Hoagy Carmichael (1939)** 1/2 (out of 4)Of all the shorts in Kino's Hollywood Rhythm Vol. 1, this here might be the weakest but calling it weak would be over-dramatic as this is still a fairly entertaining film.
An informal atmosphere dominates this Paramount musical short with the title songwriter/piano player instructing his orchestra which includes singer Meredith Blake and trombonist Jack Teagarden. During two of his instrumental songs, "Washboard Blues" and "Old Rockin' Chair", are scenes of black people done as inserts.
Like the title says, this one features Hoagy Carmichael. But in the original title it also included mention of the singer Jack Teagarden--though it's not listed that way on IMDb.
It's a shame that one of the great songwriters if America's golden age of melodies got to be represented in this rather oddball short that features three songs, but none that stand out, even the one standard, "Stardust". The narrative proclaims him Paramount's greatest song writer, and the most requested for new songs.
