Dixiana (1930)

In antebellum New Orleans, two men vie for the affections of a beautiful young girl during Mardi Gras.

Director:

Luther Reed

Writers:

Luther Reed (adapted by), Anne Caldwell (story),

Stars:

Bebe Daniels, Everett Marshall, Bert Wheeler

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bebe Daniels	...	Dixiana Caldwell
Everett Marshall	...	Carl Van Horn
Bert Wheeler	...	Peewee
Robert Woolsey	...	Ginger Dandy
Joseph Cawthorn	...	Cornelius Van Horn - Carl's Father
Jobyna Howland	...	Mrs. Birdie Van Horn
Dorothy Lee	...	Nanny - Pewee's Girl
Ralf Harolde	...	Royal Montague
Bill Robinson	...	Specialty Dancer

Storyline

In antebellum New Orleans, two men vie for the affections of a beautiful young girl during Mardi Gras.

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Plot Keywords:

new orleans louisiana | cheat | duel | performer | mardi gras | 

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Taglines:

Woman's love...Man's hate...Blazing romance in a city aflame with carnival pleasures!

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 August 1930 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

RKO Radio Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone System)

Color:

Black and White Color (2-strip Technicolor) (last two reels)

Aspect Ratio:

1.20 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Apparently the original copyright was not renewed, and the film fell into public domain; as a result, many VHS and DVD dealers, who eschew copyrighted material, added it to their inventories, but, in most cases, with the last two reels, which were in 2-strip Technicolor, missing.

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Connections

Referenced in 100 Years of Comedy (1997)

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Soundtracks

"My One Ambition Is You"
(uncredited)
Music by Harry Tierney
Lyrics by Anne Caldwell
Sung and Danced by Dorothy Lee and Bert Wheeler

User Reviews

This early Hollywood idea of romance in the Old South, insensible of slavery but with plenty of singing and dancing, is best seen for its context in movie history.

A real artifact of the earliest talkies and musicals, which includes the first two-strip Technicolor (the last half of the movie). The romance between a New Orleans cabaret singer (Bebe Daniels) and the scion of a plantation (Everett Marshall) is your basic boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl-due-to-misunderstanding-her-selfless-action, boy-gets-girl-back story......all this interspersed with singing, dancing, vaudeville routines (Wheeler & Woolsey), circus acts, chorus girls, contortionists, evil machinations of an oily villain, a near duel, and superb tap-dancing (Bill Robinson)!

The dialog and acting are painfully weak and the storyline lurches roughly from scene to scene - often with little sense or continuity. The 75-year-old film is sharply dated by several instances of slaves in the background singin' and workin' happily for their beloved master and being called "boy" instead of by name. The impending Civil War is totally ignored.

Still, I recommend "Dixiana" as valuable viewing for its historical Technicolor sequence as well as its illustration of the then-prevailing movie fiction of happy slaves working for benign masters in the sweet and gentle South.