This fun one-reeler finds June Allyson appointed as mayor-for-a-day in a tongue-in-cheek look at how things would be if the reins of power were held by the fair sex. As is usually the case with Vitaphone shorts, things happen fast, and right off the bat June realizes there's work to be done, so she and her assistants get down to business to the bouncy We've Got to Make the City Pretty, followed by a trip down to the train station to meet Madame Beverly, the opera star, soon to be arriving on the Guest of Honor Special. At the station, we're treated to the upbeat Information, Please, performed by the harried information kiosk girl, and which is then used as the number for the film's impressive dance production. We then switch to Madame Beverly performing I Love to Sing a Long Note on the incoming train, and before you know it, it's howdy-do, welcome-to-the-city, and one more medley of the three numbers to wrap it all up. With songs by the Warners crack team of Saul Chaplin and Sammy Cahn, All Girl Revue is one short that fans of the genre shouldn't miss.
Reviews
3 Reviews
Story Conference
(1934)
Bright, fun short with eye-popping production numbers
21 March 2014
To say this short is fun is an understatement. Story Conference, in addition to being a vehicle for Broadway star Lillian Roth, treats us to a comic rendition of the ins and outs of getting a Vitaphone short off the ground -- all on short notice. Besides being a knowing and wry send-up of how Hollywood operates, Story Conference offers up a series of progressively lively numbers -- featuring the requisite pretty girls and buoyant dancing -- that culminates in one of the most truly inspired production numbers you're likely ever to see. With snappy songs by Warners ace songwriter Cliff Hess, Story Conference is not only of interest to Lillian Roth fans, but is itself another terrific entry in a long line of excellent musical/comedies from Vitaphone.
Picture Palace
(1934)
If you like Hal Le Roy, you'll love this.
13 August 2013
Couldn't disagree more with the other reviewers. This is a very fun short with good tunes and top-notch dancing -- just an all-around good time. But what's most interesting is Picture Palace, more than any other Hal Le Roy short, gives a glimpse of what his act on Broadway must have been like. His performance during the last number is worth the price of admission alone, as Hal seems completely in his element on a real, live stage. As for Dawn O'Day (not to be confused with Anne Shirley, who, as a child, also went by the name of Dawn O'Day), this is a rare opportunity to see her in action, as she appeared on-screen only a handful of times in her career. A real treat for fans of the genre.
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