Tag Archives: biographical musicals

Musical Monday: Scott Joplin (1977)

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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:
Scott Joplin (1977) – Musical #800

Studio:
Produced by Motown Pictures, Distributed by Universal Pictures

Director:
Jeremy Kagan

Starring:
Billy Dee Williams, Clifton Davis, Art Carney, Margaret Avery, Eubie Blake, Godfrey Cambridge, Otis Day, Mabel King, Taj Mahal, Spo-De-Odee, Samuel Fuller, Seymour Cassel, David Healy, Lionel Richie (uncredited)

Plot:
Composer Scott Joplin (Williams) works his way up from being pianist in a brothel, known as “a Professor,” to becoming a successful composer — transforming the landscape of music with ragtime hits. While largely known as a genius, Joplin wants to be seen as a high-brow composer and works to compose his opera, “Treemonisha.” His life and career are hindered by heartache and tragedy, like an illness and death of a child.

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Musical Monday: Rhapsody in Blue (1945)

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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:
Rhapsody in Blue (1945) – Musical #211

Studio:
Warner Bros.

Director:
Irving Rapper

Starring:
Robert Alda, Joan Leslie, Alexis Smith, Charles Coburn, Julie Bishop, Albert Bassermann, Morris Carnovsky, Rosemary DeCamp, Herbert Rudley, Darryl Hickman, Mickey Roth, Andrew Tombes, Will Wright, Johnny Downs, Gower Champion (uncredited)
Themselves: Oscar Levant, Paul Whiteman, Hazel Scott, George White, Al Jolson, Elsa Maxwell, Anne Brown, Tom Patricola

Plot:
A biographical film on composer and musician George Gershwin (Alda). The film follows his rise to fame to his death in 1937.

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Musical Monday: Love Me or Leave Me (1955)

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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:
Love Me or Leave Me – Musical #39

Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Director: Charles Vidor

Starring:
Doris Day, James Cagney, Cameron Mitchell, Robert Keith, Tom Tully, Harry Bellaver, Richard Gaines, Claude Stroud, Audrey Young, Dorothy Abbott, Veda Ann Borg, Robert Dix (uncredited), Jay Adler,

Plot:
Biographical musical on Ruth Etting (Day). Etting has dreams of becoming a singer. Etting is discovered by gangster Marty Snyder (Cagney) after she is fired as a taxi dancer. Using his force, Snyder helps Etting get singing bookings. Etting’s talent carries other offers, but Snyder still continues to control Etting’s life and career from Broadway to Hollywood, including having her marry him. Etting is also in love with her piano player Johnny Alderman (Mitchell), but is trapped by Snyder.

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