Daily Archives: May 10, 2016

The Girl Can’t Help It
Directed by Frank Tashlin
Written by Frank Tashlin and Herbert Baker
1956/USA
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
First viewing/YouTube

Barry the paperboy: [after Jerri Jordan walks by] If that’s a girl, then I don’t know what my sister is!

Tom Ewell plays the same nebbish as in The Seven Year Itch, this time opposite Jayne Mansfield as the blonde.  It’s a cartoonish comedy enlivened by many fantastic rock and roller’s of the 50’s.

Gangster Fats Murdock (Edmond O’Brien) is engaged to blonde bombshell Jerri Jordan (Mansfield).  He feels like he can’t marry a “nobody” so he wants to turn her into a star.  He hires alcoholic agent Tom Miller (Ewell) to make her one, almost solely because he has the reputation of keeping his hands off his female clients.  It turns out Jerri is with Fats only from gratitude for getting her father a lighter prison sentence.  Jerri’s big dream is being a wife and mother but she is willing to play along with aiming for stardom.

Of course, Tom and Jerri develop feelings for each other and Fats gets suspicious.  Fats also gets involved in the project  by coming up with a silly song about breaking rocks in prison.  One way or another, the film manages work in almost non-stop performances by the likes of Little Richard, Fats Domino, Gene Vincent, and Julie London.

I don’t ordinarily go for these leering type 50’s comedies but the music kept me riveted to the screen.

Trailer

clip – Little Richard sings “Ready Teddy” and “She’s Got It”

Don’t Knock the Rock
Directed by Fred F. Sears
Written by Robert E. Kent
1956/USA
Clover Productions
First viewing/Netflix rental

Arnie Haines: He seems to think that running around in my underwear or getting thrown out of my hotel is news. And does that sound like news to you guys?
Member of Applejacks: If you were Kim Novak, it might.

The story, the lead, and a lot of the acts are pretty dopey.  Little Richard and some dynamite dancing almost make up for it.

Alan Hale is a teen idol being managed by Alan Freed.  He gets sick of all the publicity hype so he and his band take a vacation in the farming community he hails from.  His mere presence causes a firestorm of controversy.  The mayor decides to build his re-election campaign on an anti-rock and roll platform.  An influential columnist is also on the scene to report developments.  Her daughter has a weakness for the new music.  So Freed brings in some big acts for a rock and roll dance in a neighboring town designed to demonstrate how harmless the music is.  Naturally, Hale falls for the columnist’s daughter and a jealous hussy tries to sabotage the proceedings.

As with most of these Columbia rockers, the story is built around convincing adults that rock and roll is wholesome.  Their problem is that good rock and roll is dangerous!  Little Richard clearly was.  Thus he is the bright light amid a lot of dweebish acts and a formulaic plot.

It looks like this film was the first to include a song by Burt Bacharach and Hal David – “I Cry More” performed by Alan Dale.  Little Richard sings “Tutti Frutti” and “Long Tall Sally”.

Clip – Little Richard rocks out

Bill Haley covers Little Richard (if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em!)  + some fantastic jitterbugging