When a murder is committed at Phwitterby-on-Thames, Franklin Pangborn (Dr. Watkins) summons Charles Judels (Philo Holmes) from a bevy of chorus girls to find the evil-doer, with much singing, dancing, two-strip Technicolor and recitiative.
When you're dealing with MGM musical shorts in this period, you're dealing with pretty much lunatic film-making, and this is a fine example of the sort of abstract burlesque you were likely to get, with lots of contemporary references and over-the-top production values. MGM looked upon their shorts department as a place for trying out trainees, and the more outrageous the production, the makers thought, the more likely they would be to be promoted.
The writer-director of this short, Felix Feist, was of this frame of mind. Born in 1910, he came to MGM doing uncredited writing on RED-HEADED WOMAN, directed shorts, and moved into MGM programmers. He closed out his career directing TV shows like VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA and producing TV's PEYTON PLACE. He died in 1965.
When you're dealing with MGM musical shorts in this period, you're dealing with pretty much lunatic film-making, and this is a fine example of the sort of abstract burlesque you were likely to get, with lots of contemporary references and over-the-top production values. MGM looked upon their shorts department as a place for trying out trainees, and the more outrageous the production, the makers thought, the more likely they would be to be promoted.
The writer-director of this short, Felix Feist, was of this frame of mind. Born in 1910, he came to MGM doing uncredited writing on RED-HEADED WOMAN, directed shorts, and moved into MGM programmers. He closed out his career directing TV shows like VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA and producing TV's PEYTON PLACE. He died in 1965.