''College Swing'', also known as ''Swing, Teacher, Swing'' in the

U.K. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, is a 1938

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Raoul Walsh Raoul Walsh (born Albert Edward Walsh; March 11, 1887December 31, 1980) was an American film director, actor, founding member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), and the brother of silent screen actor George Walsh. He w ...

and starring George Burns, Gracie Allen, Martha Raye, and

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...

. The supporting cast features

Edward Everett Horton Edward Everett Horton Jr. (March 18, 1886 – September 29, 1970) was an American character actor. He had a long career in film, theater, radio, television, and voice work for animated cartoons. Early life Horton was born in Kings County ...

Ben Blue Ben Blue (born Benjamin Bernstein; September 12, 1901 – March 7, 1975) was a Canadian-American actor and comedian who had a career that spanned nearly 50 years. Early life He was born Benjamin Bernstein in Montreal, Quebec on Septem ...

, Betty Grable,

Jackie Coogan John Leslie Coogan (October 26, 1914 – March 1, 1984) was an American actor and comedian who began his film career as a child actor in silent films. Charlie Chaplin's film classic ''The Kid'' (1921) made him one of the first child stars in the ...

, John Payne, Robert Cummings, and Jerry Colonna.

Plot

It's 1738, and Gracie Alden ( Gracie Allen) of the powerful Alden family fails to graduate from the college founded by her grandfather for the ninth year in a row, so he leaves institution in his will to the first female of the family to graduate within 200 years. At the deadline, in 1938, another Gracie Alden, the last girl of the line, is having trouble with her studies, so she hires fast-talking Bud Brady (

) to help her. Her efforts are opposed by woman-hating professor Hubert Dash (

) and his secretary George Jones ( George Burns), who don't want to see their beloved college fall into the hands of an empty-headed nit-wit like Gracie. When by hook and by crook Gracie manages to pass her exam and becomes the owner of the college, she does away with entrance exams, hires a bunch of incompetent but kooky teachers, and turns the place into a jumpin' jitterbugging joint complete with swing bands and remote radio broadcasts.

Cast

* George Burns as ''George Jonas'' * Gracie Allen as ''Gracie Alden'' * Martha Raye as ''Mable'' *

as ''Bud Brady'' *

as ''Hubert Dash'' *Florence George as ''Ginna Ashburn'' *

as ''Ben Volt'' * Betty Grable as ''Betty'' *

as ''Jackie'' * John Payne as ''Martin Bates'' * Cecil Cunningham as ''Dean Sleet'' * Robert Cummings as ''Radio Announcer'' * Skinnay Ennis as ''Skinnay'' * Jerry Colonna as ''Prof. Yascha Koloski'' (uncredited) *The Slate Brothers as themselves *Robert Mitchell and St. Brendan's Choristers as themselves Cast notes: * Mary Livingstone, who became well known as the wife of

Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...

, appears in a small uncredited part as an usherette. *Jackie Coogan and Betty Grable were married at the time they made this film together.

Production credits

- director * Lewis E. Gensler - producer * Walter DeLeon - screenplay * Francis Martin - screenplay *

Frederick Hazlitt Brennan Frederick Hazlitt Brennan (September 23, 1901 – June 30, 1962) was an American screenwriter of more than thirty films between 1929 and 1953 and the director of the ABC/Desilu western television series, ''The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp' ...

- adaptation * Ted Lesser - idea * Victor Milner - photography *

Hans Dreier Hans Dreier (August 21, 1885 – October 24, 1966) was a German motion picture art director. He was Paramount Pictures' supervising art director from 1927 until his retirement in 1950, when he was succeeded by Hal Pereira. Hans Dreier was born i ...

- art direction *

Ernst Fegté Ernst Fegté (28 September 1900 – 15 December 1976) was a German art director. He was active in the American cinema from the 1920s to the 1970s, he was the art director or production designer on more than 75 feature films. He worked at Pa ...

- art direction *

LeRoy Stone LeRoy Stone (January 5, 1894 – September 15, 1949) was an American film editor and a screenwriter. He worked on over 60 films, being nominated at the 17th Academy Awards in the category of Best Film Editing for his work on the film ''Going ...

- editor * Harold Lewis - sound recording * Howard Wilson - sound recording * Edith Head - costumes * A. E. Freudeman - interior decorations *

LeRoy Prinz LeRoy Jerome Prinz (July 14, 1895 – September 15, 1983) was an American choreographer, director and producer, who was involved in the production of dozens of motion pictures, mainly for Paramount Pictures and Warner Brothers, from 1929 through ...

- staging dances *

Boris Morros Boris Morros (; January 1, 1891 - January 8, 1963) was an American Communist Party member, Soviet agent, and FBI double agent. He also worked at Paramount Pictures, where he produced films as well as supervising their music department. Life and c ...

- musical direction * Arthur Franklin - musical adviser

Songs

*"The Old School Bell" - sung by Robert Mitchell and St. Brendan's Choristers *" Moments Like This" - by

Burton Lane Burton Lane ( Levy; February 2, 1912 – January 5, 1997) was an American composer and lyricist primarily known for his theatre and film scores. His most popular and successful works include '' Finian's Rainbow'' in 1947 and ''On a Clear Day You ...

(music) and Frank Loesser (words), performed by Florence George *"I Fall in Love with You Every Day" - by Manning Sherwin (music) and Frank Loesser (words), performed by Florence George and John Payne *"College Swing" - by Hoagy Carmichael (music) and Frank Loesser (words), sung by Betty Grable and Skinnay Ennis, danced by Betty Grable and

*"How'ja Like to Love Me?" - by Burton Lane (music) and Frank Loesser (words), performed by Martha Raye and

*"What Did Romeo Say To Juliet?" - by Burton Lane (music) and Frank Loesser (words), performed by John Payne and Florence George *"What a Rumba Does to Romance" - by Manning Sherwin (music) and Frank Loesser (lyrics), performed by Martha Raye with

, danced by Betty Grable and Jackie Coogan, George Burns and Gracie Allen, The Slate Brothers, and unidentified extras *"You're a Natural" - by Manning Sherwin (music) and Frank Loesser (lyrics), performed by Gracie Allen *"Irish Washerwoman" - traditional Irish jig, danced by Gracie Allen *"Please" - performed by Jerry Colonna.IMD
Soundtracks
/ref>

References

External links

* * * {{Preston Sturges 1938 romantic comedy films 1938 films American black-and-white films American romantic comedy films Films directed by Raoul Walsh Films set in universities and colleges Paramount Pictures films 1930s American films