicolor?

Alice plus Betty- Wow!

[weezeralfalfa · 9/10 · 27 August 2007]

Alice Faye and Betty Grable were made for each other as a sister act, together or separately. As the dominant sister, Alice got most of the single numbers, but Betty got to show her stuff in the "Honeysuckle Rose"- "Moonlight and Roses" routine. I can't believe they were never paired again(Well, they were supposed to be in "The Dolly Sisters", but it was too late, as Alice decided to retire just then). John Payne and Jack Oakie were another great buddy pair, Oakie providing a perfect comic balance to Payne's serious demeanor, as a pair of struggling tune smiths. Oakie does an impromptu rendition of a classic George M. Cohan war moral booster, composed about the time this story takes place, at the beginning of WWI. This duo would appear together or separately in several more Faye films. Payne would also serve as a usually successful rival for Betty's heart in several other films. Too bad Oakie was never considered romantic material for the leading ladies. He was certainly charming enough. He could have teamed up with Betty while Payne was romancing or sulking with Alice.

The Nicholas Brothers were yet another talented pair, though they only appeared in their dance routine in "The Sheik of Araby" extravaganza. Breaking the color barrier, they appeared in a number of top musicals of this era, including "Sun Valley Serenade" and the all African American cast in "Stormy Weather", where they performed perhaps their most famous routine. Rotund veteran comedian Billy Gilbert seemed bored with his harem and other diversions, until Alice and Betty showed up in his harem, when he joined them in a memorable song and dance rendition of the title song for "The Sheik of Araby" scene. All in all, a great vaudevillian mix of song and dance, comedy and romantic drama. My main regret is that this wasn't filmed in Technicolor. Few films were then, and the studios didn't always pick the right ones for this luxury treatment. It's about time a DVD version of this classic musical comedy was made available, and dare I hope for a colorized version?

This film was essentially remade in 1949as "Oh, You Beautiful Doll", in Technicolor. June Haver and Gail Robbins took the places of Alice and Betty. Mark Stevens and S.Z. Sakal took the places of Payne and Oakie, respectively. I like the original better, except it was filmed in B&W.

No expense whatever has been spared!

[JohnHowardReid · 10/10 · 2 May 2018]

Copyright 29 November 1940 by 20th Century-Fox Film Corp. New York opening at the Roxy: 21 November 1940. U.S. release: 29 November 1940. Australian release: 17 April 1941. Original length: 9,000 feet, 100 minutes. Cut to 8,757 feet (97 minutes) in Australia and to 92 minutes in U.S.A. by deleting a song number, "Get Out and Get Under", featuring Faye, Grable and Oakie.

SYNOPSIS: 1915-1919. Rags to riches to rags and back story of a couple of song publishers, one of whom is dumb (and greedy) enough not to realize Alice Faye is a loyal, sensitive girl who's in love with him.

NOTES: Tin Pan Alley originally went into production in Technicolor. About half the film was photographed in color (approximately the first half, although there are a couple of later sequences in which the grainy lighting and too-thick make-up indicate original color cinematography) before the process was abandoned. Why is a good question. Two reasons: (1) The Sheik of Araby number ran into censor difficulties ("too much showgirl") and had to be re-shot. It certainly looks less daring in black-and-white. (Perhaps the Nicholas Brothers and Princess Ammon were also added at this stage to give the number "class"); (2) Zanuck felt that Technicolor flattered Grable at Faye's expense. Alice had made her color debut in Hollywood Cavalcade in which she looked great but had no competition. Immediately Tin Pan Alley was in the can, Zanuck rushed Alice into That Night in Rio, her second Technicolor feature, this time with a safe co-star - Carmen Miranda.

Alfred Newman won an Academy Award for Best Score. This was the film's only nomination. Because of the color/black-and-white compromise, photography and art direction were ineligible for nomination, but it is strange that "You Say the Sweetest Things, Baby" was not proposed for Best Song. It's not only the first song Harry Warren and Mack Gordon wrote for Alice (it remained her personal favorite of all her numbers) but it's given such a stand-out treatment with such an elaborate musical reprise, I can't figure how any nominator could possibly miss it.

The film was remade in 1950 as I'll Get By, with June Haver and William Lundigan directed by Richard Sale.

COMMENT: There has to be a higher rating than 100% for this movie. Alice of course dominates the film but she is not allowed to completely overshadow the rest of the cast - as some critics have claimed. True, the script has John Payne elbowing Betty Grable aside to give Alice a shot at "Moonlight Bay", but Betty is by no means neglected. Although she has no romantic steady, she has a couple of solo production numbers as well as joining Alice for "Hawaii" and the movie's delightfully zesty showpiece, "The Sheik of Araby".

Comedian Jack Oakie has a regal share of the limelight too, while Payne has if anything even more footage. And there's a grand supporting roster including Allen Jenkins, Elisha Cook and Charles Wilson (all of whom have some delightful running gags), not to mention Esther Ralston, Billy Gilbert, the Nicholas Brothers and Billy Bevan who are also given their opportunities to shine.

It's to Alice's credit that she's so electrifying we still pine when she's off-screen (which is really quite often), especially during the straight Payne episodes. Fortunately the songs are an incomparably breezy lot - and they are given a marvelously aggressive orchestration and often an all-stops-out treatment with elaborate reprises and thrilling montages. The sound of course is absolutely dazzling.

Walter Lang's pacey direction makes the most of the picture's superb production values. No expense whatever has been spared on lavish sets and crowd scenes. And what about those incredible period costumes that Alice and Betty fill so gracefully? All told, marvelous entertainment with catchy songs, amusing business and a power-plus cast. Hollywood zest at its best!

The catchy music and fine form of the stars make this film tops.

[petercavaghan · 10/10 · 17 February 2001]

From the first time I saw Tin Pan Alley I played it over and over, because I enjoyed the music so much and the stars were in top form. While I rarely seek out the actors in films made to-day, I tune into any old film featuring Alice Faye, John Payne, Betty Grable or Jack Oakie, hoping to find something just as engaging. The unabashed sentimentality of the music and simple straight forward humour make it a refreshing change from to-day's tasteless films. While Alice Faye tackles the love songs with John Payne, as a consumate professional, I am always sure he is using a lot of self control not break into laughter, and that they had a lot of fun making the movie.

My love for Alice Faye

[willrams · 9/10 · 12 October 2002]

Alice Faye was my favorite singer actress and made so many good films when I was in High School. Tin Pan Alley was especially entertaining and had our favorite Ethel Merman. As always she was the great belter; remember her in Alexander's Ragtime Band with Tyrone Power and Don Ameche. Both Power and Ameche played in several of Alice's films; and then there were Jack Oakie and June Havoc; what an amusing pair they were! The films I liked best were Tin Pan Alley 1940; The Gang's All Here and Hello Frisco Hello both 1943; and State Fair remake with Pat Boone and Bobby Darin (1960s?) In 1985 Alice Faye was at the Arlington Theater promoting health care products, and I had the privilege of talking to her. She was a great lady and very nice!

Song & Dance

[willrams · 9/10 · 13 October 2002]

A most entertaining musical film of the early teens with songwriters Calhoun & Harrigan, Jack Oakie and John Payne with singers Alice Faye and Betty Grable. Such great songs like "Harrigan", "K K KKATIE", and several good numbers. One of my favorite movies with all these stars. 20th Century Fox had the best in talent, and don't forget the fabulous Nicholson brothers; they tapped their flying feet all over the place! What a shame that black entertainers did not share the honors until 50 years later! Also, Billy Gilbert as the shiek was a momentous riot!

'Tin Pan' clinker.

[GManfred · 16 January 2011]

"Tin Pan Alley" is a rare misfire for Fox, which had a string of hits around this time period. In fact, they used several of the same stars in this one as in previous pictures. Alice Faye, John Payne, Betty Grable and Jack Oakie - what more could you ask for? Well, you might ask for some better songs and a better storyline, because this plot is threadbare and had been done better many times in the past. Boy meets girl, Boy loses girl ( because pride goeth before a fall), boy wins girl back. Did you read the list of song titles? Well, most of them are background music except for "You Say The Sweetest Things", which was written especially for this picture and was the best number.

Special mention should be made of "America, I Love You", to which I have awarded a Hand-Painted Mustache Cup for the Worst Production Number In A Major Musical. Mournful and tuneless, this song was given a big build-up as a flag-waving tribute to the troops in WWI and all concerned tried mightily to put it over. This dreadful song, however, defied all efforts and pulled down an already routine musical into subpar status.

If you like the cast and if you like Fox musicals - and there are many to like - try another picture.

Song Sheets to Success

[lugonian · 9/10 · 11 October 2023]

TIN PAN ALLEY (20th Century-Fox, 1940), directed by Walter Lang, is a highly entertaining musical based on a story by Pamela Harris dealing with song pluggers and a sister act in New York City from 1915 to 1918. Being the first pairing of Alice Faye and John Payne (fourth billed in the cast), it also marked Faye's only role opposite the up and rising Betty Grable, whose first starring role for the studio, DOWN ARGENTINE WAY (1940) proved successful enough to elevate her as star material. Pairing Faye with Grable was enough to elevate both Grable and film to major heights, even though Grable is actually a secondary character. Although initially said to become a reunion of Faye's earlier co-stars of Tyrone Power and Don Ameche from both IN OLD CHICAGO (1937) and ALEXANDER'S RAGTIME BAND (1938), replacing them with John Payne and Jack Oakie simply made TIN PAN ALLEY even better than anticipated.

Opening in New York City in 1915, the story deals with Francis Aloyisus "Skeets" Harrigan (John Payne) and his partner, Harry Calhoun (Jack Oakie) struggling song pluggers getting their tunes published by publishers with offices on the west side of Manhattan, better known as "Tin Pan Alley." Earning extra money fighting in the ring to prevent from getting evicted for non-payment of rent, it's Harry who comes up with a solution by having his old friends, Katie (Alice Faye) and Lily Blane (Betty Grable), a sister act, promote their songs while performing on stage. The plan not only works, but a successful union between Skeets and Katie develops. With success comes some disappointments, the biggest one for Skeets as Katie breaks their union for her disapproval of his method to success. Featuring Allen Jenkins (Casey); Esther Ralston (Nora Bayes); John Loder (Captain Reginald Carstairs); Elisha Cook Jr. (Joe Codd); with specialty acts performed by the Nicholas Brothers (Fayard and Harold); The Brian Sisters and Billy Gilbert amusingly the title character in the "Sheik of Araby" number.

Songs include: "Dixie," later reprised as "Hawaii," "You Say the Sweetest Things, Baby," "You Say the Sweetest Things, Baby" (reprise); "On Moonlight Bay," "Honeysuckle Rose," "Moonlight and Roses," "America, I Love You," "Goodbye Broadway Hello France," "Arabian Dance," "The Sheik of Araby" and "K-K-K Katie."

In a documentary titled "Hidden Treasures: From the Vaults of 20th Century-Fox," once presented on American Movie Classics cable channel around 1997, there was a segment involving a cut number from TIN PAN ALLEY titled "Get Out and Get Under" featuring a segment leading to the song with Payne, Oakie, Faye and William Demarest. A pity that number got deleted from all final prints considering how well staged and highly entertaining it was. Fortunately "America, I Love You," does remain, one of the film's musical highlights. Considering the fact the movie takes place before and during the World War, at least the costume department and hair stylists were accurately correct. Of the old nostalgic tunes, only "You Say the Sweetest Things, Baby" is an original composed for the movie, and a good tune, too.

Regardless of cuts and rewrites, TIN PAN ALLEY is prime 20th Century-Fox musical with great tunes and tightly edited story for its 93 minutes to hold interest. Performances are satisfactory, especially by Jack Oakie, whom Grable says, "Same old Calhoun, anything for a laugh." She's right, and his character does not disappointment in the comedy department.

Formerly shown on American Movie Classics (1994-2001) and Fox Movie Channel, TIN PAN ALLEY is also available on video cassette and DVD format, both featuring an extra bonus cut number of "Get Out and Get Under." (***1/2)

I can only say the sweetest things about this, baby.

[mark.waltz · 9/10 · 11 April 2024]

Rumors of rivalries may be good publicity, but they're not always true and it was absolutely false in the case of Alice Faye and Betty Grable who came together for the only time in this glorious period Twentieth Century Fox musical. They are quite believable as sisters during the good old days of the great American song book, working alongside the team of Harrigan and Calhoun played by John Payne and Jack Oakie.

Loosely based on the writing team of Harrigan and Hart, Payne and Oakie plug their songs to make stars out of the two women but aren't always very honest. Pushy Oakie is honest in a sense, but not in a positive way and often he's the cause of problems while Payne basically keeps truth away from his true love Faye, not telling her that he's given one of the songs he's promised to her against his will to the popular Nora Bayes (Esther Ralston).

The songs are quite snappy even if many of them are forgotten outside of fans of classic pop tunes written prior to the second world war. Faye and Grable definitely have a spark on screen (more so than with the men), and It works in their favor that their on screen affection was genuine off screen. That truly humanizes both the characters and the actresses, and their contrast in performing styles makes them individualistic as well. Extremely satisfying in many ways, not only for the music but for the historical context and a look back at a changing period of American culture.