'Rainbow Girls' has just opened and closed on Broadway when Dixie, a actress in it, runs into smooth-talking Hollywood Director Frank Buelow. He tells her she would be a natural and promises... Read all'Rainbow Girls' has just opened and closed on Broadway when Dixie, a actress in it, runs into smooth-talking Hollywood Director Frank Buelow. He tells her she would be a natural and promises her a movie contract, so she goes to Hollywood, but there is no contract for her. She mee... Read all'Rainbow Girls' has just opened and closed on Broadway when Dixie, a actress in it, runs into smooth-talking Hollywood Director Frank Buelow. He tells her she would be a natural and promises her a movie contract, so she goes to Hollywood, but there is no contract for her. She meets washed-up actress Donny (Blanche Sweet) on the lot and they become friends. Frank is fi... Read all
- Actor in Scene
- (uncredited)
- Sign Man Scraping Names off Doors
- (uncredited)
- Chorus Girl
- (uncredited)
- Story Editor in Buelow's Office
- (uncredited)
- Audience Member
- (uncredited)
- Chorus Girl
- (uncredited)
- Actor in Scene
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- J.P. McEvoy
- Harvey F. Thew
- Jimmy Starr(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn the film industry at the time, a more stable, two-strip Technicolor process was beginning to be used, either as a highlight for a special number or, in rare instances, an entire film. Originally, the last 10-minute reel, 832 feet in length, was in two-color Technicolor, but it presently survives in black-and-white. No known print with the Technicolor reel is known to exist as of 2022.
- GoofsDixie sends Jimmie a post card from Hollywood, but the stamp has a New York, N.Y. pre-cancellation mark on it. These pre-canceled stamps were used by mass mailers and were not available to the general public.
- Quotes
Dixie Dugan: Say, I've heard plenty about that Buelow. He's a big shot. I've seen out front of our show several times. You know, I read somewhere he gets five thousand a week.
Jimmie Doyle: Five thousand what? Cigar coupons?
Dixie Dugan: If you had his power and his bankroll...
Jimmie Doyle: Yes, I know the type, the minute he meets a girl he starts feeling her ribs and talking about a screen test.
- ConnectionsAlternate-language version of Le masque d'Hollywood (1930)
- SoundtracksMerrily We Roll Along
(uncredited)
Traditional
Sung with parody lyrics by a workman at the beginning
The film is actually a sequel of sorts to the 1928 part talkie, "Show Girl, also starring Alice White as Dixie Dugan. Even though Alice had done six films since that one, it was decided to move her story to Hollywood two years later. I have no idea if the original Show Girl still exists, although people on this site are apparently rating it.
The big attractions here are the exhibition of several things you could only see in 1929-1930 motion pictures, in addition to several ironies. The first irony is that Vitaphone is being prominently displayed as the technology of sound film when, by this time, even Warner Brothers knew it was time to move to sound on film rather than sound on disc, which was so limiting in how and where films could be shot. Another irony is that Blanche Sweet is pretty much playing herself here as Donny Harris, the faded star who considers a supporting role to Alice White's Dixie Dugan in "Rainbow Girl" to be her last chance. In real life, 1930 was Blanche Sweet's last year in films. However, Ms. Sweet did get a somewhat happy ending with a long time stage career and a long marriage to another star of the stage, Raymond Hackett, that only ended with his death.
Also of interest is the big bizarre musical number "I've Got My Eye on You" in which Alice White and her accompanying chorus emerge from and disappear into a large clown-like head. During this number you get a good look at the way a Vitaphoned film was shot with three cross-cutting camera booths set up, along with a look at the Vitaphone technicians inside supervising the making of the sound discs.
Finally, note the movie premiere of "Rainbow Girl" shown at the end of the film. Several Warner Brothers stars of note appear at the microphone including Al Jolson, Loretta Young, and Noah Beery. Notice that a very young Noah Beery Jr. (Rockford Files) accompanies his father. Some think that this scene was the basis for the Hollywood premiere scene at the beginning of "Singin in the Rain".
The story is pedestrian, and actually the title says it all, but it is cute and appealing in the way that many of First National's early sound films were. You can definitely see a difference in First National's and Warner Brothers' early sound films even though by this time they had been one company for a year. Warner's early sound films seemed to go for a goofy over-the-top style in 1929 and 1930, while First National seemed to "look for the silver lining" with a feel good flavor.
Highly recommended for those interested in the Dawn of Sound.
- AlsExGal
- Jan 1, 2010
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Showgirl in Hollywood
- Filming locations
- Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel - 7000 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA(shown as tour bus passes)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 20 minutes
- Color