The Benny Goodman Story (1956)

Bio of swing band leader 'Benny Goodman' from age 10 (1919) to his landmark Carnegie Hall band concert in 1938. Not exactly historically accurate, but great music. Also, guest appearances ... See full summary »

Director:

Valentine Davies

Writer:

Valentine Davies

Stars:

Steve Allen, Donna Reed, Berta Gersten

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve Allen	...	Benny Goodman
Donna Reed	...	Alice Hammond
Berta Gersten	...	Mama Goodman
Barry Truex	...	Benny Goodman (at 16)
Herbert Anderson	...	John Hammond Jr.
Robert F. Simon	...	Papa Dave Goodman
Hy Averback	...	Willard Alexander
Sammy Davis Sr.	...	Fletcher Henderson
Dick Winslow	...	Gil Rodin
Shepard Menken	...	Harry Goodman (as Shep Menken)
Jack Kruschen	...	Murph Podolsky
Wilton Graff	...	John Hammond Sr.
Fred Essler	...	Prof Schoepp
David Kasday	...	Benny Goodman (at 10)
John Erman	...	Harry Goodman (at 16) (as John M. Erman)

Storyline

Bio of swing band leader 'Benny Goodman' from age 10 (1919) to his landmark Carnegie Hall band concert in 1938. Not exactly historically accurate, but great music. Also, guest appearances by many great musicians of the time.

---

Plot Keywords:

swing | bandleader | big band | clarinet | character name in title

---

Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1956 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Die Benny Goodman Story

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Benny Goodman played all the clarinet music heard on the soundtrack himself, with the exception of the scene where the young Goodman first tried to play the clarinet - the squeaky notes were actually played by Steve Allen.

---

Goofs

Trumpeter Buck Clayton never appeared with Goodman's 1937 band; he was a mainstay of Count Basie's. Clayton did, however, perform as a guest artist with Basie and fellow band members Lester Young, Freddie Green and Walter Page at Goodman's legendary 1938 Carnegie Hall concert.

---

Crazy Credits

Benny Goodman's theme song is played over the appearance of the "Universal International" globe.

---

Soundtracks

"Original Dixieland One Step"
Written by Nick La Rocca
Performed by Steve Allen and Kid Ory
Allen's clarinet playing dubbed by Benny Goodman

User Reviews

A great film

This film is considered by many as being a pretty mediocre film, but I think this film is truly great. Maybe it's just a jazz-lover's point of view; Benny Goodman is my favourite artist, and is the man who inspired me to take up the clarinet. Steve Allen comes across as a likable Goodman, and manages to look the part. Donna Reed also does her job pretty well but the people in the film who will really catch your attention are the jazz musicians that are in the film, playing themselves. These musicians include: the very enthusiastic drummer Gene Krupa, the trombone player Edward "Kid" Ory, the vibraphone player Lionel Hampton and the famous band leader and drummer of the '20s Ben Pollack. Whether you like the film or not, you have got to like the music which includes such Goodman classics as "Don't be that way", "Sing, Sing, Sing", "Let's Dance" and "One o'clock jump". All in all, a highly enjoyable film which, as far as I am concerned, is better than the much acclaimed film "The Glenn Miller Story" starring James Stewart in the part of Miller. "The Benny Goodman Story" is a must-see for all jazz fanatics and all clarinet players. The film also features a very impressive rendition of Mozart's clarinet concerto (Goodman also gave classical music a try, as you can see, to great effect). I'd say that it is decidedly worth seeing. Enjoy!