The Singing Fool
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| The Singing Fool (1928) | |
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| Directed by | Lloyd Bacon |
| Written by | C. Graham Baker Joseph Jackson |
| Starring | Al Jolson Betty Bronson Josephine Dunn Davey Lee |
| Music by | Jules Buffano Shelton Brooks |
| Cinematography | Byron Haskin |
| Editing by | Ralph Dawson, Harold McCord |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | August 17, 1928 |
| Running time | 105 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Singing Fool in a musical drama Part-Talkie motion picture which was released in 1928 by Warner Brothers. The film starred Al Jolson and was a follow-up to his previous film, The Jazz Singer.
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[edit] Production
Like The Jazz Singer, The Singing Fool was a melodrama with musical interludes, and as such was one of the film industry's first musical films. Produced during the transition period between silent film and talkies, this movie (like its predecessor) was released in both sound and silent versions. And the film was once again a major hit and is credited with helping to cement the popularity of both sound and the musical genre.
[edit] Plot
After years of hopeful stuggle, Al Stone (Jolson) is on his way. "I'm Sittin' on Top of the World", he sings to an appreciative speakeasy crowd. But, as Al discovers, getting there is one thing. Staying there is another. Singing waitor Stone gets his huge break on a magical night when his song wows a big-time producer and a gold-digging showgirl he fancies. Broadway success and marriage follow, but sure enough, hard times are on the way. Al's fickle wife abandons him, taking the beloved son he calls Sonny Boy with her. Heartbroken, Al becomes a devastated loner until friends from the speakeasy that launched his career rescue him from a life on the streets. Soon, Al is back in lights. But another crisis awaits: Sonny Boy is in the hospital and dying....
The Singing Fool Al Jolson's first film after his history making The Jazz Singer (1927 film), solidified the dynamic performer's position atop the movie world. Not until Gone with the Wind (film) would any Sound Era film be more financially successful than this audience-pleasing blend of sentiment and show biz.
[edit] Songs
- "There's a Rainbow 'round My Shoulder"
- "Golden Gate"
- "I'm Sittin' on Top of the World"
- "It All Depends on You"
- "Keep Smiling at Trouble"
- "Sonny Boy"
- "The Spaniard That Blighted My Life"
[edit] Trivia
- For the majority of movie audiences, "The Singing Fool" became their first experience with a talking film because so few movie theaters had been equipped with a sound system in 1927.
- Like his previous film, The Jazz Singer, "The Singing Fool" was a part-talking feature, which featured a synchronized musical score with sound effects along with synchronized musical and talking sequences. Al Jolson's first all-talking feature, Say It With Songs would appear in 1929.
- The movie was a smash hit, with a worldwide gross of $5.9 million. It would remain the most successful film in Warner Bros. history until the release of Sergeant York in 1941.
- "Sonny Boy" became the first song from a movie to sell over a million copies. It eventually sold over 3 million copies of sheet music, piano rolls and phonograph records.
- Al Jolson's rendition of "The Spaniard Who Blighted My Life" is missing from extant prints of the film. This is due to a lawsuit initiated by the song's author, Billy Merson. Merson claimed that he, as a performer, owed his income to his own renditions of the song, and that Jolson's version would diminish his ability to earn a living. The song was removed from all prints of "The Singing Fool" shown in the United Kingdom. Unfortunately, the only surviving copies of the film are also from the U.K., hence are missing the song. Only the soundtrack survives on extant Vitaphone discs.
