This sequence was Samuel Goldwyn's lavish experimentation with Technicolor in preparation for his production of "The Wizard of Oz," to which he held the film rights at the time, but which never came to fruition. He sold the rights to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in February 1938, and the rest is history.
Thanks for that fascinating bit of film history! Particularly for me, the distinction clarification that "Kid Millions" was a Samuel Goldwyn Production (released through United Artists) and not an MGM film, as I'd always assumed.👍
@@dreamsarewhatlecinemaisfor Goldwyn and Eddie Cantor did a series of comedies together, and Cantor was to star in Goldwyn's "Wizard of Oz" as the titular character. This is all covered in great and fascinating detail in my award-winning book "The Road to Oz: The Evolution, Creation and Legacy of a Motion Picture Masterpiece."
@@williamstillmanpsychicmedium Those Eddie Cantor movies ran non-stop on Saturday afternoon TV when I was a kid. Your book sounds very interesting and well-researched. Plus, who can resist finding our more about the making of THE WIZARD OF OZ? I'll be sure to check it out!
Merman never made it big in films and it's impossible to explain why. People say she was "too big, too grand" for film, but I beg to differ. The Depression hit Broadway badly, but it did not affect Hollywood. She went to Hollywood made several musical shorts as well as movies during this time and she learned how to play to the camera. For proof, watch this movie and also the film version of "Call Me Madam" (1953). It's a shame that she couldn't reprise Mama Rose for the film version of "Gypsy", but Rosalind Russell's husband was an executive producer and Roz got the part.
Absolutely incredible. They sure liked their icecream.
This sequence was Samuel Goldwyn's lavish experimentation with Technicolor in preparation for his production of "The Wizard of Oz," to which he held the film rights at the time, but which never came to fruition. He sold the rights to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in February 1938, and the rest is history.
Thanks for that fascinating bit of film history! Particularly for me, the distinction clarification that "Kid Millions" was a Samuel Goldwyn Production (released through United Artists) and not an MGM film, as I'd always assumed.👍
@@dreamsarewhatlecinemaisfor Goldwyn and Eddie Cantor did a series of comedies together, and Cantor was to star in Goldwyn's "Wizard of Oz" as the titular character. This is all covered in great and fascinating detail in my award-winning book "The Road to Oz: The Evolution, Creation and Legacy of a Motion Picture Masterpiece."
@@williamstillmanpsychicmedium Those Eddie Cantor movies ran non-stop on Saturday afternoon TV when I was a kid. Your book sounds very interesting and well-researched. Plus, who can resist finding our more about the making of THE WIZARD OF OZ? I'll be sure to check it out!
@@dreamsarewhatlecinemaisfor thanks. I think you'll enjoy it!
Merman never made it big in films and it's impossible to explain why. People say she was "too big, too grand" for film, but I beg to differ.
The Depression hit Broadway badly, but it did not affect Hollywood. She went to Hollywood made several musical shorts as well as movies during this time and she learned how to play to the camera.
For proof, watch this movie and also the film version of "Call Me Madam" (1953).
It's a shame that she couldn't reprise Mama Rose for the film version of "Gypsy", but Rosalind Russell's husband was an executive producer and Roz got the part.