I recently got a hold of the multi-disk set "Warner Brothers Big Band, Jazz & Swing Short Subject Collection". It's made up of over 11 hours of Vitaphone musical shorts. Disk 1 is a bit different in style, as it consists mostly of the "Ramblin' Round Radio Row" shorts. These mostly star Jerry Wald. Wald apparently was famous for a newspaper column on radio programs and this was parlayed into him getting the chance to produce these shorts.
This is the fourth film from the series--and the fourth one to debut in 1932. Like the rest, the format is a lot like a talent show and the acts are folks that you mostly won't recognize today. In fact, aside from Frances Langford (who gained some measure of fame beyond the radio), there really is nothing to distinguish any of the acts today...nothing. As a result, it's like looking through a family album of a family you have never met...not the most pleasant experience.
Frances Langford
This is the fourth film from the series--and the fourth one to debut in 1932. Like the rest, the format is a lot like a talent show and the acts are folks that you mostly won't recognize today. In fact, aside from Frances Langford (who gained some measure of fame beyond the radio), there really is nothing to distinguish any of the acts today...nothing. As a result, it's like looking through a family album of a family you have never met...not the most pleasant experience.
Frances Langford