The Broadway Melody (1929)

Harriet and Queenie Mahoney, a vaudeville act, come to Broadway, where their friend Eddie Kerns needs them for his number in one of Francis Zanfield's shows. Eddie was in love with Harriet,... See full summary »

Director:

Harry Beaumont

Writers:

Edmund Goulding (story), Sarah Y. Mason (continuity),

Stars:

Charles King, Anita Page, Bessie Love

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Charles King	...	Eddie Kearns
Anita Page	...	Queenie Mahoney
Bessie Love	...	Hank Mahoney

Storyline

Harriet and Queenie Mahoney, a vaudeville act, come to Broadway, where their friend Eddie Kerns needs them for his number in one of Francis Zanfield's shows. Eddie was in love with Harriet, but when he meets Queenie, he falls in love to her, but she is courted by Jock Warriner, a member of the New Yorker high society. It takes a while till Queenie recognizes, that she is for Jock nothing more than a toy, and it also takes a while till Harriet recognizes, that Eddie is in love with Queenie.

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Plot Keywords:

singer | sister act | early sound film | whistling | theater | 

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Taglines:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's TALKING SINGING DANCING Dramatic Sensation

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Genres:

Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 June 1929 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Broadway Melody of 1929

Box Office

Budget:

$379,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$2,808,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min 100 min (TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System) Silent

Color:

Black and White Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first musical to win an Academy Award for Best Picture.

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Quotes

Hank Mahoney: [after a cat-fight with a chorus girl] Next time I'll give you a facial instead of a scalp treatment!
Chorus Girl: I'll fix you, ya little peanut!

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Connections

Spoofed in The Simpsons: How Munched Is That Birdie in the Window? (2010)

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Soundtracks

"The Wedding of the Painted Doll"
(1929) (uncredited)
Music by Nacio Herb Brown
Lyrics by Arthur Freed
Sung offscreen by James Burrows and danced by chorus girls

User Reviews

It was a different world

I have just watched the Broadway Melody for the second time. I liked the picture very much because it takes one back to a very interesting time in our history. I am fascinated with the period it represents. I liked the dialogue and the music and the dancing and so on. I think that the film is excellent for its time. Many modern viewers will look at the film and think it as poor because of the dated acting and technology. You have to remember it is 1929 not 2004. Central to its appeal for me is the fact the plot is both complicated and simple. The conflicts of affection between the characters is nicely resolved in the end. The simple fact of life is shown in the film. That is to say that all the fame and money in the world is not worth a thing if one is not happy with it.

Most films today depress me very much. I want to be entertained. I don't want to see a bunch of banality. Broadway Melody takes you back to a time when there was true entertainment. I really liked "The Wedding of the Painted Dolls". A lot of precision went into that number.