dwgraham1950

I've always enjoyed this movie and consider it one of the better musicals of the 1940's. There has been quite a bit of interest in the Ross Sisters as they have popped up all over the internet due to their performance in Broadway Rhythm. They were billed as Aggie, Maggie, and Elmira but their real names were Vicki, Dixie, and Betsy. They hailed from Colorado City, Texas and were daughters of dirt farmers during the dust bowl days. They trained on their own and began working theaters and fairs in the Midwest. Pooling their money, they bought a trailer and moved to New Jersey to a trailer park about a mile from the George Washington bridge on Route 6. They earned minor roles in a George Kaufman play, Count Me In, and went on to Broadway Rhythm then Pickadilly Hayride at the Prince of Wales Theater in London. They were summoned before the King and Queen for a command performance on Nov. 4, 1946.

I confess I found it hilarious. Stooges were a bit stiff, probably because of Ted Healy's (a truly unfunny person) relationship with the Stooges off camera. How can you not love Jimmy Durante? A true ham, hamming it up every second on screen. Zasu Pitts, Edna Mae Oliver, and newborns performing on a twirling fan as the final shot - I can't help but like it. Hey, it's screwball not exploding cars and obscenities mouthed every few seconds while someone passes gas (and that's just a current PG-13.) I'd rather watch a poor movie from this period than any of the trash being spewed out today. The print is of wonderful quality and hopefully more MGM classics of this calibre will surface. If nothing else, perhaps the gorgeous MGM girls routines will bring a new audience to this DVD.