Comments

Crazy and Crazier, Part 4 — 8 Comments

  1. Great series, Jim! (And it was fun seeing the Cosmo Brown Memos again, too.) For the record, I can attest to the fact that Mr. Presnell wasn't only stiff on screen. I saw him in, of all things, the huge and campy stage production of GONE WITH THE WIND in London in 1972. Gorgeous voice aside, he was pretty awful. Frankly, my dear, I didn't give…well you get the idea.

    Totally agree with you on Judy's rendition of "But Not For Me". Perfection.

  2. Thanks, Dorian (and a belated thanks to Kevin D. as well for his kind words). The Ghost Goes Gear sounds like a real hoot, and I've put it in my Netflix "Save" queue (just in case). I see it's available here from Amazon, but I'm not quite ready to shell out 25 smackers for the pleasure (much as I hate having to miss an Acker Bilk movie!).

    "Wackadoodle musical numbers" — perfect! Wish I'd come up with that turn of phrase myself.

  3. Jim, I've come in a little late for your GIRL CRAZY series (I've been so busy, you have no idea), but after reading about WHEN THE BOYS MEET THE GIRLS, I'll make it a point to read your previous installments! Poor Harve Presnell and Connie Francis, what did they do to deserve this? 🙂 For the record, I first became a Harve Presnell fan when I saw him in FARGO. And did you ever see him in Andy Richter's hilarious but sadly short-lived NBC TV serious ANDY BARKER, P.I.?

    Your descriptions of the wackadoodle musical numbers remind me of another misbegotten, funny-for-the-wrong-reasons musical extravaganza, THE GHOST GOES GEAR with the Spencer Davis Group and many all-but-forgotten British one-hit-wonders. If your heart can take it, here's a link to my IMDb review! 🙂

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0145791/reviews

    Great post as always, Jim! I look forward to catching up with the previous chapters! 🙂

  4. I have learned a lot through your fabulous "Girl Crazy" series.

    I caught "Where the Boys Meet the Girls" on TV in my teen years and when Herman's Hermits took on "Bidin' My Time" I recall thinking "Maybe it's me, but that's not right."

    "caffeinated choristers" – love it!

  5. Kevin, by all means check out When the Boys Meet the Girls next time it turns up on TCM. It has things that are definitely worth seeing (and not just in a wreck-on-the-highway sense), and to tell the truth, for all its faults, I kind of like it.

  6. Aha, so that's the third version of "Girl Crazy"? Fascinating post, Jim, and I was completely unaware of this movie.

    I've seen it listed in the TCM Program Guide, but just assumed it was a beach party type movie. I had no idea it was a "Girl Crazy" retread. Despite your cautions about it, I'll be on the lookout for it.

    That was a wonderful rundown of the musical numbers too. I'm a fan of musical directors on film, but the Karger name was unfamiliar to me. After reading your words on the "Bidin My Time" now I know why.

    A great and invaluable series of posts, Jim