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I wasn't expecting a 4-pager response, but I know there are people on this board who are into musicals, into 20's jazz, into Technicolor, etc., etc., and I thought this would get a rise out of SOMEBODY. I haven't seen this restoration yet, but I saw the film years ago on The Z Channel, and it's a remarkable piece of work, at times positively eye-popping. It was crying out for a restoration then, and the fact that it's finally gotten that TLC is major good news for film buffs.
Oh well, I'll pack up my marbles and go home.
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Posted: |
May 15, 2016 - 1:56 AM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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Unless it comes to the AFI, I probably won't be seeing it on the big screen. After spending all of that money, I presume that Universal will put it out on video.
Universal produced several versions of the film for different countries, each with its own master and mistress of ceremonies speaking the appropriate language. The foreign-language versions may have featured only the musical numbers and none of the sketches. The Spanish version, El rey del jazz, which was supervised by Paul Kohner and featured "maestros de ceremonias," Lupita Tovar and Martín Garralaga, under the direction of Kurt Neumann, was probably exhibited in the U.S. although exact release information has not been located.
Other versions that were probably also supervised by Kohner but appear to have had no U.S. exhibition include: the German, Der Jazzkönig, introduced by Arnold Korff and Paula Wedekind, under Neumann's direction;
the French, La féerie du Jazz, introduced by André Cheron and Georgette Rhodes;
the Portuguese O rei do Jazz, presented by Olimpio Guillerme and Lia Torá; and
the Italian, Il re del Jazz, presented by Allesandro Giglio and Nella Nelli.
The Japanese and Czech versions, the titles of which are undetermined, were introduced by Tetsu Komai and Iris Yamaoka, and Antonin Vaverka, respectively. Modern sources suggest that a Hungarian version may have been introduced by Bela Lugosi.
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Well, they'd damn well better put it out on video, is all I've got to say. Thanks for your customary supplemental information, Bob. I remember reading about Lugosi/Hungary, but wasn't aware that it was (I gather from your word, "suggested") unverified. I wonder about those sketches possibly being un-used, because in the original version the host didn't just introduce the numbers, he also had some interaction with Whiteman. It'll be interesting if they dig up some of that foreign footage and clarify the situation. And if they can actually find Lugosi footage, it seems to me that would be a marketing plus for them.
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I haven't seen it for years now, but I definitely remember at least one sketch -- very pre-code, by the way -- featuring Slim Sommerville as a young fellow asking his girlfriend's father for her hand in marriage. And I remember another comedy interlude which is basically a singing vaudeville routine, and I imagine that wouldn't go over in non-English-speaking countries.
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Posted: |
May 15, 2016 - 7:15 PM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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Here’s the most detailed list of the musical numbers and sketches that I’ve found:
At the beginning of the film, Charles Irwin introduces items from “Paul Whiteman’s Scrap Book,” and in an animated cartoon sequence set “In Darkest Africa,” Whiteman is crowned "King of Jazz" by animals in the African jungle. Whiteman then introduces members of his band and the chorus girls.
In the "My Bridal Veil" number, featuring Jeanette Loff and Stanley Smith, a young woman conjures up visions of bridal costumes through the ages.
"Ladies of the Press," written by William Griffith, presents Laura La Plante, Jeanie Lang, Merna Kennedy, Grace Hayes and Kathryn Crawford in a short "blackout" sketch.
The Rhythm Boys (Bing Crosby, Harry Barris and Al Rinker) perform "So the Bluebirds and the Blackbirds Got Together."
"It Happened in Monterey" features John Boles, Jeanette Loff, The Sisters G, George Chiles and the Russell Markert Girls, and includes a passage of "La Paloma," sung in Spanish by Nancy Torres and Loff.
"In Conference," another very brief comedy sketch, presents Laura La Plante, Glenn Tryon and Merna Kennedy.
Jack Wright, dressed as “The Property Man” back stage performs a comedy number about wanting to own a fish store.
Jeanette Loff, Stanley Smith, The Brox Sisters and The Rhythm Boys appear in the production number "A Bench in the Park."
A sketch, "Back of the Western Front," features Yola D’Avril, Walter Brennan, Paul Whiteman and others.
Wilbur Hall, one of the “Whiteman Boys,” performs "Pop Goes the Weasel" on a violin and finishes by playing "Stars and Stripes Forever" on a bicycle pump.
In an opulent production number, Roy Bargy plays George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" on the piano, accompanied by The Sisters G and Jacques Cartier.
A comedy sketch, "Oh! Forever More" with William Kent and Walter Brennan.
The production number, "My Ragamuffin Romeo," presents Jeanie Lang, George Chiles and dancers Don Rose and Marion Stattler.
In the sketch, “A Dash of Spice,” a couple, Glenn Tryon and Kathryn Crawford, discover that they are not legally married.
"Happy Feet," a production number, features The Rhythm Boys, The Sisters G, and Al Norman.
A segment titled “When Legs Were Limbs” featuring Frank Leslie performing the comedy song "Has Anyone Seen Our Nelly?," with the aid of magic lantern slides.
John Boles performs "The Song of the Dawn."
The finale, "The Melting Pot of Music," features most of the cast and shows that in America, music from various countries, including England, Italy, Scotland, Ireland, Mexico, Russia and France, is fused into one great new rhythm, Jazz.
That was supposedly the lineup at the film's premiere. Although shot at the time of the original production, a number called "I Like to Do Things for You," performed by Jeanie Lang, Grace Hayes, William Kent and dancers Nell O'Day and The Tommy Atkins Sextette, was not included in the premiere version of the film in either the U.S. or in the United Kingdom. It was subsequently added for the film's general release as a "stand-alone" reel designated Reel 2A. The number was intended to appear after "The Bridal Veil" number in the U.S. but likely was seen after the "Happy Feet" number in the U.K. At the time this number was added, some minor picture trims may have been made, and some additional sketch material may have been added. Perhaps the Slim Sommerville sketch was among this added material.
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Thanks again! Jack Wight is the vaudeville routine I was mentioning. "Ragamuffin Rodeo" was in the version of KOJ I saw on Z Channel. Seeing your line-up, I remember that first black-out sketch (in a newspaper office), but most of the others don't ring a bell. When I see the restoration, I'll know if I've ever seen the others or not. It was always clear that the print shown on the Z Channel was not the complete version initially released by the studio.
Incidentally, "Song of the Dawn," sung by John (FRANKENSTEIN) Boles, was originally set to be Bing Crosby's first big solo in movies, but Bing put the kibosh on that one night when he was arrested after a DUI car crash. The cops agreed to let him out of jail every day so he could go to Universal and shoot his scenes in the movie, but every night he'd have to go back into the hoosegow. His other punishment was losing that song to Boles.
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Posted: |
May 20, 2016 - 2:10 AM
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By: |
Bob DiMucci
(Member)
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Here are Leonard Maltin's comments on KING OF JAZZ:
http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmaltin/jazzed-about-the-king-of-jazz-20160510
And true fans will want to support the KING OF JAZZ book, which is only being made available as a premium for donating to a Kickstarter campaign:
"The 256-page book will be illustrated with over 200 color and black & white images, many of which will showcase the never-before-published Academy Award winning designs of Herman Rosse. Intricate behind-the-scenes stills will give insight into the scale of the film’s ambitions, while other full-color reproductions of original music arrangements, storyboards, posters, magazine ads, programs and frame enlargements will appear throughout.
"Additionally, a comprehensive appendix will present a day-by-day production chronology, synopses of deleted scenes, analysis of the film's nine foreign-language versions, a breakdown of the film's costs and box office returns, and complete listings of all the film’s performers and music cues."
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/587220788/king-of-jazz-paul-whitemans-technicolor-revue
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THANKS, Bob -- I just Kickstarted it!
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Hey, Preston - I'm glad you persevered with this thread, cause I didn't see it until just now (I'm not in the non-film discussion board very often - you could have posted this in the main area as it is just as relevant to film music as many other tangential topics).
This is completely new to me, and haven't had time to go through the thread, but I will. Thanks you all for keeping the flame burning.
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Thank you, Sean, I appreciate and agree with you about the film-musical legitimacy of the topic, but I had to pick one or the other, and opted for this Board because it's frequently been the forum of self-expression for those of us who care about golden age musical films and their performers. I'm particularly gratified that my persistence has paid off -- may it be thus with my many other challenges in life -- especially as I changed the thread's title, which seems to finally have attracted a few respondents.
Bob, thanks for another classic piece of ad art, which I hope will appear in that big book they're preparing for publication in September. Is it just me, or does the top right hand corner portrait of John Boles resemble somewhat the billboard profile of Gene Kelly's "Don Lockwood" in the finale of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN? It would seem the MGM artists did a splendid job of recreating the period look of those posters.
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KING OF JAZZ will have a single showing at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, MD tomorrow, Saturday, December 3rd at 1:20 PM.
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I forgot all about this thread. Here in Tinseltown last Fall, the Academy had a screening, followed soon after by a screening at the Cinecon Festival (in the old Egyptian Theater).
As a Kickstarter, I received my copy of the book, and it's gorgeous. So is the restored film, of course.
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I plan on seeing the film tomorrow. I agree with you about the book. It was worth the investment.
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There was a large crowd at the AFI for the KING OF JAZZ showing today. James Layton and David Pierce were on hand to introduce the film with a slide show on its production. It's a shame that the complete negative for the film couldn't be located, and that some portions of the restoration had to come from prints, or needed to be papered over with stills. But those parts from the negative (the vast majority of the film) looked like they had been shot yesterday. There's some great dancing, particularly from the Russell Markert Girls (the soon-to-be Rockettes). All in all, a very enjoyable film.
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