Forty-second Street (film)
"Forty-second Street" is a 1933 musical film that revolves around the struggles of Julian Marsh, a Broadway director facing financial ruin. With hopes pinned on a new show featuring popular leading lady Dorothy Brock, Marsh navigates the pressures of production while dealing with a serious heart condition. The film's narrative is enriched by two romantic subplots: one involving Dorothy and her former partner Pat Denning, and the other between newcomer Peggy Sawyer and singer Billy Lawler. A crisis emerges when a financial backer withdraws support after a drunken incident, leading to Dorothy's injury, which compels Marsh to cast Peggy as the show’s star.
The film is well-known not only for its storyline but also for its impressive musical numbers, especially the notable "Forty-second Street" title song. Directed by Busby Berkeley, the film showcases elaborate choreography and striking visuals, contributing to its lasting influence on the genre of musical films. "Forty-second Street" was a box-office success and earned two Academy Award nominations, setting a precedent for future musicals during the Great Depression era. Its innovative production elements and engaging musical sequences have made it a significant cultural touchstone in film history.
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Subject Terms
Forty-second Street (film)
Identification American musical film
Director Lloyd Bacon
Date Released in 1933
Forty-second Street marked a turning point in American film musicals as choreographer Busby Berkeley’s lavish, precision style became the standard against which other 1930’s musicals were judged. The film also launched the Warner Bros. careers of popular songwriters Al Dubin and Harry Warren and marked the film debut of dancer Ruby Keeler.
The central theme of Forty-second Street is the desperation of Julian Marsh (Warner Baxter), once a successful director of Broadway shows, who must have another hit to solve his financial problems. With the promise of a new show and popular leading lady Dorothy Brock (Bebe Daniels), whose wealthy benefactor promises to back the show, the demanding Marsh drives his cast and crew, despite a serious heart condition. Two backstage romances complicate the show, one between Dorothy and Pat Denning (George Brent), a former partner who now shuns show business, the other between newcomer Peggy Sawyer (Keeler) and singer Billy Lawler (Dick Powell). A crisis ensues when the backer threatens to pull out his money after Dorothy drunkenly insults him at a pre-opening party. When Dorothy later breaks her ankle, Marsh is forced to take the advice of chorine Anytime Annie (Ginger Rogers) and make the talented but unproven Peggy the star. After a night of physically and emotionally exhausting rehearsals with Marsh, Peggy leads the show to success, thus freeing Dorothy to return to Pat and saving Marsh from ruin.
The continued popularity and significance of Forty-second Street are based more on Berkeley’s staging of the production numbers than on its story line, which was already a cliché by 1933. Audiences marveled at the songs; the lavish, movable sets; and the dozens of dancers. Among the production numbers, which include “Young and Healthy” and “Shuffle Off to Buffalo,” the standout is the six-minute-long title song, which begins with Keller singing about the history of the bohemian street and doing a tap dance against a painted background. She then exits on the running board of a taxi, singing about the “naughty, bawdy, gaudy, sporty Forty-second Street” as the stage opens up to vignettes that include cars, mounted policemen, and various characters who dance and sing. The scene continues with the murder of a young woman, as Powell sings the refrain from the window of a speakeasy. The number continues with precision lines of male and female tap dancers, finally ending with Keeler and Powell atop a set of a skyscraper.
Impact
Although not the first film musical, Forty-second Street was the first to be a top-ten box-office hit. Also, it earned two Academy Award nominations, including one for best picture. Beyond that, the film was the most important style setter for future 1930’s musicals. The Great Depression fanned audiences’ desire for escapist fare, and the musicals Berkeley choreographed and later directed at Warner Bros. captured the audience’s imagination. His highly choreographed, precision musical-production numbers became increasingly grand and more complex, even as he moved to Technicolor musicals at Twentieth Century-Fox and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer during the 1940’s and early 1950’s.
Bibliography
Fumento, Rocco, ed. Forty-second Street. Madison: Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research/University of Wisconsin Press, 1980.
Hirschhorn, Clive. The Hollywood Musical. New York: Crown, 1991.
Hoberman, J. Forty-second Street. London: BFI, 1993.
Siegel, Marcia B. “Busby Berkeley and the Projected Stage.” Hudson Review 62, no. 1 (2009): 106-112.
Thomas, Tony, and Jim Terry, with Busby Berkeley. The Busby Berkeley Book. Greenwich, Conn.: New York Graphic Society, 1973.