| Hot Rhythm | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | William Beaudine |
| Written by |
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| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Ira H. Morgan |
| Edited by | Richard C. Currier |
| Music by | Edward J. Kay |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Monogram Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 79 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Hot Rhythm is a 1944 American musical comedy film directed by William Beaudine and starring Robert Lowery, Dona Drake, and the radio and vaudeville team of Tim and Irene (Tim Ryan and Irene Ryan).
J. P. O'Hara owns the Beacon Recording Company, with studio and distribution facilities. His biggest attraction is singer-bandleader Tommy Taylor, who is managed by "Honest Herman" Strohbach. Two staff members, Jimmy and Sammy, are aspiring songwriters who make their living writing radio jingles. They meet singer Mary Adams, and Jimmy is so taken with her that he resolves to advance her career by any means possible. He records Mary singing along to an instrumental played by Taylor's orchestra, hoping to interest O'Hara in Mary. When Mary's demonstration record is released to the public accidentally, Taylor's manager threatens to sue O'Hara. O'Hara goes around town buying back copies of Mary's record and smashing them in the stores, which lands him in jail. Confusing matters further is O'Hara's new secretary, Polly Kane, who makes her own recording and is thus mistaken for mystery vocalist Mary. Mary's stormy romance with Jimmy is finally smoothed over when Jimmy tells O'Hara the truth about his finagling to promote Mary. Mary joins Tommy Taylor's band as his new singing star.
Monogram was a "budget" studio that made feature films for a fraction of what the big studios spent. Its hourlong Charlie Chan mysteries of the 1940s typically cost about $90,000 each, compared to the Twentieth Century-Fox Chan films of the 1930s, which cost between $200,000 and $300,000 each. Monogram's Chan films were instrumental in getting other Monogram features shown in more theaters, resulting in a period of ambitious expansion for the studio. Hot Rhythm was Monogram's biggest production of 1944, with an unusually long running time of 79 minutes, and with the studio's top cameraman Ira H. Morgan and director William Beaudine joining forces to make the economically staged scenes look more elaborate.
Irene Ryan was an American actress and comedian who found success in vaudeville, radio, film, television, and Broadway. She is most widely known for her portrayal of Daisy May "Granny" Moses, mother-in-law of Buddy Ebsen's character Jed Clampett on the long-running TV series The Beverly Hillbillies (1962–1971). She was nominated for Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 1963 and 1964 for the role.
Victor Sen Young was an American character actor, best known for playing Jimmy Chan in the Charlie Chan films and Hop Sing in the western series Bonanza. He was born in San Francisco, California to Gum Yung Sen and his first wife, both immigrants from China.
Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios in the golden age of Hollywood, generally referred to collectively as Poverty Row. Lacking the financial resources to deliver the lavish sets, production values, and star power of the larger studios, Monogram sought to attract its audiences with the promise of action and adventure.
Frankie Darro was an American actor and later in his career a stuntman. He began his career as a child actor in silent films, progressed to lead roles and co-starring roles in adventure, western, dramatic, and comedy films, and later became a character actor and voice-over artist. He is perhaps best known for his role as Lampwick, the unlucky boy who turns into a donkey in Walt Disney's second animated feature, Pinocchio (1940). In early credits, his last name was spelled Darrow.
Timothy Thomas Ryan was an American performer and film actor.
William K. Howard was an American film director, writer, and producer. Considered one of Hollywood's leading directors, he directed over 50 films from 1921 to 1946, including The Thundering Herd (1925), The Power and the Glory (1933), Fire Over England (1937), and Johnny Come Lately (1943).
Star Spangled Rhythm is a 1942 American all-star cast musical film made by Paramount Pictures during World War II as a morale booster. Many of the Hollywood studios produced such films during the war, generally musicals, frequently with flimsy storylines, and with the specific intent of entertaining the troops overseas and civilians back home and to encourage fundraising – as well as to show the studios' patriotism. This film was also the first released by Paramount to be shown for 8 weeks.
"When Something Is Wrong with My Baby" is a classic hit song, a soul ballad, written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter. It was first released in 1967 by Sam & Dave on Stax Records.
The San Francisco Blues Festival was active from 1973 until 2008, and was located in San Francisco, California. It was the one of the longest running blues festival in the United States.
Marjorie Weaver was an American film actress of the 1930s through the early 1950s.
Dona Drake was an American singer, dancer, and film actress in the 1930s and 1940s. She was typically being cast in ethnic roles including Latin American and Middle Easterners. Drake often presented herself as Mexican and went by the names Una Novella and Rita Novella. As Rita Rio, she led a touring all-girl orchestra in the early 1940s, also known as "Dona Drake and her Girl Band", among other names for her musical and dance acts.
Robert Kent, was an American film actor. His career included starring roles in several film serials of the 1940s, including The Phantom Creeps, Who's Guilty?, and The Phantom Rider. He also had a role in the 1938 film The Gladiator and was Virginia Vale's leading man in Blonde Comet, a 1941 movie about a female racing driver.
The Golden Eye is a 1948 American film directed by William Beaudine and starring Roland Winters in his fourth appearance as Charlie Chan. The film is also known as Charlie Chan in Texas and Charlie Chan in the Golden Eye .The film is in the public domain due to the omission of a valid copyright notice on original prints.
Feather Your Nest is a 1937 British musical comedy film directed by William Beaudine and starring George Formby, Polly Ward and Enid Stamp-Taylor. It contains Formby's signature tune, Leaning on a Lamp-post.
Fashion Model is a 1945 American comedy mystery film directed by William Beaudine and starring Robert Lowery, Marjorie Weaver and Tim Ryan. The screenplay was written by Victor Hammond and Ryan.
Melody Parade is a 1943 American musical film directed by Arthur Dreifuss and written by Tim Ryan and Charles R. Marion. The film stars Mary Beth Hughes, Eddie Quillan, Tim Ryan, Irene Ryan, Mantan Moreland, Jerry Cooper and Armida. The film was released on August 27, 1943, by Monogram Pictures.
Forgotten Women is a 1931 American drama film directed by Richard Thorpe and starring Marion Shilling, Beryl Mercer and Rex Bell. It was distributed by Monogram Pictures, one of the leading studios outside the majors.
