Any other two Technicolor films pre 1930 that could look at as good as King Of Jazz? (1 Viewer)

[Bert Greene]

It really is one great film have you seen Paramount on Parade?

"Paramount on Parade" (1930) is pretty decent, although with a lot of hit-or-miss bits. One of the better early-talkie 'revue' films, although not as good as "King of Jazz." As I recall, PoP has long been missing a reel, and I've never known if it has ever been found or restored. The popular tune 'Sweeping the Clouds Away' came from the movie and was widely recorded by various bands and artists.

I've always been curious about the two Fox examples, "Fox Movietone Follies of 1929" and "New Movietone Follies of 1930," assuming they sported the 'revue' format, but the synopses of them make them sound like they have a plot structure. The former is apparently lost, but I think the second one might survive. I'd like to see it because it features Marjorie White, who I like a lot. She just cracks me up whenever she's on screen.

 

[RobertMG]

"Paramount on Parade" (1930) is pretty decent, although with a lot of hit-or-miss bits. One of the better early-talkie 'revue' films, although not as good as "King of Jazz." As I recall, PoP has long been missing a reel, and I've never known if it has ever been found or restored. The popular tune 'Sweeping the Clouds Away' came from the movie and was widely recorded by various bands and artists.

I've always been curious about the two Fox examples, "Fox Movietone Follies of 1929" and "New Movietone Follies of 1930," assuming they sported the 'revue' format, but the synopses of them make them sound like they have a plot structure. The former is apparently lost, but I think the second one might survive. I'd like to see it because it features Marjorie White, who I like a lot. She just cracks me up whenever she's on screen.

New Movietone Follies of 1930 is a 1930 American Pre-Code musical film released by Fox Film Corporation, directed by Benjamin Stoloff. The film stars El Brendel and Marjorie White who also costarred in Fox's Just Imagine in 1930.[1]


Fox Movietone Follies of 1930 ad in The Film Daily, 1929
The film is a follow-up to Fox Movietone Follies of 1929 and has sequences filmed in Multicolor. An archival 35mm print of the film is in the collection of the UCLA Film and Television Archive.[2]

 

[RobertMG]

Never heard of her - sadly she died in 1935

 

[Bert Greene]

A couple of years ago I ran into (and bought) a trio of Vitaphone discs at a rural central-Texas antique shop, which were mixed in with a bunch of routine 78s. Actually, they weren't Vitaphone, as they were Paramount/Publix items. And they were late examples (1930-31), of material that would survive already via sound-on-film prints. Hence, nothing rare or needed for preservation. Two of the discs were for Fleischer cartoons, "Accordion Joe" and "Barnacle Bill," while the third was for reel-6 of the Paramount feature "The Lawyer's Secret" (1931), which commonly circulates via prints from the old MCA syndication package. The discs are in pretty rough shape, but it's nice to have these little artifacts dating to that short, historical transition period of moviedom.

 

[RobertMG]

A couple of years ago I ran into (and bought) a trio of Vitaphone discs at a rural central-Texas antique shop, which were mixed in with a bunch of routine 78s. Actually, they weren't Vitaphone, as they were Paramount/Publix items. And they were late examples (1930-31), of material that would survive already via sound-on-film prints. Hence, nothing rare or needed for preservation. Two of the discs were for Fleischer cartoons, "Accordion Joe" and "Barnacle Bill," while the third was for reel-6 of the Paramount feature "The Lawyer's Secret" (1931), which commonly circulates via prints from the old MCA syndication package. The discs are in pretty rough shape, but it's nice to have these little artifacts dating to that short, historical transition period of moviedom.

Breaks the heart all of the film history lost --- shame on the studios then for dumping so much Disney of old valued their film history that to Walt - Louis B Mayer too he started the effort to put MGMs film on safety I think --- the 1937 NJ fire wiped out Chan's and Clara Bow too

 

[Joel Arndt]

Regarding the two Fox Movietone Follies films, I believe they only had certain sequences in color and those were filmed using the Multicolor process that Fox used at the time.

Two other two-color Technicolor films that are extant are both from Warner Bros., Under a Texas Moon and Viennese Nights, both released in 1930 and again, due to rights issues, these films can't be released on home media.

 

[RobertMG]

Regarding the two Fox Movietone Follies films, I believe they only had certain sequences in color and those were filmed using the Multicolor process that Fox used at the time.

Two other two-color Technicolor films that are extant are both from Warner Bros., Under a Texas Moon and Viennese Nights, both released in 1930 and again, due to rights issues, these films can't be released on home media.

So possibly 3 years to copyright expires open those? What was the Fox mulitcolor process?

 

[RobertMG]

So possibly 3 years to copyright expires open those? What was the Fox mulitcolor process?

Just found a pic of test for Multicolor Process for Animal Crackers and footage too

 

[Will Krupp]

What was the Fox mulitcolor process?

I'm pretty sure Multicolor went out of business in 1932 and the whole process was bought and transformed into Cinecolor thereafter. If it was not exactly the same, it was very very similar to the bi-pack two color system we know Cinecolor to be.

Rather than achieving color via single dyed positives (as in Technicolor) Multicolor and Cinecolor (like Prizma before them) used chemical reactions (toning) to print colors onto opposite sides of duplitized positive stock (with an emulsion on both sides.)

It wasn't Fox Multicolor, however, just Multicolor (Fox didn't own it.)

 

[RobertMG]

I'm pretty sure Multicolor went out of business in 1932 and the whole process was bought and transformed into Cinecolor thereafter. If it was not exactly the same, it was very very similar to the bi-pack two color system we know Cinecolor to be.

Rather than achieving color via single dyed positives (as in Technicolor) Multicolor and Cinecolor (like Prizma before them) used chemical reactions (toning) to print colors onto opposite sides of duplitized positive stock (with an emulsion on both sides.)

It wasn't Fox Multicolor, however, just Multicolor (Fox didn't own it.)

Clip of Animal Crackers looks good

 

[Will Krupp]

Clip of Animal Crackers looks good

But Harpo without his wig is a bit of a shock!

 

[RobertMG]

But Harpo without his wig is a bit of a shock!

OMG did not notice that - you know w/o make-up the 4 of them looked like carbon copies

 

[Will Krupp]

OMG did not notice that

It's famously some rehearsal footage someone shot on set! None of Animal Crackers itself was filmed in color.

 

[Joel Arndt]

It wasn't Fox Multicolor, however, just Multicolor (Fox didn't own it.)

Correct, I believe MGM used the process only once, for the finale of Good News (1930) which doesn't exist anymore unless the footage turns up some day in the Czech Republic, Australia, etc.

 

[Matt Hough]

You can find some clips from Paramount on Parade on YouTube featuring stars like Maurice Chevalier (two or three songs with him; he was their biggest male star when it was made), Clara Bow (terrified of the microphone which she keeps glancing up to watch as she sings). I have long wished to see the whole thing. Never been fortunate enough to do so.

 

[RobertMG]

You can find some clips from Paramount on Parade on YouTube featuring stars like Maurice Chevalier (two or three songs with him; he was their biggest male star when it was made), Clara Bow (terrified of the microphone which she keeps glancing up to watch as she sings). I have long wished to see the whole thing. Never been fortunate enough to do so.

Thats why Mr F is a genius of Home Vid he put out the great Dawn Of Sound sets wish other studios would do the same - POP love the clips of Fu Manchu aka Warner Orland