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A tedious backstage comedy saved by Marie Dressler.
A still of Nita Martan, Bessie Love, and Charles King in Picture Play (June 1930)
Date of Release: Jan 10, 1930
Studio: MGM
Director: Charles F. Reisner
Screenplay: Wells Root, Bess Meredyth, Charles F. Reisner, Robert Hopkins, Kenyon Nicholson, Al Boasberg
Music: Milton Ager, Louis Alter, Sam Coslow, Joe Goodwin, Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting, Jack Yellen
Leading Actors: Bessie Love (Carlie), Charles King (Terry), Jack Benny (Eddie), George K. Arthur (Loster), Polly Moran (Polly), Gwen Lee (Peggy), Nita Martan (Daphne), Eddie Phillips (Cordova), Marie Dressler (Bonnie), Youcca Troubetzkoy (Lanning)
Studio: MGM
Director: Charles F. Reisner
Screenplay: Wells Root, Bess Meredyth, Charles F. Reisner, Robert Hopkins, Kenyon Nicholson, Al Boasberg
Music: Milton Ager, Louis Alter, Sam Coslow, Joe Goodwin, Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting, Jack Yellen
Leading Actors: Bessie Love (Carlie), Charles King (Terry), Jack Benny (Eddie), George K. Arthur (Loster), Polly Moran (Polly), Gwen Lee (Peggy), Nita Martan (Daphne), Eddie Phillips (Cordova), Marie Dressler (Bonnie), Youcca Troubetzkoy (Lanning)
The film was initially marketed as "The Road Show" (Picture Play, Feb 1930)
Aiming to capitalize on the success of The Broadway Melody, MGM paired Bessie Love and Charles King together again in yet another backstage comedy musical. Initially titled The Road Show, the studio wanted to release the film under the title Happy Days, using the title of one of its theme songs. Unfortunately, Fox already had a release on the way under the same title. MGM settled on Chasing Rainbows and the film was released at the beginning of 1930.
The film included several Technicolor production numbers, featuring Bessie Love and Charles King singing and dancing.
The film included several Technicolor production numbers, featuring Bessie Love and Charles King singing and dancing.
Advertising focused on the film's stars Bessie Love and played up the use of Technicolor (Motion Picture, May 1930)
Theatre managers engaged the usual publicity stunts to draw pundits. The Park Theatre Manager organized a tie-in with a local prom, which included a pot-o-pennies guessing competition, free tickets, and an orchestra performing songs from the film. Another theatre in Washington connected with a local dance school which offered “free instruction in a “Rainbow Tap” dance.”
Stars Bessie Love and Charles King were featured heavily in promotions. In San Francisco, free pictures of the actors were distributed with purchases of the films record, and in Albany the cinema window display featured life-size cardboard cut-outs.
The Palace Theatre in Torrington, Connecticut had a tie-in with a local newspaper where a photographer published photos taken around town, and anyone whose face appeared in the picture received a free ticket to the film.
Chasing Rainbows received lackluster reviews. Most critics dismissed the tedious plot, and lamented that the whole film was an inferior copy of The Broadway Melody. Mordaunt Hall of the New York Times wrote “It is so utterly nonsensical that it becomes tedious before it is half way over, and that in spite of some impressive Technicolor episodes.” Modern day viewer Jeff Cohen of Vitaphone Varieties called it a “dismal affair.”
The story follows Terry (Charles King) and Carlie (Bessie Love), a partner act in a touring musical revue “Last Days,” a musical comedy about the end of the war. Carlie is in love with Terry, doing all his chores for him and being his greatest support. Terry only has eyes for the show’s leading lady, a rotating cast of women who leave once they become sick of Terry’s depressive moods. Daphne (Nita Martan) is bought into star in the show. She is in love with Cordova (Eddie Phillips), and she only wants to use Terry to get to Broadway. The film bounces around the various love intrigues, with the supporting ensemble Bonnie (Marie Dressler), Polly (Polly Moran), and stage manager Eddie (Jack Benny) providing the much needed comic relief.
Warner Bros Archive have restored Chasing Rainbows and made it available on DVD.
Chasing Rainbows opens with the credits playing over footage of a speeding train. The opening number is the tail end of the finale of a show, “Happy Days.” The composition of the scene is great, and the music is fun and engaging.
Chasing Rainbows suffers from needing to explain actors breaking out into song. The first full song, “Poor but Honest,” sung by Marie Dressler, is performed on the train to entertain the company. The camera stays on Dressler in a tight mid-shot, and it is Dressler’s wonderful interpretation that keeps the audience riveted through the patter song.
“Lucky Me, Lovable You,” performed in rehearsal, is a sweet love song which moves into a light tap number performed by Bessie Love and Charles King. Following the dance break, the accompaniment shifts into a three-part harmony sung by three male members of the ensemble. It is a wonderful arrangement, showcasing the flexibility of the delightful tune.
“Do I Know What I’m Doing?” performed at the same rehearsal, is lackluster during Nita Martan’s verse, but gains energy when handed over to Marie Dressler and Polly Moran performing a comedic bit with a hot iron.
Charles King sings the inane ballad reprise of “Lucky Me, Loveable You,” as Terry tries to win back Carlie.
Stars Bessie Love and Charles King were featured heavily in promotions. In San Francisco, free pictures of the actors were distributed with purchases of the films record, and in Albany the cinema window display featured life-size cardboard cut-outs.
The Palace Theatre in Torrington, Connecticut had a tie-in with a local newspaper where a photographer published photos taken around town, and anyone whose face appeared in the picture received a free ticket to the film.
Chasing Rainbows received lackluster reviews. Most critics dismissed the tedious plot, and lamented that the whole film was an inferior copy of The Broadway Melody. Mordaunt Hall of the New York Times wrote “It is so utterly nonsensical that it becomes tedious before it is half way over, and that in spite of some impressive Technicolor episodes.” Modern day viewer Jeff Cohen of Vitaphone Varieties called it a “dismal affair.”
The story follows Terry (Charles King) and Carlie (Bessie Love), a partner act in a touring musical revue “Last Days,” a musical comedy about the end of the war. Carlie is in love with Terry, doing all his chores for him and being his greatest support. Terry only has eyes for the show’s leading lady, a rotating cast of women who leave once they become sick of Terry’s depressive moods. Daphne (Nita Martan) is bought into star in the show. She is in love with Cordova (Eddie Phillips), and she only wants to use Terry to get to Broadway. The film bounces around the various love intrigues, with the supporting ensemble Bonnie (Marie Dressler), Polly (Polly Moran), and stage manager Eddie (Jack Benny) providing the much needed comic relief.
Warner Bros Archive have restored Chasing Rainbows and made it available on DVD.
Chasing Rainbows opens with the credits playing over footage of a speeding train. The opening number is the tail end of the finale of a show, “Happy Days.” The composition of the scene is great, and the music is fun and engaging.
Chasing Rainbows suffers from needing to explain actors breaking out into song. The first full song, “Poor but Honest,” sung by Marie Dressler, is performed on the train to entertain the company. The camera stays on Dressler in a tight mid-shot, and it is Dressler’s wonderful interpretation that keeps the audience riveted through the patter song.
“Lucky Me, Lovable You,” performed in rehearsal, is a sweet love song which moves into a light tap number performed by Bessie Love and Charles King. Following the dance break, the accompaniment shifts into a three-part harmony sung by three male members of the ensemble. It is a wonderful arrangement, showcasing the flexibility of the delightful tune.
“Do I Know What I’m Doing?” performed at the same rehearsal, is lackluster during Nita Martan’s verse, but gains energy when handed over to Marie Dressler and Polly Moran performing a comedic bit with a hot iron.
Charles King sings the inane ballad reprise of “Lucky Me, Loveable You,” as Terry tries to win back Carlie.
A tantalizing still from the Warner Bros Archive dvd
While the opening number provides promise of high quality production numbers, the footage of the Technicolor numbers has been lost. Warner Bros have attempted to fill in the gaps with stills and segments of the music.
While the existing musical numbers are outstanding, the script and dialogue are tedious. The hour and a half running time (even without the missing production numbers), feels like an eternity.
The awful script is is surprising given the later prominence of the scriptwriting team. After starting out as a newspaper writer and editor, Wells Root went on to become a prominent screen writer and educator. He was a founding member of the Screen Writers Guild, and wrote for film and television. In addition to teaching at UCLA for over thirty years, Root published the highly popular and successful handbook Writing the Script.
Also known as Helen MacGlashan, Bess Meredyth, was born into a theatrical family. During the silent era, Meredyth worked extensively as a director, writer, and actor and was highly regarded in the industry for ability to create a high level of work under pressure. A fascinating biography can be found at the Women Film Pioneers Project.
Robert E. Hopkins started out as a title writer, and went onto to write over 50 scripts in a career spanning almost 25 years. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Story) for San Francisco (1936). He also contributed to The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
Kenyon Nicholson was a novelist and playwright. He wrote over 20 screenplays, and nearly as many Broadway plays.
Scriptwriter Al Boasberg would go on to become a highly influential comedic writer, script doctor and director. He also wrote So This is College (1929), and contributed to The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
The performances by the cast are admirable given the material. Charles King is utterly detestable as the leading man who falls in and out of love with his leading ladies.
Bessie Love, whom the New York Times declared "is worthy of a far better vehicle," is immensely watchable as Terry's ever-suffering act partner. It is frustrating to watch her moon over the awful man that is Terry.
Jack Benny, appearing in his first feature film, is delightful as the stage manager Eddie. He started out in vaudeville as a violinist, and went on to become a prominent entertainment personality and comedian, working in film, radio, and television. His television show, The Jack Benny Show, ran for over fifteen years.
The saving grace of Chasing Rainbows is Marie Dressler. Dressler appeared in the The Vagabond Lover and was my favorite supporting actor of 1929. She received universal praise for her performance in Chasing Rainbows. Early on in the film Dressler states, “I’m getting too good for musical comedy.” It's unfortunately true. She steals every scene with her contorting facial expressions, dry delivery, and outstanding comic timing.
Close behind Dressler is another great comedienne, Polly Moran. Moran was a successful internationally touring vaudeville artist. She appeared in the 1929 musicals So This is College and Hot for Paris.
Dressler and Moran are a fantastic duo. It is refreshing to watch entire minutes of two hilarious women hamming it up, and not once pining after a man or needing to be the object of a man’s affections. More like this please!
Despite the critical reviews and awful script, Chasing Rainbows proved a draw and performed very well at the box office, occasionally breaking box office records.
Here’s hoping archivists continue to chase the Technicolor rainbow to restore the rest of the production numbers to give us something more interesting to watch.
While the existing musical numbers are outstanding, the script and dialogue are tedious. The hour and a half running time (even without the missing production numbers), feels like an eternity.
The awful script is is surprising given the later prominence of the scriptwriting team. After starting out as a newspaper writer and editor, Wells Root went on to become a prominent screen writer and educator. He was a founding member of the Screen Writers Guild, and wrote for film and television. In addition to teaching at UCLA for over thirty years, Root published the highly popular and successful handbook Writing the Script.
Also known as Helen MacGlashan, Bess Meredyth, was born into a theatrical family. During the silent era, Meredyth worked extensively as a director, writer, and actor and was highly regarded in the industry for ability to create a high level of work under pressure. A fascinating biography can be found at the Women Film Pioneers Project.
Robert E. Hopkins started out as a title writer, and went onto to write over 50 scripts in a career spanning almost 25 years. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing (Original Story) for San Francisco (1936). He also contributed to The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
Kenyon Nicholson was a novelist and playwright. He wrote over 20 screenplays, and nearly as many Broadway plays.
Scriptwriter Al Boasberg would go on to become a highly influential comedic writer, script doctor and director. He also wrote So This is College (1929), and contributed to The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
The performances by the cast are admirable given the material. Charles King is utterly detestable as the leading man who falls in and out of love with his leading ladies.
Bessie Love, whom the New York Times declared "is worthy of a far better vehicle," is immensely watchable as Terry's ever-suffering act partner. It is frustrating to watch her moon over the awful man that is Terry.
Jack Benny, appearing in his first feature film, is delightful as the stage manager Eddie. He started out in vaudeville as a violinist, and went on to become a prominent entertainment personality and comedian, working in film, radio, and television. His television show, The Jack Benny Show, ran for over fifteen years.
The saving grace of Chasing Rainbows is Marie Dressler. Dressler appeared in the The Vagabond Lover and was my favorite supporting actor of 1929. She received universal praise for her performance in Chasing Rainbows. Early on in the film Dressler states, “I’m getting too good for musical comedy.” It's unfortunately true. She steals every scene with her contorting facial expressions, dry delivery, and outstanding comic timing.
Close behind Dressler is another great comedienne, Polly Moran. Moran was a successful internationally touring vaudeville artist. She appeared in the 1929 musicals So This is College and Hot for Paris.
Dressler and Moran are a fantastic duo. It is refreshing to watch entire minutes of two hilarious women hamming it up, and not once pining after a man or needing to be the object of a man’s affections. More like this please!
Despite the critical reviews and awful script, Chasing Rainbows proved a draw and performed very well at the box office, occasionally breaking box office records.
Here’s hoping archivists continue to chase the Technicolor rainbow to restore the rest of the production numbers to give us something more interesting to watch.
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