Monday, April 16, 2007

when the universe reels

I realize a post about "The Trolley Song" may jeopardize my "100% straight DUDE" status, but I've got to sing, sing out loud, gurl! With the help of my iPod...

What a joy in life is "The Trolley Song" as sung by Judy Garland in Meet Me In St. Louis, a film, well, about silliness mostly, but technicolor silliness as only a musical can sell, directed by her future husband, literal (& figurative) friend-of-Dorothy, Vincente Minelli.

Kudos to the NY Times for having this 1944 review online:
[ ] is mostly a straight family lark, covering a year of rare activity in a house heavily peopled with girls. And, as such, it is fraught with such dilemmas as are peculiar to that fair, bewildering tribe.
(That "fair, bewildering tribe"!?!? Tee hee! English done come a long way in 60 years, yo!)

Who can't relate to the song, a story in itself, of innocent first sight love on mass transport, with playful lyrics by Ralph Blane?
With my high-starched collar, and my high-topped shoes
And my hair piled high upon my head,
I went to lose a jolly hour on the Trolley and lost my heart instead.
Video of "The Trolley Song" is nowhere to be found on the internets so I assume someone at MGM is doing their job. Too bad. It was famously shot in one take with a barely coherent starlet and is simply fabulous (to further jeopardize my Kinsey rating;).

I guess I'll have to wait for my next trip to super straight Showtunes Night to again enjoy its visual splendor.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Completely agree -- one of the best musical numbers EVER! And I can say that as a certifiable gay man.

tuckoo (at) moocow.com said...

best evers are for fridays, sorry.