| Manhattan Parade | |
|---|---|
| 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 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Manhattan Parade is a 1931 musical comedy film photographed entirely in Technicolor.[1] 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 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.
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The film was the first Warner Bros. film to be filmed in the improved Technicolor process which removed grain and improved both the color and clarity of the film. This improved process had first been used on The Runaround (1931) and resulted in an attempt at a color revival by the studios late in 1931.[2] Variety praised the color work in this film, stating that "the coloring is easy on the eye and never harsh or confusing as the early color pictures were."[3]
Three songs were written for the film by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler:
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.