Customer Reviews

The Big Broadcast of 1938 / College Swing Double Feature

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This DVD contains two typically wild 1930's Paramount comedies showcasing the studios best contract comedians -- W.C. Fields, Burns and Allen, Martha Raye, and, of course, Bob Hope. "Big Broadcast of 1938" is his film debut, and when he sings "Thanks for the Memories" with Shirley Ross, you have to remind yourself this is the first time that song was ever performed! Unfortunately, some of the specialty acts in this film really drag things down and make you wonder who could ever have considered this sort of thing entertainment. But W. C. Fields and Martha Raye provide lots of laughs when they're on screen, so all in all, it's a nice presentation. "College Swing" is more of a Gracie Allen vehicle, with Bob in only a few scenes, though he does a nice duet with Martha Raye at one point. It's all very silly, but the character actors and comedians make it enjoyable. Transfer is superb on both films. There's a trailer for College Swing, but not for Broadsast -- maybe it's lost. Now, if Universal would release some of Jack Benny's films or Bing Crosby's early work on DVD -- I'd really be happy!

This is a terrific buy with two classic comedies on one CD. If you love Burns and Allen like I do, you'll go for 'College Swing'. It is a reminder of why Martha Raye was so popular in that era--she's a bombshell of singing, dancing, and comedic talent. They made her up ugly, plus you don't get to see much of her famous legs. In the song, "How'd You Like to Love Me", there's a large bandage visible on the front of one of her legs, I've always wondered what happened--possibly walking through the glass at the end of the scene? For those of us who came along at the end of Hope's career, this is an interesting view into why he was so appealing in his younger years. Betty Grable does some fantastic dancing, Ben Blue as Professor Volt can dance like nobody's business, and the whole movie is an insight into the escapism so popular during the Depression. 'Big Broadcast' is an okay movie, highly incredible. How is an ocean liner going to go 100 miles per hour because of propellors on the deck? Anyway, the ship is Art Deco heaven, giving an excuse for the set designers to go wild. Hope's theme song came out in this movie, women had plucked eyebrows and outrageous hats, and Martha Raye is back showing her best. All in all, buy this set, it's great for spirit-lifting on a dreary day!

This double feature contains two of Bob Hope's early movies. He was not the star in either film but a featured role in both. Both are typical musical revues of the early age of Hollywood musicals, little story songs to service the performers and not the story. This is very similar to Broadway musicals of the 20's and 30' but with a little more vaudeville in them.

College Swing finds Gracie Allen is the last of her line of nitwit women. If she cannot pass her college exam, the college reverts from her family to the city. Bob is a con artist who figures out how to make her pass. In return she is to put him in charge of the college. George Burns and Edward Everett Horton are the head of the board of trustees and are confirmed bachelors. But it's not George that Gracie winds up with. This is all set to swing music.

The Big Broadcast of 1938 would be totally forgotten if it did not introduce Bob Hope's theme song Thanks for the Memory. Bob is a radio host who has a penchant for gambling and ex-wives. He is to host a radio broadcast aboard a new radio wave powered ship that is racing the ship that holds the current crossing record. W.C. Fields is the named star of the film as the twin brother of the owner of the new ship who has a bad luck curse. The ship makes a detour to rescue the passengers of a sinking boat which includes Fields' like wise cursed daughter, Martha Raye. Also on board is Bob's three ex-wives and his current flame, Dorothy Lamour - yes, they didn't meet on the road. The film has plenty of irrelevant splashy musical numbers. But it is Bob and Shirley Ross' rendition of Thanks for the Memories that is the high moment in the film.

The best thing about these two films is Martha Raye. She shines in both films and shows her talents. Too bad Hollywood never found a place for her. But these two films and her great performance in Chaplin's Monsieur Verdoux make a great tribute to her.

This DVD is a must have if you are one of the following:
*A Bob Hope fan
*A Martha Raye fan
*Someone with an interest in early Hollywood musicals

DVD EXTRAS: None

For those interested in the quality of the sound and picture and if it is an original, unaltered release rest assured this one is. Fantastic sound and picture quality with no alteration. A genuine pleasure to watch and own.

College Swing is a wacky zany Gracie Allen film. It has some cute musical numbers (including one where Gracie sings to Edward Everett Horton and a classic duet with Martha Raye and Bob Hope). The story doesn't matter. It's just fun to see all these big stars--Hope, Burns and Allen, Horton, Martha Raye, and Betty Grable, together. The dance scene with Ben Blue and Martha Raye is a riot too.

I was a little disappoined with The Big Broadcast of 1938. The only really funny bits in the film are the W.C. Fields scenes. Ben Blue comes off as annoying in this film and Hope just doesn't seem to have a chance to show off his talents. There are some musical numbers that seem to make things drag. Overall, it looks like a very hastily put-together mish-mash of unrelated scenes.

The W.C. Fields golf scene is one of the funniest I've ever seen.

When The Big Broadcast of 1938 was made Dorthy Lamour was actually a bigger star than Bob Hope...She recommended him for the part and insisted that he be the one to sing Thanks For The Memory..It was the beginning of a glorious life time friendship.....

The Big Broadcast of 1938 was the final entry in the Big Broadcast film series. Although Bob Hope only got fifth billing in the opening credits (W.C. Fields had star billing above the movie title), this musical comedy is a landmark film because it boasts Old Ski-Nose's debut in full length features. The flimsy plot involves an ocean liner race between the SS Gigantic and the SS Colossal, but that storyline serves merely as a staging area for the stale vaudevillian routines, the throwaway gags, the mostly forgettable songs, the dull specialty numbers, and one dubious cartoon sequence. Already with Fields and Hope's famous schnozzes on board, this movie only needed Jimmy Durante in it to achieve some kind of nasal trifecta. But, you know what? The routines and songs may be old and creaky, but this musical still has enough charm and the funny in it to be worth a look.

W.C. Fields may have headlined, but his star power does not overwhelm here. It's Bob Hope who carries this movie - as much as an ensemble cast member can carry a movie. As radio broadcaster Buzz Fielding, Hope tries to put on a radio show while contending with three ex-wives and his new girl, Dorothy (Dorothy Lamour), who is on the verge of straying with the hunky inventor. This film offers other romantic entanglements, but the subplot that tugs best at the heartstrings is Buzz's amiable relationship with ex-wife Cleo (winsomely played by Shirley Ross). It's pretty obvious that sparks still may fly between the two. Hope and Ross have great chemistry together, and they make a fun couple as they joust verbally. The highlight of the film comes an hour into it when Buzz and Cleo reminisce at a bar and segue smoothly into a riveting, bittersweet rendition of "Thanks for the Memories." This number was carried out by Hope and Ross with conversational, off-the-cuff flair that was still very personal and emotional. Apparently, Damon Runyon was so taken with the performance of that song that he chose to review only that portion of the film. And, while I don't consider it to be a showstopper, Dorothy Lamour does sweetly croon "You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth."

W.C. Fields had little moments here and there, most notably in the outrageous golf and pool sequences (hey, the man cheats!). Throughout the movie, he resorts to his patented mumbled insults and putdowns, although one lady does get one back when she impertinently asks, "Is that a tomato he's eating? Or is that his nose?" But I had a bigger chuckle over Martha Raye's bit where she raucously sings, "Oh, Mama," whilst being tossed and flipped around by sailors.

Other negligible subplots revolve around a $50,000 bet, a bad luck daughter who cracks any mirror she gazes at, and an inventor unable to make his invention function. But all that is fluff. This film is mindless spools of fun that would otherwise be relegated to the back closets of Hollywood if not for its two saving graces: the debut of Hope as a feature film player and the introduction of his signature song "Thanks for the Memories." On a lesser note, this is also the first time Hope teams up on-screen with Martha Raye and, more importantly, with Dorothy Lamour. For those things, The Big Broadcast of 1938 becomes a key cinematic event.

Lastly, for those interested, the SS Gigantic wins the race. Sorry for the spoiler.

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The second offering in this Bob Hope tribute collection dvd is College Swing. In his second feature film, Bob Hope inches up in the world, as this time, he receives fourth billing in the credits, one name up from his debut movie. The plot is silly and has to do with a wager placed in 1738 between Gracie Alden's ancestor and the college head. The wager is if, in 200 years, no descendant of the grandfather's graduates, then all his fortunes will go to the college. If someone passes, the college will be ceded to the Alden family. So, now, cut to 1938, 200 years later, where dimbulb Gracie Alden (Allen), after 9 years of attending college, has one last shot at passing the exam. Bob Hope's sly character gets himself contracted to tutor Gracie in exchange for money and other benefits. Gracie passes the exam with flying colors, inherits the university, and begins to make sweeping changes, some of which are fairly dubious.

Huh. That film synopsis took longer than it really should have. Basically, this film boils down to swing music and college silliness. College Swing stars Gracie Allen, who shows off more of her goofy, addled humor. I swear some of that woman's hare-brained comments would make Yogi Berra wince. The film also features her husband/straight man George Burns, a blithely dancing Betty Grable, a brassy Martha Raye, a discombobulated Edward Everett Horton, and, of course, Bob Hope.

College Swing offers up the energetic film title number, which showcases cute Betty Grable, and an amusing duet by Hope and Raye, "How'd You Like to Love Me?" Also mildly entertaining is the opening scene set in a 1738 school as the students stuffily sing a school psalm, only to have a student turn it to scat. An outraged elder asks him, "What is thy name?" - to which the lad replies, "Benny Goodman." College Swing is not a movie I would have purchased by itself, but as the second feature in this package, it'll do.

The Big Broadcast of 1938 is a blast! Bob Hope's first film in which he plays a cruise ships' entertainment director with W.C. Fields as a ship's Captain. The first ever premier of Bob Hope's theme song "Thanks for the Memory".

There's no doubt that the NY film critic got it right when this film came to theaters in 1938/39, as he stated that the Big Broadcast of 1938 was stolen by the musical duet of Bob Hope and Shirley Ross singing "Thanks for the Memory." These two have a great chemistry when together in this film, but unfortunately we don't see enough of them. This may be why we see them teamed up again in a film called "Thanks for the Memory" which has yet to come to DVD, sadly. If you find it on VHS, it's a great movie. See it. The Big Broadcast of 1938 is entertaining but is not among my favorite comedies. WC Fields turned in a decent performance, and Martha Rae was funny also. But there are times that the film seems to lack direction as they seem to have trouble squeezing in all these people to a good amount of face time. But the song "Thanks for the Memory" in it's original format is still worth the price of admission to this film.
The other film in the set is College Swing. This film is well-written, plenty of jokes and funny scenes. It's not a truly great or classic comedy, but it's cool to see Gracie Allen get top billing, and the others including Hope and Rae are very good.

These films, while packaged as Bob Hope vehicles, are typical all star musical comedy programmers from Paramount, populated by numerous performers of which Hope is but one. These were his first 2 feature films, both released in 1938, although Hope had appeared in shorts for some years. Both are screwy and absurd in the Paramount fashion and accordingly good fun.

"College Swing" showcases Gracie Allan doing her thing as a student who inherits a college from which she is unable to graduate. She is paired delightfully with Edward Everett Horton but Martha Raye, as a French Professor of Love, steals the show, partcularly in a funny number with Hope "Howdya like to love me"? Raye also pairs with Ben Blue for "What a Rhumba does for Romance" which is catchy with some very witty lyrics.

"The Big Broadcast" stars an obnoxious W C Fields in an absurd story of 2 ocean liners racing each other across the Atlantic. Fields is unsympathetic and accordingly not very funny. His golf routine is amusing. The famous highlight of the film is Hope's song with the charming and easygoing Shirley Ross "Thanks for the Memory". The film also benefits from some stylish camera angles and deco set design, typical of the director Mitchell Liesen.

Among the extensive casts, look also for some famous stars before their peak - a perky and spirited Betty Grable as a co-ed, handsome John Payne as the male ingenue and Robert Cummings as a radio announcer in "College Swing" and an insipid Dorothy Lamour in "Broadcast" long before she developed any sense of self parody which became her attractive trademark.

The prints are unrestored and reasonably clean. The photography in both elevates the films above their routine status. The DVD extras are minor except for a few liner notes about each of the films and a trailer for "College Swing".