Melody Lane

Well, here is one of the innumerable six-reelers produced by Universal in the early 1940's. The threadbare story - about a swing band being brought to New York to play on a radio program - serves as the framework for 1. a collection of very nice tunes, none of which, surprisingly, were published; 2. an opportunity for Leon Errol to do his famous drunk pantomime; 3. yet another chance for audiences to smile back at cutie-pie Baby Sandy. Judge for yourself if this last attribute is, indeed, a virtue. Pint-sized Universal stock players Butch and Buddy get off a few laughs, though some of their musical footage was trimmed - at least based on the surviving music tracks. Bob Paige and Anne Gwynne make a great couple and Paige is in very fine voice. But it's the Merry Macs who steal the show with a basket of tunes, most notably "Cariacabu" - a rhythmic ditty that never saw a studio cover. It is doubtful that this one will show up any time soon on cable or DVD. Some of us keep these bupkies alive via our 16mm collections. Are we crazy? Maybe. But our toes are tapping!