Hollywood Cavalcade (1939)

Hollywood Cavalcade - 1939

The next film we profile comes in the form of 1939's "Hollywood Cavalcade", starring Alice Faye and Don Ameche.  The film centers around the creation of motion pictures, and explores the medium from silent films to "talkies", while also profiling the lives of a rising star and the director who discovered her.

The film's supporting cast includes J. Edward Bromberg, Alan Curtis, Stuart Erwin, Buster Keaton, Donald Meek, Al Jolson, Willie Fung, Irving Bacon, and Rin Tin Tin Jr.

The film opens in a Broadway theater.  The director of the play that's about to be shown comes out and tells the audience that the star of the show is sick and her part will be played by the understudy Molly Adair (Faye).  A director from Hollywood (Ameche) is in the audience and is completely captivated by her performance.  Afterwards, he offers her a contract with him for one year.  After some persuasion, she agrees.

After a long train journey, they arrive in Los Angeles and start to make a screen test.  When they show the finished product to the head of the studio, he lets it slip that Connors (Ameche) is just a prop boy and hasn't directed anything in his life.  Connors says he wants Molly to have a hundred dollar a week salary, and he also wants to direct her first picture.  The chief balks, but when Connors threatens to walk her over to other studios, he gives in.

They get started on their first picture.  Molly's co-star is none other than silent screen legend Buster Keaton.  The film rolls as Buster and Molly contemplate engagement rings at a jewelry store.  Buster goes inside while Molly waits.  A man comes out and tries to take advantage of Molly.  When Buster comes out, Connors gives the order for Buster to hit the man.  Buster looks around for something to hit him with.

All he can find on the set is a custard pie.  When he goes to throw it, Molly gets in the way and it accidentally lands right in her face.  Molly is furious, but the spectators in the stands think it's hilarious.  Connors makes the decision to keep it in the film.

The next scene comes as the final film is shown to the studio chief.  The pie scene continues as Buster continues to confront the man who took advantage of Molly.  The two men decide to settle things like gentlemen and duel with pies.

Molly tries to stop them, but steps in at the wrong moment and once again gets hit in the face.  This time with two pies!

This starts a pie war with Molly bearing the brunt of the wreckage.  (It's an extremely funny scene in the film.)  Molly is furious.  She didn't come to Hollywood to make a career of being hit with pie.  (Her pie total comes to over 2600!)  However, once the film is released, it's a hit.

Their next film is about bathing beauties.  Connors says it'll be bigger than anything that's ever been done, but the studio chief isn't convinced.  One night, Molly goes out with Connors.  She likes sitting alone with him and starts to care about him, but he can't get the picture business out of his head.  It's all he can talk about.

Later, after Connors gets the money to be able to open his own movie studio, he and Molly share a tender moment.  However, all Molly's hopes of a relationship collapse when he starts talking right away about the business.

After the new studio is up and running, Connors introduces Molly to her new leading man, Nicky Hayden.  It turns out that Nicky isn't a professional actor.  He was working at a gas station when Connors picked him up for the business.  No matter how Molly tries to get Connors interested, the movies seem to be his main relationship.

Seeing their great on-screen chemistry, Connors decides to build Nicky and Molly up romantically in the press.  What he doesn't know is that he's a bit behind on the story.  Tired of waiting on Connors, Molly decides to marry Nicky.  Connors is furious.  He tells Molly that she ran out on him.  She was everything in the world to him.  All he's accomplished has been for her.  She said that all he had to do was tell her, just once.  Mike storms off hurt.

At the party following the finish of their latest picture, Connors informs everyone that Molly will no longer be appearing in any production of his.  He's just too hurt to continue working with her.  His business partner pleads with him to reconsider.  She's too valuable, she's their biggest asset, it will ruin them if they terminate her.  But he's insistent.  She's got to go.

Connors begins a downward spiral without his two biggest stars.  His huge production costs spike.  And without much help from the box office, he's hurtling towards ruin.  Meanwhile, Nicky and Molly sign with another film company and go on to huge success.

Connors is so blinded by hurt and anger, he even passes on Rin Tin Tin (portrayed here by Rin Tin Tin's son, Rin Tin Tin Jr.).  His business partner quits, and soon the business folds.  Eventually, he walks off production lots from some of the biggest film companies, and seems washed-up in show business.  Later, a magazine reveals the top 10 biggest stars: among them Molly Adair, Nicky Hayden, and Rin Tin Tin.

Five years later, Nicky and Molly are having an anniversary party at a nightclub.  Connors and some friends walk in unknowingly.  As they are cutting their cake, Molly catches a glimpse of Connors, who has tears in his eyes.  Mike storms out with his friends, and Molly watches him go.  

Feeling badly about Connors, Molly pulls some strings and gets him named the director of her next picture.  He puts on a gruff facade, and treats her professionally at all times.  While waiting for Molly to film on location, two policeman arrive after Molly is very late.  They tell Connors that Molly and Nicky were involved in a car accident, and Nicky was killed.  Molly is in very serious condition in the hospital.  Connors rushes to her side.

He is there when Molly wakes.  He tells her about Nicky, and she tells him to go away.  The doctor says that Molly will be okay in two to three months.  Meanwhile, studio bosses are pressuring Connors to finish the film.  Talking pictures have broken out, and silent films are a thing of the past.  They need to act fast if they want to save the money they've got invested in their movie.

After leaving the studio again over differences in how the film should be concluded, Connors roams around town, finally stopping at a theater packed full of people trying to see Al Jolson in the first talking picture, The Jazz Singer (Jolson recreates his role here, singing "Kol Nidrei", a traditional Jewish chant.)  Connors has a transformative experience as he watches the film and sees the audience completely captivated by the performance.

He goes to see Molly at the hospital and apologizes for his behavior all those years ago.  He tells her that he began to live again when she got him the job as her director.  He went to the studio and stole the negative of their latest movie, and they won't get it back unless the promise to let him finish it his way.  He's got new ideas.  He tells her that her career has only just begun.  She's going to talk in the movies.

The film opens at Grauman's Egyptian Theater to hit reviews.  People pour out of the theater and shower the producer with compliments.  Later, Connors and Molly embrace as they overlook Los Angeles and marvel at how movies, a strange thing when they first started, became a city.

Cast rundown:

   Alice Faye...........................................Molly Adair

   Don Ameche.......................................Michael Linnett Connors

   J. Edward Bromberg.............................Dave Spingold

   Alan Curtis..........................................Nicky Hayden

   Stuart Erwin........................................Pete Tinney

   Buster Keaton......................................Himself

   Donald Meek.......................................Lyle P. Stout

   Al Jolson.............................................Himself

   Willie Fung..........................................Willie

   Irving Bacon........................................Clerk

   Rin Tin Tin Jr........................................Rin Tin Tin

And that's all for Hollywood Cavalcade.  It's a very good film about early silent films and the transition into sound pictures.  The sequences between Alice Faye and Buster Keaton are very, very well done, and absolutely hilarious!  Some other silent film stars are also used in some silent sequences as well.

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