This Weekend’s LRPA After Dark Feature:
1947’s “Till The Clouds Roll By”

 

Join Lakes Region Public Access Television at 10:30 p.m. this Friday and Saturday night (March 24 & 25) for our “LRPA After Dark” presentation of 1947’s musical biopic of the life of Broadway composer Jerome Kern: “Till The Clouds Roll By,” featuring a star-studded cast including Judy Garland, June Allyson, Dinah Shore, Lena Horne, Cyd Charisse, Robert Walker and Frank Sinatra, among many others.

 

This MGM musical tells Kern’s story as a series of reminiscences between the composer (played by Robert Walker) and his chauffeur. These scenes are really just excuses for the lavish studio production numbers, complete with singing and dancing in vibrant 1940’s Technicolor. Some of the more famous musical numbers that viewers are treated to include Judy Garland, pregnant at the time with Liza Minnelli, singing “Look for the Silver Lining;” Lena Horne performing an amazing “Can’t Help Loving Dat Man” from the musical “Showboat;” and the film’s grand finale: Frank Sinatra, clad in white from head to toe, singing his version of “Ol’ Man River,” again, from “Showboat.”

 

Kern himself approved of this biopic, and notably the sometimes maligned choice of Frank Sinatra to sing the final ballad. Sadly, he never got to see the finished film, as Kern died in 1945 at the age of 60.  “Till The Clouds Roll By” was a critical and commercial success, and still wows audiences today with its high MGM production values, stunning camera work and gorgeous vocal arrangements for the studio’s top stars of the day. Turner Classic Movies calls “Till The Clouds Roll By” “… a superb slice of post-war escapist fare … top notch … smoothly directed.” If you love mid-century musicals, how can you resist? Grab your popcorn and join LRPA after dark for this Technicolor treat!