The Warner Bros. Revue of 1929

The advent of talking pictures threw Hollywood into a tizzy, as many people who had no stage acting experience needed time to learn how to do dialog naturally for the cameras; some people of course had voices or thick accents that didn't translate well to talking pictures. MGM made a movie called The Hollywood Revue as a sort of screen test for most of its contract stars (the major exception being Greta Garbo). Warner Bros. responded with Show of Shows.

Frank Fay is the master of ceremonies here, following a prologue of an execution scene that looks like it could have come from A Tale of Two Cities but as far as I know didn't. Fay thinks he's got a lot of talent, and wants to do a musical number or two. But it's his job to introduce the other acts, with somebody else certain to stop him if he does try to sing.

Warner Bros. used most of its contract players here, like MGM did, although I have to admit that a lot of them I didn't recognize, such as Richard Barthelmess. A few are identified, notably a young Myrna Loy whom I also didn't recognize in her first number, a song asking "What Became of the Floradora Boy", the "Floradora Girl" being a Gay Nineties chorus girl and soon-to-be subject of a Marion Davies movie. John Barrymore is also instantly recognizable giving a soliloquy from Shakespeare's Henry VI Part III.

But most of what we get is song and dance numbers that go on for a long time. For people watching 90 years on, a lot of it will be dated at best, and slow at worst. Frank Fay is nowhere near the level of Jack Benny in The Hollywood Revue, and as far as I can tell he didn't become a particularly big star.

The one highlight of Show of Shows is the two-strip Technicolor number, a Chinese-themed song starring Loy (much more recognizable here) and Nick Lucas, and introduced by Rin Tin Tin (seriously). The color is quite good for two-strip.

If you're curious for a time capsule of 1929, I think I'd recommend The Hollywood Revue or even The King of Jazz (although if memory serves, that's actually from 1930), and save Show of Shows for later. But I'm still glad I finally watched it. Having been released by Warner Bros., it's no surprise that the movie is available on DVD courtesy of the Warner Archive collection.