Keep 'Em Rolling (film #38 on Hey Folks! It's Intermission Time, Vol. 4 (Something Weird). Also, film #16 on V for Victory WWII Cartoons & Shorts Show (Something Weird, 1996)).

This is another stirring wartime sing-along film, urging on production workers in the defense plants. Stirring scenes of Industry Creating the Arsenal of Democracy illustrate the song "Keep 'Em Rolling". The one spot of weirdness is the lyric "work your head off, so you can keep your head." Some neat examples of wartime propaganda posters appear during the opening and closing credits.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

Jiveroo (film #1386 on Prelinger Archive).

This soundie features a slightly strange nightclub floor show, with chorus girls in mini skirts, a geeky-looking Spanish dancer in a bolero jumpsuit, and what looks like an African-American woman in a French maid’s outfit. They all dance to a peppy jazz tune in typical floor show style, except for the Spanish guy, who bends like he’s Gumby. For the most part, though, this is a pretty typical soundie.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

Bellazza (available for download on Bedazzled).

Bobby Rydell sings an Italian love song to his lady love in this Scopitone with an Italian flavor. Well, OK, he pronounces the title word “bell-late-suh.” And his sings to his blonde girlfriend at a ski resort. And there are three annoying female backup singers with no discernible singing or dancing talent, but cool pairs of white go-go boots, who break into the proceedings periodically. And they dance the limbo in a very Caucasian way. OK, I guess this is as Italian as Spaghettios, but that’s what makes it fun.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: *****. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

A Jazz Etude (film #1383 on Prelinger Archive).

A guy in white tie and tails does a tap dance to a peppy jazz tune. This soundie had my toes tappin’.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ***. Overall Rating: ***.

Ammi Belcacem (available for download on Bedazzled).

This Arabic Scopitone features an attractive female singer in Western dress singing what sounds like the Arabic version of pop music. She has flirty facial expressions, but doesn’t move her body at all, though at one point she shows us her hair, a decidedly non-Muslim thing to do. Her backup singers all sport Western dress and hairstyles, but rather than dancing, they sit politely behind her while singing their parts. This Scopitone provides a fascinating glimpse into the pop music of another culture.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: **. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

The Big Flame-Up (film #7 on Cartoon Sing-Along DVD (PC Treasures, 2006)).

A fire department made up of various cartoon animals fights a fire in a fireproof warehouse made up of anthropomorphic cartoon flames. The flames generally prevail, getting strong enough to lead the audience in a rousing chorus of “There’ll Be a Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight.” I like singing and dancing inanimate objects a lot, and these flames are particularly anarchic. The song is a lot of fun, of course, and the animal firefighters are appealingly goofy. This is not a great cartoon on say, the Warner Bros. level, but there’s lots to enjoy here.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ****. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

Base Brawl (film #5 on Cartoon Sing-Along DVD (PC Treasures, 2006)).

At the zoo animals’ baseball game, the elephant team is pulverizing a team made up of cute little forest creatures. During the 7th inning stretch, we are invited to sing along to “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” following the bouncing baseball. This little sing-along toon is rather ordinary, but charming.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

Ce Garcon (downloaded from Bedazzled).

In this French Scopitone, a black pop group sings a catchy song that has a sort of a French Motown feel. Except they dance like white people, so go figure. It’s just this sort of weirdness I like to see in these Scopitones, though. And the song is a real toe-tapper.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

I Don't Want to Change the Subject (film #10 on WWII V for Victory War Bonds & Rallies Show (Something Weird, 1996)).

Hey folks! Just 'cause the war's over doesn't mean you can shirk your duty to buy War Bonds! And while you're waiting to buy, sing along with this cute little ditty. A prime piece of post-WWII ephemera.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: *****. Overall Rating: ****.

Cara-Lin (downloaded from Bedazzled).

Les 5 Gentlemen play the song “Cara-Lin”, while fans dance at what must have been one of the first raves in this French Scopitone from the 60s. These guys really rock, so much so that I found myself going back to the Bedazzled site to find out who exactly they were. There’s a definite Beatles influence here, but it’s just an influence, not a rip-off––they definitely have their own sound. This song could have been a hit in the US if the lyrics hadn’t been in French.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: **. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

Daddy (downloaded from Bedazzled). [Category: Hollywood]

Sultry Julie London sings to her sugar daddy about all the finer things in life he’d better give her, and, in case he doesn’t get the message, she has scantily-clad models show him all the swag she expects. This is much livelier and more convincing than the soundie version of this song, making it more fun.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ***. Overall Rating: ***.

I Can’t Give You Anything but Love (downloaded from Prelinger Archive). [Category: Hollywood]

A pretty woman sings “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love” (Bay-Be!! You remember how it goes…) and a couple of dorky couples dance in the kind of nightclub floor show they just don’t do today. A charming soundie from the 40s.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

The Hut-Sut Song (downloaded from Prelinger Archive). [Category: Hollywood]

Four guys in a rooming house sing “The Hut-Sut Song” so repeatedly and annoyingly that the other boarders sensibly have them carted away to the loony bin. But since when has music been sensible? Is that the head psychiatrists and the orderlies I see singing “The Hut-Sut Song”? This soundie is essential.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: *****. Weirdness: *****. Historical Interest: *****. Overall Rating: *****.

The Beatles on Hollywood Palace (downloaded from Bedazzled). [Category: Sleaze & Outsider]

No, this is not a live performance––you wouldn’t have been able to hear ‘em over the screams. Instead, the Beatles showed two short promo films for their latest songs, “Penny Lane,” and “Strawberry Fields Forever.” These are basically music videos before there were music videos, and they’re mildly trippy and psychedelic. As usual, the host doesn’t know how to respond to them, though the girls in the audience do. A blast from the 60s.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.

La Bamba (downloaded from Bedazzled). [Category: Hollywood]

No, this is not Richie Valens, but a Mexican Scopitone that does the song in a more traditional fashion, with a female singer and two mariachi guitarists. No real surprises here, but this is lively and fun.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: ***. 0verall Rating: ***.

Hollywood Boogie (film #1334 on Prelinger Archive). [Category: Hollywood]

We get to see an all-girl orchestra in action in this lively soundie, but there’s no sign of Tony Curtis or Jack Lemmon. Seriously, this soundie is a lot of fun.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: *****. Overall Rating: ****.

Comin’ Round the Mountain (film #1 on Disc #11 of 100 Cartoon Classics DVD Megapack (Treeline Films, 2004). Also, film #20 on Disc #3 of 150 Cartoon Classics DVD Megapack (Mill Creek Entertainment, 2005)). [Category: Hollywood]

This cartoon starts out fairly predictably, showing us two feuding hillbilly families, one of cats (the Catfields) and the other of dogs (the McHounds). After showing us a bunch of very old cat and dog and hillbilly gags, it suddenly turns into one of those “sing along with the bouncing ball” films, as we are asked to sing a wacked-out version of “Comin’ Round the Mountain” to welcome the new schoolmarm. That’s what I like about some of these old cartoons––sometimes they throw you for a loop.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

Come Softly to Me (film #30 in the Film section of Bedazzled. Also, film #112 in the Video section of Bedazzled). [Category: Hollywood]

Now this is the 50s! The Delta Rhythm Boys in pink dinner jackets singing “Come Softly to Me.” Smooth-as-silk doo-wop is a necessary addition to anyone’s collection.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ***. Historical Interest: *****. Overall Rating: ****.

Bless Them All (film #2 on Bedazzled. Also, film #1 in the Film section of Bedazzled. Also, film #2 in the Video section of Bedazzled). [Category: Hollywood]

Ah, men––can’t live with ‘em and can’t live without ‘em. So Shani Wallis blesses ‘em all in this Scopitone. It’s usually men who express this sort of sentiment, so it’s good to see the genders reversed for once. It helps that all the men here are big-muscled eye candy.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: ***. Weirdness: ****. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ****.

Hawaiian Hula Song (film #1386 on Prelinger Archive). [Category: Hollywood]

This is fairly subdued for a soundie. It features a singer with a guitar singing a hula song while a woman in a grass skirt dances the hula and a steel guitar player provides backup. That’s it, really. Play this at your next tiki party.

Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: **. Weirdness: **. Historical Interest: ***. Overall Rating: ***.