Summer School Film Series--Of Rivers and Jazz

Jul 11 2007 - 7:00pm Eads Hall 103

Erin Presson, 935-6720

Birth of the Blues (1941) directed by Victor Schertzinger Bing Crosby and Mary Martin star as two jazz artists in the swinging world of 1920's New Orleans. Crosby is Jeff Lambert, a clarinet player who is out to start a band called the Basin Street Hot-Shots. When Betty Lou (Martin) joins as vocalist, romance ensues between everyone involved, stirring things up a bit. The film pays homage to Dixieland greats such as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong, and contains many musical numbers filled with cool clarinets and sizzling jam sessions, such as: “Birth of the Blues,” “Melancholy Baby,” “St. Louis Blues,” and “St. James Infirmary.” 87 minutes black/white