![]() ![]() Boles was one film's earliest singers and he does the famous Ranger song with gusto in the best Nelson Eddy manner. She surprised the world with a really nice soprano voice doing those Harry Tierney-Joseph McCarthy songs. Rio Rita was the newly formed RKO Studios big budget film for 1929 and it starred John Boles and Bebe Daniels and Rio Rita was her talking picture debut. Since the setting was the west, to be exact the Texas-Mexican border, we essentially get the screen's first musical western. One of his best was the operetta Rio Rita which ran for 494 performances in 1927-1928. The guy who made the best musicals back in those days was Florenz Ziegfeld. But singing and dancing was something new and it's no accident that the first talking film, The Jazz Singer was a musical. The Student Prince was also done with Norma Shearer. Not that musical properties hadn't been done before, most famously Rudolf Friml's Rose Marie was done as a silent film with Joan Crawford in the lead. When movies began to talk a whole new vista of motion pictures opened up with the musical. Bean, Don Alvarado as Roberto, Georges Renavent as the general, Eva Rosita as Carmen, and Richard Alexander as Gonzales. Also in the cast are Helen Kaiser as Mrs. The pirate ship finale was filmed in 2-strip Technicolor and exists. The original 140-minute version is not known to exist, although a complete print once existed at New York's Museum of Modern Art. The existing 104-minute print is from the cut down 1932 re-release of the film. Lee (in her second film) is especially good, but I don't remember much dancing from her other films. Their duet on "Sweetheart, We Need Each Other" is a delight and when they break into a tap dance routine, they are just perfect. ![]() Dorothy Lee is also good in this film as the "boop-a-doop" voiced girl friend of Wheeler. But RIO RITA started a long and very funny teaming of the two in many films. They had never even met before being hired for the Broadway production. Contrary to general knowledge, they were NOT a vaudeville team. Along for the ride (and from the Broadway play) are Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey (their film debut) who are very funny here. She had been a star for a decade and emerged as the great singer. ![]() It must have been a big surprise to film fans to see Bebe Daniels in this film. Nonsense about a bunch of vigilantes seeking the notorious "Kinkajou." But the songs are terrific and both Boles and Daniels have great voices. Stale plot but it doesn't matter what with great leads by John Boles and Bebe Daniels. Lovely old musical based on a smash 1927 Broadway show produced by Flo Ziegfeld. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |