The Singing Marine is really a way to exploit Dick Powell's wonderful tenor voice, and it does well at doing so. Powell's singing could win over any woman which is perhaps the reason no other well-known stars are in the cast.
The film is about a marine from Arkansas whose shy demeanor melts away when he sings. He wins over a fellow singer (Doris Weston) and is convinced by his friends to enter an amateur contest in New York. When he goes, he become a sensation and is signed as "The Singing Marine." In a very short time he makes tens of thousands of dollars but has to manage his singing career alongside his career in the military.
Busby Berkeley directed the musical sequences in this film, but aside from a couple of beautiful girls, one probably wouldn't guess that he was involved. The numbers are more general in their presentation, but they are still fun. Powell's simple "Cause My Baby Says Its So" doesn't get much staging, but the other songs include elaborate tap routines and set changes.
The film is about a marine from Arkansas whose shy demeanor melts away when he sings. He wins over a fellow singer (Doris Weston) and is convinced by his friends to enter an amateur contest in New York. When he goes, he become a sensation and is signed as "The Singing Marine." In a very short time he makes tens of thousands of dollars but has to manage his singing career alongside his career in the military.
Busby Berkeley directed the musical sequences in this film, but aside from a couple of beautiful girls, one probably wouldn't guess that he was involved. The numbers are more general in their presentation, but they are still fun. Powell's simple "Cause My Baby Says Its So" doesn't get much staging, but the other songs include elaborate tap routines and set changes.