Blues Busters
Theatrical poster
Directed by	William Beaudine
Written by	Charles Marion Bert Lawrence
Produced by	Jan Grippo
Starring	Leo Gorcey Huntz Hall Gabriel Dell David Gorcey William Benedict
Cinematography	Marcel LePicard
Edited by	William Austin
Music by	Edward J. Kay
Distributed by	Monogram Pictures
Release date	October 29, 1950 (1950-10-29)
Running time	67 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Blues Busters is a 1950 American comedy film directed by William Beaudine and starring the Bowery Boys.^[1] The film was released on October 29, 1950 by Monogram Pictures and is the 20th film in the series.

Plot

Sach develops an uncanny ability to sing after having his tonsils removed, and Slip convinces Louie to convert his sweet shop into a nightclub called the Bowery Palace after unsuccessfully trying to land Sach a singing job at a neighboring club, the Rio Cabana.

After Sach's singing makes him a star, Rick Martin, the owner of the rival club, unsuccessfully tries to hire him. Rick asks his lady friend Lola to secure Sach's signature on a contract, using the pretense that she is asking for his autograph. Rick then pursues the Bowery Palace's other star, Sally Dolan. However, she does not want to go because Rick is after more than just her singing talent. She informs Lola about Rick's intentions and Lola agrees to testify that Sach's signature was just an autograph and not a signed contract, thereby allowing him to return to the Bowery Palace. However, Sach has sought medical treatment to cure the "tickle in his throat' and has lost the ability to sing.

Cast

Production

The working title of the film was The Bowery Thrush.^[3] It is the last Bowery Boys film with Gabriel Dell, who, tired of taking a back seat to costars Leo Gorcey and Huntz Hall, quit the series.^{[citation needed]}

Home media

The film was released twice on home media, first on VHS by Warner Bros. on September 1, 1998 and then by Warner Archives, which released the film on made-to-order DVD in the United States as part of The Bowery Boys, Volume One collection on November 23, 2012.

Soundtrack

• "Wasn't It You?"
  • Written by Ben Raleigh and Bernie Wayne
  • Played on a radio and sung by Huntz Hall (dubbed by John Laurenz)
• "Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho"
  • Traditional spiritual
  • Sung by Adele Jergens in a nightclub (dubbed by Gloria Wood)
• "Bluebirds Keep Singin' in the Rain"
  • Written by Johnny Lange and Eliot Daniel
  • Published by Bulls Eye Music Inc. (ASCAP)
  • Played on piano by Gabriel Dell
  • Sung by Huntz Hall (dubbed by John Laurenz)
  • Reprised by Huntz Hall in the nightclub (dubbed by John Laurenz)
• "Let's Have a Heart to Heart Talk"
  • Written by Billy Austin, Edward Brandt and Paul Landers
  • Played on piano by Gabriel Dell
  • Sung by Huntz Hall (dubbed by John Laurenz)
  • Reprised by Huntz Hall in the nightclub (dubbed by John Laurenz)
• "You Walk By"
  • Written by Ben Raleigh and Bernie Wayne
  • Played by the orchestra with Gabriel Dell on piano
  • Sung by Huntz Hall (dubbed by John Laurenz)
• "Better Be Lookin' Out for Love"
  • Written by Ralph Wolf and Johnny Lange
  • Sung by Adele Jergens in a nightclub (dubbed by Gloria Wood)
• "Swanee River"
  • Written by Stephen Foster (as Stephen Collins Foster)
  • Jazzy version played by Gabriel Dell on piano
  • Danced to by William 'Billy' Benedict, David Gorcey and Buddy Gorman
• "Dixie's Lan"
  • Written by Daniel Decatur Emmett
  • Sung by Leo Gorcey

According to a Hollywood Reporter news item, singer Bob Carroll was the singing double for Huntz Hall, but some reviews credit the voice as that of John Laurenz.^[4]

References

External links

• Blues Busters at IMDb
• Blues Busters at the TCM Movie Database (archived)
• Blues Busters at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films