''Twenty Million Sweethearts'' is a 1934 American

Pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact def ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Ray Enright and starring

Pat O'Brien Pat O'Brien may refer to: Politicians * Pat O'Brien (Canadian politician) (born 1948), member of the Canadian House of Commons * Pat O'Brien (Irish politician) (c. 1847–1917), Irish Nationalist MP in the United Kingdom Parliament Others * Pat O' ...

Dick Powell Richard Ewing Powell (November 14, 1904 – January 2, 1963) was an American actor, musician, producer, director, and studio head. Though he came to stardom as a musical comedy performer, he showed versatility, and successfully transformed into ...

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starring role in ''Kitty Foyle'' ...

, and The Mills Brothers. The film was remade in 1949 as '' My Dream Is Yours''.

Plot

Agent Russell Edward 'Rush' Blake (

) is able to promote the singing

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors i ...

waiter Buddy Clayton (

) as a major radio star whilst Buddy's wife Peggy Cornell (

) loses out. In the end, Peggy does not lose Buddy to his "twenty million sweethearts" – his female fans.

Cast

as Russell Edward 'Rush' Blake *

as Buddy Clayton *

as Peggy Cornell * Ted Fio Rito as Himself *

Allen Jenkins Allen Curtis Jenkins (born Alfred McGonegal; April 9, 1900 – July 20, 1974) was an American character actor and singer who worked on stage, film, and television. Life and career Jenkins was born on Staten Island, New York, on April 9, 1900. ...

as 'Uncle' Pete * Grant Mitchell as Chester A. Sharpe *

Joseph Cawthorn Joseph Bridger Cawthorn (March 29, 1868 – January 21, 1949) was an American stage and film comic actor. Biography Born on March 29, 1868, in New York City to a minstrel-show family, Cawthorn started out in show business as a child, debut ...

as Mr. Herbert 'Herbie' Brokman * Joan Wheeler as Marge, the Receptionist *

Henry O'Neill Henry O'Neill (August 10, 1891 – May 18, 1961) was an American film actor known for playing gray-haired fathers, lawyers, and similarly dignified roles during the 1930s and 1940s. Early years He was born in Orange, New Jersey. Caree ...

as Lemuel Tappan * Johnny Arthur as Norma Hanson's Secretary * The Mills Brothers as Themselves * The Radio Rogues as Themselves *

George Chandler George Chandler (June 30, 1898 – June 10, 1985) was an American actor who starred in over 140 feature films, usually in smaller supporting roles, and he is perhaps best known for playing the character of Uncle Petrie Martin on the televi ...

as Johnny Klinger, radio columnist (uncredited)

Music

The film features the well-known song "I'll String Along with You" by

Harry Warren Harry Warren (born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ...

and

Al Dubin Alexander Dubin (June 10, 1891 – February 11, 1945) was an American lyricist. He is best known for his collaborations with the composer Harry Warren. Life Al Dubin came from a Russian Jewish family that emigrated to the United States from Swi ...

Reception

The film was considered a box office disappointment for Warner Bros. According to studio records, it earned $821,000 domestically and $392,000 foreign.

References

External links

* * * * 1934 films 1934 musical comedy films American musical comedy films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Ray Enright First National Pictures films Warner Bros. films 1930s American films {{musical-comedy-film-stub