''Hips, Hips, Hooray!'' is a 1934 American

Pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

slapstick comedy starring

Bert Wheeler Albert Jerome Wheeler (April 7, 1895 – January 18, 1968) was an American comedian who performed in Broadway theatre, American comedy feature films, and vaudeville acts. He was the comedy partner of Robert Woolsey, and together they formed ...

Robert Woolsey Robert Rollie Woolsey (August 14, 1888 – October 31, 1938) was an American stage and screen comedian and half of the 1930s comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey. Early life Robert Rollie (sometimes spelled Rolla or even Raleigh) was born on Aug ...

Ruth Etting Ruth Etting (November 23, 1896 – September 24, 1978) was an American singer and actress of the 1920s and 1930s, who had over 60 hit recordings and worked in stage, radio, and film. Known as "America's sweetheart of song", her signature tunes ...

Thelma Todd Thelma Alice Todd (July 29, 1906 – December 16, 1935) was an American actress and businesswoman who carried the nicknames "The Ice Cream Blonde" and "Hot Toddy". Appearing in about 120 feature films and shorts between 1926 and 1935, sh ...

, and Dorothy Lee. During its initial theatrical run, it was preceded by the two-color Technicolor short ''Not Tonight, Josephine'', directed by Edward F. Cline.

Plot

Todd stars as Amelia Frisby, the owner of a beauty supply business. Andy Williams (Wheeler) and Dr. Bob Dudley (Woolsey) convince her to hire them as salesman to promote her new flavored lipstick. The film features Etting singing "Keep Romance Alive" and Bert Wheeler and Dorothy Lee singing "Keep on Doin' What You're Doin'" by

Bert Kalmar Bert Kalmar (February 10, 1884 – September 18, 1947) was an American songwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. He was also a screenwriter. Biography Kalmar, a native of New York City, left school at an early ag ...

and

Harry Ruby Harry Rubenstein (January 27, 1895 – February 23, 1974), known professionally as Harry Ruby, was an American actor, pianist, composer, songwriter and screenwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Bert Wheeler Albert Jerome Wheeler (April 7, 1895 – January 18, 1968) was an American comedian who performed in Broadway theatre, American comedy feature films, and vaudeville acts. He was the comedy partner of Robert Woolsey, and together they formed ...

as Andy Williams *

as Dr. Bob Dudley * Dorothy Lee as Daisy Maxwell *

as Amelia Frisby *

as Herself *

Phyllis Barry Phyllis Barry (born Gertrude Phyllis Hillyard; 7 December 1908 – 1 July 1954) was an English film actress. Born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, to Seth Henry and Bertha (née Giles) Hillyard, Barry appeared in over 40 films ...

as Madame Irene * Matt Briggs as Det. Epstein * James P. Burtis as Detective Sweeney *

Spencer Charters Spencer Charters (March 25, 1875 – January 25, 1943) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 220 films between 1920 and 1943, mostly in small supporting roles. Biography Charters was born in Duncannon, Pennsylvania. Until ...

as Clark *

George Meeker George Meeker (March 5, 1904 – August 19, 1984) was an American character film and Broadway actor. A graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Meeker made several films such as ''Crime, Inc.'' (1945) and ''A Thief in the Dark'' (1 ...

as Armand Beauchamp * Doris McMahon as maid *

Thelma White Thelma White (born Thelma Wolpa, December 4, 1910 – January 11, 2005) was an American radio and film actress. White is best known for her role in the 1936 exploitation film ''Reefer Madness''. Early life and career Born in Lincoln, Nebras ...

as Blonde (uncredited)

Pre-Code era scenes

''Hips, Hips, Hooray!'' showed scantily clad burlesque-style showgirls and female extras as typical of the Hollywood musicals in the

era. Doris McMahon portrayed a nearly nude maid who wore only an apron.

Production

The song "Keep on Doin' What You're Doin'" was intended for the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) ...

' 1933 film '' Duck Soup'' ( Groucho Marx,

Harpo Marx Arthur "Harpo" Marx (born Adolph Marx; November 23, 1888 – September 28, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, mime artist, and harpist, and the second-oldest of the Marx Brothers. In contrast to the mainly verbal comedy of his brothers Grou ...

, Chico Marx and

Zeppo Marx Herbert Manfred "Zeppo" Marx (February 25, 1901 – November 30, 1979) was an American comedic actor, theatrical agent, and engineer. He was the youngest and last survivor of the five Marx Brothers. He appeared in the first five Marx Brothers f ...

in his final starring role). A romantic subplot involving

was planned, but removed from the film. Despite being third-billed, Etting only has one scene.

Reception

The film made a profit of $8,000. ''The New York Times'' gave ''Hips, Hips, Hooray!'' an unenthusiastic review, stating that it featured "three reasonably hilarious gags and perhaps fifty more that depend on whether you are for or against the ex-vaudeville clowns to begin with." Alternately, the ''Prescott Evening Courier'' described it as "smartly and enthusiastically insane...surpassing all heeler and Woolsey'sprevious efforts." An Australian reviewer for ''The Age'', felt that it "proved a fairly generously-endowed medley of eccentric dancing, buffoonery and burlesque" and that it provoked "much merriment" from its audience.''The Melbourne Age''. 23 July 1934. Page 13. Retrieved July 24. 2012

References

External links

* * * * * {{Mark Sandrich 1934 films 1934 musical comedy films 1934 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films directed by Mark Sandrich RKO Pictures films 1930s American films