Short films that experimented with sound in the late 1920s, and musical comedies starring Danny Kaye, Abbott & Costello, Donald O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds and Cyd Charisse are new at Warner Archives.
These are all burn-on-demand discs that can be ordered through the website (www.wbshop.com, click on "Warner Archive").
"Vitaphone Varieties" (Warner Archive, 1926-30, four discs, b/w, $49.95). Here's a treasure trove for fans of early cinema, 60 sound shorts from the nearly 1,000 produced between 1926 and 1930 by Warner Bros., the studio whose great success with "The Jazz Singer" in 1927 signaled the end of the silent era, whetting the public's appetite for more and more "talkies."
The four DVDs in this set (with labels that duplicate Vitaphone's logo) contain shorts that have been remastered for the best possible picture and sound, using the rarest Vitaphone discs synced to the best available film-source materials. Some of that material is damaged, but all of these films are still amazing to be able to see.
The shorts range from the earliest Vitaphone experiments before the release of "The Jazz Singer" to the "soundies" that audiences enjoyed before the main features — which were sometimes still silent! You'll see the technology improve bit by bit if you watch them in chronological order, noting that by 1930 it was still awfully primitive.
This is also an amazing chronicle of the declining years of Vaudeville, with corny comics, serious actors and a lots of singing and dancing, some of it wonderfully weird. An amazing collection for history, stage and cinema buffs.
Extras: full frame, 60 shorts
"Merry Andrew" (Warner Archive, 1958, $19.95). This colorful musical is quite different from Kaye's earlier films, with more emphasis on story, less zany behavior and none of the usual patter songs from the pen of his wife, Sylvia Fine.
But it does have a very funny circus theme, catchy songs that suit Kaye's talent, and terrific, athletic dancing, courtesy of the film's director, Michael Kidd, a first-rate Broadway choreographer whose best-known Hollywood work is "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." ("Merry Andrew" is the only film Kidd would direct.)
Kaye plays an English schoolmaster at his family's private institution. He has a stern father and he's on track to marry a proper Englishwoman when he takes a summer holiday as an amateur archaeologist to search for a statue of Pan. But when he gets to the site, a circus has pitched its tents for the summer, leading to a number of comic encounters with the circus owner's daughter (Pier Angeli), which her athletic brothers misinterpret.
Funny stuff, with a wonderful supporting cast, highlighted by blustery Baccaloni as the head of the Italian circus family.
Extras: widescreen, trailer
"Rio Rita" (Warner Archive, 1942, b/w, $19.95). Bud Abbott & Lou Costello became huge movie stars in 1941 under contract to Universal, but they had a loan-out agreement to make three films for MGM, and this was the first (the others, "Lost in a Harem" and "Abbott and Costello in Hollywood" are available on a double-feature DVD that's been in general release for five years).
Based on a Broadway musical and previously filmed in 1929 with Wheeler & Woolsey (also available at Warner Archives), this adaptation was updated to include Nazi spies. But plot doesn't matter in an Abbott & Costello film. The boys were at the peak of their powers in 1942 and their routines here are very funny.
Extras: full frame, trailer
"Abbott & Costello Meet Captain Kidd" (Warner Archive, 1952, $19.95). A bit more juvenile than some of Abbott & Costello's films, this is a fairly opulent costume drama with Charles Laughton reprising the role he played in a drama seven years earlier — and he seems to be having the time of his life.
This film is one of two independent productions released by Warner Bros. (the other was "Jack and the Beanstalk"), which were also the boys' only color pictures. But the SuperCineColor process was a cheap one and it looks rather muddy here. And it doesn't help that the songs are lame. Strictly for fans.
Extras: full frame
"I Love Melvin" (Warner Archive, 1953, $19.95). Donald O'Connor is best known today for his sidekick role in "Singin' in the Rain" (and that amazing "Make 'Em Laugh" number), and perhaps for his sidekick role in the "Francis" (the talking mule) franchise. But as a very talented singer-dancer-comedian, he made a lot of second-tier musical comedies that have been unavailable to all but avid watchers of cable's Turner Classic Movies.
This one reteams O'Connor with "Singin' in the Rain's" Debbie Reynolds. He's a lowly photographer's assistant who tries to win Reynolds by promising her a cover shot on Look magazine, but, of course, he's bitten off more than he can chew.
Amusing fun, with songs that are sprightly, if not particularly memorable, lifted by the energy of the two stars and wonderful New York location footage in glorious Technicolor. (Watch for the dreamy cameo by Robert Taylor.)
Extras: full frame, musical outtake (with Reynolds), trailer
"Meet Me in Las Vegas" (Warner Archive, 1956, $19.95). This musical comedy has Dan Dailey discovering a gambling gimmick that helps him win — holding hands with his own version of Lady Luck, ballerina Cyd Charisse.. Hey, I'm there!
A delightful showcase for Charisse, who dances with all the star power she can muster, which is considerable. And this colorful romp was shot on location in and around the now departed Sands hotel — the venue favored by the Rat Pack (Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr.'s voice have cameos). Other star appearances include Debbie Reynolds, Lena Horne, Peter Lorre, Charisse's husband Tony Martin and more.
Extras: full frame, musical outtakes (including a song by Horne), trailer
EMAIL: hicks@desnews.com