American Film Musicals - The Show Musical
by bderoes-12985 | created - 06 Sep 2022 | updated - 06 Sep 2022 | PublicFrom the 1987 book by Rick Altman, ISBN 0-253-20514-X
Related lists:
American Musical Feature Films
American Film Musicals - The Fairy Tale Musical
American Film Musicals - The Show Musical
American Film Musicals - The Folk Musical
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1. The Jazz Singer (1927)
Passed | 88 min | Drama, Music, Musical
The son of a Jewish Cantor must defy the traditions of his religious father in order to pursue his dream of becoming a jazz singer.
Director: Alan Crosland | Stars: Al Jolson, May McAvoy, Warner Oland, Eugenie Besserer
Votes: 11,080 | Gross: $7.63M
2. The Singing Fool (1928)
Passed | 105 min | Drama, Musical
A singing waiter and composer (Al Jolson) loves two women (Betty Bronson, Josephine Dunn), conquers Broadway and holds his dying son, singing "Sonny Boy."
Director: Lloyd Bacon | Stars: Al Jolson, Betty Bronson, Josephine Dunn, Arthur Housman
Votes: 281 | Gross: $10.90M
3. Applause (1929)
Passed | 80 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A burlesque star seeks to keep her convent-raised daughter away from her low-down life and abusive lover/stage manager.
Director: Rouben Mamoulian | Stars: Helen Morgan, Joan Peers, Fuller Mellish Jr., Jack Cameron
Votes: 1,503
4. Broadway (1929)
Passed | 104 min | Crime, Music, Romance
A naive young dancer in a Broadway show innocently gets involved in backstage bootlegging and murder.
Director: Pál Fejös | Stars: Glenn Tryon, Evelyn Brent, Merna Kennedy, Thomas E. Jackson
Votes: 461
5. Broadway Babies (1929)
Passed | 86 min | Drama, Musical
A Chorus girl who is in love with her stage manager is led to believe that he is in love with another young woman, so, she agrees to marry a bootlegger instead.
Director: Mervyn LeRoy | Stars: Alice White, Marion Byron, Sally Eilers, Charles Delaney
Votes: 227
6. The Broadway Melody (1929)
Passed | 100 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A pair of sisters from the vaudeville circuit try to make it big time on Broadway, but matters of the heart complicate the attempt.
Director: Harry Beaumont | Stars: Bessie Love, Anita Page, Charles King, Eddie Kane
Votes: 8,021 | Gross: $6.12M
7. The Great Gabbo (1929)
Passed | 92 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
An insanely, egocentric ventriloquist, even though he is possessed by his wooden dummy, is in love with a dancer who is in love with another. The dummy gives advice to the ventriloquist.
Directors: James Cruze, Erich von Stroheim | Stars: Erich von Stroheim, Donald Douglas, Betty Compson, Marjorie Kane
Votes: 1,002
8. On with the Show! (1929)
Passed | 104 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A musical advertised as the first 100% natural color, all-singing production. The plot concerns a wide-eyed former hatcheck girl who takes the place of a rebellious star.
Director: Alan Crosland | Stars: Arthur Lake, Betty Compson, Joe E. Brown, Sally O'Neil
Votes: 376
9. The Big Broadcast (1932)
Passed | 88 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A radio-singer, Bing Hornsby, is none-too-concerned about his job, and an affair with Mona leads to his dismissal. When it appears Hornsby is getting and paying a lot of attention to his ... See full summary »
Director: Frank Tuttle | Stars: Stuart Erwin, Bing Crosby, Leila Hyams, George Burns
Votes: 286
10. Speak Easily (1932)
Passed | 82 min | Comedy
A timid professor inherits a large sum of money and decides to fund a terrible musical.
Director: Edward Sedgwick | Stars: Buster Keaton, Jimmy Durante, Ruth Selwyn, Thelma Todd
Votes: 1,163
not Music or Musical on IMDb
11. Dancing Lady (1933)
Passed | 92 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
An attractive dancer is rescued from jail by a rich man who helps her to have her first big opportunity at a musical play on Broadway.
Director: Robert Z. Leonard | Stars: Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Franchot Tone, May Robson
Votes: 2,665
12. Footlight Parade (1933)
Passed | 104 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
Chester Kent struggles against time, romance, and a rival's spy to produce spectacular live "prologues" for movie houses.
Director: Lloyd Bacon | Stars: James Cagney, Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell
Votes: 6,096 | Gross: $3.49M
13. 42nd Street (1933)
Passed | 89 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
When the leading lady of a Broadway musical breaks her ankle, she is replaced by a young unknown actress, who becomes the star of the show.
Director: Lloyd Bacon | Stars: Warner Baxter, Bebe Daniels, George Brent, Ruby Keeler
Votes: 13,042 | Gross: $2.30M
14. Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
Passed | 97 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
A wealthy composer rescues unemployed Broadway performers with a new play, but insists on remaining anonymous.
Director: Mervyn LeRoy | Stars: Warren William, Joan Blondell, Aline MacMahon, Ruby Keeler
Votes: 9,148 | Gross: $4.80M
15. Dames (1934)
Passed | 91 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
A multimillionaire decides to boycott "filthy" forms of entertainment such as Broadway shows.
Directors: Ray Enright, Busby Berkeley | Stars: Joan Blondell, Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, Zasu Pitts
Votes: 2,430
16. Twenty Million Sweethearts (1934)
Passed | 89 min | Comedy, Musical, Mystery
Unscrupulous agent Rush makes singing waiter Clayton a big radio star while Peggy, who has lost her own radio show, helps Clayton.
Director: Ray Enright | Stars: Dick Powell, Pat O'Brien, Ginger Rogers, The Mills Brothers
Votes: 452
17. Go Into Your Dance (1935)
Approved | 89 min | Crime, Drama, Musical
Al Howard may be a star on Broadway, but he is no longer welcomed by any producer. It seems that he just trots off to Mexico any time he wants causing shows to close and producers to lose ... See full summary »
Directors: Archie Mayo, Michael Curtiz, Robert Florey | Stars: Al Jolson, Ruby Keeler, Glenda Farrell, Barton MacLane
Votes: 468
18. Anything Goes (1936)
Passed | 92 min | Comedy, Musical, Mystery
A young man falls in love with a beautiful blonde. When he sees her being forced onto a luxury liner, he decides to follow and rescue her. However, he discovers that she is an English ... See full summary »
Director: Lewis Milestone | Stars: Bing Crosby, Ethel Merman, Charles Ruggles, Ida Lupino
Votes: 521
19. Born to Dance (1936)
Passed | 106 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
On leave, a sailor falls in love with a young lady aspiring to become a Broadway dancer, but their relationship is jeopardized by an established Broadway star, who is also enamored by him.
Director: Roy Del Ruth | Stars: Eleanor Powell, James Stewart, Virginia Bruce, Una Merkel
Votes: 1,935
20. The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
Passed | 176 min | Drama, Musical
The ups and downs of Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., famed producer of extravagant stage revues, are portrayed.
Director: Robert Z. Leonard | Stars: William Powell, Myrna Loy, Luise Rainer, Frank Morgan
Votes: 8,996
21. Broadway Melody of 1938 (1937)
Passed | 110 min | Musical, Romance
Steve Raleigh wants to produce a show on Broadway. He finds a backer, Herman Whipple and a leading lady, Sally Lee, however his wife Caroline Whipple forces Steve to use a known star, not a... See full summary »
Director: Roy Del Ruth | Stars: Robert Taylor, Eleanor Powell, George Murphy, Binnie Barnes
Votes: 1,357
22. Gold Diggers of 1937 (1936)
Passed | 101 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
When two investors inform an opportunistic dancer that they can't fund an elderly stage producer's production, she suggests they get an insurance policy on the producer's life.
Director: Lloyd Bacon | Stars: Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, Glenda Farrell, Victor Moore
Votes: 1,209
23. One Hundred Men and a Girl (1937)
Passed | 84 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
The daughter of a struggling musician forms a symphony orchestra made up of his unemployed friends and through persistence, charm and a few misunderstandings, is able to get Leopold ... See full summary »
Director: Henry Koster | Stars: Deanna Durbin, Adolphe Menjou, Alice Brady, Leopold Stokowski
Votes: 1,239 | Gross: $2.27M
24. Varsity Show (1937)
Approved | 120 min | Musical, Romance
A former student who is now a big Broadway show producer with three flops to his reputation, is invited back to direct the College's annual student stage show.
Director: William Keighley | Stars: Dick Powell, Fred Waring and His Pennsylvanians, Ted Healy, Rosemary Lane
Votes: 501
25. Little Miss Broadway (1938)
Passed | 72 min | Drama, Family, Musical
An orphan is provisionally adopted by the manager of a hotel populated by show-business people. The hotel's owner doesn't like the entertainers and wants the girl returned to the orphanage.
Director: Irving Cummings | Stars: Shirley Temple, George Murphy, Jimmy Durante, Phyllis Brooks
Votes: 952
26. Sweethearts (1938)
Passed | 114 min | Comedy, Musical, Mystery
The team behind a successful Broadway production tries to stop the married stars from transitioning to Hollywood.
Directors: W.S. Van Dyke, Robert Z. Leonard | Stars: Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger
Votes: 705
27. Babes in Arms (1939)
Unrated | 94 min | Comedy, Musical
A group of vaudevillians struggling to compete with talkies hits the road hoping for a comeback. Frustrated to be left behind, all of their kids put on a show themselves to raise money for the families and to prove they've got talent, too.
Director: Busby Berkeley | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Charles Winninger, Guy Kibbee
Votes: 2,849
28. Broadway Serenade (1939)
Passed | 114 min | Drama
Mary Hale, a singer, and Jimmy Seymour, a pianist/composer, are a showbiz couple working in The Big Apple in small nightclubs hoping to hit it big. One night, Broadway producer Larry Bryant... See full summary »
Director: Robert Z. Leonard | Stars: Jeanette MacDonald, Lew Ayres, Ian Hunter, Frank Morgan
Votes: 287
29. The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939)
Approved | 93 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
The story of the dancing team who taught the world to two-step.
Director: H.C. Potter | Stars: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edna May Oliver, Walter Brennan
Votes: 2,791 | Gross: $1.12M
30. Broadway Melody of 1940 (1940)
Passed | 102 min | Musical
Johnny Brett and King Shaw are an unsuccessful dance team in New York. A producer discovers Brett as the new partner for Clare Bennett but Brett, who thinks he is one of the people they lent money to, gives him the name of his partner.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell, George Murphy, Frank Morgan
Votes: 2,789
31. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)
Approved | 90 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
When a troupe of danseuses becomes unemployed, one of them takes up burlesque dancing while another dreams of performing ballet.
Directors: Dorothy Arzner, Roy Del Ruth | Stars: Maureen O'Hara, Louis Hayward, Lucille Ball, Virginia Field
Votes: 3,081
32. Strike Up the Band (1940)
Passed | 120 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A high-school boy wants to become a professional musician, and his gal pal wants to become his best girl. They work together staging big-band shows with fellow classmates in the hopes of hitting it big.
Director: Busby Berkeley | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Paul Whiteman, June Preisser
Votes: 1,940
33. Tin Pan Alley (1940)
Approved | 94 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
Songwriters Calhoun and Harrigan get Katie and Lily Blane to introduce a new one. Lily goes to England, and Katy joins her after the boys give a new song to Nora Bayes. All are reunited when the boys, now in the army, show up in England.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Alice Faye, Betty Grable, Jack Oakie, John Payne
Votes: 564
34. Blues in the Night (1941)
Passed | 88 min | Crime, Drama, Music
"Jigger' Pine forms a band that includes singer Ginger 'Character' Powell, wife of the trumpeter Leo Powell, and Nickie Haroyen and Peppi. All of them dedicate themselves to work as a unit ... See full summary »
Director: Anatole Litvak | Stars: Priscilla Lane, Betty Field, Richard Whorf, Lloyd Nolan
Votes: 1,307
35. Lady Be Good (1941)
Passed | 112 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
A composer and his songwriter wife clash as they succeed in working together, writing hit Broadway shows, but fail in their marriage to the point of getting divorced twice.
Directors: Norman Z. McLeod, Busby Berkeley | Stars: Eleanor Powell, Ann Sothern, Robert Young, Lionel Barrymore
Votes: 1,175
36. You'll Never Get Rich (1941)
Passed | 88 min | Comedy, Romance
In order to cover up his philandering ways, a married Broadway producer sets one of his dancers up on a date with a chorus girl for whom he had bought a gift, but the two dancers fall in love for real.
Director: Sidney Lanfield | Stars: Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth, Robert Benchley, John Hubbard
Votes: 2,870
37. Ziegfeld Girl (1941)
Passed | 132 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
In the 1920s, three women become performers in the renowned Broadway show the Ziegfeld Follies, where they find fame, love, and tragedy.
Directors: Busby Berkeley, Robert Z. Leonard | Stars: James Stewart, Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr, Lana Turner
Votes: 3,456
38. Babes on Broadway (1941)
Approved | 118 min | Comedy, Family, Musical
Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney star in a musical directed by Busby Berkeley as two talented teenagers dreaming of success as Babes on Broadway.
Director: Busby Berkeley | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Fay Bainter, Virginia Weidler
Votes: 1,653 | Gross: $3.85M
39. For Me and My Gal (1942)
Not Rated | 104 min | Musical, Romance, War
Two vaudeville performers fall in love, but find their relationship tested by the arrival of WWI.
Director: Busby Berkeley | Stars: Judy Garland, George Murphy, Gene Kelly, Mártha Eggerth
Votes: 3,845 | Gross: $4.37M
40. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
Passed | 126 min | Biography, Drama, Family
The life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer, and singer George M. Cohan.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: James Cagney, Joan Leslie, Walter Huston, Richard Whorf
Votes: 16,867 | Gross: $11.80M
41. The Gang's All Here (1943)
Passed | 103 min | Musical, Romance
A soldier falls for a chorus girl and then experiences trouble when he is posted to the Pacific.
Director: Busby Berkeley | Stars: Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda, Phil Baker, Benny Goodman
Votes: 2,059
42. Stage Door Canteen (1943)
Passed | 132 min | Comedy, Romance, War
"Dakota" Smith (William Terry), a young soldier on a pass in New York City, visits the famed Stage Door Canteen, where famous stars of the theatre and movies appear and host a recreational ... See full summary »
Director: Frank Borzage | Stars: Cheryl Walker, William Terry, Judith Anderson, Kenny Baker
Votes: 1,828
43. Stormy Weather (1943)
Passed | 78 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
The relationship between an aspiring dancer and a popular songstress provides a retrospective of the great African-American entertainers of the early 1900s.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Lena Horne, Bill Robinson, Cab Calloway and His Cotton Club Orchestra, Katherine Dunham and Her Troupe
Votes: 2,889
44. Thousands Cheer (1943)
Passed | 125 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
Acrobat Eddie Marsh is in the army now. His first act is to become friendly with Kathryn Jones, the colonel's pretty daughter. Their romance hits a few snags, including disapproval from her... See full summary »
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Kathryn Grayson, Gene Kelly, Mary Astor, John Boles
Votes: 1,195
45. Broadway Rhythm (1944)
Passed | 115 min | Music, Romance
A reluctantly-retired vaudevillian clashes with his producer son, who thinks his father's entertainment is passe'--audiences need something more sophisticated. Meanwhile, the producer's father and sister secretly produce their own show.
Director: Roy Del Ruth | Stars: George Murphy, Ginny Simms, Charles Winninger, Gloria DeHaven
Votes: 341
46. Cover Girl (1944)
Passed | 107 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
Rusty Parker wins a contest and becomes a celebrated cover girl; this endangers her romance with dancing mentor Danny.
Director: Charles Vidor | Stars: Rita Hayworth, Gene Kelly, Lee Bowman, Phil Silvers
Votes: 5,944
47. Lady in the Dark (1944)
Approved | 100 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
Liza Elliott, "Allure" magazines editor-in-chief, suffers from headaches and continuous daydreams and undergoes psychoanalysis to determine why.
Director: Mitchell Leisen | Stars: Ginger Rogers, Ray Milland, Warner Baxter, Jon Hall
Votes: 565
48. Music for Millions (1944)
Passed | 117 min | Drama, Family, War
Six year old "Mike" joins her sister Barbara Ainsworth who plays in a classical orchestra during WW II.
Director: Henry Koster | Stars: Margaret O'Brien, José Iturbi, June Allyson, Jimmy Durante
Votes: 647
49. Sensations of 1945 (1944)
Approved | 86 min | Music, Romance
Father and son press agents fail to see things eye to eye, in the final screen appearance of comedian W.C. Fields.
Director: Andrew L. Stone | Stars: Eleanor Powell, Dennis O'Keefe, C. Aubrey Smith, Eugene Pallette
Votes: 185
50. Anchors Aweigh (1945)
Passed | 140 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Musical
A pair of sailors on leave try to help a movie extra become a singing star.
Directors: George Sidney, Joseph Barbera, William Hanna | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Kathryn Grayson, Gene Kelly, José Iturbi
Votes: 9,437
51. Rhapsody in Blue (1945)
Passed | 135 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
George Gershwin is a driven composer whose need to succeed destroys his relationship with singer Julie Adams and socialite Christine Gilbert.
Director: Irving Rapper | Stars: Robert Alda, Joan Leslie, Alexis Smith, Charles Coburn
Votes: 1,799
52. The Jolson Story (1946)
Approved | 128 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This movie shows the idealized career of the singer Al Jolson, a little Jewish boy who goes against the will of his father in order to be in showbiz. He becomes a star, falls in love with a... See full summary »
Director: Alfred E. Green | Stars: Larry Parks, Evelyn Keyes, William Demarest, Bill Goodwin
Votes: 1,768
53. Night and Day (1946)
Approved | 128 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
A fictionalized biopic of composer Cole Porter from his days at Yale in the 1910s through the height of his success to the 1940s.
Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: Cary Grant, Alexis Smith, Monty Woolley, Ginny Simms
Votes: 3,206
54. Swing Parade of 1946 (1946)
Approved | 74 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A struggling young singer falls for a nightclub owner whose father, a millionaire, is trying to shut it down. Featuring The Three Stooges as waiters.
Director: Phil Karlson | Stars: Gale Storm, Phil Regan, Moe Howard, Larry Fine
Votes: 439
55. Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)
Passed | 132 min | Biography, Musical
Biography of songwriter and Broadway pioneer, Jerome Kern (Robert Walker). Unable to find immediate success in the U.S., Kern sought recognition abroad. He journeyed to England where his dreams of success became real and where he met his future wife Eva Leale (Dorothy Patrick).
Directors: Richard Whorf, Vincente Minnelli, George Sidney | Stars: Robert Walker, Van Heflin, Lucille Bremer, June Allyson
Votes: 2,713 | Gross: $6.72M
56. The Time, the Place and the Girl (1946)
Approved | 105 min | Musical, Comedy, Romance
The stuffy manager of lovely opera singer Vicki Cassel and her uncle, a classical conductor, is determined to close down the noisy nightclub that's next door to the Cassels' home. The ... See full summary »
Director: David Butler | Stars: Dennis Morgan, Martha Vickers, Jack Carson, Janis Paige
Votes: 353
57. Two Sisters from Boston (1946)
Passed | 112 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A high society Boston girl goes from the Bowery to the opera with the help of her sister.
Director: Henry Koster | Stars: Kathryn Grayson, June Allyson, Lauritz Melchior, Jimmy Durante
Votes: 695
58. Mother Wore Tights (1947)
Approved | 107 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
In this chronicle of a vaudeville family, Myrtle McKinley (class of 1900) goes to San Francisco to attend business school, but ends up in a chorus line. Soon, star Frank Burt notices her ... See full summary »
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Betty Grable, Dan Dailey, Mona Freeman, Connie Marshall
Votes: 796
59. Easter Parade (1948)
G | 103 min | Musical, Romance
A nightclub performer hires a naive chorus girl to become his new dance partner to make his former partner jealous and to prove he can make any partner a star.
Director: Charles Walters | Stars: Judy Garland, Fred Astaire, Peter Lawford, Ann Miller
Votes: 11,094 | Gross: $9.03M
60. A Song Is Born (1948)
Approved | 113 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
With her gangster boyfriend under investigation by the police, a nightclub singer hides out in a musical research institution staffed by bachelor professors - one of whom begins to fall for her.
Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Danny Kaye, Virginia Mayo, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey
Votes: 2,800
61. Words and Music (1948)
Approved | 121 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
Musical biography chronicling the songwriting partnership of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Mickey Rooney, Tom Drake, June Allyson, Perry Como
Votes: 1,451
62. The Barkleys of Broadway (1949)
Passed | 109 min | Comedy, Musical
A married musical team splits up so the wife can become a serious actress.
Director: Charles Walters | Stars: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Oscar Levant, Billie Burke
Votes: 3,502
63. Jolson Sings Again (1949)
96 min | Biography, Music
In this sequel to The Jolson Story, we pick up the singer's career just as he has returned to the stage after a premature retirement. But his wife has left him and the appeal of the ... See full summary »
Director: Henry Levin | Stars: Larry Parks, Barbara Hale, William Demarest, Ludwig Donath
Votes: 724
64. Look for the Silver Lining (1949)
Approved | 106 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Marilyn Miller grows up in a showbiz family and hits Broadway before she is sixteen. She falls in love with her dancer-mentor Jack, but he is married. When she marries her stage partner Frank he soon is called to arms in World War I.
Director: David Butler | Stars: June Haver, Ray Bolger, Gordon MacRae, Charles Ruggles
Votes: 432
65. My Dream Is Yours (1949)
Passed | 101 min | Comedy, Music, Musical
An agent must search for a new personality to replace a popular singer who refuses to renew his radio contract. He finds one in the form of a single mother, but complications soon occur.
Directors: Michael Curtiz, Friz Freleng | Stars: Jack Carson, Doris Day, Lee Bowman, Adolphe Menjou
Votes: 1,677
66. Red, Hot and Blue (1949)
Approved | 84 min | Comedy, Crime, Musical
An aspiring actress finds herself in a jam when a gangster, who is backing the show she is in, is found dead in her apartment.
Director: John Farrow | Stars: Betty Hutton, Victor Mature, William Demarest, June Havoc
Votes: 302
67. Slightly French (1949)
Passed | 81 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A cinema director who is in an emotional and professional crisis thinks that he has discovered a French star when he meets an ordinary dancer.
Director: Douglas Sirk | Stars: Dorothy Lamour, Don Ameche, Janis Carter, Willard Parker
Votes: 371
68. Let's Dance (1950)
Approved | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
After the war, Donald Elwood meets his former USO partner, Kitty McNeil, who is now a rich widow with a little child. She tries to evade her paternal grandmother, who wants her to live in a... See full summary »
Director: Norman Z. McLeod | Stars: Betty Hutton, Fred Astaire, Roland Young, Ruth Warrick
Votes: 591
69. Call Me Mister (1951)
Approved | 96 min | Musical, Romance
A G.I. in occupied Japan tries to re-woo his old love, who's putting on a show for the troops.
Director: Lloyd Bacon | Stars: Betty Grable, Dan Dailey, Danny Thomas, Dale Robertson
Votes: 279 | Gross: $2.70M
70. The Great Caruso (1951)
Approved | 109 min | Biography, Drama, Music
This film traces the life of tenor Enrico Caruso (1873-1921). He loves Musetta, in his home town of Naples, and then Dorothy, the daughter of one of the Metropolitan Opera's patrons. Caruso... See full summary »
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Mario Lanza, Ann Blyth, Dorothy Kirsten, Jarmila Novotna
Votes: 1,467
71. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
G | 103 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his delusionally jealous screen partner are trying to make the difficult transition to talking pictures in 1920s Hollywood.
Directors: Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly | Stars: Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Jean Hagen
Votes: 260,797 | Gross: $8.82M
72. With a Song in My Heart (1952)
Approved | 117 min | Biography, Drama, Music
A talented singer's musical career begins to soar.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Susan Hayward, Rory Calhoun, David Wayne, Thelma Ritter
Votes: 1,509
73. The Band Wagon (1953)
Passed | 112 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
A pretentiously artistic director is hired for a new Broadway musical and changes it beyond recognition.
Director: Vincente Minnelli | Stars: Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Oscar Levant, Nanette Fabray
Votes: 12,585
74. Give a Girl a Break (1953)
Approved | 82 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
Broadway choreographer Ted Sturgis auditions dancers for a new musical after the lead walks out, with talent ranging from a ballerina to an untrained novice and his former partner, a retired star.
Director: Stanley Donen | Stars: Marge Champion, Gower Champion, Debbie Reynolds, Helen Wood
Votes: 858
75. Kiss Me Kate (1953)
Passed | 109 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
An ex-husband and wife team star in a musical version of 'The Taming of the Shrew'; off-stage, the production is troublesome with ex-lovers' quarrels and two gangsters looking for some money owed to them.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, Ann Miller, Keenan Wynn
Votes: 6,816 | Gross: $4.38M
76. Lili (1953)
Passed | 81 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
An orphaned young woman becomes part of a puppet act and forms a relationship with the anti-social puppeteer.
Director: Charles Walters | Stars: Leslie Caron, Mel Ferrer, Jean-Pierre Aumont, Zsa Zsa Gabor
Votes: 3,942
77. The Stooge (1951)
Passed | 100 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Egotistical vaudevillian Bill Miller basks in the limelight with his successful musical-comedy act, but his success is due to his unheralded second banana.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Polly Bergen, Marion Marshall
Votes: 1,654
78. Three Sailors and a Girl (1953)
Approved | 95 min | Comedy, Musical
Three navy men run into a shady producer who convinces them to invest into his new show. When they meet the show's female star attraction, they're sold. Have they become the latest showbiz players or just three more suckers?
Director: Roy Del Ruth | Stars: Jane Powell, Gordon MacRae, Gene Nelson, Sam Levene
Votes: 464
79. The Country Girl (1954)
Unrated | 104 min | Drama, Music
A director hires an alcoholic has-been and strikes up a stormy relationship with the actor's wife, who he believes is the cause of all the man's problems.
Director: George Seaton | Stars: Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, William Holden, Anthony Ross
Votes: 6,677
80. Deep in My Heart (1954)
Approved | 132 min | Biography, Comedy, Musical
Biographic movie about the American composer Sigmund Romberg.
Director: Stanley Donen | Stars: José Ferrer, Merle Oberon, Helen Traubel, Doe Avedon
Votes: 959
81. The Glenn Miller Story (1954)
Approved | 115 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Biography of bandleader Glenn Miller from his beginnings to his death over the English Channel in December 1944.
Director: Anthony Mann | Stars: James Stewart, June Allyson, Harry Morgan, Charles Drake
Votes: 9,713
82. There's No Business Like Show Business (1954)
Approved | 117 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
Molly and Terry Donahue, plus their three children, are The Five Donahues. Son Tim meets hat-check girl Vicky and the family act begins to fall apart.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Ethel Merman, Marilyn Monroe, Donald O'Connor, Dan Dailey
Votes: 6,703
83. A Star Is Born (1954)
Passed | 154 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A film star helps a young singer and actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career on a downward spiral.
Director: George Cukor | Stars: Judy Garland, James Mason, Jack Carson, Charles Bickford
Votes: 19,687 | Gross: $14.93M
84. The Benny Goodman Story (1956)
Approved | 116 min | Biography, Drama, Music
The young Benny Goodman is taught clarinet by a Chicago music professor. He is advised by bandleader Kid Ory to play whichever kind of music he likes best, but to make a living, Benny begins by joining the Ben Pollack traveling band.
Director: Valentine Davies | Stars: Steve Allen, Donna Reed, Berta Gersten, Barry Truex
Votes: 1,298
85. The Seven Little Foys (1955)
Approved | 93 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
After the young wife of vaudevillian Eddie Foy passes away, he incorporates their seven children into the act and takes it on the road.
Director: Melville Shavelson | Stars: Bob Hope, Milly Vitale, George Tobias, Angela Clarke
Votes: 1,629
86. Anything Goes (1956)
TV-PG | 106 min | Musical, Romance
Bill Benson and Ted Adams are to appear in a Broadway show together and, while in Paris, each discovers the perfect leading lady for the plum female role. Each promises the prize role to ... See full summary »
Director: Robert Lewis | Stars: Bing Crosby, Donald O'Connor, Zizi Jeanmaire, Mitzi Gaynor
Votes: 1,029
87. Rock Around the Clock (1956)
Not Rated | 77 min | Comedy, Music, Romance
A frustrated big-band promoter bumps into rock-and-rollers Bill Haley and the Comets.
Director: Fred F. Sears | Stars: Bill Haley and the Comets, Bill Haley, The Platters, Ernie Freeman Combo
Votes: 1,302 | Gross: $4.00M
88. Funny Face (1957)
Not Rated | 103 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
An impromptu fashion shoot at a book store brings about a new fashion model discovery in the shop clerk.
Director: Stanley Donen | Stars: Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire, Kay Thompson, Michel Auclair
Votes: 33,034
89. Jailhouse Rock (1957)
Not Rated | 96 min | Drama, Music, Musical
After serving time for manslaughter, young Vince Everett becomes a teenage rock star.
Director: Richard Thorpe | Stars: Elvis Presley, Judy Tyler, Mickey Shaughnessy, Vaughn Taylor
Votes: 9,833 | Gross: $4.00M
90. The Joker Is Wild (1957)
Approved | 126 min | Biography, Drama, Musical
Frank Sinatra plays Joe E. Lewis, a famous comedian of the 1930s-50s. When the movie opens, Lewis is a young, talented singer who performs in speakeasies. When he bolts one job for another,... See full summary »
Director: Charles Vidor | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Mitzi Gaynor, Jeanne Crain, Eddie Albert
Votes: 1,471
91. Les Girls (1957)
Approved | 114 min | Comedy, Musical
The former members of a dance troupe are suing because of recently published memoirs. Each one insists on own point of view.
Director: George Cukor | Stars: Gene Kelly, Mitzi Gaynor, Kay Kendall, Taina Elg
Votes: 3,059
92. Pal Joey (1957)
Approved | 111 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
Joey Evans is a charming, handsome, funny, talented 1st class, A-Number 1 heel. When Joey meets the former chorus girl and now rich widow Vera Simpson, the pair of lecherous souls seem made for each other.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Rita Hayworth, Frank Sinatra, Kim Novak, Barbara Nichols
Votes: 5,861
93. Can-Can (1960)
Approved | 131 min | Comedy, Musical
In 1896 Paris, a female nightclub proprietor fights against the forces of public morality for the right to feature her performers doing the risqué dance, the Can-Can.
Director: Walter Lang | Stars: Frank Sinatra, Shirley MacLaine, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan
Votes: 2,491
94. Gypsy (1962)
Approved | 143 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Based on the Broadway hit about the life and times of burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee and her aggressive stage mother, Mama Rose.
Director: Mervyn LeRoy | Stars: Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden, Paul Wallace
Votes: 6,998 | Gross: $13.01M
95. Bye Bye Birdie (1963)
Approved | 112 min | Comedy, Musical
A rock singer travels to a small Ohio town to make his "farewell" television performance and kiss his biggest fan before he is drafted.
Director: George Sidney | Stars: Dick Van Dyke, Ann-Margret, Janet Leigh, Maureen Stapleton
Votes: 9,334 | Gross: $13.13M
96. Funny Girl (1968)
G | 151 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
The life of Fanny Brice, famed comedienne and entertainer of the early 1900s. We see her rise to fame as a Ziegfeld girl, subsequent career, and her personal life, particularly her relationship with Nick Arnstein.
Director: William Wyler | Stars: Barbra Streisand, Omar Sharif, Kay Medford, Anne Francis
Votes: 25,176 | Gross: $58.50M
97. Live a Little, Love a Little (1968)
M | 90 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
Photographer Greg Nolan moonlights in two full-time jobs to pay the rent, but has trouble finding time to do them both without his bosses finding out.
Director: Norman Taurog | Stars: Elvis Presley, Michele Carey, Don Porter, Rudy Vallee
Votes: 2,047
listed as Give a Little Love a Little in the book
98. The Producers (1967)
PG | 88 min | Comedy, Music
A stage-play producer devises a plan to make money by producing a sure-fire flop.
Director: Mel Brooks | Stars: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Dick Shawn, Kenneth Mars
Votes: 59,889 | Gross: $0.11M
99. The Boy Friend (1971)
G | 137 min | Comedy, Musical, Romance
When the leading lady of a low-budget musical revue sprains her ankle, the assistant stage manager is forced to understudy and perform in her place, becoming a star and finding love in the process.
Director: Ken Russell | Stars: Twiggy, Christopher Gable, Max Adrian, Bryan Pringle
Votes: 3,589
100. Cabaret (1972)
PG | 124 min | Drama, Music, Musical
A female girlie club entertainer in Weimar Republic era Berlin romances two men while the Nazi Party rises to power around them.
Director: Bob Fosse | Stars: Liza Minnelli, Michael York, Helmut Griem, Joel Grey
Votes: 59,424 | Gross: $42.77M
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