It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals.
In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals.

This week’s musical:
Sarge Goes to College (1947) – Musical #749

Studio:
Monogram Pictures

Director:
Will Jason

Starring:
Freddie Stewart, June Preisser, Frankie Darro, Warren Mills, Noel Neill, Arthur Walsh, Alan Hale Jr., Frank Cady, Monte Collins, Selmer Jackson, Margaret Brayton
Themselves: Arthur Walsh, Russ Morgan and His Orchestra, Jack McVea and Orchestra, Dusty Fletcher, Candy Candido, Les Paul, Abe Lyman, Jess Stacy, Wingy Manone, Joe Venuti, Jerry Wald

Plot:
A Marine, Sarge (Hale Jr.), is due to have surgery, but doctors don’t think he is prepared for the procedure and needs to get away from the military atmosphere for a rest. He is transferred to San Juan College, were Freddie (Stewart) and his friends (Preisser, Darro, Neill, Mills) are planning to put on a show. As Dodie (Preisser) and Betty (Neill) help Sarge with his studies, romantic misunderstandings happen as the their boyfriends (Stewart, Darro) when Betty thinks Dodie is jilting Freddie for the Sarge.

Trivia:
• The fifth film in the “Teen Ager” Monogram series.
• The first film of the Teen Ager series to be directed and produced by Will Jason. The first four were directed by Arthur Dreifuss and produced by Sam Katzman
• The first of the Teen Ager series where the students are in college instead of high school.
• First credited role of actor Frank Cady.

Highlights:
• Outstanding musical performances
• Jam sessions performed by Candy Candido, Les Paul, Abe Lyman, Jess Stacy, Wingy Manone, Joe Venuti, Jerry Wald

Notable Songs:
• “Two are the Same as One” performed by Freddie Stewart
• “I’ll Close My Eyes” performed by Freddie Stewart
• “Penthouse Serenade” performed by Freddie Stewart with Russ Morgan and His Orchestra
• “San Juan College”
• “Somebody Else is Taking My Place” performed by Russ Morgan and His Orchestra
• “Sweet Eloise” performed by Russ Morgan and His Orchestra
• “Open the Door Richard” performed by Dusty Fletcher with the Jack McVea and His Orchestra
• “Blues in B Flat” performed by Candy Candido, Les Paul, Abe Lyman, Jess Stacy, Wingy Manone, Joe Venuti, Jerry Wald
• “Old Black Joe” performed by Candy Candido, Les Paul, Abe Lyman, Jess Stacy, Wingy Manone, Joe Venuti, Jerry Wald

My review:
The Teen Agers are now in college.

In the fifth of the Monogram film series, the teens (played by actors who are past their teen years) have now graduated and are in college. While this plot is still thin and silly, I feel like “Sarge Goes to College” (1947) has a bit more substance and heart than the other films of the series. The reason? The role played by Alan Hale, Jr.

In the film, Alan Hale Jr. plays a Marine, Sarge, who is due for an operation. But military doctors don’t think he’s ready for the surgery and thinks he needs a rest away from the military base and atmosphere. Their idea is for him to go to college, where he meets the Teen Ager gang: Freddie (Stewart), Dodie (Preisser), Roy (Darro), Lee (Mills) and Betty (Neill). The crew welcomes Sarge, inviting him to participate in their school musical show that they are planning and also helping tutor him. But unfounded jealousies arise when Dodie is tutoring Sarge, and Freddie thinks she likes him more.

The plot is told against great musical performances, largely performed by Russ Morgan and his Orchestra, Jack McVea and his Orchestra, and a few jam sessions performed by Candy Candido, Les Paul, Abe Lyman, Jess Stacy, Wingy Manone, Joe Venuti and Jerry Wald. Freddie Stewart has a pleasant crooner voice, but is perhaps the least of the musical performances. I loved the “Open the Door Richard” song by Jack McVea and his Orchestra.

I like that the plot of this film is less about the hijinks of the Teen Ager case and more about Sarge (though I wanted the movie to include more of Frankie Darro). Arthur Walsh makes an appearance, who appears in “Two Girls and a Sailor” as a goofy dancer, and he appears here as himself doing his signature loose movements. I was happy to see Walsh, but thought it was strange he appeared as himself.

The only plot point that I thought was really silly is that Sarge had to take an entrance exam to get into college, which I understand, but since it was a temporary thing for his health, why go to that trouble?

Overall, I enjoyed this and felt like it had more heart than the rest of the series. And you’ll love seeing young Alan Hale, Jr.

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