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broadway melody

June 5 movie: Broadway Melody. This 1929 musical isn't a great movie by the standards of even five years later. But it's well worth watching as an example of the earliest days of talkies.

They showed this on TCM as part of their series this month on gay images in the movies: the costume designer is clearly supposed to be gay. They've got an author introducing the movies, and he points out that the character is the object of ridicule, but is also acknowledged as being good at his job. So it's a mixed bag I guess.

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2 Comments

Is that the costume designer who was featured in The Celluloid Closet, who was so swany he would make Mr. Humphries on "Are You Being Served" look like John Wayne?

Sarah said:

Could be -- it's been a long time since I saw The Celluloid Closet. This guy in Broadway Melody was an extreme stereotype, mincing around complaining that the dancers are going to damage the hats he designed, which don't fit through the dressing room door. Another character says he should have made the hats lavendar so he could wear them too. Or something like that. The color lavendar is definitely used to ridicule him.

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