Hullabaloo is a 1940 American

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

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

Edwin L. Marin Edwin L. Marin (February 21, 1899 – May 2, 1951) was an American film director who directed 58 films between 1932 and 1951, working with Randolph Scott, Anna May Wong, John Wayne, Peter Lorre, George Raft, Bela Lugosi, Judy Garland, E ...

and written by

Nat Perrin Nat Perrin (March 15, 1905 – May 9, 1998) was an American comedy film, television, and radio screenwriter, producer, and director, who contributed gags and storylines to several Marx Brothers films and co-wrote the script for the film '' Hellz ...

. It stars

Frank Morgan Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous soun ...

Virginia Grey Virginia Grey (March 22, 1917 – July 31, 2004) was an American actress who appeared in over 100 films and a number of radio and television shows from the 1930s to the early 1980s. Biography Grey was born on March 22, 1917, in Edendale, Calif ...

Dan Dailey Daniel James Dailey Jr. (December 14, 1915 – October 16, 1978) was an American dancer and actor. He is best remembered for a series of popular musicals he made at 20th Century Fox such as ''Mother Wore Tights'' (1947). Biography Early life Da ...

Billie Burke Mary William Ethelbert Appleton Burke (August 7, 1884 – May 14, 1970) was an American actress who was famous on Broadway and radio, and in silent and sound films. She is best known to modern audiences as Glinda the Good Witch of the North ...

Donald Meek Thomas Donald Meek (14 July 1878 – 18 November 1946) was a Scottish-American actor. He first performed publicly at the age of eight and began appearing on Broadway in 1903. Meek is perhaps best known for his roles in the films '' You Can't T ...

Reginald Owen John Reginald Owen (5 August 1887 – 5 November 1972) was a British actor. He was known for his many roles in British and American films and television programs. Career The son of Joseph and Frances Owen, Reginald Owen studied at Sir Herbert ...

, and

Connie Gilchrist Rose Constance Gilchrist (July 17, 1895 – March 3, 1985) was an American stage, film, and television actress. Among her screen credits are her roles in the Hollywood productions '' Cry 'Havoc (1943), ''A Letter to Three Wives'' (1949), ' ...

Jack Albertson Harold Albertson (June 16, 1907 – November 25, 1981), known professionally as Jack Albertson, was an American actor, comedian, dancer and singer who also performed in variety. Albertson was a Tony, Oscar, and Emmy winning actor. For his perfor ...

Leo Gorcey Leo Bernard Gorcey (June 3, 1917– June 2, 1969) was an American stage and film actor, famous for portraying the leader of a group of hooligans known variously as the Dead End Kids, the East Side Kids and, as adults, The Bowery Boys. Gorcey was ...

, and

Arthur O'Connell Arthur Joseph O'Connell (March 29, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an American stage, film and television actor, who achieved prominence in character roles in the 1950s. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both ''Pic ...

appear in bit roles.

Plot

Morgan is the star of the film, as fading actor Frankie Merriweather, who is trying to revive his career by starring on a

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

program. When his most recent broadcast, a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

invasion from

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

story, panics the nation, he is fired. He decides to jumpstart his career by creating a new show which features his talented children.

Cast

as Frankie Merriweather *

as Laura Merriweather *

as Bob Strong *

as Penny Merriweather *

Nydia Westman Nydia Eileen Westman (February 19, 1902 – May 23, 1970) was an American actress and singer of stage, screen, and television. Early years Westman's parents, Theodore and Lily (Wren) Westman were active in vaudeville in her native New Yo ...

as Lulu Perkins * Ann Morriss as Wilma Norton *

as Clyde Perkins *

as Buzz Foster * Charles Holland as Singing Bellhop *

Leni Lynn Leni Lynn (born Angelina Ciofani; May 3, 1923 – January 1, 2010) was an American actress and a contralto singer. She was also known as Leni Hoffer. The daughter of a Pasaic, New Jersey, factory worker, Francesco Ciofani, and his wife, Carme ...

as Judy Merriweather *

Virginia O'Brien Virginia Lee O'Brien (April 18, 1919 – January 16, 2001) was an American actress, singer, and radio personality known for her comedic singing roles in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals of the 1940s. Life and career O'Brien primarily performed in ...

as Virginia Ferris *

Curt Bois Curt Bois (born Kurt Boas; April 5, 1901 – December 25, 1991) was a German actor with a career spanning over 80 years. He is best remembered for his performances as the pickpocket in ''Casablanca'' (1942) and the poet Homer in ''Wings of Desi ...

as Armand Francois *

Sara Haden Sara Haden (born Catherine Haden, November 17, 1898 – September 15, 1981) was an American actress of the 1930s through the 1950s and in television into the mid-1960s. She may be best remembered for appearing as Aunt Milly Forrest in 14 entrie ...

as Sue Merriweather * Larry Nunn as Terry Merriweather *

Barnett Parker Barnett Parker (September 11, 1886 – August 5, 1941) was a British actor. Biography He appeared in the films '' The Misleading Lady'', ''Roaming Lady'', ''The President's Mystery'', ''Adventure in Manhattan'', ''Born to Dance'', ''We Who Are A ...

as Samuel Stephens *

as Arline Merriweather

Production

A highlight of the film is Morgan's reenactment of the current

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

hit film ''

Boom Town A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although ...

'', with Morgan's character, Frank Merriweather, supposedly imitating the voices of the stars of that film. In fact, the ''Boom Town'' stars' voices were dubbed over Morgan's. The voices of

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert ( ; born Émilie Claudette Chauchoin; September 13, 1903July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the late 1920s and progressed to films with the advent of talking pictures ...

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...

, and

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American film actress and inventor. A film star during Hollywood's golden age, Lamarr has been described as one of the greatest movie actresse ...

are used.

External links

* *
Still with Ann Morriss and Dan Dailey
at gettyimages.com 1940 films 1940 musical comedy films 1940 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films Films directed by Edwin L. Marin Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1940s romantic musical films 1940s American films {{romantic-musical-film-stub