It is commonly thought by most movie experts that Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein's stage classic "Show Boat" has been filmed three times. This isn't quite true;in 1929, Universal Pictures made a silent film of the Edna Ferber novel from which the show was adapted. However,talking pictures had begun in 1927,the year the show opened on Broadway,and by 1929, the studio became concerned that the public wouldn't accept a silent Show Boat. So they added a few talking scenes, some spirituals, and at the last minute bought the rights to the stage version,adding a 20 minute sound prologue to the silent film in which stars of the show sang five of its songs. The result was a disaster. But Universal redeemed itself in 1936, when Carl Laemmle,Jr. produced and James Whale directed what is considered to be the finest screen version of"Show Boat" with Irene Dunne, Allan Jones, Charles Winninger, Paul Robeson and Helen Morgan. Winninger (as Cap'n Andy) and Morgan (as Julie) repeat their original stage roles, while Robeson,for whom the role was actually written, plays Joe and sings his famous rendition of "Ol' Man River", the most powerful song in the show. Irene Dunne, the first touring company Magnolia ,also repeats her stage role,and unlike Kathryn Grayson in the MGM1951 Technicolor remake, gives a memorable acting as well as singing performance. In fact, one of the things which distinguishes this screen musical from films like the Jeanette MacDonald -Nelson Eddy operettas is the quality of the acting. The entire cast,from Irene Dunne down to the bit players ,breathes real life into the characters,so that the movie never becomes one corny wait between the hit songs. This is probably due more to the director James Whale( his only musical) than to the actors,because Allan Jones never gave a better acting performance,and Charles Winninger gives the most memorable performance of his career. As for Helen Morgan,she is truly exceptional as the tragic Julie ,especially when she sings "Can't Help Lovin'Dat Man" and "Bill". The script for the 1936 "Show Boat", far better than the insipid script for the 1951 version, is by Oscar Hammerstein II,the original librettist and lyricist,and relies heavily on his stage dialogue. Hammerstein and Kern were not about to let their baby fall into the wrong hands,so they worked on the film, retaining nine songs from the show, and adding three new ones just as good (or almost as good) as the ones they replaced. Any changes from the show were made by them, and director Whale was wise enough to hire original orchestrator Robert Russell Bennett and original conductor Victor Baravalle. He also insured complete historical authenticity in the sets .props,and costumes(including the show boat itself). For a long,time,this version of" Show Boat" was suppressed ,partly because MGM owned the rights,and partly because of the controversy surrounding Paul Robeson. Now you have your chance to see it,either on TV,video,or laserdisc. Don't pass it up. This is one of the truly great musical films.
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