I decided to see "Manhattan Merry-Go-Round" simply because of the celebrity cameos...Gene Autry, Joe DiMaggio, Cab Calloway, Louis Prima, Smiley Burnette as well as Tex Terhune. This is an odd group of celebrities, that's for sure.
When the story begins, the mobster Tony Gordoni (Leo Carrillo) takes over a local radio station. And now that he's in charge, he wants to make huge changes...bringing in all sorts of talent. One is an up and coming singer, Jerry (Phil Regan) and he just happens to be in love with Gordoni's secretary, Ann (Ann Dvorak). But soon Gordoni insists that they sign a world famous opera singer...and Jerry MUST woo her in order to get her to cooperate. Ann is naturally upset...as he is her boyfriend and they were supposed to get married the night Jerry went to see this opera singer. But Jerry had no choice....as his boss and his 'friends' threatened to kill him or Ann if he didn't get that lady to make a record for them. Unfortunately, soon this singer has fallen for Jerry...and Ann hates him.
Overall, this is pretty typical of quite a few radio review shows of the era...with a mobster angle! It's entertaining, though as years pass and less and less folks remember these singing stars, how much they'll enjoy this is bound to be impacted. Worth seeing but relatively mindless entertainment.
By the way, it is interesting to see in a brief scene that Gordoni has a new television. Yes, they were available in very small numbers in the late 1930s, though very little programming was available until after WWII. Until about 1947, television was a novelty...but just a novelty.
When the story begins, the mobster Tony Gordoni (Leo Carrillo) takes over a local radio station. And now that he's in charge, he wants to make huge changes...bringing in all sorts of talent. One is an up and coming singer, Jerry (Phil Regan) and he just happens to be in love with Gordoni's secretary, Ann (Ann Dvorak). But soon Gordoni insists that they sign a world famous opera singer...and Jerry MUST woo her in order to get her to cooperate. Ann is naturally upset...as he is her boyfriend and they were supposed to get married the night Jerry went to see this opera singer. But Jerry had no choice....as his boss and his 'friends' threatened to kill him or Ann if he didn't get that lady to make a record for them. Unfortunately, soon this singer has fallen for Jerry...and Ann hates him.
Overall, this is pretty typical of quite a few radio review shows of the era...with a mobster angle! It's entertaining, though as years pass and less and less folks remember these singing stars, how much they'll enjoy this is bound to be impacted. Worth seeing but relatively mindless entertainment.
By the way, it is interesting to see in a brief scene that Gordoni has a new television. Yes, they were available in very small numbers in the late 1930s, though very little programming was available until after WWII. Until about 1947, television was a novelty...but just a novelty.