The Broadway Melody (1929)

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

Writers:

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

Stars:

Bessie Love, Anita Page, Charles King

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 | wisecrack humor | whistling | sister act | sibling rivalry | 

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Taglines:

ALL TALKING ALL SINGING ALL DANCING

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Genres:

Drama | 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

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$379,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$2,808,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,558,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min (TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System) Silent

Color:

Black and White Color (2-Strip Technicolor) (one sequence)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This film was first telecast in Altoona PA Sunday 7 April 1957 on WFBG (Channel 10), in Portland OR 23 May 1957 on KGW (Channel 8), in Seattle 16 August 1957 on KING (Channel 5), in Cleveland 25 November 1957 on KYW (Channel 3), in Miami 8 February 1958 on WCKT (Channel 7), in Spokane 28 April 1958 on KHQ (Channel 6), in Salt Lake City 31 May 1958 on KTVT (Channel 4), in San Francisco 22 June 1958 on KGO (Channel 7), in Norfolk VA 30 June 1958 on WTAR (Channel 3) and in Phoenix 7 September 1958 on KPHO (Channel 5). Major market telecasts were otherwise few and far between at this time, because of its age, and the relative obscurity of its leading players, as a result of strong resistance by sponsors who looked upon it simply as an outdated curiosity from a bygone era. Today it's in the TCM library and enjoys an occasional airing on cable TV on Turner Classic Movies based primarily on its historical status, now looked upon with and reverence and fascination by new generations of vintage film enthusiasts.

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Goofs

The guitar player in the song "Broadway Melody" can not be heard playing until he tilts his guitar slightly (possibly towards the mic).

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Quotes

Hank Mahoney: Well, we aren't leavin' this town, 'til we get a flash of Babe Ruth and Grant's Tomb.

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Alternate Versions

Also released in a silent version.

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Connections

Featured in Sex, Censorship and the Silver Screen: The Temptations of Eve (1996)

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Soundtracks

The Broadway Melody
(1929) (uncredited)
Music by Nacio Herb Brown
Lyrics by Arthur Freed
Played during the opening credits and often in the score
Performed many times by various cast including Nacio Herb Brown (piano), Charles King,
Anita Page, Bessie Love and chorus girls

User Reviews

The Granddaddy Of Them All

A song & dance sister act strives for happiness and fame on the Great White Way.

Hailed as Hollywood's first true musical, THE Broadway MELODY shows its age, but ought to be judged by its own era, not ours. When it premiered in 1929, the movie industry was still releasing its last silent films. To see a hundred-minute movie full of music & talk, with a storyline that made sense, some good acting and genuinely hummable tunes - this was all tremendously exciting. That the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture of the year is hardly surprising. From this source the mighty American Movie Musical would spring.

Some of the acting is a bit awkward, illustrating the rough transition from silents to talkies - the Microphone was a Monster that would completely devour some actors - but most of the performances are adequate. Of special note is Miss Bessie Love. Pert & pretty, as well as a most engaging actress, she dominates the proceedings as the tough, realistic half of the sibling duo. Able to show joy or despair with equal conviction, she amply demonstrates her mastery of the new medium. Her Academy Award nomination was well earned.

As her younger sister, Anita Page is lovely to look at. Her ease with the microphone would increase with her next few acting assignments. Broadway singing star Charles King plays the composer/performer loved by both young ladies and he is quite agreeable in this role. Mr. King had the distinction of being America's first male musical movie star, aside from Jolson, but his film career would be very short, covering only six pictures from 1928 to 1930.

The team of Arthur Freed & Nacio Herb Brown supplied the tunes, including the classics 'The Broadway Melody,' 'You Were Meant For Me' & 'The Wedding of the Painted Doll,' which is unfortunately missing its original Technicolor hues. Mr. Brown can be spotted as a piano player in the film, while movie mavens should recognize James Gleason as a music publisher in the opening sequence and Jed Prouty as the girl's stuttering agent - both uncredited.