Best Music Movies of 1947

A New Yorker hobo moves into a mansion and along the way he gathers friends to live in the house with him. Before he knows it, he is living with the actual home owners.

A classical musician from a working class background is sidetracked by his love for a wealthy, neurotic socialite.

At fictitious Tait University in the Roaring '20s, co-ed and school librarian Connie Lane falls for football hero Tommy Marlowe. Unfortunately, he has his eye on gold-digging vamp Pat McClellan. Tommy's grades start to slip, which keeps him from playing in the big game. Connie eventually finds out Tommy really loves her and devises a plan to win him back and to get him back on the field.

Funloving Pearl White, working in a garment sweatshop, gets her big chance when she "opens" for a delayed Shakespeare play...with a comic vaudeville performance. Her brief stage career leads her into those "horrible" moving pictures, where she comes to love the chaotic world of silent movies, becoming queen of the serials. But the consequences of movie stardom may be more than her leading man can take

Upset about a new Broadway musical's mockery of Greek mythology, the goddess Terpsichore comes down to earth and lands a part in the show. She works her charms on the show's producer and he incorporates her changes into the show. Unfortunately, her changes also produce a major flop.

A talent agent sells his girlfriend to a nightclub -- as two separate acts. The deception and constant costume changes are too much for his girl.

A grandson of a recently deceased millionaire mistakes a beautiful female disc jockey for her aunt, who once dated the grandfather.

In the late 1800s, Miss Pilgrim, a young stenographer, or typewriter, becomes the first female employee at a Boston shipping office. Although the men object to her at first, she soon charms them all, especially the handsome young head of the company. Their romance gets sidetracked when she becomes involved in the Women's Suffrage movement.

An ex-GI falls for a bathing beauty.

A gambling hall owner relocates from New Orleans to Chicago and entertains his patrons with hot jazz by Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Woody Herman, and others.

Composer Robert Schumann struggles to compose his symphonies while his loving wife Clara offers her support. Also helping the Schumanns is their lifelong friend, composer Johannes Brahms.

Dozens of star and character-actor cameos and a message about the Variety Club (a show-business charity) are woven into a framework about two hopeful young ladies who come to Hollywood, exchange identities, and cause comic confusion (with slapstick interludes) throughout the Paramount studio.

In this Puppetoon animated short film (an Academy Award Best Short Subject, Cartoons nominee), Tubby the Tuba is disappointed that his sound limits what he's permitted to do in an orchestra of self-playing instruments that, unlike him, get to play pretty melodies. A chance meeting with a bullfrog changes everything.

Bongo, the performing bear, escapes from the circus and tries to adapt to life in the wild.

Musical biography of Irish 19th century tenor Chauncey Olcott.

Danny has been in the army for 4 years, yet all he thinks about is Brooklyn and how great it is. When he returns after the war, he soon finds that Brooklyn is not so nice after all. He is able to share a place with Nick, the janitor of his old High School, and get a job as a singer in a music store. He also meets Leo, a talented pianist and his teacher Anne, whose dream is to singing Opera. When Jamie arrives from England, Danny tries to show him the Brooklyn experience and help him compose modern swing music. Together, these four also try to help Leo get the Brooklyn Music scholarship.

A small-town girl tells a small fib to a wealthy businessman; complications ensue.

A beautiful cabaret dancer inspires composer Rimsky-Korsakov.

Two tour guides take visitors on a promotional tour of Warner Bros.' studios.

In this chronicle of a vaudeville family, Myrtle McKinley (class of 1900) goes to San Francisco to attend business school, but ends up in a chorus line. Soon, star Frank Burt notices her talent, hires her for a "two-act", then marries her. Incidents of the marriage and the growing pains of eldest daughter Miriam are followed, interspersed with nostalgic musical numbers.

A young Irishwoman comes to the United States to live and work with her mother as a cleaning lady at Carnegie Hall. She becomes attached to the place as the people she meets there gradually shape her life. The film also includes a variety of performances from some of the foremost musical artists of the times: conductors Bruno Walter & Leopold Stokowski, solists Arthur Rubinstein & Jascha Haifetz, singers Lily Pons & Jan Peerce and bandleader Vaughn Monroe among many others.

Old-time musical star Schyler Jarvis, now wealthy, is dying; his last act is a visionary plan for the future happiness of his son, swing bandleader Louis Jarvis, and Honey Carter, daughter of his long-lost love. But crooked lawyer Talbot has a nefarious scheme to get his hands on the Jarvis money...and it doesn't include any happiness for Louis and Honey. Plenty of swing from Louis Jordan's Tympany Five.

A young dance student accidentally cripples a teacher she doesn't like.

An experimental short film of images and music made by Norman McLaren.

Nightclub boss Malone puts off his wedding anniversary trip because an old woman claims to have overheard plans to rob the nightclub. But the old woman, Mrs. Cowdy, has a scheme of her own.

A biopic of the career of Joe Howard (12 Feb.,1878 - 19 May, 1961), famous songwriter of the early 20th Century. Howard wrote the title song, Goodbye, My Lady Love; and Hello, My Baby among many others. Mark Stevens was dubbed by Buddy Clark, well known singer of the 30's and 40's

Cab Calloway plays himself in a plot about jealousy, night clubs, and gangsters. Ends with a series of musical numbers.

A socialite pretends to be poor and blind in her plan to help a blinded pianist.

A World War II pilot (Gene Kelly) comes home to a bride (Marie McDonald) who, spoiled by her father (Charles Winninger), now wants a divorce.

A famous bandleader, suffering from overwork and exhaustion, goes to a sanitarium for a rest. While there he dreams of being out west at a dude ranch, where he finds himself involved in the beautiful owner's struggle to keep her ranch from falling into the hands of the villain, who wants either her or her ranch (or, preferably, both).

Singer Ann wants back her money that the manager of a big-band has embezzled.

When a matador leaves town to focus on his music, his twin sister takes on his identity in the bullfighting ring.

Gridley is mining silver from an old Mexican mine and bringing it into the USA thru a passage into his worthless mine. Border guard Rogers suspects Gridley and finally finds the secret entrance to the Mexican mine. He sends Lee Madison for help only to have her captured by Gridley. Trigger brings help that takes care of Gridley's men and now Roy has to rescue Madison.

Two pairs of lovers try to thwart an arranged marriage at Costa Rican fiesta time.

Judy Gibson (Jean Porter), upon leaving finishing school, goes to meet her relatives, whom she believes to be wealthy and socially prominent. Actually, there are penniless Broadway characters and, in order to avoid Judy learning the truth, they take possession of a Long Island mansion owned by a thief presently doing time in Sing Sing. Judy arrives with her fiancé Dick Nichols (John Shelton) and his father, an industrialist who tries to sell worthless stock to Judy's family in order to bolster his shaky financial status. They give him $200,000, part of the stashed loot they found belonging to the home-owner thief. The latter escapes from prison.

Based on and built around the west coast radio program, "The Hollywood Barn Dance", although no members of the 1947 cast of the program are in the film, but the better-known (on a national scale) Ernest Tubb and His Texas Troubadors, Jack Guthrie and Jimmy and Leon Short more than make up for that. The slight plot, around 18 songs, begins with Tubb and his band searching for $2000 needed to rebuild their town chuch after it burned down while they were rehearsing in it. Hollywood, here they come!

Short film by Mary Ellen Bute

This "Name Band Musical" short from Universal (production number 3302), filmed in November of 1947 and released on December 3, 1947 (which should make it a 1947 and not a 1948 film) features Gene Krupa, his drums and his trio. It opens with Krupa and the trio playing "Lover" and then Carolyn Grey comes on to sing "Boogie Blues." Krupa and the trio band also play "Blanchette", "Stompin' at the Savoy" and end on "Let Us Leap."

A brief history of Stan Kenton's musical career from taxi-dance gigs to his successful big band orchestra.

This musical short features four songs associated with the western United States.

A Marine Sergeant wounded in overseas combat service, requires an operation, and Navy psychiatrist Captain R. S. Handler, recommends to Marine Captain Russ Morgan and Colonel Winters that "Sarge" be given a few weeks rest before hospitalization. Through Dean McKinley of San Juan Junior College, Sarge enters the school on a temporary basis. The teenagers are rehearsing a school show and Freddie is worried because they have no band. Freddie, Dodie Rogers and Betty Rogers find Sarge asleep in the park, and the girls put him up at their house when they learn he can't find a room. Betty has a row with boyfriend Roy , and in order to make him jealous gets Freddie to invite her to the school dance after telling Freddie that his girlfriend Dodie is going with Sarge. Many misunderstandings follow but all is well when Sarge gets his marine captain to bring his band over to the school for the school's BIG SHOW.

Socialite Cathy Abbott is working in the chorus of a Broadway show instead of being enrolled at an exclusive girl's school as her parents think. When the show closes, she brings two of her chorus friends home with her. In addition to trying to make her friends acceptable to the snooty society of which her family is part, she is also being blackmailed by a rival.

An animated presentation of Silent Night, Come All Ye Faithful, Good King Wenceslaus, Joy to the World, and What Child Is This sung by the Leslie Bell Singers.

In Junction 88, a small all-black community, pretty Lolly Simpkins loves gentle songwriter Buster Jenkins, who makes too little money to marry. Her father favors rival suitor Onnie, crude but with a better income. Buster's best chance comes when impresario Bob Howard, to whom he's sent songs, comes to town looking for him. But Bob is looking for a pseudonym, 'Hewlett Green', that nobody's ever heard of. Will Buster reveal himself? Meanwhile, a very jazzy church concert.

A burlesque stage show at the Follies Theater in Los Angeles, California, featuring the original Hubba-Hubba Girl, Evelyn West.

The ramshackle Smoky River Ranch is all that stands in the way of a developer and a big real-estate deal, but the old man who owns the ranch won't sell it, because he has to take care of some down-and-out theater people to honor his dead son's memory. Frustrated, the developer sends in a pretty young girl to try to trick the old man into selling the ranch.

The busty blonde bombshell of big band and swing music is the charming host and lead performer of this short and entertaining vintage film featuring an all-female cast.

Marshal Johnnie Taggart (Jon Hall) , posing as an outlaw named "Ace" Braddock, comes to Bannack, Montana to restore law and order. But he is recognized by Kitty, co-owner with Clay Curtwright of the infamous Bull Whip saloon. But "bad-girl" Kitty keeps her mouth shut. When Johnnie's pal Andy reports a stage holdup, Curtwright's henchman, Ben Borden, talks the sheriff and Judge Holden into suspecting Johnnie. Johnnie reveals himself to Judge Holden as a government marshal, and the judge voices his opinion that Curtwright is the leader of the road agents, but voices it in the presence of his granddaughter, Louise Holden. The Judge doesn't know that Louise is in love with Curtwright, and she tips him off as to Johnnie's real identity. Curtwright frames Johnnie for a murder and arranges for the crooked sheriff to promote a lynching and Andy and Kitty help Johnnie escape jail. Johnnie rounds up vigilantes and heads for a showdown at the Bull Whip saloon

This short film focuses on four songs, "The Band Played On", "Daisy Bell" (a.k.a. "A Bicycle Built for Two"), "Come Josephine in My Flying Machine", and "The Man on the Flying Trapeze", that have become American standards.