Swing Parade of 1946

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.

"Swing Parade of 1946" is a most unusual film for two reasons. First, because it was made by tiny Monogram Studios, I was surprised to see them take a stab at a traditional 1940s sort of musical extravaganza....the sort of movie usually made by the more prestigious studiots with more talent. Second, the Three Stooges were apparently slumming it and instead of being with their usual studio (Columbia), they were loaned out to Monogram. I wonder if perhaps Columbia was punishing them...though I must admit they did help the movie quite a bit.

The plot involves the son of a rich man trying to build a nightclub while process servers sent by his father are trying to stop him. Mostly, however, the plot is ultra-thin and the movie actually is a giant musical showcase with one song after another after another--occasionally punctuated by funny bits by the Stooges or some plot...but mostly just singing. As far as the singing and dancing go, it's all quite competent but none of it is memorable and the songs (aside from those done by the African-American band) were poor. I think a lot of it was because unlike the major studios, Monogram simply couldn't afford to pay for the rights for popular tunes.

Overall, a dullish sort of musical extravaganza made tolerable by some Stooges. While I am not a big fan of the trio, here they definitely helped.

the stooges take a small departure from their usual high powered rough house antics and the change will not detract 99% of Stooges fans...I looked that up!

good screenplay, smoothly directed...with great musical spots, talking about Louis Jordan and Gail Storm.

something about a struggling club run by a rich man's kid...Dad wants the whole enterprise to fail to teach his Son a lesson. but the very cute Gail swings in (she's the recently hired bearer of bad news) and the kid is gaga.

the stooges are the enforcers > they will cause as many impediments as possible to block the foreclosure, as they can...with an emphasis on keeping Gail (six years shy of "My Little Margie") in the "spotlight".

If you think too much this movie isn't going to please. But, if you want to escape that whole trap you may find some varied entertainment here. Think of this loosely as a damsel in distress story set up for numerous musical numbers that are quite good with some great comic relief.

Gail Storm is Carol Lawrence who is down on her luck. You instantly like Carol because Gail is so "girl next door" innocent but alluringly beautiful. And beauty can sing too, making her a fit for this musical comedy. While the story is anything but interesting, it is a just serviceable hanger for the much better music and comedy. In fact this movie should be a solid 6.5 for it's entertainment value. A fun watch and a fair colorized version to boot showing a little of the music and glamor of a great period (post WW II) in which there was class and great expectations.

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!