Public Jitterbug No. 1 (1939)

Name: Public Jitterbug No. 1
Director: Joseph Henabery
Genre: Short, Comedy, Musical
Released: 1939-05-04
Duration: 21 min
Rating: 5.8
Cast: Hal Le Roy, Betty Hutton, Chaz Chase, Tom Emerson

21 min | Short, Comedy, Musical

The government has set up a special agency to stamp out what it considers the number one public menace: the jitterbug. They aren't after the many followers, but the primary perpetrator of ... See full summary »

5.8/10
92

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Cast & Crew

Top Billed Cast

Hal Le Roy

Hal Sturges
Betty Hutton

Betty
Chaz Chase

Billy
Tom Emerson

Bandleader
Tom Emerson's Hillbilly Sextette

Hillbilly Sextette

(as Emerson's Sextette)

Full cast

Reviews & Commentary

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User Reviews

5 December 2009 | jayraskin1

| Betty Hutton as Public Jitterbug #1

The reason to see this is because it features two songs by an 18 year old Betty Hutton. It is on a DVD release of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers' eight film "Carefree" and on Betty Hutton's Satinsandspurs.com site. There are three other interesting vaudeville acts, so fans of vaudeville might be interested in it for that reason, but I'm a Betty Hutton fan, so the five minutes that she appears makes the film worth seeing for me.

Betty was a superstar for 15 years from circa 1942 to circa 1957(although she continued to entertain for 30 more years). It is great to see her here as Public Jitterbug #1. You can see how talented she is, even at age 18. She steals the picture.

Did You Know?

Trivia

Now out on DVD as as an extra feature with "The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle"

Quotes

Government Agent Chief: Swing, nothing but swing! Gentlemen, it's sweeping over the country. Jitterbug! They're a menace to the public. They must be stamped out.
Hal Sturges: What we've got to do, Chief, is get to the higher ups!
Government Agent Chief: Now you're talking, Sturges. We don't want the small fry. ...

Soundtracks

Don't Want to Sing, Might as Well Dance
(uncredited)
Music by Saul Chaplin
Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Performed by Hal Le Roy

Storyline

Plot Summary

Genres

Short | Comedy | Musical

Details

Release Date:

4 May 1939

Language

English

Country of Origin

USA

Filming Locations

New York City, New York, USA

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