Lullaby of Broadway--Hollywood fluff on DVD

I've never really considered the musicals of Warner Bros. MGM seems such a dominate force in the movie musical machine, it is easy to forget that other studios had musical stars and created vehicles for them. Well, Lullaby of Broadway is one of the vehicles created for Doris Day, and it is Ms. Day's charm that keeps the vehicle from completely running off the road.

As most films of the day had, Lullaby has a hodge-podge score including songs from a number of composers' pens. Many are by Cole Porter, but also represented are Harry Warren and Al Dubin, and James Hanly's "Zing Went the Strings of my Heart".

The leading man here is Gene Nelson. I had never heard of him before seeing this film. He is a likable enough performer, with a slightly "slick" side to him. He has a crooner's voice that matches well with Ms. Day. Several numbers in the film prove that he is a very athletic tap dancer. There is one clever dance number for Day and Nelson that involves clear glass swinging doors.

All the of the songs are presented in some kind of show setting, either on board the ship that is bringing Melinda Howard (Day) from England to America, at a party scene, or in preparation of a Broadway show. That gives the score its mostly upbeat tempo, although there are a couple of comic numbers by other characters.

One of the extras to this DVD is a collection of the movie trailers to Doris Day's Warner Bros. musicals. The thing that struck me, is that she had a different leading man for each of the seven musical films represented. Its so easy to think of Rock Hudson as Ms. Day's leading man as they were in so many films together later in her career, but apparently she went through just about the full stock of leading musical men before that.

Lullaby of Broadway
Music and lyrics by several people
Film released in 1951 by Warner Bros.
Cast: Doris Day, Gene Nelson, S.Z. Sakall, Billy De Wolfe, Anne Triola, Gladys George

Paint your Wagon film on DVD

Points given to Lee Marvin for at least trying, which is more than some seem to do in this 1969 film version of Lerner and Loewe's 1951 Paint Your Wagon.

Alan Jay Lerner is the producer of the film, and it must be due to his efforts that the show was put on film 18 years after its stage debut. I've never seen the stage version, so I don't know how they compare.

This show and story and score have not passed the test of time. "They Call the Wind Maria" is the only song I previously knew from the score. "I talk to the Trees" might be a pretty tune, but it's lost in delivery. And Elizabeth's song "Behind the Door" and Ben's "I was Born under a Wanderin' Star" might be pretty, too, if they were written in a real vocal range, rather than in the key of basement husky. There's some fun choruses for men--lively and raucous--but nothing that really moves the story along. On the whole there are better "frontier" musicals that I look forward to hearing and seeing as my Year progresses.

Paint Your Wagon
Music by Frederick Loewe
Lyrics and book by Alan Jay Lerner
1969 Film version
Cast: Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, Jean Seberg, Harve Presnell, and Ray Walston with the worst red hair and accent of his career.