January Jumble: Hi-De-Ho (1947)

In the collections of every classic movie fan languish neglected films that we’ve had for ages but never quite gotten around to. This January, we tackle a quartet of films that we’ve owned and been meaning to get around to for quite some time.

RODNEY BOWCOCK: Hi-De-Ho (1947) tells the story of an up-and-coming jazz musician named Cab Calloway who has put together a band and has solicited the help of Nettie (Ida James), a female band manager, to secure some gigs. Cab’s girlfriend, Minnie (Jeni Le Gon), doesn’t care for this development, and in a fit of jealousy aligns herself with a rival club owner and fix-it-man named Boss Mason (George Wiltshire), who threatens Cab with death unless he signs a contract with him. As Variety noted, the plot is “just one of those things”.

SAMANTHA GLASSER: The manager Nettie seems to be someone Cab picked up at church. She seems to have never heard him play before. In one audition scene, the client says, "You didn't tell me he was THIS good." She responds, "I didn't know it myself."

RB: Yeah, that’s a thing that happens and it makes no sense, but so little of the dialogue in this movie really makes any sense. The script by Hal Seeger, probably best known today as a 1960’s cartoon producer (and one-time Fleischer animator), is chock-full of stilted, personality free, dialogue that serves no purpose except to propel the plot to a hasty conclusion.

SG: There is a man reading Variety parked in most of the scenes with no explanation for who he is or why he is there. He doesn't even speak until the final scene. In the opening he doesn't flinch when Cab hits is girlfriend or when his manager comes to the door. In one shot in the nightclub, comically, he is inserted in a still frame, unmoving, and still reading the paper, which isn't much different than how he looks throughout the movie. The only reason I can come up with for his presence is the production code. Without him there, the girl in lingerie and Cab waking up in the apartment with her screams of impropriety.

RB: I THINK there’s something that’s supposed to be funny about him just hanging around Cab and not being interested in any of the doings, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. In the early scenes in the film Millie is dressed scantily clad and exhibits sexual desires toward Cab, which is something that no major studio would ever have allowed into the film. Although, I suppose they also wouldn’t have allowed Cab (and Boss Mason) to wallop her either. Keep in mind, that Cab is the good guy in this movie and knocks his girlfriend to the ground when she gets lippy with him.

SG: Hi-De-Ho was made by All American Pictures whose sister company All American News Inc. made newsreels featuring African American subjects. This is a low-budget production and it shows. The room used for the dressing room and rival nightclub owner's office appears to be the same one. They didn't seem to make the effort to do retakes. In the scene where the nightclub boss slaps the girl, he doesn't get anywhere close to making contact. The dramatic climax is laughably executed, moving slowly and idiotically. When the police arrive seemingly out of nowhere, they leave a victim behind. The musical numbers often aren't synced to the song, and sometimes the dialogue suffers the same fate.

RB: This is one of those movies that makes PRC look like MGM. Did you notice that neither the dressing room or office have ceilings? I get that the budget of this film was very small and of course the bulk of it was spent on Cab, but there is such a clear lack of attention to ANY sort of detail that’s maddening.

SG: Kino Lorber released this film as a double feature with Boarding House Blues. I believe they did themselves a disservice for not issuing a disclaimer before the film to explain things like the audio being out of sync and the use of prints of various quality to achieve the most complete version. The trained eye will see that the filmmaking was sloppy, but the average person will blame their restoration.

RB: There are definitely multiple sources used for this restoration (by Library of Congress), but it is also worth noting that the film is roughly 11 minutes longer than what was circulating among cruddy PD copies before. From what I’ve been able to gather, the lengthy (and undeniably popular at the time) "Open The Door Richard" sequence was excised at some point after the original theatrical release.

SG: Cab Calloway is one of the few jazz giants that Gen X and Millennials recognize largely because of his great performance in Blues Brothers. Many jazz enthusiasts grumble about his inclusion in the lists of jazz greats because unlike Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller, Calloway didn't play an instrument. His strength was his personality which came out in his erratic dancing and his skat singing. I don't know why, but seeing his slicked back hair become unkempt is like a switch that takes the performance to 11 (to quote another great 80s movie).

RB: Calloway’s charisma is undeniable and the music is really the reason to watch what otherwise is a dismal and embarrassingly amateurish film. Many Calloway staples, including "St James Infirmary" and "The Hi-De-Ho Man" are great and very enjoyable once you get past the out of sync lip syncing.

SG: Director Josh Binney, a former Keystone Cop who had a brief directing career, shot the scenes without an ounce of creativity. They're static without varying camera angles to break up the monotony. However, there is a fantastic montage scene to show the passage of time with locations layered under images of the band playing with Cab performing on top. The cinematographer was Don Malkames, an important early film collector who is featured along with his descendants in Film is Dead. Long Live Film!

RB: While an average B Western might be shot in as little as 7-10 days, films of this sort were typically churned out in 1-2 days with only two takes (one short and one long).

Binney’s work as a director of talkies seems to only consist of six “race films” directed from 1946-1948. Malkames made his trade in New York based indie productions by and large, and while he was not a particularly inventive cinematographer, he certainly did better work than this.

SG: Variety wrote, "Acting on the whole is static and Josh Binney's direction might have shown on more results had the budget been larger. Production accoutrements and photography also reflects the low nut."

RB: It almost certainly would’ve, but there’s still a lack of attention to detail that’s evident. The plot of the film wraps up with still a full 30 minutes of screen time that’s taken up with a lengthy stage act featuring Cab and some other acts. I got the impression that they couldn’t wait to wrap up the film and get to the good stuff.

SG: The best part of this film is the musical numbers. Thank God for Cab's high energy manic dancing because it gives us something to look at during his songs, which are a treat for the ear. The Peters Sisters perform near the end, and they sound fantastic, like Ella Fitzgerald in harmony. I Googled them when the film was over and hope to find more of their work. The Miller Brothers and Lois tap dancing act was impressive, but it would have been significantly better if the dancers hadn't been looking down at their feet for the entire performance.

RB: The Peters Sisters apparently relocated to France, where the treatment of minorities was more progressive than in the US at the time. I agree with you completely that these are all a lot of fun and well worth checking out.

SG: If you are unfamiliar with Cab Calloway, I would NOT recommend this for your first foray. Seek out his work in Soundies or even animation like "Minnie the Moocher" first. The bad acting will put a negative spin on this great jazz icon. However, if you're a devoted fan and completist, it is worth checking out. It is also of interest to scholars of black history as an example of a low-budget effort with an all-black cast. I'll likely never revisit this one. 1.5 stars.

RB: The music is a lot of fun, but as a movie, this is pretty much a disaster. I agree that it’s culturally significant as a document of the music acts contained therein, but, jeez, it’s no good overall. 1.5 stars.