Rewatching *SINGIN IN THE RAIN* (1952) | MUSICALS IN MARCH 

one my favorite musical movies of all time, it's clever incisive and funny singin in the rain is a masterpiece of the classical Hollywood musical, SINGIN IN THE RAIN (1952) 100/100% Certified Approved ☑️ Don Lockwood: 🎵 I'm singing in the rain just singing in the rain What a glorious feeling im happy again I'm laughing at clouds so dark up above the sun's in my heart and I'm ready for love let the stormy clouds Chase everyone from the place come on with the rain I've a smile on my face I walk down the lane with a happy refrain im dancing and singing in the rain 🎵.

My favorite piece of trivia from "Singin in the Rain". In the scene where it shows Kathy dubbing Lina's lines, the mature voice you hear belongs to Jean Hagan (who played Lina). So, yes, reality was the opposite of the movie - Lina was dubbing Kathy.

Amazing. A YT reviewer is actually bucking the trend and not reviewing the Marvel films, Star Wars or the Princess Bride. Thumbs up for just being unique.

Number hearing that Bella Lugosi was one of the actors who had difficulty transitioning from silent film to talkies. He always played a romantic lead but when films went to talking he had a thick accent. He was able to play Dracula because Dracula had a thick accent but he had difficulty playing any romantic leads after film started talking.

Since you were referring to stuntmen and silent movies: an absolute MUST-WATCH is a Buster Keaton film. He was the inspiration for so many things in modern movies and stunt work. And an absolute legend!!!!

Jean Hagen was nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actress. Jean Hale is fantastic, and steals every scene she's in. She went on to be nominated three times for an Emmy for playing Danny Thomas' wife in "Make Room For Daddy".

I know I am 3 years late with this comment, but I thought I'd share an anecdote. My maternal grandparents were not "vaudevillians" as dancers or singers, but they were part of a musical combo that would tour with a silent movie and play the score live (Grandma was the pianist, and Grandpop was a violin player). During one particular tour, my grandmother gave birth to my mom in the lobby of the hotel they were staying at.

I’m 38 years old and I’ve been a fan of Gene Kelly’s since I was I was a little boy. I remember being in grade school during recess and it was raining 🌧 hard. I was stomping and jumping in the rain like Gene Kelly and I got in trouble for that. But I didn’t care, I wanted to be Gene Kelly and I did it 💯💯💯

Vaudeville started as a light hearted variety show somewhere in the 1870s and died out during the depression. It was a variety show with different acts, each lasting around 5 to 10 minutes. There was comedy, singing, dancing, juggling, acrobatics, ventriloquism, magic, funny skits, stand up comedy, even famous people just telling stories about their career, such as Babe Ruth, Mark Twain and Will Rogers. Several Vaudeville companies would take their entire show on the road and tour the country, performing anywhere there was a theatre. It was like a circus, only it was performed at a theatre instead of a tent. (Sometimes including animal acts such as dogs jumping through hoops, etc) since the acts were constantly changing from night to night, they couldn’t print up programs, so they would have an easel on the side of the stage with a stack of huge cardboard signs introducing the next act. In between acts, a pretty girl would go over and take the current card, and place it in the back of the pile. The card underneath was for the next act.

At 36:36 and 38:25 entered Hollywood's most beautiful, talented, graceful, and graceful dancer...Cyd Charisse. She was in the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo was she was 15! But, came home due to WWII and eventually got into MGM. Cyd was asked to come in to dance this Broadway Melody scene as Gene thought only she could do it. She just gave birth a few months earlier and also missed out on the leading part in An American in Paris (Leslie Caron) due to her pregnancy. Cyd was so breathtaking!

I've just rewatched "Fiddler On the Roof" (1971), which is a worthy companion to such films as "The Sound of Music", "Singin' in the Rain", and "West Side Story". I honestly don't recall how many times I've seen it, but it's been a few years and I had rather forgotten just what an impressive piece of cinema it is. The soundtrack is memorable of course (I hadn't realized it was adapted by John Williams), but the performances, both acting and singing, and the art direction, choreography and cinematograpy are all impeccable - a real feast for both eyes and ears. I've heard people talk about how great Zero Mostel was doing the lead role on Broadway but I really have a hard time seeing anyone but Topol in the role, it's so much his movie. The rest of the cast is uniformly good too, even the smaller side characters. Watching this reminded me that I used to have an LP album of the soundtrack, including some dialogue. Back in the olden times before home video that was about the only way to re-experience a movie unless one was lucky enough to catch a cut up pan and scan version on TV. We'd listen to a record over and over and remember what we'd seen and felt in the theater. Although it's a musical, this movie is right up there with other epic films of the time like "Lawrence" or "Zhivago". Besides the music and dance, there's comedy and romance mixed in with some serious drama. If you haven't ever seen this one, or haven't seen it lately, do yourself a favor and set aside a movie night. The runtime is just over 3 hours and the pace is quick enough to demand your full attention. At the time of this posting, it's free to watch on UToob.

“Singing in the rain” or “raindrops keep fallin’ on my head” : the go-to songs I sing when outside and it starts raining. 🤗

My favorite bit of trivia for this movie is that when Kathy does the dub for Lina Lamont the actress Debbie Reynolds didn't have a good enough singing voice so they dubbed someone for Kathy's voice, and that singer was Jean Hagen. None other than the woman who plays Lina Lamont.

When I first watched Singin' In the Rain, I was thrown off at first by the whole concept scene for the "modern part of the picture", but after rewatching a few times, I now think it is one of the film's best moments.

I had grown up watching Debbie Reynolds on the Disney Channel movie "Halloweentown", and I was surprised when I first saw this movie to learn that it was the same actress!

Another wonderful rewatch, Mia. As you mentioned, the fact that Gene Kelly performed the titular number while burning up with a fever speaks to his ultimate professionalism as the quintuple threat he was: lead actor/singer/dancer/choreographer/co-director. He was basically shouldering the whole production (not to take anything away from his magnificent team in front of and behind the camera - but, you know, someone’s got to guide the train to its destination). And I agree that that number would not have reached its legendary status if it hadn’t been performed as a solo. After all, I think the intimacy of the setting is what elevates it to such poetry... it’s just one solitary individual expressing himself openly and authentically, with Mother Nature as his only audience. Simple yet profound. And now that we know the backstory, there’s something about a man performing with a 103 degree fever, smiling defiantly in the face of stormy weather that’s, well... How can that not be inspiring? Heck, by the time he’s stomping around in the puddles, it’s almost-kinda punk rock! - no wonder an officer has to ultimately shut it down... it must be illegal to be having so much fun. Gene Kelly’s moves are graceful and iconic - but they wouldn’t mean half as much if they weren’t matched by his charisma ‘cause that’s a million dollar smile if ever there was one (and I believe that’s a big reason that clip gets shown as much as it does, especially the close-up). This film is spectacular on so many levels, but the reason it may endure forever is probably this: Of the nearly 500,000 films currently in existence, I can’t think of another film that’s as consistently joyful from beginning to end as this one. And that’s an amazing accomplishment. Each number keeps outdoing the last. “Make ‘em Laugh” is such a showstopper that most movies would have reached its peak by then. And yet this film manages to keep going and keep changing gears. And all of its high energy is beautifully balanced by its soft and tender moments as well. This is a time capsule film. It captures the spirit of a time and place as well as anything I can think of. And as usual, your reaction was done with style and class. Thanks for letting us all be a part of it. ~ respectfully.

For April I recommend "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946), winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director (William Wyler), Best Actor in a Leading Role (Frederic March), and Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Harold Russell, who also won a second award for "bringing hope and courage to veterans.") In my opinion, "The Best Years of Our Lives" is one of the finest movies ever made, and its message is just as relevant, just as poignant today as it was in 1946. Keep the tissues handy. Lots of them.

The “Gotta Dance” sequence with Cyd Charisse was part of a very typical formula of 50s musicals. With a few song and dance numbers tied directly into the story throughout the film followed by a BIG dream like sequence near the finale. You’ll find examples of that in films like, On The Town, American in Paris, Daddy Long Legs, etc.

My old boyfriend's sister was a Hollywood stunt person (mostly for swimming and diving), but I think she found a new career in pickle-tasting (true story). I read an interview with a stunt double once, and he said that he loved his job and would rather be a stunt double than an actor, because actors only get to pretend to have these experiences, but the stunt doubles get to actually live them.

I love that you love it so much. One of my Manny favorites. In the dubbing scenes, when they play back the Kathy Lena dub that is actually Jean Haven't real voice. How she managed Lenses shriek, I'll never know.

No celebrity can make my heart flutter like Gene Kelly, my mom would put on these movies when I was little and I just fell in love with him. That was a MAN

These guys were strong and in shape. Their movements are effortless. For them to seemingly float and glide takes a lot of core strength! Amazing!

So, according to Wiki, Vaudeville is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition or light poetry, interspersed with songs or ballets. It became popular in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s, but the idea of vaudeville's theatre changed radically from its French antecedent. The word vaudeville is derived from an old French term for a satirical song, vaudevire, which is a reference to the Vire valley of France, where the songs originated. Vaudeville developed from many sources, also including the concert saloon, minstrelsy, freak shows, dime museums, and literary American burlesque. Called "the heart of American show business", vaudeville was one of the most popular types of entertainment in North America for several decades. So, that's what Google and Wiki say. The closest "modern" version of a Vaudeville show I can think of is the old Ed Sullivan show from the 1960's. One minute, a love ballad, the next, preforming dogs, then after that, a plate spinner, then the Russian Ballet. The Vaudeville path to success went kind of like this... you would start out in small theaters, then, if your act was any good, get booked into a theater in a big town. If you really had something special, you could get to NY City and Broadway with your act. Florenz Ziegfield was the most famous producer of Vaudeville on Broadway. If he noticed you and put you in his show, you were a star. He started the careers of many huge stage and movie stars of the day including WC Fields, Eddie Cantor, and Bob Hope. His show always featured dozens of beautiful women. There's a NYC theater named after him now. However, something "Singing in the Rain" does not mention, because, as you observed, there is a dark story underneath the cheery plot, is there was a worse professional apocalypse for theater people which was happening at the same time as sound. The advent of film eventually killed Vaudeville. When movies were first shown, people saw them as an oddity, not much more. From about 1900 until about 1912, film acting was seen as very much beneath the dignity of a "real" stage actor. Then it became obvious that you could actually make more money and be an even bigger star than on Broadway. Big talent started to sign up with film companies. Many, many local theaters which had been for live performances, Vaudeville, stage plays, Opera, etc. were swiftly converted to movie theaters. It was obvious why. You can make so much more money with much, much less hassle. No need to keep track of actors or props. Just put up a screen and play the film. Vaudeville died a sad death in the 1920's and 1930's. The two films I can think of which have this as a plot point are "Footlight Parade", where they were still trying to integrate Vaudeville in some way with movie theaters, and "Gypsy" with Natalie Wood. "Gypsy" (great musical, btw) was made in the 1950's, based on the autobiography of Gypsy Rose Lee. Her mother had pushed the whole family into Vaudeville with big NY City dreams, only to see the profession melt away, and Gypsy herself had to ultimately become a stripper, because that was the only stage work left. As for silent films... "It" from 1927 with Clara Bow. "It" refers to sex appeal, btw. Clara Bow plays the saucy flapper girl who is shockingly modern (for then). Also "Broken Blossoms" 1919, with Lillian Gish - about a young girl's friendship with Chinese immigrant, who is her only friend in a harsh existence. Also, "The Thief of Bagdad" from 1924, with the amazing Douglas Fairbanks. I won't even get into Chaplin or Pickford, or the comedians like Keaton or Harold Lloyd, but eventually they are all worth a look. The one silent film to see eventually is "Intolerance" from 1916. Directed by D.W. Griffith, it intercuts four stories of good vs. evil in different periods of time. Many film techniques we take completely for granted now were invented for this film. It's a long one, almost three hours, but worth it. One last thing. You will probably screen some Kubrick films at some point, since he was one of the best directors of the 20th century. Fair warning, if you watch "A Clockwork Orange", it may well ruin the song "Singing in the Rain" for you as it did for Gene Kelly. I think "A Clockwork Orange" is actually kind of an important film, but only you can judge if it's worth it or not.

I haven't seen this mentioned elsewhere, so just wanted to add that one of the primary motivations for Singing in the Rain was Arthur Freed, famous MGM producer, asking for a project that would feature all of his songs. Kelly loved working with Freed and referred to the company of MGM performers that Freed typically worked with as a kind of repertoire company within the studio. After all, An American in Paris was constructed around the melodies of Gershwin, so that's a bit of where the idea was born. Broadway melody and Singing in the Rain were Freed songs used frequently in early Hollywood flicks. Looking over the Freed catalog, the script writers could not really see a plot emerging or a way to modernize them, so they developed a storyline linked to the time period of the songs. A very 1920s/30s feeling became a foundation for the project.

The jazz singer was in 1927. By 1931 studios had pretty much got how to record sound properly on set. In between this period it was a dark ages of how they would put mics in dinning set pieces, in clocks and vases for actors to lean into. This film is more a comedy for hollywood on how they converted to sound done by the people who were still working during that time

The song ''Good Morning'' was actually originally in the Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney film Babes in Arms. The song ''Make Em Laugh'' is also almost 99% plagiarized from the song ''Be A Clown'' from the Judy Garland and Gene Kelly film The Pirate. I guess MGM didn't mind stealing from their own movies? Great reaction to a great movie by the way!

I was able to see the whole rewatch, yay. Looking forward to The Apartment. I recommend To Kill a Mockingbird. It won Oscars for Gregory Peck, adapted screen play and set decoration.

As far as I’m aware, during the silent movie era the ‘auditioning’ for actors and actresses relied on a number of factors. (Of course, it has to be remembered that the medium of film was a brand new concept and so artistes were not as prevalent as they are today). Silent movie era pre-auditioning criteria: 1. A talent of some sort 2. Luck 3. Looks 4. Fitting a particular part 5. Casting couch 6. Cronyism 7. Probably other things too

“The role of the ditzy movie diva Lina Lamont was written with Judy Holliday in mind. Holliday was a close friend of Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and they even modeled the character on routines they had worked up with Holliday back when they were part of a satirical group called The Revuers in New York. Timing was everything, however, and the idea of casting Holliday was vetoed after she hit it big in Born Yesterday (1950). Everyone figured she'd be uninterested in the supporting part but, as it turned out, Jean Hagen, Holliday's understudy on Broadway for "Born Yesterday", got the part. Additionally, both Holliday and Hagen had worked together in Adam's Rib (1949) both in key supporting roles, Hagen playing a woman involved with Judy's husband. Hagen's speech in that film was similar in "pitch" to what she later exhibited as Lina Lamont .”

5:06 This scene with the suits on stage was re-created in Michael Jackson's/Paul McCartney's "Say Say Say" video.

FYI: Movies about vaudeville - Yankee Doodle Dandy. May 29, 1942. - There's No Business Like Show Business. December 16, 1954. -The Broadway Melody. February 8, 1929. Also, Debbie was so intimidated by Gene that she ended up crying under a piano. Fred Astaire found her and let her watch him practicing so that she would realize that dancing was amazingly hard and everyone had to work hard and hurt a lot. (When you’ve been around awhile, you pick up things.)

Enjoying a number of your reactions to Hollywood classic movies! And you mentioned during this reaction that you were wondering about the darker side of the transition from silent movies to talkies. Here's a related movie recommendation for you: Sunset Boulevard. And you may want to see that one after some other noir, and suggest starting with John Huston's directorial debut, The Maltese Falcon. Btw, Huston acted in a modern noir, taking on a very dark role in Chinatown... And if you want to see the darker side of the Broadway theatre scene through a classic movie - with several great lead roles for actresses, please consider screening All About Eve. Thank you for sharing your enthusiasm for great old movies with all of us!

Mia, since you are "in the biz" and no doubt you have had vocal training, it's probably obvious to others, but I must compliment you on having a simply beautiful singing voice. Thanks again for sharing even more of your talents!

Hagen's performance as Lina Lamont earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. To get a real treat, I highly recommend The Wind starring the great Lillian Gish.

I'm 63 years old my favorite Gene Kelly movie to watch is American in Paris. I have watch this movie as many times with my siblings growing up..

If you ever get the chance, see this on the big screen. The color is so so much more bright and defined. It’s stunning. The movement of the fringe also shows up so much more.

“This was Gene Kelly's trump card to get out of his contract with MGM. He later stated that he was angry that MGM had repeatedly prevented him from accepting lead roles in other films, such as Guys and Dolls (1955). Kelly's extremely hostile attitude throughout the filming of Singin' in the Rain (1952) resulted in MGM releasing him from his contract.

Donald O'Connor's eyes though, especially in the Moses supposes scene. Such an handsome man.

Perfect timing, yesterday was Debbie Reynolds birthday! My wife and I watched her Oscar nominated performance in The Unsinkable Molly Brown. Great movie.

From watching old movies... performers had to "Work up an act," audition or perform it on amateur night, hoping not to be booed or get the hook. work out another act if the one you have is old or a failure, or when partners move on. Vaudeville was put on in small theatres, performers had to find the next hall to perform in, pay for costumes, live out of heavy trunks, put up with jealous rivals, who can be vicious and keep it all together. Travelling at night on ricketty trains, finding food wherever you can. Finding cheap places to stay, it was not an easy life by all accounts. She danced in "Two weeks with Love."

Three movies come to mind based on your criteria. "Mr. Roberts" (1955), a comedy-drama set in WWII, nominated for three and won Jack Lemmon an Oscar for best supporting. And he was surrounded by luminaries like Henry Fonda, James Cagney and William Powell in his final film appearance! Another bizarre and incredible movie performance by Gloria Swanson is "Sunset Boulevard" (1950) with William Holden, and is about the movie business. Even stars Cecil B. DeMille playing himself in it. Last is "Sergent York" (1941) that won Gary Cooper best actor, best editing and 9 other nominations including best picture. It's tough picking thru so many good ones, and I'm sure there are so many better ones to consider. BTW, I've ordered The Apartment because I haven't seen it yet; and if the copyright cops are reading this... see you chuckle-heads! Folks will poychase movies that reactors 'r covering so lay off muscle, will ya? LOL! ✌️😎

I'm always skittish when it comes to making recommendations, but The Third Man (1949), Marty (1955) and The Time Machine (1960) are a few Oscar-winning movies made prior to 1970 that come to mind.

talkies began in 1928, being the Jazz Singer played by Al Jolson the firs commercial talkie of all! Jolson was a singer and did have great voice, he also whistles great too!

Hell, this was a15 of 10. I've adored this movie since high school (and I'm now 44), it's prettymuch prefect.

Vaudeville was the first instance of mass entertainment in the United States. There were theaters across the continent .They ranged from outdoor spaces in amusement parks up to the big vaudeville palaces that seated 500 and 700 people who watched singers, comedians, magicians, dancers, sketches and animal acts. There were enough entertainers crossing the country that a small industry of manufacturers who specialized costume trunks and portable stoves. It lasted until the depression.

Singin' in the Rain was meta before meta was really a thing. At one sequence in this film, there's a film within a film within a dream sequence. It makes Inception seem like child's play and yet it's also still so seamlessly executed. I truly adore this movie and I think the passage of time has only elevated its stature and importance in film history. It's also just a great feel good film and the one musical I always recommend to folks who aren't fans of musicals. Thanks for reacting! P.S. At the 22:00 mark, you mention the darker exploration of how difficult the transition must have been between silent and talkies---another film released around this same time that explores this is Sunset Boulevard. And it's also very self-aware, with the main actress a former silent film star attempting to make a come back. Highly recommend it.

On the subject of how some actors didn't make it after the jump to sound, there were also actors who lost their popularity after color movies became predominant. The costumes had to change, suddenly red-heads and blue eyes were sought after, make-up had to change.

Just found your channel today, and even though this video is a few years old , I hope you will see this comment. I love Gene Kelly musicals and recommend Brigedoon! It seems to be lesser known, but it is quite good. Lots of music and dancing, and Cyd Charris is in it too as the girl from the Scottish Highlands he falls in love with. It's one of my family's classic favorites. My eldest daughter actually got her name from o e of the key songs! Im planning on watching more of your videos now that i have looked through the list as i see several that I enjoy and loom forward to your reaction and insights!

When I was a kid, I saw the end of vaudeville. Short acts on stage, singing, dancing and jokes. Hey, before TV, it worked. The people that performed were talented, and they toured the small towns across America. Mickey Rooney did it with his parents, when he was a child. If a child was born to vaudeville parents while they were on the road, the child was said to be "born in a trunk". It was a tough life for talented people.

“In an early version of the script, the musical number "Singin' in the Rain" was to be sung by Debbie Reynolds, Donald O'Connor and Gene Kelly on the way back from the flop of a talkie movie. Also, the song "You Were Meant For Me" was not included in that draft. Instead, it was supposed to be Kelly's version of "All I Do Is Dream Of You," which would take place after the party at R.F. Simpson's house, when Kelly chases after Reynolds. The song would have ended up at Kelly's house. The footage of this scene has been lost, but the prerecording is featured on the soundtrack from Rhino. Remaining in the release print is the party sequence where Reynolds and chorus sing and dance a Charleston to "All I Do Is Dream of You."

I am SO hyped to see your response to The Apartment. It's one kf my favorite movies of all time, and undoubtedly one of the most intellectual comedies ever written. Just a dynamite script.

One of the little details I noticed later was that the fight scene from the silent film in Singin in the Rain was fully taken from The Three Musketeers, which Gene Kelly also starred in. Pretty neat! My dad was born in the 1940s, so I grew up watching a lot of old films with him. He passed away almost a year ago, and when I was looking up clips from The Thin Man movies (which were some of our favorites) I stumbled across your channel. It's been a real treat watching someone else enjoying a genre that holds so many good memories😊

I remember watching this for the first time when I was a teenager and having the biggest crush on Gene Kelly. That scene where he sings to Debbie Reynolds on the ladder. 😍 I too wanted him to sing to me like that.

This in my opinion is one of the finest movies ever created.

Dubbing actors who could not sing in the movies had been common practice since sound films began. It was all on the down low to the point where if the one who is doing the dubbing ever revealed that they were the singing voice in the movie, his or her career would be destroyed by the studio by being placed on a blacklist and they could never find work again. Ask Natalie Wood whose voice was dubbed in West Side Story. Natalie was very upset that her singing voice was not going to be used in the film West Side Story and that her voice was going to be dubbed by a professional singer. Audrey Hepburn was also none too pleased when an unknown professional singer dubbed her singing voice in My Fair Lady. And let's not forget how Debra Kerr had her singing voice dubbed in the film The King and I. Everyone involved was sworn to secrecy about the dubbing. The only ones who were not fooled were the critics who reviewed the films on opening night. Dorothy Killgalin who was a well known film critic and journalist wrote in her column that the film studios must think the public has a low IQ if they think Natalie Wood does her own singing in West Side Story. And you know what? The public is that gullible as they actually believed that Natalie Wood did her own singing in West Side Story. After the film critics let the cat out of the bag the studios found that it was impossible to keep this a secret any longer. After the cat was let out of the bag, the studios had no choice but to hire real singers who could act for the movie musicals. For example, Julie Andrews, unknown to the movie going public was cast as Mary Poppins. Pop singer Petula Clark, also an unknown to movie audiences was cast in Finian's Rainbow. And so on for the rest of the 1960's and 1970 and through the 1980's.

You're reacting to a lot of movies my family was involved in. Cool to see them! Thanks!

Thank you for this heartwarming video! A couple of recommendations: if you do more musicals, I suggest "Cover Girl" (1944) with Gene Kelly and the one and only Rita Hayworth. And my personal Gene Kelly favourite, which is not a musical: The three Musketeers (1948). Best version yet, in my opinion, featuring Technicolor Queen Lana Turner.

Woohoo! I love The Apartment. Can't wait!

Vaudevillians included all kinds of acts, including comedians, magicians, jugglers, singers, etc. Think Abbott and Costello, or Harry Houdini.

Here's the comment I posted before your original upload was blocked. I hope it stays up this time. ******************* Some silent movie actors really did lose their stardom because their voices weren't suitable for talkies. One who did make the transition was ZaSu Pitts, who acted mostly in dramas (such as Greed) during the silent era. She had a funny voice, though, sort of fluttery and unsteady. When talkies came along she transitioned to comedies and character roles. Voice actress Mae Questel is said to have based the voice of Olive Oyl in the Popeye cartoons on ZaSu Pitts. They did have problems with extraneous sounds in early talkies. When they made the Marx Brothers movie The Cocoanuts in 1929, they wet down all the paper props and backdrops to keep them from making crinkling noises. Betty Comden and Adolph Green wrote the song Make 'Em Laugh for Singin' in the Rain. It's almost identical to the song Be a Clown, which Cole Porter wrote for movie The Pirate in 1948 (Gene Kelly was in that one, too). Porter could have sued for copyright infringement, but he let them get away with it. Stanley Donen said, "It was 100% plagiarism." Donald O'Connor was in a lot of movies and TV shows. For some reason, he was cast in a series of movies with Francis the Talking Mule. It was kind of a precursor to Mr. Ed, but without the catchy theme song. The Francis movies are just about unwatchable today. The bit in the fantasy sequence with the tough guy flipping a coin (and later, Cyd Charisse doing the same thing) was a reference to George Raft in the 1932 movie Scarface. His character did that a lot in the movie, and it became part of the actor's image, sort of how the line "All right, all right, all right" is now part of Matthew McConaughey's image. Silent movies I would suggest include: - The General, starring Buster Keaton - Steamboat Bill, Jr., starring Buster Keaton - The Kid, starring Charlie Chaplin - City Lights, starring Charlie Chaplin - The Gold Rush, starring Charlie Chaplin - The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Lon Chaney, Sr. - The Phantom of the Opera, starring Lon Chaney, Sr. - Safety Last, starring Harold Lloyd All of these are very entertaining. The General is one of my favorite movies. I looked through all the movies from before 1970 that won Oscars in major categories (best movie, director, actor, actress, supporting actor, supporting actress, cinematography). Here are some of the best, in my opinion: It Happened One Night (1934) Rebecca (1940) Laura (1944) The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) All About Eve (1950) The Third Man (1950) The African Queen (1951) A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) Roman Holiday (1953) The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Spartacus (1960) The Hustler (1961) My Fair Lady (1964) Doctor Zhivago (1965) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) The Graduate (1967) Cool Hand Luke (1967) Bonnie and Clyde (1967) The Lion in Winter (1968) Of all of these, the one I'd most like to see you react to is The Third Man, which I believe is among the best movies ever made. I also love Lawrence of Arabia (1962), but I wouldn't recommend watching that movie on a small screen. You really need to see it projected on a big screen to get the true impact. I'm really looking forward to watching your reaction to The Apartment. It's a favorite of mine. Thanks!

A favorite! Thank you for sharing this with us. Vaudeville was sort of like a variety show, with many theaters all over the country, of different quality; and many, many actors made their names there and progressed from that stage to more "legitimate" careers and to film. The Marx Brothers honed their chaotic craft on the circuit, as did WC Fields, Jack Benny, George Burns and Gracie Allen, and many, many others. Don and Cosmo are basically street rats scratching their way to accomplishment. I love Don's "Dignity, always dignity" while we get to see what the truth is. Don and Cosmo never really lose that quality either! Jean Hagen, who plays Lena, actually had a lovely speaking voice. She was a serious actress, more familiar in dramas. There's a great TCM filler with Donald O'Connor and he pays special tribute to Hagen, saying that it was a stroke of genius to hire, for this role, a person who knew how to play a character. While what Don says is true about actors, note that he is actually making a play for Debbie Reynolds, and he is using that thought as a "line", and she is not fooled for a second. That's the initial set up for their relationship - slight antagonism, but Don being aware that she has awakened something in him that his brashness and cockiness has allowed him to disregard for a long time. I lost my heart to Donald O'Connor in this movie (I confess, I loved him in this more than Gene Kelly...). And his character is important to Don, keeping him grounded, encouraged, and remembering reality. And of course that "Beautiful Girl" number is important because Cathy is there. Oh you didn't show the favorite scene in our family: "And I cahnt stand him." "An' I cayyint stan'in." - Equalled only by "Yes, yes, yes!" "No, no, no!" I actually feel for Lena here as she struggles to understand what is needed from her. In the Moses number (and I always feel bad for that poor professor, who's just doing his job), watch how O'Connor will occasionally glance over at Kelly to be sure they're in step, and manages to stay in character the whole time. Don's line about being a museum piece calls back to Cathy's earlier jab at him, in the car, a remark he carries with him after and which is the prompt for "Make Them Laugh". That's one huge house that Don has. I want his medieval stuff. I love that he gives his umbrella to a passerby who needs it. Favorite line in our family from Cosmo: "At last! I can start starving and write that symphony...At last! I can stop starving and write that symphony!" The speaking voice dubbing for Lena in the recording session, and which is supposed to be Cathy is actually Jean Hagen herself. So "Lena" is dubbing "Cathy" dubbing Lena. My introduction the the great dancer Cyd Charisse was this number. She gets a marvelous showcase of a starring role in "Silk Stockings", a musical version of "Ninotchka", with Fred Astaire, both must-watches. Charisse was, indeed, a ballet dancer. The coin tossing is a parody of a gesture from George Raft, a 30s actor who played gangsters, and who is rather famous for turning down a bunch of roles taken by Humphrey Bogart instead, leading to Bogart's success. Raft and Bogart play brothers in "They Drive By Night", a very good movie about the difficulties of truckers. The "Everybody Dance" sections from clowny to elegant is a shorthand funny way of showing the different stages of Vaudeville that you were speculating on before. The last stage is kind of Ziegfeld Follies, the pinnacle of the trade. What Lena is trying to do to Cathy is very similar to what Disney imposed on the voice actress for Snow White, Adriana Casellotti. (from the Wikipedia article on Casellotti: n 1935, after a brief stint as a chorus girl and session singer at MGM, Walt Disney hired Caselotti as the voice of his heroine Snow White. She was paid a total of $970 for working on the film (equivalent to $17,251 in 2019). She was not credited and had trouble finding new opportunities later in life. Jack Benny specifically mentioned that he had asked Disney for permission to use her on his radio show and was told, "I'm sorry, but that voice can't be used anywhere. I don't want to spoil the illusion of Snow White." Caselotti had two more jobs in the film business. The first was an uncredited role in MGM's (1939); she provided the voice of Juliet during the Tin Man's song, "If I Only Had a Heart", speaking the line, "Wherefore art thou Romeo?". In 1946, she had an uncredited role in Frank Capra's , singing in Martini's bar as James Stewart was praying.)

I know this video is from last year but I just found your channel today and I have been binge watching like crazy. I love the fact that you are really one of the only reactors I have found to react to classic movies. I would love to see your reaction to Summer stock with Gene Kelly and Judy Garland. It was amazing

They shot the Singin' in the Rain number in the daytime with heavy tarps covering the back lot sets. It was hot out and when people in the neighborhood got home around 5 o'clock and turned on their sprinklers the set lost its water pressure so Gene was Singin' in a Drizzle.

The first "talkies"...films with speeches on records...were not huge mega-hits. But then Warner Bros released "The Jazz Singer." It wasn't the songs or the speeches that knocked audiences out, it was the improvised dialogue that Al Jolson did, especially when he talked to his mother in the film. THIS--hearing people talk like real people in real situations--THIS is what knocked people out about "The Jazz Singer" and killed the silent film. Good thing, too, because it meant all the studios and movie theaters had to invest in sound equipment immediately. Two years later, the Great Depression began and sound was already in place. If it had not been by October 1929, we might have had mostly silent films until after WW2.

I don’t know if this falls outside of your parameters but the movie to be or not to be with Jack Benny was nominated for an Academy award for best music.

Donald O'Connor's one-liners are the highlight of the film.

Hopefully you will watch and react to some of the best comedies of the silent film era, where actors like Harold Lloyd, Buster Keaton, and Charlie Chaplin did most of their own stunt work, risking life-and-limb: Safety Last, with Harold Lloyd, who hangs from the hands of a giant clock stories above the street, Steamboat Bill, Jr. with Buster Keaton the rear side of a house falls around him. Camera crew members had to leave when they shot this one scene, as they didn't want to see him get hurt or killed.

A fun fact.... The voice dubbing Lina's voice during the song "Would You?" is actually the real voice of the actress who played Lina. The actress who played Lina said that she didn't base that shrill voice off of anybody.... she thought it fit the character and she kept in mind about how some silent movie stars couldn't transition over to talking movies.

“The role of Cosmo was written with Oscar Levant in mind, but was eventually given to Donald O'Connor.”

Oh this is something I grew up watching along with Sound of Music

In the musical Singin' In The Rain there was one performer who's performance was so good that she received an Academy Award nomination for best Supporting Actress her name was Jean Hagen. Hagen was so consistently good at what she did in her films that she was often overlooked. Even her home studio Metro had to sit up and take notice of Hagen's success since MGM did not know how to handle her. It was unfortunate for Hagen that MGM never considered her to be a prize studio commodity. Even when fighting for good roles or for more diverse parts, she was known for giving everything she had to all her roles even elevating mediocre material with what Director John Huston described as a wistful down-to-earth quality rare onscreen. Raised in Chicago and Indiana, Hagen born Jean Shirley Verhagen who graduated from Northwestern University in 1945, then moved to New York City to join one of her college friends, the aspiring actress Patricia Neal. She was working as an usherette for a run of Swan Song at the Booth Theater when writer Ben Hecht offered her a small role in play. A few years director Anthony Mann spotted her in The Traitor, and in a matter of days she was signed to an MGM contract and was cast in Adam's Rib (1949, MGM) where Jean Hagen worked steadily for the next few years playing a steady parade of tarts and floozies and, alternately wives, in mostly unmemorable parts. The Asphalt Jungle (1950, MGM) provided Hagen with her first starring role alongside Sterling Hayden. Hagen received excellent reviews playing "Doll" Conover, a woman who sticks by criminal Dix's (Sterling Hayden) side until the bitter end. However the critics and public alike were generally too dazzled by the beauty of Marilyn Monroe to notice Hagen, Hagen appeared in the film noir Side Street (1950, MGM) playing a gangster's sincere but none-too-bright nightclub-singer girlfriend. But when Hagen did get the Academy Award nomination for Singin' In The Rain it was not enough to wake the studio up to her potential. When her MGM contract expired she moved over to television, playing Daddy Thomas' wife in his ABC series Make Room For Daddy. Hagen was nominated three times for an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Margaret Williams (1953-56). The show was a hit, but Hagen grew restless playing the matronly matron, even her bad girl typecasting of her MGM days looked appealing. She told a reporter, "I'd like to breathe harder than I do." To that end, in 1955 she took the role of a sex-crazed seductress in The Big Knife, and the following year she quit television and returned to the big screen. Although she made frequent guest appearances in various television series, Hagen was unable to successfully resume her film career in starring roles. After costarring with Fred MacMurray in the Disney comedy The Shaggy Dog (1959, Buena Vista), Hagen for the remainder of her career played supporting roles, such as Marguerite Le Hand, personal secretary to Franklin Delano Roosevelt in Sunrise at Campobello (1960) and her last film role was as the busy-body friend in Bette Davis' exceptional thriller Dead Ringer (1964, Warner Brothers). It was in 1976 Hagen she made a comeback of sorts playing character roles in episodes of the television series Starsky and Hutch and The Streets of San Francisco. She, however, made her final acting appearance the next year in the television movie Alexander: The Other Side of Dawn. In Jean Hagen's personal life she married actor Tom Seidel, who originated the role of Dr. Sanderson in the play Harvey, the two were married on June 12, 1947, in Brentwood, CA., they had two children: Christine Patricia Seidel and Aric Phillip Seidel. According to friend Lorraine Lo Bianco's authoritative biography, Seidel, in his attempt to stop his wife from drinking, divorced her and gained custody of the children. It did not work. Hagen's alcoholism only worsened, finally becoming so severe by 1968 that she was hospitalized and lapsed into a coma at UCLA Medical Center. She managed to survive the ordeal, and her daughter Christine said that after she emerged from the coma, Hagen never drank again. Unfortunately, another health problem arose: throat cancer. Jean Hagen died at age 54 of esophageal cancer on August 29, 1977, at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital, and was buried in Chapel of the Pines Crematory and Columbarium located at 1605 South Catalina Street, Los Angeles, CA.

Cyd charisse was my very first crush. Immortal to this day

“During the pre-production stage, Judy Garland, June Allyson and Ann Miller were considered for the role of Kathy Selden, but all were considered "too old". Jane Powell and Leslie Caron were also briefly considered before Debbie Reynolds (then a newcomer) was cast.”

I'm late to the party, and I'm sure someone else has already written this in your comment section, but.... The funniest thing about this movie is that Ms Hagen actually dubbed Debbie Reynolds in the singing parts. That means that when she is singing in the 'Singing Cavalier' it is actually her own voice we are hearing!

When Gene Kelly Filmed This Scene For "Singing In The Rain" Gene Kelly Was Incredibly Sick With 104 Fever With Walking Pneumonia And They Had To Carry Him Onto Set And Then Back Off Set After He Was Done And They Had To Film It Multiple Times!!!!! He Could Barely Stand Up Or Walk On His Own When He Did This But Somehow He Managed To Pull It Off!!!!! I Did A Big Project On Him In College (I Have Been A Tap Dancer Now For 34 Years) And This Is One Of My Absolute Very Favorite Tap Dance Movie Scenes Ever!!!!! I Love Love Love Love Love It And Gene Kelly As Well As Many Others Have Been My Tap Dance Idols & Heroes Since I Was A Little Girl And Now I Am 37 Years Old And Now I Can Definitely Relate To What He Was Dealing With And Going Through At This Time Because I Am A 21 YEAR, 4 MONTH & 16 DAY CHILDHOOD/TEEN/YOUNG ADULT CANCER SURVIVOR/THRIVER/CONQUEROR/WARRIOR!!!!!

Silent film, yes. Try Buster Keaton in Steamboat Bill Junior. It has everything, action, disaster, romance, humour and great stunts. Jean Hagan was a serious actress; see her in The Asphalt Jungle, which includes a nobody (at the time) named Marylin Monroe. The fashion show always makes me think of the fashion show in the Marx Brother's film, The Big Store, but that was 11 years earlier in 1941. Ironically and perhaps hypocritically, I heard that Debbie Reynold's singing voice was dubbed.

The movies writers were "ordered" to write this screenplay by Arthur Freed, the producer, who was the lyricist of all the songs.

Those costumes are really out there (in the montage), and seeing how much you liked them, I can highly recommend that you see What a Way to Go starring Shirley MacLaine with Paul Newman, Gene Kelley, Dean Martin and Dick Van Dyke (and one other guy) as her various husbands. The costumes she wears when she's married to Paul Newman and the other guy whose name I forgot are probably Edith Head's crowning achievements, and there are so many of them.... really a feast for the eyes.

How Green Was My Valley with Maureen O'HARA and Roddy McDowell is so good. Pre-1970 for sure.

Whenever I see that first dancing scene, I’m reminded that Debbie Reynolds was around the same age as her daughter Carrie Fisher was when she played Princess Leia in Star Wars. Moses Supposes is my absolute favourite dance scene on film and it’s mind-boggling that there are so few cuts in this scene. Did you know that Cyd Charrise is in Janet Jackson’s epic music video Alright? To address your questions about how Vaudeville came to be, you need to remember that acting was not considered to be a respectable profession by the upper classes and churches and it was thought of as just one small step above prostitution, so it took tremendous courage to go into that field many years ago. Of course there were dancers, bards, jokers, circus’s and other types of entertainment throughout history and travelling shows would have eventually developed into vaudevillian types of theatre. In the early part of the 20th century, as we all know, radio, movies and television became part of everyone’s life, so entertainment obviously became a much sought after profession, turning what was once a dubious way to make a living into a potentially lucrative career. I always think of the cast of Friends each making a million dollars per episode and wonder what veterans of ‘the craft’ must think of that. Harold Lloyd is the best I’ve seen in silent films.

I was and still am a huge Mary Pickford fan The reason I mention this is to let you know a tiny bit about the silent film era On February 5, 1919, afore mentioned Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks JR and another chap founded United Artists Corporation! To get a more complete idea of that era, I recommend you watch the movie Chaplin with Robert Downey JR That's all I've got for now Take care!

Fun fact. Gene Kelly didn't record his own tapping for the Singing In The Rain scene. His taps were prerecorded by the legendary Gwen Verdon for the sound recording in the movie.

Vaudeville was a variety show. A theatre specifically set-up to be specifically for Vaudeville would audition acts which could be skits, comedy routines (Laurel and Hardy and Abbot and Costello came from Vaudeville too), ventriloquists, plus dancing and singing acts. Vaudeville was both a place where a stage actor could get their break into plays and musicals and a washed up stage actor would go to get work if their popularity waned. When the talkies came in a lot of Vaudeville stars came into films since they already know how to act and sing to an audience. Some adapted to the camera better than others.

Just keep thinking about everyone walking out making fun of the movie and how everyone can see it's a disaster and Lina's just like "Well I liked it!"

I just love Jean Hagen in this. :)

Loved this reaction! I can’t recommend The Best Years of Our Lives more strongly, as others have done before. Mia, I confess I also look forward to your nails, haha! I love the color you’re wearing right now. I always have to check out what color nails you have for every reaction! 😂💅🏻💅🏾 Silly me!

Here are some silents to watch: The Wind (1928, MGM) starring Lillian Gish, Stella Dallas (1925, Goldwyn) starring Belle Bennett, Ronald Coleman and Alice Joyce, The Big Parade (1925, MGM) starring John Gilbert and Renee Adoree, and The Merry Widow (1925, MGM) starring John Gilbert and Mae Murray directed by Erich von Stroheim.

14:17 I love The Artist for the same/similar reasons I love Singing In The Rain. It's the same era and subject of media history, but comparing the two makes it an even deeper juxtaposition given their formats. Singin In The Rain is a Movie Musical about the start of Movie Musicals, it's shot like 'the future' the storyline is progressing towards, and the protagonists are ready and capable for the transition, and the villainess silent actress isn't. It's very jovial and fun and passionate, while showcasing the lead actress's struggles of at the time getting locked in with "dubbing" vs getting her due. In The Artist, it's shot in the medium that paralelles the struggles the lead actor has with the transition. He himself is outdated and the movie is in a format that is outdated, and it's his struggle to evolve and overcome the advent of talkies and not be left behind is itself a part of the medium the story is presented in. We're seeing things from his perspective, and when they brake the format and use 'modern' synced up sound effects, it's narratively effective, like his nightmare on the backlock, or the finale where why finally hear him and realize why it was hard for him to get roles in talkies.

During the rain dance number, Gene Kelly jumps up on base of the lamp post and assumes the classic pose. I was at the Hollywood Wax museum as a12 year old with the family and saw the wax museum's replica of the exact pose with a wax Gene Kelly, exact suit and all. Had no idea who or what that was. then one day I saw the movie on TV as a high school senior 6 ears later. A loud "OMG! THAT's what that was!!!" came out of my mouth. My mom lost it laughing. I had to explain to her what was up and she only laughed harder.

bit of trivia: donald o'connor did a bit of the 'make 'em laugh' scene or something similar during a break, change of scene, or such. gene kelley liked it and wanted it added to the movie, but o'connor couldn't remember exactly what he'd done, so he had to make up more steps for it when it was filmed.

And to think in real life Jean Hagen had a beautiful voice. What a great acting job she did.

Excellent. Silent movies. Wings. Won first Best Picture Oscar.

Love this film, and of course, the title number. Also a wonder is Kurt Browning’s recreation of the title number on ice. Btw, he also did one duplicating Casablanca. Kurt was a Canadian ice skating champion.

Vaudeville has a long history, but was nothing like musical theater. Theater managers would engage whatever acts they could get, usually by the week. Acts could include jugglers, singers, acrobats, dancers, comedians, animal acts, skits, and whatever else was in town at the time. Most of the great performers of early films and radio got their start in vaudeville, including the Marx Brothers, Jack Benny, Rudy Vallee, Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin, George M. Cohan, and *so* many others. A good analogy would be the Ed Sullivan Show, which ran on CBS from 1948 to 1971. He brought in acts of all kinds from all over the world, and gave the Beatles their first shot on American television. I watched a documentary on the history of stunt work about 30 years ago, and I wish I could find it again. As i recall, early stuntmen had little to no protection. They made cars skid out by spraying the roads with a mixture of water, oil, and soap, so that the drivers had no control over their vehicles. Performers like Buster Keaton stared emphasizing safety while still getting the effects they wanted. The 3-part 'American Masters' documentary 'Unknown Chaplin' is available on YT, and gives some insights on how he developed things behind the scenes. The standard procedure for singing in films is to record the songs first, and then lip-sync to playback during filming, using something known as a 'click-track' to get the timing right. (I'm not sure exactly how it works. i really should look it up one of these days.) There are a couple times in 'Make 'Em Laugh' where this is apparent if you look closely, especially after Donald O'Connor smacks into the 'brick' wall behind the door. Not that it detracts from the scene; it's just one of those things. I agree, the 'Dueling Cavalier' scene is hard to watch, and I'm glad I'm not the only one. However, I'm sure it's based on reality, though probably a film that was actually released to the public. The part where the sound becomes unsynchronized makes me cringe, but it's necessary to get the point across. I love your reaction to the 'Singin' in the Rain' sequence, as I feel the same way. I think you're right, that it wouldn't have had the same iconic impact if it had been a duet. Sometimes accidents turn into pure gold. You know, I'd forgotten that there were so many in-jokes in this film. You noticed the Monumental/Paramount parallel. There was also the Rudy Vallee reference (the singer with the megaphone), the Busby Berkley shots, and the George Raft-style coin-flipper in 'Gotta Dance'. If you'd like to check out a couple more silent films, i would suggest 'The Beloved Rogue' (John Barrymore, 1927), 'Robin Hood' (Douglas Fairbanks, 1922), and 'The Thief of Bagdad'' (Douglas Fairbanks, 1924). Also, have you seen the musical 'Kiss Me, Kate'? I'd love to get your take on it.

Dubbing: Reynolds' singing "Would You" is dubbed over by Betty Noyes, but the best part is the scenes where Reynolds' (Kathy Selden) voice is supposed to be dubbing Jean Hagen's (Lina Lamont) voice in the movie is really dubbed by Jean Hagen herself in regular voice!! Jean Hagen was a fabulous.

You're right! Some of the biggest stars in Silents were driven out of the business with the introduction of Talkies. A few, like Marlene Dietrich, who had a heavily accented yet seductive voice, made the grade (see her sexy, shocking role literally driving a man to insanity in 1930's The Blue Angel).

Mia, later on, when you have gone thru some silent films, perhaps you could review a couple from the Marx Brothers, the Thin Man, Robin Hood (1938) and then maybe some dramas like The Best Years of Our Lives and The Postman Always Rings Twice. Have fun. Glad someone out there is interested in all film, not just recent things.

The whole "Gotta dance" number is inspired by the final ballet who came out the year before on An American in Paris.

I love Gene Kelly too! He is so handsome. Love your reactions and review.

Hi Mia. I'd never seen you before, but you are quite captivating, in your enthusiasm and appreciation (obviously from your studies and knowledge). As RU-vid reactors go, you're a bit of a freak, articulating such fine points about all manner of things: Lighting, staging, choreography, singing, and myriad other things. I was so surprised I watched the whole video. Oh, and another thing; you actually flesh out the movie and give us a very in-depth, more-than-ten-minutes-long appreciation ourselves. You're quite adorable. Will be subscribing and checking out some other gems you've put up there. Thanks for elevating RU-vid with your very intelligent and so-enthusiastic appraisal of things long-gone, which is so rare among younger people. You're a gem. :)