Surprise!

19351935
ApprovedApproved
21m

The Duncan Sisters (Rosie and Vivian) and their college dorm mates sing a song to their alma mater while packing up to leave college at the end of school. The sisters make a special point of... Read allThe Duncan Sisters (Rosie and Vivian) and their college dorm mates sing a song to their alma mater while packing up to leave college at the end of school. The sisters make a special point of packing up a couple of costumes--a Gypsy dress and a Toreador outfit--from one of their s... Read allThe Duncan Sisters (Rosie and Vivian) and their college dorm mates sing a song to their alma mater while packing up to leave college at the end of school. The sisters make a special point of packing up a couple of costumes--a Gypsy dress and a Toreador outfit--from one of their stage productions. The sisters then sing an ode to their old southern plantation home, whic... Read all

6.6/10

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The Duncan Sisters (Rosie and Vivian) and their college dorm mates sing a song to their alma mater while packing up to leave college at the end of school. The sisters make a special point of packing up a couple of costumes--a Gypsy dress and a Toreador outfit--from one of their stage productions. The sisters then sing an ode to their old southern plantation home, which blends into their arrival at the mansion. They discover that a surprise costume party is being held in honor of their return, with most people dressed up in 1800s attire. The sisters decide to surprise the others by dressing up in their own costumes, and affecting the characters of a bullfighter and a Gypsy, each with her own song. A number of songs follow, including a rubber-legged, athletic dance by Jay Seiler and a production number imagining what it would be like if the Volga River ran through the South. The sisters end the short by doing one of their Eva (Vivian) and Topsy (Rosie) vaudeville routines.

broadway brevity

Genres
Certificate
- Approved
Parents guide
- Add content advisory

Trivia
Vitaphone production reels #1851-1852.

Soundtracks
Goodbye, Alma Mater
(uncredited)
Written by Cliff Hess
Sung at the beginning of the picture

Top review

3/10

A So-So Racially Insensitive Short

Based on other comments, this Vitaphone short features the Duncan Sisters, who, apparently were fairly well known in vaudeville, not well known in film.

You are definitely required to ignore a few things - like women in their late 30's to early 40's are attending college - but live in the deep South without a trace of a Southern accent. Rosie looks closer to her age than the age of a college coed, Vivian looks younger than her years.

This old plantation that they are supposed to be from has to be reached by horse and carriage. The Duncans arrive home to a surprise costume party. The sisters want to surprise the party goers by changing into costumes that they conveniently brought home from school. Some of the humor involves an exploding cigar, so don't expect to see any writing credits by Robert Benchley or Dorothy Parker.

There are people in blackface, so be prepared to be offended. One song about the Volga River flowing through Dixie has the word "darkies" There is also someone dressed as Simon Legree, holding a bullwhip to add to the offensiveness.

For the most part, this is pretty forgettable - except for the racist stereotypes, those should be remembered to see what was "acceptable", how far we've come from that, and how far we still need to go.

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