''Sing, Baby, Sing'' is a 1936 American film. Richard A. Whiting and

Walter Bullock Walter Bullock (May 6, 1907, Shelburn, Indiana – August 19, 1953, Los Angeles, California) was an American song lyricist and screenwriter. He recorded with his brother, James Russell Lowell Bullock. On April 22, 1930, they released a record on ...

received an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination in Best Original Song at the

9th Academy Awards The 9th Academy Awards were held on March 4, 1937, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California to honor films released in 1936. They were hosted by George Jessel, with music by the Victor Young Orchestra, with Spike Jones on drums. Thi ...

for their song "When Did You Leave Heaven".

Plot

After Joan Warren (

Alice Faye Alice Faye (born Alice Jeanne Leppert; May 5, 1915 – May 9, 1998) was an American actress and singer. A musical star of 20th Century-Fox in the 1930s and 1940s, Faye starred in such films as ''On the Avenue'' (1937) and ''Alexander's Ragtime B ...

) is fired from her singing job at the Ritz Club, where she performs with the Ritz Brothers, she seeks help from theatrical agent, Nicky Alexander (

Gregory Ratoff Gregory Ratoff (born Grigory Vasilyevich Ratner; russian: Григорий Васильевич Ратнер, tr. ; April 20, c. 1893 – December 14, 1960) was a Russian-born American film director, actor and producer. As an actor, he was bes ...

). Nicky, however, is in the process of being evicted from his office suite, so he tells her to find another agent. When she insists that he represent her, he takes her to Mr. Brewster ( Paul Stanton), president of the Federal Broadcasting Company, and Joan auditions, but Brewster refuses to hire her because she is not of the upper class. Back at the club, Joan packs her bags, while in the street, a crowd gathers around drunken actor Bruce Farraday (

Adolphe Menjou Adolphe Jean Menjou (February 18, 1890 – October 29, 1963) was an American actor. His career spanned both silent films and talkies. He appeared in such films as Charlie Chaplin's ''A Woman of Paris'', where he played the lead role; Stanley K ...

). Nicky leads Farraday into the club, where Farraday orders a huge feast and hears Joan perform her last song. After more wine, Farraday passes out, and they take him to a hospital, where he babbles lines of Shakespeare. To create some publicity, Nicky tells Joan to play "Juliet" to Farraday's "Romeo." While Al Craven (

Ted Healy Ted Healy (born Charles Ernest Lee Nash; October 1, 1896 – December 21, 1937) was an American vaudeville performer, comedian, and actor. Though he is chiefly remembered as the creator of The Three Stooges and the style of slapstick comedy ...

), the brother of Nicky's secretary Fitz ( Patsy Kelly), searches for alcohol to keep Farraday from sobering up, Nicky calls the newspapers, saying that Farraday is on his deathbed. When the doctor arrives and forbids visitors, Al pretends to be Farraday's personal physician and relieves him of the case. Nicky sneaks Joan in to see Farraday, while cynical reporter Ted Blake ( Michael Whalen) and Joe (

Cully Richards Cully Richards (1908–1978) was an American singer, and film and television actor.Aaker p.130 He had a recurring role as First Sergeant Stanley Wozniak on the 1962–1963 situation comedy ''Don't Call Me Charlie!''. Selected filmography * '' S ...

), a photographer, climb onto the fire escape and photograph them. Later, Al accompanies Farraday home, and the puzzled Farraday wonders why he can't remember hiring a personal physician. The newspapers print the story, and Brewster decides that he wants to hire Joan on the condition that Farraday will perform as well. At their new home at the Madison Towers, the group learns that Farraday is about to return to Hollywood at the behest of his cousin and business manager, Robert Wilson, who is furious over the publicity. Nicky goes to Farraday and suggests that he show his cousin that he has a head for business by getting the lucrative radio contract. Robert arrives, tells the newspapers that Joan is a gold digger and escorts Farraday onto the train leaving for California. As a result of the new story, Brewster no longer wants to sign Joan. Ted explains that to be the first to print a retraction of Robert's statement, his newspaper will fly Joan out to Farraday. They fly to Kansas City to meet Farraday's train and trick Robert into leaving without Farraday. Then, they arrange with Brewster to broadcast that evening from Kansas City. They round up some performers for the show, including the Ritz Brothers, who happen to be in town. As Farraday prepares to go on the air, Robert returns and locks himself in the hotel room with Farraday, but Farraday escapes. He arrives at the station in the nick of time and exonerates Joan, securing for her the radio contract with Brewster.

Cast

as Joan Warren *

as Bruce Farraday *

as Nicholas K. Alexander *

as Al Craven * Patsy Kelly as Fitz Craven * Michael Whalen as Ted Blake *The Ritz Brothers as Themselves *

Montagu Love Montagu Love (15 March 1877 – 17 May 1943) was an English screen, stage and vaudeville actor. Early years Born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, Love was the son of Harry Love and Fanny Louisa Love, née Poad; his father was listed as accountant ...

as Robert Wilson *

Dixie Dunbar Christina Elizabeth "Dixie" Dunbar (January 19, 1919 – August 29, 1991) was an American singer, film actress, and dancer. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Dunbar grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. She began studying dancing as a child and went on to si ...

as Telephone Operator *

Douglas Fowley Douglas Fowley (born Daniel Vincent Fowley, May 30, 1911 – May 21, 1998) was an American movie and television actor in more than 240 films and dozens of television programs, He is probably best remembered for his role as the frustrated m ...

as Mac * Paul Stanton as Brewster * Tony Martin as Tony Renaldo *

as Joe *

Stanley Blystone William Stanley Blystone (August 1, 1894 – July 16, 1956) was an American film actor who made more than 500 films appearances between 1924 and 1956. He was sometimes billed as William Blystone or William Stanley. Early years Blystone was ...

as Kelly *

Sam McDaniel Samuel Rufus McDaniel (January 28, 1886September 24, 1962)Tanner, Beccy (November 7, 1991)"McDaniel Opened Doors; 'Gone With the Wind' Was Actress' Most Famous Film" ''The Wichita Eagle''. Retrieved January 3, 2021. was an American actor who ap ...

as Train Porter (uncredited) * Jerry Tucker as Wilson's Son (uncredited)

Soundtrack

*Sing, Baby, Sing by Lew Pollack and

Jack Yellen Jack Selig Yellen (Jacek Jeleń; July 6, 1892 – April 17, 1991) was an American lyricist and screenwriter. He is best remembered for writing the lyrics to the songs " Happy Days Are Here Again", which was used by Franklin Roosevelt as the th ...

*The Music Goes Round And Round (1935) (uncredited) Music by Edward Farley and Mike Riley, Lyrics by Red Hodgson *When Did You Leave Heaven? Music by Richard A. Whiting, Lyrics by

* You Turned The Tables On Me by Louis Alter and Sidney D. Mitchell *Love Will Tell by Lew Pollack and

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sing, Baby, Sing 1936 films 20th Century Fox films Films directed by Sidney Lanfield 1936 musical films Films produced by Darryl F. Zanuck American black-and-white films American musical films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films