Manhattan Parade (film)
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| Manhattan Parade (1931) | |
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| Directed by | Lloyd Bacon |
| Written by | Houston Branch, Robert Lord based on the play by Samuel Shipman. |
| Starring | Winnie Lightner, Charles Butterworth, Joe Smith, Charles Dale |
| Music by | Harold Arlen, Harry Ruby |
| Cinematography | Devereaux Jennings (Technicolor) |
| Editing by | William Holmes |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | December 24, 1931 |
| Running time | 78 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Manhattan Parade is a 1931 musical comedy film photographed entirely in Technicolor. It was originally intended to be released, in the United States, early in 1931, but was shelved due to public apathy towards musicals. Despite waiting a number of months, the public proved obstinate and the Warner Bros. reluctantly released the film in December of 1931 after removing all the music. The film was released outside the United States (since there was no backlash against musicals outside the United States) as a full musical comedy in 1931.
[edit] Synopsis
Winnie Lightner plays Doris, the wife and business partner of Herbert (Charles Butterworth), owner of a theatrical costume store. When Herbert scampers off to parts unknown in the company of flashy blonde Charlotte (Greta Granstedt), Doris takes over the management of their store. She has a pretty rough time of it until European impresario Vassiloff (Luis Alberni) rents every costume in the store for a lavish stage spectacular. Alas, the show folds after one night, but Herbert saves the day by returning in the nick of time with a big moneymaking scheme. Child actor Dickie Moore has a cute bit in which he lulls Winnie Lightner to sleep with a bedtime story.
Comic relief is provided by the Jewish-dialect patter of comedians Smith & Dale.
[edit] Music
Three songs were written for the film by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler, "I Love a Parade", "Temporarily Blue", and "I'm Happy When You're Jealous."
[edit] Preservation
Only a black and white copy of the cut print released in 1931 in the United States seems to have survived. The complete film was released intact in countries outside the United States where a backlash against musicals never occurred. It is unknown whether a copy of this full version still exists.
