Hope and Cagney dancing
An evening pause: From the 1955 Bob Hope film, The Seven Little Foys, with James Cagney playing George M. Cohan. Neither man is remembered for their dancing, but from this scene you wouldn’t know it.
Hat tip Tom Biggar.
Readers!
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. Your support allows me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.
In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Hope probably danced, at least a little, in more of his pictures than Cagney did, but Cagney was certainly memorable in several Warners musicals, especially ‘Yankee Doodle Dandy.’ I regard Cagney as the greatest performer in the history of American film because he was not only a gifted comedic and dramatic actor, but also a first-rank singer and dancer. Nobody did all that as consistently well as Cagney did.
In my book, “Phil’s Favorite 500,” which I’m always shamelessly promoting and Bob, bless him, mentions favorably, I devoted a chapter to him for some of the reasons you stated. It’s called “Incomparable Cagney.”
Looked at your TOC on Amazon. Your tastes and mine seem to line up better than 90%. A lot of good, and less well-known, Jimmy Stewart pictures on your lists, notably ‘Strategic Air Comand’ and ‘No Highway in the Sky.’ The aerial cinematography and special effects in the former are arguably the best of the pre-CGI era. The latter is a particular gem and doesn’t appear much on free TV nor is it easy to find on disc. For whatever it may be worth, I think Jimmy Stewart is just behind Cagney on the list of great American film actors. Good to see some of Cagney’s lesser-known work on your lists too, especially ‘The Gallant Hours.’ I became convinced of Cagney’s place atop the pyramid of great American actors 40-odd years ago when I was attending a multi-week-long Warner Bros. festival at a revival house (remember revival houses!) in L.A. On consecutive nights I saw ‘Yankee Doodle Dandy’ and ‘White Heat.’ Two more dissimilar performances it would be hard to imagine, but both were all-Cagney, all-out and all-perfection.
Right on, Dick. I’m a great admirer of Stewart’s as well. Though the melodrama is stodgy in “SAC,” the aerial sequences are majestic, scored by Victor Young, who did “Around the World in 80 Days.” Remember this scene? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGjyH2ulsCk
Speaking of unusual, it wasn’t only that they weren’t known for their dancing, but even though Hope was the famous comedian, in this scene he gave most of the big laughs to Cagney.
Dick almost pointed out that Cagney’s first dance, in this scene, was a reprise of one of his dances from “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”
I can see which book I will ask Santa for, this year. I, too, looked at the TOC, and Phil includes some wonderful yet little-known gems, such as “49th Parallel,” “Diva,” and “Love Me Tonight.”
A few years ago, someone pointed me to the scene linked by Phil, above. It is rare that modern directors spend that much time showing the majesty of what is happening. They seem to want to move on with the plot more than give us a sense of being there. Hitchcock and Leone also used a slower pace to good effect.