For someone who takes movies as seriously as I do and has logged literally millions of miles of celluloid there's still an awful lot I've yet to see including musicals, one of my favorite genres and this was one of them yet barely five minutes in I realized that I had in fact seen it albeit via a remake with non-too-subtle changes. Consider the plot: We're spoon-fed the information that Gary Blake (Dick Powell) has written and will star in a new Revue 'On The Avenue' just about to open on Broadway and co-starring Mona Merrick (Alice Faye). Cut to opening night and after a number by Mona (He Ain't Got Rhythm) we segue into a sketch satirising 'the richest girl in the world' even as the subject of the sketch, Mimi Caraway (Madeleine Carroll) takes her seat in the orchestra along with her father, Commodore Caraway (George Barbier) and fiancé Frederick Sims, the well-known Arctic explorer (Alan Mowbray). Mimi, clearly based on Gloria Vanderbilt, is not too pleased about the satire any more than the Commodore and Sims but this doesn't prevent her falling for Gary before secretly buying the show and humiliating Gary. I don't know about you but I saw a movie about a millionaire who heard about a show IN REHEARSAL that satirised him; he went along incognito and fell for one of the actresses so he bought the show secretly and put himself forward as a look-alike of the real millionaire, thus securing a role which kept him close to the actress. So, if you've seen Let's Make Love starring Yves Montand and Marilyn Monroe then you've more or less seen On The Avenue but Let's Make Love had neither Alice Faye nor an Irving Berlin score and On The Avenue had to make do with Dick Powell instead of the great Yves Montand. Be that as it may Berlin contributed a fine score in which ironically singing joke Dick Powell, on loan from Warners, got to 'sing' what has become the best-known number, I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm - for good measure he was also allotted two further ballads, You're Laughing At Me (how right he was) and The Girl On The Police Gazette, whilst Alice Faye, the best singer by a mile, wound up with This Year's Kisses, Slumming On Park Avenue and He Ain't Got Rhythm. There was fine support from Cora Witherspoon, Billy Gilbert, an underused Joan Davis, and Sig Ruman and a good time was had by all, especially patrons. One for the collection.
Review of On the Avenue
