''College Rhythm'' is a 1934 American

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatre, theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, ...

film directed by

Norman Taurog Norman Rae Taurog (February 23, 1899 – April 7, 1981) was an American film director and screenwriter. From 1920 to 1968, Taurog directed 180 films. At the age of 32, he received the Academy Award for Best Director for ''Skippy (film), Skippy' ...

and starring Jack Oakie, Mary Brian, and Joe Penner. The film's budget was $537,000.

Plot

Cocky college football star Francis Finnegan has his eye on the attractive Gloria van Dayham, as does his rival, Larry Stacey. Francis takes a job in a department store owned by Stacey's father, where salesgirl June Cort is attracted to him. Finnegan proposes that Stacey's store sponsor a football team, which causes rival shop owner Whimple to do the same. The team's head cheerleader Mimi falls for team mascot Joe, and everyone pairs off with the perfect partner after the big game.

Cast

* Jack Oakie as Finnegan * Joe Penner as Joe * Lanny Ross as Larry * Helen Mack as June Cort * Mary Brian as Gloria *

Lyda Roberti Lyda Roberti (née Pecjak; May 20, 1906 – March 13, 1938) was an American singer and stage and film actress. (According to the opening credits of "The Big Broadcast of 1936," Lyda is pronounced LEE-duh.) Early years Born in Warsaw, then p ...

as Mimi *

Franklin Pangborn Franklin Pangborn (January 23, 1889 – July 20, 1958) was an American comedic character actor famous for playing small but memorable roles with comic flair. He appeared in many Preston Sturges movies as well as the W. C. Fields films '' Inter ...

as Peabody *

Dean Jagger Dean Jagger (November 7, 1903 – February 5, 1991) was an American film, stage, and television actor who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Henry King's '' Twelve O'Clock High'' (1949). Early life Dean Jeffri ...

as Coach Robbins * George Barbier as J. P. Stacey *

Robert McWade Robert McWade (January 25, 1872 – January 19, 1938), was an American stage and film actor. Biography McWade was born in Buffalo, New York. He was the third actor named Robert McWade, after his father and grandfather. In 1902, McWade debut ...

as Whimple

Production

Several of the film's cast had appeared in the 1933 hit musical film '' College Humor''. Dorothy Dell had been cast in the leading female role but was killed in an automobile accident on June 8, 1934. Screenwriter Francis Martin spent four weeks with Joe Penner, a

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...

and radio star who had no previous experience acting in feature films, before the script had been written. Penner also gave three performances at the Paramount Theatre in New York so that the screenwriters could witness how he performed before a live audience. Lanny Ross, who had recently signed a 70-week radio contract, continued to be heard on his ''Maxwell House'' ''Show Boat'' program, the nation's top-rated show, by live remote during the filming of ''College Rhythm''. Filming took place from mid-August until October 1934. It had originally been scheduled to begin in June 1934 but was delayed repeatedly, including a two-week period just before shooting began in which the film's producers scrambled to find pretty girls with acting talent to fill two roles, which were won by Helen Mack and Mary Brian. The film's score, with seven new songs, was composed by the songwriting team of

Mack Gordon Mack Gordon (born Morris Gittler; June 21, 1904 – February 28, 1959) was an American lyricist for the stage and film. He was nominated for the best original song Oscar nine times in 11 years, including five consecutive years between 1940 and 1 ...

and Harry Revel. The football scenes were shot at the Rose Bowl and featured the entire USC Trojans football team. The ''College Rhythm'' title was originally intended for the unrelated film '' She Loves Me Not'', but Paramount preserved the other film's original title because of the notoriety of its related novel and stage production.

Reception

In a contemporary review for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', critic Frank S. Nugent called ''College Rhythm'' "a mad and generally merry concoction, unbelievable, nonsensical and designed solely for eye and ear amusement" and wrote: " e plot hangs by less than a thread and the saving grace of the film is its ability to capitalize on the singing talents of Mr. Ross, the charm of Miss Roberti, the handsomeness of Misses Brian and Mack and Mr. Penner's clowning."

References

External links