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poster of King of Jazz
Rating: 6.2/10 by 35 users

King of Jazz (1930)

Made during the early years of the movie musical, this exuberant revue was one of the most extravagant, eclectic, and technically ambitious Hollywood productions of its day. Starring the bandleader Paul Whiteman, then widely celebrated as the King of Jazz, the film drew from Broadway variety shows to present a spectacular array of sketches, performances by such acts as the Rhythm Boys (featuring a young Bing Crosby), and orchestral numbers—all lavishly staged by veteran theater director John Murray Anderson.

Directing:
  • Robert Ross
  • John Murray Anderson
Writing:
  • Edward T. Lowe Jr.
  • Harry Ruskin
Stars:
Release Date: Sun, Apr 20, 1930

Rating: 6.2/10 by 35 users

Alternative Title:
O Rei do Jazz - BR

Country:
United States of America
Language:
English
Runtime: 01 hour 38 minutes
Budget: $2,000,000
Revenue: $0

Plot Keyword: dance, sketch comedy, pre-code, big band

Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman
John Boles
Vocalist ('Song of the Dawn' / 'It Happened in Monterey')
Laura La Plante
Editor ('Ladies of the Press') / Stenographer ('In Conference') / Quartet Member, 'Nellie'
Jeanette Loff
Vocalist ('It Happened in Monterey' / 'Bridal Veil' / 'A Bench in the Park')
Glenn Tryon
Executive ('In Conference') / Unmarried Husband
William Kent
General ('All Noisy on the Eastern Front') / Goldfish Owner ('Oh! Forevermore!') / Unmarried Couple's Offspring / Vocal ('Do Things For You')
Slim Summerville
Automobile Owner ('Springtime') / Rear End of Horse / Charles
Kathryn Crawford
Fourth Reporter ('Ladies of the Press')
Carla Laemmle
Chorine (as Beth Laemmle)
Stanley Smith
Bridegroom ('Bridal Veil' / 'A Bench in the Park')
Charles Irwin
Himself, Announcer / Soldier ('All Noisy on the Eastern Front')
George Chiles
Dancer ('It Happened in Monterey' / Vocalist 'A Bench in the Park' / 'Ragamuffin Romeo')
Jack White
Jack White
Frank Leslie
Quartet Lead Singer ('Nellie')
Walter Brennan
Desk Sergeant ('Springtime') / Soldier ('All Noisy on the Eastern Front') / Waiter ('Oh! Forevermore!') / Front End of Horse / Quartet Member ('Nellie')
Churchill Ross
Quartet Member ('Nellie')
John Arledge
First Pianist at Giant Piano ('Rhapsody in Blue') / Quartet Member ('Nellie') (as Johnson Arledge)
Al Norman
Rubber Legs Dancer ('Happy Feet')
Jacques Cartier
Voodoo Dancer ("Rhapsody in Blue")
Marion Stattler
Specialty Dancer 'Ragamuffin Romeo' / 'Melting Pot'
Don Rose
Specialty Dancer 'Ragamuffin Romeo'
Bobbe Brox
Bobbe (as The Brox Sisters)
Patricia Brox
Kathlyn (as The Brox Sisters)
Lorayne Brox
Lorraine (as The Brox Sisters)
Bing Crosby
Trio Singer (as The Rhythm Boys)
Yola d'Avril
Automobile Owner's Wife ("Springtime") / Marie ("All Noisy on the Eastern Front") (uncredited)
Marcia Mae Jones
Child ('Bridal Veil') (uncredited)
Bela Lugosi
Emcee - Hungarian Version
Joan Marsh
Blonde ("A Bench in the Park") (uncredited)

CinemaSerf

The title of this film is a touch misleading. I was expecting much more of a jazz-based musical revue but instead got pretty much a whole gamut of colourful and precisely staged repertoire. Paul Whiteman and his accomplished orchestra provide the conduit, as it were, as a variety of performers sing, dance and make us laugh (or cringe) for the next hundred minutes. There's a bit of Bing Crosby's first screen appearance with the "Rhythm Boys" doing a lively version of "Happy Feet" and probably my favourite staging of George Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" - featuring an orchestra within the belly of the grandest of pianos. What this illustrates really effectively is the huge variety of musical skills that audiences in 1930 could expect to see, and at just how versatile the orchestra was when it came to playing themes from just about every genre. Whoever thought about playing some patriotic Souza on a bicycle pump? It looks great and it sounds good but for me, not being an American, too many of the acts - especially the comedy - didn't really travel. The production itself, though probably impractical to deliver, needed a live audience to breathe some life into it. The skills there are superb, but the whole thing is just a bit sterile and lifeless. As an history of what engaged the American people in the 1920s, this in still an interesting piece of entertainment nostalgia, though - and it is worth a watch.


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