The Swing Shift Shuffle is a radio program of swing, big band, jazz, boogie woogie and other popular music from the 1930's and 40's that airs every Wednesday from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. (US Central Time) on WEVL 89.9 FM in Memphis, Tennessee, with a live webcast at wevl.org. In addition to the radio show, this blog is dedicated to all aspects of the Swing Era, including art, automobiles, cartoons, comics, history, movies, music, news, science, technology, and anything else that happened during that time. It also includes announcements about events in the Memphis/Mid-South area related to the Swing Era, such as classic movies, concerts, dances, lectures, etc. If you see something that fits the description, send it to me at tim@wevl.org. If you would like more information about the radio show, just go to the Radio Show FAQ page.

Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Ball Of Fire

BALL OF FIRE (’41): A Barrel of Fun by Susan Doll According to film historians Gerald Mast and Wes Gehring, Howard Hawks is the quintessential director of screwball comedy. This opinion can be backed up with facts and films, but I am always caught...
FilmStruck posted this review of the 1941 film, Ball of Fire, starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck.  This movie, along with its musical remake, A Song Is Born (1948), is one of my favorites, and this review has some interesting historical insight into this classic, screwball comedy.  For example, when one of the gangsters holding the eccentric professors prisoner starts using items in the room for target practice, he says "I saw me a picture last week," and proceeds to wet the sight of his gun, as leading man Gary Cooper did in his previous film, Sergeant York (1941).

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