Swing Parade of 1946

This Monogram flick from 1946 is more than just a Stooges flick,and is of considerable historical interest for lovers of pre-rock era pop music because it contains performances by Gale Storm, Phil Regan, Connee Boswell, and Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five.

Gale Storm shows what a capable singer she was well before her vocal talents were "discovered" by the Dot label during the run of her TV show in the 1950s. And one is reminded of what a great, unjustly neglected singer Connee Boswell was. Her brief performance of Stormy Weather at the picture's end has such vocal strength and authority that it is hard to believe she was confined to a wheelchair (discretely camouflaged in the musical numbers).

As to the rest of the picture, well yes, it basically does rely on The Stooges and Ed Brophy for the rest of its entertainment value. And you either like The Stooges or you don't...I happen to like them, so although this picture is no great shakes, I found it a pleasant time filler.

I had never seen this until it came out on DVD in 2007. It's an undiscovered piece of Three Stooges history. It's been out of print for ages, except on VHS.

The DVD company that this is re-released by make it sound like it is a movie 'starring The Three Stooges', but it's really not. Moe, Larry and Curly are co-stars with Gale Storm and Phil Regan. It's so cool to see Louis Jordan and his band! For those commenting here who say that this is a 'mediocre film', well....it's basically a typical 1940's musical comedy. Hollywood cranked out hundreds of musical comedies in the 1930's and 1940's and this was just another in the long line.

It's NOT mediocre, and if you're a Three Stooges fan like me I have a question for you. Do you like it? Cointenly! Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk.

ALSO: I have a huge beef with the DVD company though. Why must there be any old movies colorized in this day and age? They were made in black and white for a reason! At least this DVD gives you the option of watching the restored version in its original BLACK AND WHITE glory!

Give this one a chance. Plus it has extra bonus stuff on it, too!

In honor of Black History Month, I've been making comments on films that featured African-Americans. We're now in 1946 with Swing Parade of 1946. In this one, Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five perform "Don't Worry About the Mule" and "Caldonia" in segments that could easily be edited out by Southern theatres of the time without ruining the plot-what there is of one (which easily explains why he and his group are nowhere near the musical finale). Both performances bring a rollicking attitude that lifts the movie above the norm. The main reason I, and I'm sure many, would want to watch this movie today is because of The Three Stooges with Curly, especially, in fine form months before his stroke forced him to retire. The singing leads here are Phil Regan and Gale Storm. Ms. Storm displays some comic talents that served her well in her later TV shows, "My Little Margie" and "The Gale Storm Show". She also sings a wonderful rendition of "The Sunny Side of the Street" and "Oh, Brother". There's also Connee Boswell singing the third version of "Stormy Weather" I've heard this month (following Ivie Anderson and Lena Horne) that again takes my breath away. Ed Brophy provides perfect blustery segue from the plot to the Stooges as their boss "Moose". And Windy Cook provides some amusing impressions of boat motors and plane engines though the movie becomes a bit long by that point. And there's another player from my favorite movie, It's a Wonderful Life, here-Mary Treen who plays Marie Finch and does a nice duet with band leader Will Osborne on "A Tender Word Will Mend It All". No great shakes, but with the presence of the Stooges and Louis Jordan, Swing Parade of 1946 is definitely worth a look.

This is a pretty good movie, it's relatively short and it's got the Stooges, however they're more side characters in this film, but great side characters they were. The plot is also simple, a man opens up a nightclub, but his rich father objects and wants to shut it down so his son will take over the family business. He doesn't want to deliver the paper that will shut down the nightclub himself, so he offers a woman who had just visited the club looking for a job singing (she's just been evicted from her apartment) $50 to deliver it. She gets there and now she is offered a job, so she doesn't even mention the paper. The father sees her name in a newspaper so he heads off to the club himself. The Stooges make an appearance every now and then, and when they do, they steal the show. This movie wouldn't have been all that great without them, but they're in it, so check it out.

Astonishing mish mash from Monogram ...is that tautology? BUT this pic is an excuse for Monogram to show off a huge new nightclub set they decided to build. Interspersed with quite funny 3 Stooges-on-loan-scenes and demented dance and comedy numbers, it all ends up in an avalanche of borrowed costumes, amateur 17 year olds in tuxedos and a barrage of swing noise. Louis Jordan is , as usual wild and rude, and Gale Storm is lovely, and Phil Regan is as usual competent.... BUT the Embassy Club as opened in this effervescent calamity must have seemed the utopia of white trash kitsch....and that is for the viewer, not the characters. So awful it is wonderful, with characters not seen in reels 1/2/3 who suddenly appear in a HUGE musical number as major input, THE SWING PARADE OF 1946 is wonderfully awful. I loved every mad misguided minute of it all, and so should you.