Re: Barkleys of Broadway
Camille Scaysbrook (verona_beach@geocities.com)
Mon, 09 Nov 1998 09:13:34 +1100
Spooky! I was just reading an extra-thick biography of Judy Garland
yesterday and they mentioned this very movie (she was originally cast to
play the Ginger Rogers part) - just after reading about `The Clock',
another of her movies which, as I mentioned awhile ago, has some
resemblances to TCIR. I've read that Salinger was a fan of Judy Garland and
it got me thinking - I wonder how much influence such people had on the
formation of the Glasses. To me, Judy Garland is very Franny-like (and one
of her movies was called `Summer Stock') Was Salinger trying to beat the
movies at their own game; transform their superficial message into
something transcendent?
Camille
verona_beach@geocities.com
@ THE ARTS HOLE www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Theater/6442
@ THE INVERTED FOREST www.angelfire.com/pa/invertedforest
>> I just saw the musical "The Barkleys of Broadway", starring Fred Astaire
and Ginger Rogers. An essential part of the plot very much resembles the
end of Franny and Zooey.
This is how it goes: Fred and Ginger are the succesful musical comedy
couple Josh and Dinah Barkley. Some French play director (Bardou or
something) admires Ginger and thinks she should be a drama actress. He
offers her the leading part in a play. Ginger is flattered and thinks Fred
doesn't respect her qualities enough. They quarrel and Ginger is going to
take part in the play of Bardou. At first Fred, out of resentment, wants
her to be a failure. He visits a rehearsal, sees Bardou misdirecting her
and he decides to help her after all. And here it comes: he calls her a few
times, imitating Bardou's voice, to give advice for her part in the play.
Of course it works wonderfully: she is a success and everybody thinks that
the engagement of Ginger and Bardou will be announced shortly. Fred is
desperate and calls her, still using Bardou's voice, to ask if she loves
Bardou or Josh. Then the real Bardou enters the room, Ginger understands
everything and in the end she and Fred are in each other's arms again.
The thematic resemblance with F&Z is too obvious too explain. I wonder
whether Salinger saw this movie... I seem to remember to have read
somewhere that he loves to see old movies. <<