''Song of the Open Road'' is a 1944 musical

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 S. Sylvan Simon, from a screenplay by

Irving Phillips Irving Walter Phillips (November 29, 1904 – October 28, 2000) was a noted American cartoonist, playwright, television scriptwriter, author, illustrator and educator. He is best remembered for his daily newspaper comic panel '' The Strange Wor ...

and Edward Verdier. It was the debut film of teenage singer

Jane Powell Jane Powell (born Suzanne Lorraine Burce; April 1, 1929 – September 16, 2021) was an American actress, singer, and dancer who first appeared in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals in the 1940s and 50s. With her soprano voice and girl-next-door image ...

. Powell's real name was Suzanne Burce, but prior to the release of this film MGM assigned her the stage name "Jane Powell" (the name of the character she portrays in this film).''Reel Memories: Jane Powell'',

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of At ...

, 1995. Included on the DVD ''Classic Musicals Double Feature: Nancy Goes to Rio/Two Weeks with Love'' (Warner Home Video, 2008)

Overview

Child film star Jane Powell, tired of her life being run by her stage mother, runs away from home and tries to lead a "normal" life at a Crops Corps camp. When a crop needs picking, Powell enlists the help of some celebrity friends. This was W. C. Fields's next-to-last film; his last (''

Sensations of 1945 ''Sensations of 1945'' is a 1944 American musical-comedy film directed by Andrew Stone and starring Eleanor Powell. Released by United Artists, the film was an attempt to recapture the ensemble style of films such as ''Broadway Melody of 1936'' ...

'') would be released only 9 days after this film was issued. In the film, Fields — who began his career as an accomplished juggler — plays himself and juggles some oranges for a few moments. He remarks "This used to be my racket". Then, missing a catch, he drops the oranges and walks away muttering "used to be my racket, but it isn't anymore!"

Cast

as Jane Powell * Bonita Granville as Bonnie * Peggy O'Neill as Peggy *

Jackie Moran Jackie Moran (January 26, 1923 – September 20, 1990) was an American movie actor who, between 1936 and 1946, appeared in over thirty films, primarily in teenage roles. Early life and Hollywood career A native of Mattoon, Illinois, Jo ...

as Jack Moran * Bill Christy as Bill * Reginald Denny as Director Curtis *

Regis Toomey John Francis Regis Toomey (August 13, 1898October 12, 1991) was an American film and television actor. Early life Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was one of four children of Francis X. and Mary Ellen Toomey, and attended Peabody High ...

as Connors *

Rose Hobart Rose Hobart (born Rose Kefer; May 1, 1906 – August 29, 2000) was an American actress and a Screen Actors Guild official. Early years Born in New York City, Hobart was the daughter of a cellist in the New York Symphony Orchestra, Paul Ke ...

as Mrs. Powell *

Sig Arno Sig Arno (born Siegfried Aron, 27 December 1895 – 17 August 1975) was a German-Jewish film actor who appeared in such films as '' Pardon My Sarong'' and '' The Mummy's Hand''. He may be best remembered from '' The Palm Beach Story'' (1942) as T ...

as Spolo * Edgar Bergen as Edgar *

Charlie McCarthy Charlie McCarthy is Edgar Bergen's famed ventriloquist dummy partner. Charlie was part of Bergen's act as early as high school, and by 1930, was attired in his famous top hat, tuxedo, and monocle. The character was so well-known that his popularit ...

as Charlie * W. C. Fields as Himself * Sammy Kaye and His Orchestra as Themselves * Frank, Harry and Steve Condos as Condos Brothers * The Lipham Four as The Lipham Four *

Irene Tedrow Irene Tedrow (August 3, 1907 – March 10, 1995) was an American character actress in stage, film, television and radio. Among her most notable roles are as Janet Archer in the radio series '' Meet Corliss Archer'', Mrs. Lucy Elkins on the TV si ...

as Miss Casper * Pat Starling as Pat * Hollywood Canteen Kids as Themselves * Catron & Popp as Themselves

Production

Director S. Sylvan Simon had terrible difficulty filming scenes with W. C. Fields due to Fields' alcoholism. After lunch hour he was often nowhere to be found. This problem was solved by luring Fields into his truck early in the day and removing the ladder. Fields would often rant and complain before eventually falling asleep. Although Fields often made fun of singers and singing in general, he had a fondness for the promising young singer Jane Powell and even referred to her (as "little Janie Powell") on one of his CBS radio broadcasts (preserved on

transcription disc Electrical transcriptions are special phonograph recordings made exclusively for radio broadcasting,Browne, Ray B. and Browne, Pat, Eds. (2001). ''The Guide to United States Popular Culture''. The University of Wisconsin Press. . P. 263. which wer ...

s). Powell sang several songs in the film and made such an impression that

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 ...

signed her to a contract to make a number of musical comedies for them, through the mid-1950s. Powell's real name was Suzanne Burce, but prior to the release of this film, MGM assigned her the stage name "Jane Powell", the name of the character she portrays in this film. Location shooting was done in Palm Springs, California and at the

Pan-Pacific Auditorium The Pan-Pacific Auditorium was a landmark structure in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, California. It once stood near the site of Gilmore Field, an early Los Angeles baseball venue predating Dodger Stadium. It was located within sight of ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

Award nominations

References

External links

* * {{S. Sylvan Simon 1944 films American black-and-white films American musical comedy films Films directed by S. Sylvan Simon Films shot in California United Artists films 1944 musical comedy films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films