Gold Diggers of 1933

"We're in the Money" with Ginger Rogers.

Film Forum’s 1933 series ended last week and as I could have predicted, my plans to attend most of the screenings were overly ambitious. Still, I did manage to see some of the films and enjoyed them quite a lot, even the few stinkers, and the whole series left me wishing for more (like 1934, 1935, etc.).

On day two of the series I saw Gold Diggers of 1933, a Mervyn LeRoy musical about three actresses trying to make it in New York during the Great Depression. Torch singer Carol King (Joan Blondell), ingénue Polly Parker (Ruby Keeler), and comedienne Trixie Lorraine (Aline MacMahon) are out of work after their show, which hasn't even opened yet, gets shut down because the company can't pay its bills. Fellow actress and rival Fay Fortune (Ginger Rogers) shows up at the flat that the girls share with the news that producer Barney Hopkins (Ned Sparks) is putting on a new show. Carol leaves to find out more information and returns with Hopkins in tow who promises parts for all of them. Hearing Polly’s boyfriend and next-door neighbour Brad Roberts (Dick Powell) playing a song he's written, Hopkins declares “Warren and Dubin are out” (the names of the real composers of the film) and promptly hires Brad. When Hopkins confesses that he still needs to raise money (he could get by on $15,000), Brad offers to get it for him as long as Polly is cast in the lead. Unknown to everyone Brad comes from a wealthy Boston family and is living in New York under a pseudonym as his family doesn’t approve of his career choice. Hopkins agrees.

Aline MacMahon, Ginger Rogers, Joan Blondell, and Ruby Keeler.

Opening night of the show Brad replaces the ailing juvenile in the lead and receives rave reviews in the press. His true identity is also revealed, prompting the arrival of his straitlaced older brother, J. Lawrence Bradford (Warren William), and his lawyer with the very Boston sounding name of Faneuil Peabody (Guy Kibbee). Lawrence warns Brad that while the family may make allowances for his working in the theatre, he must give up Polly or lose his inheritance. Brad storms off and Lawrence heads to the girls’ flat, a much grander one now that they’re making money, to confront Polly. There he mistakes Carol for Polly, who he declares to be a gold digger before she can correct him. Angered, she and Trixie, who has already zeroed in on the lawyer, set out to make them pay “right through their checkbooks.” Lawrence’s attempts to turn Polly’s affections away from his brother don't exactly work out, and he ends up falling in love with her (Carol that is). By the end, the three couples are together, the “gold diggers” having gotten their men.

Joan Blondell and Warren William.

As to the star-studded cast, Joan Blondell is a better actress than I had thought, Warren William makes a great leading man, Guy Kibbee is hilarious, Aline MacMahon should be better known, Ruby Keeler can’t act to save her life, Dick Powell is fine but boring, and Ginger Rogers, not yet a major star, steals every scene she’s in. Rogers, who is delightful here, moves up my list of favorites every time I see one of her films. In fact, I think I saw more films in the series with her in them than any other star. While she normally receives credit for her dancing (rightly so), I don’t think enough is said about her skills as a comedienne, which she exhibits here, holding her own against the very funny MacMahon.

While the laughs may be plenty in the film, the Great Depression is never far from the minds of the characters. The girls’ lack of funds (they must resort to stealing a bottle of milk from the neighbours for their breakfast) and their inability to find work is explained simply by Fay: "It's the Depression, dearie." When Barney tells them that the new show is “all about the Depression,” Carol responds, “We won’t have to rehearse that.” The big numbers that open and close the film are also Depression-themed. In the opening number, Ginger Rogers and a bevy of dancers clad in large coins sing about breadlines and Old Man Depression in the upbeat “We’re in the Money” (Rogers actually sings one verse in Pig Latin). “Remember My Forgotten Man, ” the closing number, is a more serious acknowledgement of the dire times. Featuring Carol as a woman of the streets who’s been abandoned by her man and the amazing Etta Moten, they sing about the man who went off to fight for his country (“You put a rifle in his hand; You sent him far away”) and is now forgotten. After soldiers are shown marching off to war to the cheers of a crowd, we see them wounded, marching in the rain (on stage no less), returning only to wind up in a bread line.

Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler are "Pettin' in the Park."

Even with the comedic moments and love affairs, Gold Diggers is above all a musical and this one goes all out with four lavish numbers choreographed and directed by Busby Berkeley. In addition to the “We’re in the Money” and “Remember My Forgotten Man” numbers, there’s the visually striking “The Shadow Waltz” in which dancers with neon-violins glow in the dark against a black backdrop, ultimately forming the shape of one giant violin. And then there’s the naughty “Pettin’ in the Park.” Sung by Brad and Polly, it features a bevy of girls with their beaus making out in Central Park (“First you pet a little, Let up a little, and then you get a little kiss.”) along with famed little person Billy Barty as a pervy baby who escapes from his carriage so he can ogle the girls. After the skies open up, the drenched girls come in from the rain to change behind back lit screens, allowing viewers ample glances of their naked silhouettes. They reemerge, wearing metal dresses, whose removal is quickly solved when the baby hands Brad a can opener.

There are many elements in Gold Diggers that would never have been allowed after the enforcement of the production code the following year. Along with the suggestive lyrics and staging of the girls in the above-mentioned number, there are sexual innuendos made throughout the film, some revealing shots of Blondell as she gets dressed, and even a scene where one of the male characters wakes up after a drunken night believing he’s slept with one of the girls. All of these things would have been censored. In fact, “Pettin’ in the Park” was later removed, left out of early prints for television.

The racy scenes and dialogue combined with the over-the-top musical numbers and comic antics make for one hell of a film and maybe one of the best films of 1933. 

1933

Ginger Rogers in Gold Diggers of 1933.

Bruce Goldstein over at Film Forum is apparently a mind reader as he routinely creates programs that include my favourite films (isn't that nice?). Case in point. Starting next month, Film Forum will spend four weeks screening 66 films from 1933. What's so special about that year? In addition to the release of dozens of amazing films, the debut of Astaire and Rogers (Flying Down to Rio), the opening of the first drive-in movie theatre, and  the founding of the Screen Actors Guild, 1933 was the last year before the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code and the creation of the Legion of Decency by the Catholic Church. So 1933 was the last hurrah of sorts for uncensored stories about sex, drugs, murder, homosexuality, you name it. And what a year it was. We’re talking Design for Living, Dinner at Eight, Gold Diggers of 1933, 42nd Street, Footlight Parade, Queen Christina, Baby Face, Bombshell, Ecstasy, King Kong, and many, many more. I for one can’t wait to attend as many screenings as possible. Thank you Film Forum.

For a complete schedule, check out their calendar here.

Can't Sleep

Recently I've found myself tossing and turning, unable to go to sleep. I've tried cutting back on caffeine during the day (absolute torture), turning the TV and computer off, adjusting the temperature (as much as I can), and yet I still can't seem to get to sleep at a decent hour. We're talking wide awake at 3 in the morning type of can't get to sleep. I've posted a few tales recently during my late nights up but usually find that my writing isn't the best when I'm sleep deprived. What to do? Any tips that you dear readers may have would be greatly appreciated. Now I'm going to go try counting sheep.

Photo of Ginger Rogers from Stage Door.

Fred and Ginger

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in their first film 

together Flying Down to Rio (1933).

Katharine Hepburn reportedly once said of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, “He gave her class, she gave him sex.” Theirs was a perfect pairing. And through ten films together, they became the most famous dance team to ever grace the silver screen. In The Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers Book, Arlene Croce offers a detailed examination of their work that is both informative and entertaining.

After covering Astaire and Rogers’ prehistory, Croce looks at each of the ten films, beginning with full film credits and a story synopsis before going into a detailed analysis from the creation of the dance numbers and use of music by the most popular composers of the day to the production and supporting players who were an integral part of the films (Edward Everett Horton, Eric Blore, Erik Rhodes).

"Pick Yourself Up" from Swing Time (1936)

I have seen and loved all of the Astaire and Rogers films and so was particularly interested to read the behind the scenes moments. During the filming of Swing Time (my favourite of their films) we learn that while repeatedly performing a series of pirouettes for “Never Going to Dance” Roger’s feet began to bleed. Or that the floors on which they danced were overlaid with Bakelite, which scarred easily, requiring that they be covered with cardboard during rehearsals and long breaks had to be called during filming so the floors could be cleaned up. We also learn about Astaire's creative process, including the fact that he rehearsed all of the routines alone save for the company of choreographer Hermes Pan and pianist Hal Borne. Not even Rogers was allowed to join in until Astaire and Pan felt they were ready.

"Cheek to Cheek" from Top Hat (1935) with that dress.

The book is brimming with film and production stills. It even includes a wonderful analysis of Follow the Fleet by director Mark Sandrich that looks like a blueprint of the film.

Perhaps my favourite thing about the book is that it also serves as not one but two flip books (I collect flip books, which may make me a bit biased). Flip the pages one way and you can watch “The Waltz in Swing Time” from Swing Time in the top corner; flip them the other way and you get “Let Yourself Go” from Follow the Fleet. Who could ask for anything more?

"The Yam" from Carefree (1938)

The Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers Book is available from various sellers here.

Pick Yourself Up

On a lazy Sunday what better to inspire you to get up and move than Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dancing to "Pick Yourself Up" from Swing Time (1936)? This is one of my favourite Fred and Ginger routines—no elaborate set, the choreography is concise but brilliant, and I've always coveted Ginger's dress (love Peter Pan collars).

Fred plays a former dancer turned gambler who runs into Ginger and promptly gets her in trouble with a police officer. Following her to her job at a dance studio, he pretends to need lessons. Acting the klutz, Fred literally falls all over Ginger while they sing "Pick Yourself Up." Ginger finally tells him "Listen. No one could teach you to dance in a million years. Take my advice and save your money!"  Her boss, played by the always entertaining Eric Blore, hears this and fires her. Fred grabs Ginger and shows the boss what she has taught him, resulting in the dance above to the same song.

"Pick Yourself Up" by Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern had a great "can do" message for Americans during the Depression and proved to be a big hit. So go out and conquer those weekend projects, the crowds at the shops, the pile of laundry, whatever you need to do. Just move. And remember to "pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again."