Silver Screenings

Well, just look at the things you find when you reorganize your movie collection.

We (yours truly) had a burst of Organizational Efficiency last week and, as we sorted our DVDs – don’t laugh – we discovered a musical comedy starring James Cagney.

Something to Sing About (1937), despite the corny name, is a delightful spoof of the Hollywood movie industry, with lots of funny lines. It’s also a nice portrayal of a marriage.

Cagney stars as a band-leader-slash-dancer who gets the chance to star in a Hollywood film. But first! Image Consultants are summoned and, as they assess the hapless Cagney, they despair of his speech and hairline. He is implored to speak in “pear-shaped tones” and part his hair differently.

The studio is thrilled to have Cagney’s character working on their Picture, but fear praise will inflate his ego. All cast and crew are instructed to withhold even the slightest compliment. “I’ll fire anyone who tells him he’s any good,” says the studio head.

This is the same studio boss who feels working 24 hours a day is unacceptable; 25 hours a day is better.

As an aside, the movie also makes a barbed comment about Japanese stereotypes in Hollywood movies, and it’s refreshing to see this issue addressed unsparingly.

Something to Sing About had a lot Going for it, and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Score.

Too bad it caused the studio to go Belly Up.

So how did a frothy musical satire wreak so much Havoc?

Something to Sing About was produced by an independent studio, Grand National Pictures, established in 1936. Grand National’s original purpose was to distribute independent films, and its “customer base consisted of small, neighborhood movie theaters accustomed to paying cheap rentals for low-budget films.”¹

But by summer of 1936, it began producing movies, and, in 1937, it did the impossible: It signed James Cagney, one of Hollywood’s Biggest Stars.

Now, Cagney was fighting with his studio, Warner Bros., who insisted he make lots o’ gangster movies. They also tried to pull a Fast One by demanding he make five movies a year when his contract stipulated four.

Cagney sued the studio, and won. Then he went to work at Grand National, and the first movie he made for them, Great Guy (1936), was a success.

The next Cagney feature was to be the gangster flick, Angels with Dirty Faces, but the actor wasn’t crazy about the idea, so Grand National focused on Something to Sing About.

Sadly, as amusing as the script is, it wasn’t the best choice.

“Something to Sing About was skimpy (it was all the fledgling studio could afford), the music wasn’t memorable, and the film didn’t receive wide distribution,” says TCM. “In an era of studio domination, an independent didn’t have a chance.”²

The movie needed a miracle to recoup its $900K investment. While it kept producing and distributing films, it wasn’t enough to Turn Things Around. In 1939, the studio went into receivership and sold off its assets.

As for Cagney, Warner Bros. lured him back with a Very Nice Offer. They also bought the rights to Angels with Dirty Faces, which Cagney made in 1938.

A few interesting notes about this film:

• It was directed and written by Victor Schertzinger, who also wrote the musical numbers. According to IMDb, he had the unusual distinction of being universally well liked.
• Cagney’s co-star was 20 year-old Evelyn Daw, who made only two Hollywood movies. Something to Sing About was her first.
• Gene Lockhart’s character, the scheming studio boss in the movie, is allegedly based on Jack Warner of Warner Bros.
• This film is one of three musicals that James Cagney made during his career. It was, by all accounts, one of his favourite roles.

Have you seen Something to Sing About? If you haven’t, we urge you to see it – and you can watch it for free HERE.

Something to Sing About: starring James Cagney, Evelyn Daw, William Frawley. Directed by Victor Schertzinger. Written by Victor Schertzinger & Austin Parker. Grand National Pictures, 1937, B&W, 93 mins.

Sources

¹Wikipedia. (Retrieved February 4, 2024.) Grand National Films Inc.
²TCM. (Retrieved February 4, 2024.) Something to Sing About (1937) by Margarita Landazuri.