Lady Be Good

Robert Young, Ann Sothern, Eleanor Parker, Red Skelton, and Lionel Barrymore star in "Lady Be Good," a 1941 film about two married and then unmarried songwriters.

He (Young) writes the music, she (Sothern) writes the words, but once Dixie and Eddie Crane become successes, Eddie becomes a little taken with the Park Avenue set and Dixie, bored by the whole thing, suggests that they divorce. They do, but they soon find themselves working together again, and Eddie wants to re-marry Dixie.

Sothern sings beautifully, and Young has a pleasant voice as they croon their way through various songs. Sothern sings "You'll Never Know," and "The Last Time I Saw Paris," and Young duets with her in "Your Words and My Music" and "Lady Be Good." The film's real energy comes from Eleanor Parker, who is beautiful and does two terrific numbers, "Lady Be Good" with Buttons the dog, and "Fascinatin' Rhythm," choreographed by Busby Berkeley. Had this movie been better, you'd be seeing both her numbers in movie musical documentaries and film compilations today. They're terrific. The Berry Brothers are outstanding, and in the same section, do a phenomenal number.

Sothern is lovely and delightful as always, and Young is an affable leading man. I wish there had been more of a script for all this talent.

The only resemblance between this film and the Broadway musical and silent film of Lady Be Good from 1928 is purely coincidental. All that MGM took for this film was the title and two songs from the original Broadway score.

That being said this version of Lady Be Good about a pair of husband and wife songwriters is good entertainment. Robert Young and Ann Sothern are the married pair and it's the same old story of two who can't live and can't live without each other. In fact the story is told in flashback by Sothern on the witness stand to Judge Lionel Barrymore in her divorce hearing.

The rest of the score is written by those MGM contract writers Arthur Freed and Nacio Herb Brown. None of it is particularly memorable. However an additional song which brought this film its only Oscar caused some considerable controversy.

The year before Oscar Hammerstein, II saw newsreels of the Nazis marching into Paris and the sad faces of the French people who now had to endure the unendurable. He spent some considerable time in Paris and loved the city. So moved was he that he dashed off a song lyric and immediately called Jerome Kern to put some music to it. The result was the incredibly popular The Last Time I Saw Paris.

So popular was it that MGM I'm sure paid a pretty penny for the rights and to interpolate into Lady Be Good. Tony Martin and Lanny Ross and Kate Smith and the great concert singer John Charles Thomas had made some good selling records of The Last Time I Saw Paris. Ann Sothern sang it beautifully in the film, the last chorus with her voice over newsreels of the occupation.

The popularity of the song and the entrance of the USA into World War II no doubt influenced the vote of the Academy. Plus the fact that interpolated songs like this were not specifically banned. It was sheer coincidence that the six of the first seven winners were original songs written specifically for the film they were in.

The Academy rules were tightened up and now songs had to be written specifically for the film. So Sweet Leilani and The Last Time I Saw Paris remain the only two songs not written for the films they were in. By the way Jerome Kern fought for the rule change himself, saying he voted for Harold Arlen-Johnny Mercer's Blues in the Night as the best song for 1941.

The other musical highlight is Eleanor Powell dancing to Fascinating Rhythm. On stage it was Fred and sister Adele Astaire who did it originally, but there ain't nothing wrong about the way Eleanor Powell cuts that carpet. Busby Berkeley directed the sequence and it's filled with his original touches.

One day maybe I'll see a theatrical production of George&Ira Gershwin's Lady Be Good. Till then this will do nicely.

Eleanor Powell must be the greatest female dancer of all time. The camera movement and stage settings are unbelievable. TCM movies own some wonderful gems and Turner is a genius.

The quality of the print seems perfect. I saw only the ending and per the other comment I was blessed with a great trigger. The dance was long and interesting from the beginning. When EP started it was very subtle but nonetheless fascinating. Little clicks and hand motions lead me to believe she was just window candy but she progressed into an amazing routine with such complexity that you forget how intricate it was by virtue of the simple start. A camera change revels a new perspective that plays perfectly into the remaining steps. It's ends beautifully.

The fabulous tap dance and flash styling of the Berry Brothers is complimented by Eleanor Powell's beautiful tap and acrobatics. The Berry Brothers have never gotten the credit they deserved. Their artistry is something that has not been duplicated all these years later. From Tap Dance, Spins, Cane work to handsprings into splits, these men did it all! In this movie Eleanor Powell demonstrates she was one of the few women who genuinely deserved the solo spot in tap dancing. Musicals like this are sorely missed in today's entertainment. In the days this movie was produced, special effects, computer graphics couldn't take the place of talent. Truly a treasure of tap dance history. A must see for any tap enthusiast!!!

I found Lady Be Good to be a refreshing, surprisingly intelligent and upbeat musical with great songs and dances. The story is about a married song writing team who divorces. The story starts with Ann Southern explaining the story and follows on from there. The script is incredibly witty, and there is some great physical comedy. Some of the of the best music of all time written for this movie, including "Lady Be Good" which always gets in my head and the more famous "The Last time I saw Paris". The Gershwin's are incredible. So a combination of a witty script, great acting, great music and great dancing makes this a wonderful musical - a stand out from the rest! A truly lighthearted and entertaining musical.