''Sing Boy Sing'' is a 1958 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 Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

released by 20th Century-Fox and starring newcomers Tommy Sands and Lili Gentle. The film was an expansion of the January 1957 '' Kraft Television Theatre'' episode "The Singin' Idol," also starring Sands, who was billed by the studio as a new

teen idol A teen idol is a celebrity with a large teenage fan base. Teen idols are generally young but are not necessarily teenagers themselves. An idol's popularity may be limited to teens, or may extend to all age groups. By region Asia Ea ...

and plays an

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

-type singer. The film was Gentle's only starring role, and her penultimate film appearance. 20th Century-Fox had plans to promote her as its new dashing redhead, but suitable roles for her did not materialize. ''Sing, Boy, Sing'' was released in the United States in February 1958 to positive reviews, but performed poorly at the

box office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicket. ...

, though it did find some popularity with teenage audiences. Sands' soundtrack of songs from the film was released in 1958 and produced a #24 hit on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' singles chart with the title song.

Plot

Virgil Walker is a popular singing star. His manager Joseph Sharkey keeps tight control over Walker's life.

Cast

* Tommy Sands as Virgil Walker * Lili Gentle as Leora Easton * Edmond O'Brien as Joseph Sharkey * Nick Adams as C.K. Judd * John McIntire as Rev. Farley Walker * Diane Jergens as Pat Barry *

Josephine Hutchinson Josephine Hutchinson (October 12, 1903 – June 4, 1998) was an American actress. She acted in dozens of theater plays and dozens of films, including ''Son of Frankenstein'' and ''North by Northwest'', as well as numerous television appearances ...

as Caroline Walker *

Jerry Paris William Gerald Paris (July 25, 1925 – March 31, 1986) was an American actor and director best known for playing Jerry Helper, the dentist and next-door neighbor of Rob and Laura Petrie, on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', and for directing the majo ...

as Arnold Fisher *Tami Conner as Ginnie * Regis Toomey as Rev. Easton *Art Ford as Disc Jockey * Bill Randle as Disc Jockey *Biff Collie as Disc Jockey

Sources

The film was based on the January 1957 '' Kraft Television Theatre'' episode "The Singin' Idol," which drew heavily on '' The Jazz Singer''. In the television program, which also stars Tommy Sands, but with the lead character's first name as Elwell rather than Virgil (as in the film), Walker is a singing star under the control of his manager. He visits his hometown where he reconnects with a childhood sweetheart. His ill father, a reverend, dies after pleading for Elwell to become a preacher, and Elwell is tempted to return home and follow in his father's footsteps, but his manager dissuades him. The television program's script was written by Paul Monash and was based on the life of

. Sands had been discovered by Presley's manager

Colonel Tom Parker Colonel Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 January 21, 1997) was a Dutch people, Dutch talent manager and concert promoter, best known as the manager of Elvis Presley. Parker was born in the Netherlands and Il ...

, and Sands had toured with Presley. Parker helped Sands land lead role, which turned Sands into a star overnight. He received eight times more fan mail than any had other actor who had appeared on a ''Kraft Television Theatre'' episode. Sands later said: "Colonel Parker was the best thing that ever happened to me." Songs performed on the show included "Hep Dee Hootie", "Rock of Ages" and " Teen-Age Crush," which reached #2 on the ''Billboard'' singles chart and sold over a million copies.

Production

20th Century-Fox had enjoyed success with films starring Elvis Presley and

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

. In February 1957, the studio bought the film rights, and in July Sands signed on to appear in the film. Henry Ephron was assigned to produce. Ephron said that Claude Binyon had written "a first-rate script" that "could be made at a price." He approached

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

about the part of the manager. Welles was enthusiastic and also wanted to direct the film. He explained his ideas to Ephron, who thought that they were "electric," and pitched the idea of Welles directing to the executives at Fox.

Spyros Skouras Spyros Panagiotis Skouras (; ; March 28, 1893 – August 16, 1971) was a Greek-American motion picture pioneer and film executive who was the president of 20th Century-Fox from 1942 to 1962. He resigned June 27, 1962, but was chairman of the comp ...

said that Ephron could have Welles if he personally guaranteed any cost overruns that Welles might incur. However, Ephron directed the film himself. Filming began in September 1957. Sands' costar was Lili Gentle, a Fox contract player who had appeared in '' Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?''. Sands cowrote some of the film's musical numbers.

Reception

20th Century-Fox head Buddy Adler was reportedly so excited by a preview of the film that he signed a new contract with Sands, tripling his salary. The film opened at the Metropolitan Theatre in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

on February 5, 1958 but was pulled two days later because of poor attendance. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' wrote that the film was "several cuts above average" and that the "real surprise package" was Sands: " 's going to be a very competent actor; he already has verve, presence."

References

External links

* * *{{TCMDb title, 90239, title=Sing Boy Sing 1958 films 1958 directorial debut films 1958 drama films 1950s English-language films 1950s musical drama films 20th Century Fox films American musical drama films American rock musicals Films based on television plays Films scored by Lionel Newman 1950s American films English-language musical drama films