''The Hard-Boiled Canary'' is a 1941 American

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

directed by

Andrew L. Stone Andrew L. Stone (July 16, 1902 – June 9, 1999) was an Americans, American screenwriter, film director and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for the film ''Julie (1956 film), Julie'' in 1957 and re ...

and written by Robert Lively and Andrew L. Stone. It was later reissued as ''There's Magic in Music''. The film stars Allan Jones,

Susanna Foster Susanna Foster (born Suzanne DeLee Flanders Larson, December 6, 1924 – January 17, 2009) was an American film actress best known for her leading role as Christine in the 1943 film version of ''Phantom of the Opera''. Early life Foster was ...

Margaret Lindsay Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...

Lynne Overman Lynne may refer to: *Lynne (surname) *Lynne (given name) *Lynne, Florida, an unincorporated community *Lynne, Wisconsin Lynne is a town in Oneida County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 210 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated comm ...

Grace Bradley Grace Bradley (September 21, 1913 – September 21, 2010) was an American film actress who was active in Hollywood during the 1930s. Early life Bradley was born in Brooklyn and was an only child. As a child, she took piano lessons and, by the ...

William Collier Sr. William Collier Sr. (November 12, 1864 – January 13, 1944), born William Morenus, was an American writer, director and actor. Collier ran away from home when only 11 years old to join a touring company run by Eddie Foy and in 1879 he appeare ...

and

Heimo Haitto Heimo Verneri Haitto (22 May 1925 – 9 June 1999) was a Finnish-American classical violinist who played in several U.S. symphony orchestras. A child prodigy, he was characterized as “Finland’s Jascha Heifetz”. Career Heimo Haitto was born ...

. It was released on June 8, 1941, by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

Plot

Young and carefree Michael Maddy helps run

Interlochen Center for the Arts Interlochen Center for the Arts is a non-profit corporation which operates arts education institutions and performance venues in northwest Michigan. It is situated on a campus in Interlochen, Michigan, roughly southwest of Traverse City. In ...

for his ill father. A burlesque performer in a skimpy costume, Toodles LaVerne, impresses him with her voice, enough so that Michael makes and wins a wager with opera-company publicist George Thomas that she's good enough to sing professionally. The joint is raided and entertainer Madie Duvalle is arrested by the police, but Toodles gets away with Michael's help. He enrolls her in the music camp over the objections of Sylvia Worth, his efficiency expert, and other campers partly because of Toodles's appearance and also because she can't even read music. Michael and George scrub off the stage makeup over Toodles's objections, whereupon she sings a number that impresses everyone at camp. Michael wants her to audition for a New York City opera house. Madie, out of jail now, does a magazine story about Toodles' past life. The music camp's appalled financial backers pull their funds and their students. In the end, though, Michael manages to get Toodles in front of the opera company, where she wins everyone's approval.

Cast

* Allan Jones as Michael Maddy *

as Toodles LaVerne *

as Sylvia Worth *

as George Thomas *

as Madie Duvalie *

William Collier, Sr. William Collier Sr. (November 12, 1864 – January 13, 1944), born William Morenus, was an American writer, director and actor. Collier ran away from home when only 11 years old to join a touring company run by Eddie Foy and in 1879 he appeared ...

as Dr. Joseph E. Maddy *

as Heimo Haitto *Peter Meremblum as Peter Meremblum *William Chapman as William Chapman *Kaye Connor as Kaye Connor *

Diana Lynn Diana Marie Lynn (born Dolores Eartha Loehr, July 5, 1926 – December 18, 1971) was an American actress. Early years Lynn was born in Los Angeles, California. Her father, Louis Loehr, was an oil supply executive, and her mother, Martha Loe ...

as Dolly Loehr *

Patricia Travers Patricia Travers (December 5, 1927 – February 9, 2010) was an American violin child prodigy and actress who withdrew from public performances at age 23. She lived in Clifton, New Jersey, her entire life. Career Travers began violin lessons at ...

as Patricia Travers *

Richard Bonelli Richard Bonelli (born George Richard Bunn; 6 February 1889 – 7 June 1980) was an American operatic baritone active from 1915 to the late 1970s. Although he sang predominantly on stage in both light and grand operas, he also performed at vario ...

as himself *

Richard Hageman Richard Hageman (9 July 1881 – 6 March 1966) was a Dutch-born American conductor, pianist, composer, and actor. Biography Hageman was born and raised in Leeuwarden, Friesland, Netherlands. He was the son of Maurits Hageman of Zutphen, a vio ...

as Richard Hegeman *

Irra Petina Irra Petina (April 18, 1908 – January 19, 2000) was an actress and singer as well as a leading contralto with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. She was called the "floperetta queen" by critic Ken Mandelbaum. Born in St. Petersburg, Russ ...

as Irra Petine * Tandy MacKenzie as Tandy MacKenzie *

Fay Helm Fay Helm (April 9, 1909 – September 27, 2003) was an American film actress. Born in Bakersfield, California, she appeared in about 65 films between 1936 and 1946. She is perhaps better known for films like A Child is Born (1939), Phantom La ...

as Miss Wilson *

Esther Dale Esther Dale (November 10, 1885 – July 23, 1961) was an American actress of the stage and screen. Early years Dale was born in Beaufort, South Carolina. She attended Leland and Gray Seminary in Townshend, Vermont. In Berlin, Germany, she stud ...

as Miss Clark *

Deems Taylor Joseph Deems Taylor (December 22, 1885 – July 3, 1966) was an American music critic, composer, and promoter of classical music. Nat Benchley, co-editor of ''The Lost Algonquin Roundtable'', referred to him as "the dean of American music." Ear ...

as Deems Taylor *

Bertram Marburgh Bertram Marburgh (1875–1956) was an American stage and film actor. Rainey p.67 He appeared as a character actor in around thirty five films between 1915 and 1945. Selected filmography * '' After Dark'' (1915) * '' The Stolen Voice'' (1915) * ' ...

as Mr. Myers *

Carol Holloway Carol Holloway (April 30, 1892 – January 3, 1979) was an American actress of the silent film era. She appeared in more than 110 films between 1914 and 1941. She was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts and died in California. Partial fi ...

as Nurse

References

External links

* 1941 films American musical comedy films 1941 musical comedy films Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Andrew L. Stone American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films {{1940s-comedy-film-stub