Well, I suppose as time continues its inevitable march through December and towards Christmas, Cinema Sunday should turn the camera lens towards a holiday movie.
So here we go!
From 1954, it's White Christmas.
If you're thinking, "Hey, this movie must be where that song comes from", well, no. The Irving Berlin composed Christmas classic was first performed by Bing Crosby in the 1942 film Holiday Inn.
Apparently someone liked "White Christmas" enough to ask for an entire movie to be written around it. It took 12 years to make it happen.
It seems the story was a tough nut to crack as different screenwriters drove the screenplay around the block a few times to find something that would work for a couple of hours of movie time.
And then there was the matter of locking down a co-star for Bing Crosby. The original idea was that Fred Astaire, Bing's co-star from Holiday Inn, would return for the gig. Fred said no so the job went to Donald O'Connor. Who then dropped out.
Finally the producers went with Danny Kaye for Bing's co-star.
Was Bing a bitch to work for or something?
Anyway, the movie White Christmas begins in 1944 during World War II and famous crooner Bob Wallace (Crosby) is in the army now as a Captain and is entertaining his fellow soldiers on Christmas Eve with some seasonal songs including "White Christmas".
The holiday show is also a send off for Major General Waverly, the troop's outgoing commander, a tough but fair sort of dude beloved by all the men.
Then it's WAR! Enemy bombers start bombing and Private Phil Davis (Kaye) saves Wallace from a falling wall while getting injured himself. Davis is a bit of a singer/songwriter himself and plays the "hey I got hurt saving your life" card, to worm his way into Wallace's act.
But it's a good thing as after the war is over the duo of Wallace & Davis become a sensation, sellout venues wherever they perform and success as performers turns them into producers of a hit musical called "Playing Around".
Right before taking a break for Christmas in New York City, Bob & Phil as producers check out Betty and Judy, the singing Haynes Sisters at a Florida nightclub.
Betty and June are heading to their next gig, performing a ski lodge in Vermont and somehow Bob & Phil get pulled away from NYC and joining the gals in Vermont.
Well, at least they can enjoy some clear Vermont air and the beautiful Christmas time snow.
Except their ain't no snow. And the ski lodge is back on it's heels with no snow and no paying customers. Which is bad news for the now retired General Waverly who owns the joint.
Well, the owner of the ski lodge is Bob & Phil's old war time commander. Ain't that a coinky-dink!
Well, Bob & Phil can't let Betty & Judy be out of work and they can't let Waverly lose the lodge. So they endeavor to save everything the only way entertainers know how!
Hey kids! Let's put on a show!
Bob & Phil call everybody in from their Christmas break to come up to Vermont and put on a kick ass production of "Playing Around".
And the call goes out to the men of Waverly's former command to come out and support the old man one more time.
Well, it's Christmas Eve! Who has anything better to do?
Things don't always go according to plan. There's a misunderstanding between Bob & Betty which would be resolved in 2 minutes if people would just frickin' talk to each other but hey, we gotta 2 hour movie to fill.
Long story made short and we cut to the end, the big show is performed, the lodge is save, Waverly feels better about life and damned if it doesn't to start to finally snow in Vermont on Christmas Eve.
Should we sing "White Christmas" one more time?
Oh hell yeah!
We sing "White Christmas" one more time!
OK, White Christmas does what you expect it to do, providing Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye and the rest of the cast excuses to sing and dance.
The plot, such as it is, is a rickety construction of coincidences and contrivances that just fall apart if you think about them too hard so don't think about them too hard.
White Christmas certainly looks good. It was the first film to be released in VistaVision, a widescreen process developed by Paramount that entailed using twice the surface area of standard 35mm film. This translates into "the movie looks pretty."
The "It's That Person Who Was In That Thing" Dept.
Vera-Ellen as Judy Haynes was in On the Town (1949) with Gene Kelly which posted about here in September. Side note on Vera-Ellen: her singing voice was dubbed by another singer. Rosemary Clooney as sister Betty did her own crooning.
Mary Wickes as Emma Allen, the nosy housekeeper at the ski lodge seemed very familiar to me from something. Finally, I figured it out. Wickes was in M*A*S*H as Colonel Reese in the episode "House Arrest" in 1975.
White Christmas is a light confection of a movie, a old fashioned movie musical with no intention of making you think but every intention of evoking a classic "let's put on a show" vibe and give Bing Crosby an excuse to sing "White Christmas" not once but twice.
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