Early three-strip Technicolor in HD -- Henry Busse and His Band -- Hot Lips -- Read Notes!

This clip is from "Starlit Days at the Lido," a 1935 short released by MGM to showcase three-strip Technicolor. The Lido was the "resort" venue of the Ambassador Hotel, in Los Angeles. Note how the vivid color makes the black-and-white era of the 1930s seem like just yesterday.
Bandleader Henry Henry Busse (rhymes with fussy) was a founding member of Paul Whiteman's Orchestra, which popularized George Gershwin. "Hot Lips," which Busse co-composed, was a #1 hit for Whiteman. It became Busse's trademark.
Judy Randall singing:
He's got hot lips, when he plays Jazz,
He draws out steps, like no one has,
You're on your toes, and shake your shoes,
Boy, how he goes, when he plays Blues.
I watch the crowd, until he's through,
He can be proud, they're "cuckoo,' too;
His music's rare---well I declare,
The boy is rare, with two hot lips!
Note the couples of the day -- adults -- dancing together as couples dancing should. Also note the "Franchonettes," hard working, braless chorus girls costumed in Technicolor. Watch for a shot at around 50 sec. that got past the censors.
The side cuts are parts of novelty acts that make more sense in the whole movie, which couldn't be uploaded for copyright reasons.. You see one of the "Three Radio Rogues" doing an impression of Ed Wynn, father of Keenan Wynn (Col. Bat Guano in Dr. Strangelove). Another is ladykiller Francis Lederer autographing a beachball in a "Hot Lips" way. Then there's crosseyed Ben Turpin in girl heaven. Finally, there's Cliff Edwards aka Ukulele Ike aka Jimminy Cricket, whose whole act you can see here: • Ukulele Ike - Cliff Ed...

[@PDXLibertarian]

This film is all about showing off the color "Blue" which is why they chose a Blues. Prior to 1935, they couldn't make blue on film. A new chemical process came out in 1935, and this is the demo for that. Also, the band leader is my grand uncle, and the inventor of the chemical process is my grandfather.

[@PhilipWeisman-dl4ik]

Not qite true. Technicolor came out with the new and improved full color spectrum in 1931 oe 1932. All the studios took a pass since many were still wiring nonurban theaters for sound. Walt Disney took a chance making FLOWERS AND TREES, and took a exclusivity contract for cartoons. 1934 saw the short LA CUCARACCHA, and color inserts in THE CAT AND THE FIDDLE, THE LITTLE COLONEL & KID MILLIONS. 1935 also saw BECKY SHARP & THE DANCING PIRATE.

[@theholybuddhist4659]

Although the 2 strip process could not reproduce both blues and greens in the same image, I believe they could tint each side slightly differently. "The viking" 1928 for instance, had obvious blues but minimal greens, while "The Toll of the Sea" 1922 relied more on green

[@PhilipWeisman-dl4ik]

@@theholybuddhist4659 Two more things to remember : when watching Two Strip Technicolor heck the date of restoration and the studio under who's supervision the print was made. Early Turner restorations had technicians unfamiliar with the system or the quirks of each film. KING OF JAZZ has A RHAPSODY IN BLUE sequence that is really more Rhapsody in Aqua. 1934 & 1935 color film update: 1934 - THE HOUSE OF ROTHCHILDS ; 1935 THE LITTLE COLONEL. Both KID MILLIONS & THE LITTLE COLONEL employ a black and white to color transition sequence. In Kid Millions a newpaper, is photographed in color with a black and white color scheme. In The Little Colonel a vase of roses goes gradually from black and white to full Technicolor without a cut, all lap dissolves, l imagine, with color saturation animation?

[@davidwesley2525]

Walt Disney had Exclusive Rights to the 3 Strip Technicolor from 1932 to 1935 . After 1935 other Cartoon Studios had Access to the 3 Strip Technicolor. 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍​@@PhilipWeisman-dl4ik

[@rainlori]

Yes 1932 for the three colour process. Cheers and wonderful family history there.

[@errybodycopyingme]

This is the first time I've seen film from this era where I could actually see the people and fashion as real and tangible. Amazing quality and what a wonderful thing.

[@issness_god]

1930s new york in color on youtube is good

[@GabrielLopez-qe2od]

Leave Her To Heaven and Rope are the only two movies i can think of that show how life was back then

[@rwarren58]

The color was startling. Thank you for a glimpse of 1935 looked back then...85 years ago.

[@mikehudson8884]

TRULY AMAZING to see this. Note how everyone is dressed to show the new technicolour for all it was worth, the dancing girls especially!

[@jackusdk]

Exactly! Dig those colored cellophane hats! And see the bandleader's white suit, purple shirt, purple boutonniere and purple handkerchief! Joyous silliness and great sounds!

[@mikehudson8884]

.....Oh yes, the band leaders purple shirt and accessories, that was the first thing I noticed. Quite sureal for those days. This whole exercise was an extravaganza to display colour in all it's colourfulness!! So appreciate you posting this, thank you. I understand it's worth completely.

[@TheSwingin-Hermlins]

The 1930s and 1940s were extremely colourful! They didn’t do it just because it was filmed in technicolor. There were green suits yellow suits, and shirts too. On Black And White can’t see those colours obviously!

[@bobboscarato1313]

@@mikehudson8884 Henry Busse played trumpet in Paul Whiteman's Orch.

[@hollyjollydog]

I just purchased a never played 1935 copy of Busse's hotlips on 78 rpm..amazing

[@jackusdk]

Lucky you! Hope you have a good rig to play it. Have to use a 78 stylus. 78s have great fidelity, and with EQ, you can tune it to your liking.

[@Bigbadwhitecracker]

How is that even possible? Geez, don't play it. Keep it in a safe. Find another one that has been played and play that one.... or download it on itunes.

[@jackusdk]

"Feminine Conditioning"- priceless!

[@jamesryan6008]

The scene with Cliff Edwards,the blonde woman and a cigarette is incredible.

[@rubberdc]

at first i thought this was a scam , and the film was modern but then it switched to the diving board and i realised. My word what quality film.

[@mikehudson8884]

Know what you mean. I immediately thought 'colourized film' but then realised it was true. Like you said QUALITY. Everything was done here deliberately to showcase the new technicolour process, i.e. the clothes specially the dancing girls with their different colour stockings and shoes and tops. This is total genuis and 83 yrs old.

[@dduck1585]

Shame we lost 3 strip technicolor, today we have shit digital capture that falls well short of the colours saturation contained within this film.

[@Adyman182]

It's like a fever dream where I actually teleported to the 1930's. Astounding

[@ddkoda]

What beautiful, natural rendition of colors! Note how the blues were highlighted, something that didn't work out quite so well with the previous two strip Technicolor process. 1935 also saw the first full length feature film photographed entirely in the then new three strip Technicolor.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

Fun fact: the theme / chorus to the song “Hot Lips” originated as part of a BRILLIANT and EXTREMELY RARE (I think only two known existing original copies today) U. S. Music piano roll from 1919 or 1920 titled “Puss in Boots” which is an amazing novelty foxtrot rag in a BRILLIANT performance by the composer, pianist Henry Lange (1895-1985). Mr Lange mentioned making the roll in a letter to brilliant pop pianist and historian Peter Mintun, who I think reprinted the letter in an issue of the AMICA Bulletin (bimonthly magazine of the Automatic Musical Instrument Collectors’ Association, the #1 USA player piano and mechanical music enthusiasts and collectors’ group) decades ago, and for the roll collectors, the hunt was then on to turn up a copy of this unpublished (as sheet music) and nearly extinct rag roll! This super rare roll can be heard on Frank Himpsl’s KZbin channel, and thanks to a scan of the roll made available by him, has been recut in limited edition by I believe Tim Baxter / Meliora Music Rolls of Georgia, and distributed by Jan Myers AKA “Rag Daddy” who runs “Rag Daddy’s” piano roll auction and also offers new recut rolls (exact copies of old rolls) from time to time. This rag shows the stylistic influence of Lange’s friend Roy Bargy, who was nearly the same age (about one year older) and who also grew up in Toledo, Ohio. Both Lange and Bargy later performed with the Paul Whiteman orchestra, with which Henry Busse was a featured soloist, and once was one of the most famous pop trumpeters in the 20s/30s, sort of a Herb Alpert of his day.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

Here is a direct link to the roll “Puss in Boots Rag” for our musical enjoyment: kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5y2gah9jJqdZqs

[@BlaBla-jj6sh]

Gotta love that 3-strip Technicolor.

[@hotwax9376]

+Bla Bla I know. The colors look almost like something from the 60s or 70s or even something you might see now, yet it's from the 1930s. Granted, it may not be an IB print, but it's still probably a 3-strip negative. Would love to see 3/strip or IB brought back in some sort of digital form.

[@cdur5091]

a 1930s film looking like it was from the 1970s.. wow MGM, wow.

[@MsSilentsiren]

I adored the woman singing in the blue dress. At first I thought she was Carole Lombard, but I really really love her whole look. Wish I could do my makeup like that!

[@SFKelvin]

It's my grandmother and my grand uncle ;)

[@MrEjidorie]

This film was produced one year after my mother was born. She is now 86 years old. The color of this movie is so vivid, and I cannot believe that all actors and actresses in this motion picture were gone a long time ago.

[@jackusdk]

Show it to her to assure her there's proof the world she was born into was NOT black and white. ;)

[@MrEjidorie]

@@jackusdk My mother would be pleased to see this beautiful motion picture.

[@Bobchai]

Cliff Edwards, "Ukulele Ike" and the voice of Disney's Jiminy Cricket, appears at the end with the cocktail shaker and cigarette. :-)

[@Mandrake55]

This has been edited. The blonde is actually 30s magician, Suzy Wandas and the film was supposed to show her producing cigarettes while Ike plays the ukulele. Thus, the switch at the end. Too bad, I looked for this specifically to see her.

[@Mandrake55]

It turns out, if you search for Suzy Wandas, Ukulele Ike or Cliff Edwards, you'll find their section of the film.

[@jackusdk]

Or, if you check the notes above, you'll find a link to the full act.

[@dasdasdus]

jackusdk sadly it says the bideo is unavaible.

[@davidlogansr8007]

I have played this countless times since discovered!

[@tardis9905]

The color is astonishing. Really nice; a quality product made 82 years ago. Thanks for sharing.

[@jackusdk]

Great point. The color creates a time machine -- makes those 82 years seem like yesterday!

[@hotwax9376]

+Tardis +jackusdk That's what Technicolor did. Very, very cool. Wish we could get a 3-strip or dye transfer process for digital film.

[@misternewoutlook5437]

@@jackusdk Can you imagine if they stretch converted it further to 60fps? My goodness! Even more realistic!

[@bobwallace9814]

People the way they actually saw themselves and not some 40 degree drizzly overcast in tones of grey.

[@NYC1927]

How cool! This was shot at the old Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles on Wilshire Bl. where the Coconut Grove was. I recognize the building behind the chorus girls. Neat!

[@jackusdk]

NYC1927 Tap the little arrow beside the headline for details.

[@steveomusicman6645]

Yes it certainly was.. I recognize it alright! : ) Another classic place forever gone now.

[@RoryVanucchi]

Great time capsule and swing Era in full bloom

[@crumhunger]

mind altering quality ! almost too good to be true

[@liberte5847]

Outstanding original extraordinary scarce TechniColor original masterpiece historical experience rendez-vous. Merci beaucoup from Paris France. VERY rare rendering !

[@jackusdk]

Indeed a compliment from the cradle of cinéma. Thank you! By chance, heard Henry Busse last night playing his Hot Lips in a 1952 war movie. This little clip has legs! 😄

[@philipchretienkarlsson8157]

In gorgeous Technicolor: makes colors look more real than even in real life !

[@Owlzindabarn]

Amazing quality for the time. I stood in that exact spot 60 years later after the Ambassador was long out of business. I still recognize the hotel tower behind the girls.

[@jackusdk]

Hey, I'm not that old! It survived until 1989. I lived there during efforts to preserve the property. Unfortunately, none panned out. Businesses, including studios, and retail, had migrated, from the Ambassador's Mid-Wilshire location to the Westside or the Valley. MGM's demise, in nearby Culver City, doubtless played a part.

[@spencersmith2798]

Absolutely fine. Henry Busse never looked better!

[@vovkin1001]

That how the parallel universe looks like. Weird feeling.

[@hotwax9376]

Of course, it doesn't hurt that this was available in HD, but darn it, those colors make it look like it could've been made yesterday. Very, very cool. Wish somebody would find a way to make 3 strip or IB Tech in digital form.

[@jackusdk]

Well, they kind of have. To get this quality to video, Warner's (It was MGM, but Warner's has the rights now) digitally restored the film. Since it's a studio job, the result is great.

[@Mario-tx4ll]

It would be cool if someone made a digital camera with 3 sensors (one for each primary color).

[@tomguraro865]

The view from behind the orchestra looking out at the dancers looks like it was filmed today!

[@jlasf]

When Hollywood does recreations of this era in movies - Godfather, Aviator, etc. - they always use sepia tones and muted colors. We are used to seeing faded B&W photos of that era. But this is what things really looked like.

[@musicaltheatergeek79]

To be fair, they purposely depicted bright colors in this short to best represent three-strip Technicolor.

[@hebneh]

Well, sort of what they really looked like. The costumes are intentionally extra bright and colorful, and everyone's wearing a great deal of makeup. People walking around on the street in 1935 didn't look like these folks.

[@jerryumfress9030]

What a wonderful video, I love this type of music!!

[@jackusdk]

Yes, isn’t it wonderful how the image quality brings intimacy to a long-ago era? Glad you like!

[@musicom67]

Love the overhang sign - "Feminine Conditioning"

[@fromthesidelines]

One of producer Louis Lewyn's "all-star" Technicolor shorts for MGM in the 1930's.

[@prata1019]

1:38 So Oscar Issac was full-grown and alive in 1935? I thought he was born in the 70s!

[@johnnyjames7139]

It looks great, loved seeing Ben. My uncle and I would go to the hi fi show at the Ambassador every year.

[@davidlogansr8007]

Someone should tell the Grandchildren/ Great Grandchildren of these people that this exists!

[@SFKelvin]

Yep, my great uncle had hot Lips.

Oh how much I love this!!! Lido was and is still one of the nicest hotels built in my hometown, Bucharest, Romania in the '30s with it's big pool that had waves and nice restaurant. It amazes me that my city was developing so much like a mix of french and american style before WW2 and communism is like the light was shut for a half of century after 1940s. :( Trully amazing.

[@quantumshock6620]

Thanks for the upload! As a modern history buff, it is always rewarding to come across rare gems such as this. Still can't get over the fact that this is from 83 years ago...absolutely mind-blowing.

[@theweirdofengland]

Black and white photographs make you forget just how bright and colourful this era could be.

[@andrewbarrett1537]

It’s wild to see Ben Turpin (I *think*), famous silent era Keystone Kops leader, in full color at 1:59, surrounded by ladies as well!

[@pianopappy]

It's Ben Turpin, with his trademark crossed eyes.

[@larryshaver3568]

amazing array of colors

[@Tmanaz480]

The older two-color process didn't handle blue very well, so they made sure to include plenty of blue to show off the full color spectrum of the new process.

[@jackusdk]

Yes indeed. It’s interesting that even today blue levels are problematic. For example, in LG’s OLED panel, which most TVs use, the stack structure uses two blue layers, while red and green only need one each. In my old projector TV, the blue lamp was a completely different type from the red and green lamps. Likewise, the step from two-strip to three was much more than just adding a blue strip. My guess is that the required lighting was much hotter, and the film emulsion much more difficult to process. Thus, outdoors in always sunny but mild Southern California was made for three-strip, while indoor temperatures under lights were murder.

[@esmeephillips5888]

@@jackusdk It was even worse when 3D was briefly in vogue c. 1953. The giant Technicolor cameras needed banks of lights on sound stages. No wonder Ann Miller's showstopping solo was 'It's Too Darn Hot'. The rest of the cast had to sweat out the scene in evening dress, mopped off between takes.

[@jaytaylor7740]

Thanks both for this amazing clip and the background info on it. Thanks also for i.d-ing Francis Lederer. I knew I recognized him, but couldn't name him. Thanks finally to commenters below. Going to watch it all again! :)

[@jericlauresta2527]

1:40 that guy looks like Joaquin Phoenix

[@SFKelvin]

Hey, my great Uncle!

[@cielobuio]

After watching this a couple of times, I'm fascinated by the singer Judy Randall. Can't find any information about her at all on the web :( Maybe this was her one moment of fame ?

[@jackusdk]

Yeah, pretty hard to gather bits and pieces. Before this clip, Judy Randall had a hit gig at the Hollywood Colony Club, and Busse pulled her from there for his band. Judy then moved to the Jan Garber band. In 1936 she married crooner Lee Bennett, who had a minor career in pictures the latter 30s to the 40s. After marrying Bennett she lived in Omaha. Don't know the story after that.

[@davidlogansr8007]

I thought she was quite good! I liked her singing! I notice the early ribbon mic and know that makes it after 1932.

[@ricky6565]

Is that Ben Turpin I see make an appearance? Amazing quality for 1935

[@jackusdk]

ricky6565 Just tap the little arrow beside the title, and you'll get a fascinating rundown on the Who and the What. And yep, that's Ben Turpin.

[@jknuttel]

Yes, it is Ben Turbin. The guy shaking the drink is Cliff Edwards.

[@roychefets2905]

Wonderftul restoration job. Color is beautiful

[@harrylangdon491]

Saw this as an extra on one of my blu-rays. This is but an excerpt, as the description says.

[@scotnick59]

Ah, 3 strip Technicolor in it's infancy = cool!

[@jorgegoren8614]

Maravilloso; es verdaderamente viajar en el tiempo 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@jlassie]

1935?? Holy crap, that looks amazing! And is that Cliff Edwards at the end, mixing a drink while one of the ladies plays his ukulele?

[@jackusdk]

jlassie Really brings them to life, doesn't it? Yep, that's Cliff Edwards. I mention him in the write-up. At the end there's a link to the main act this little scene is tied to.

[@CarlDuke]

Fantastic and what color. Rare Ben Turpin citing and in color.

[@Bigbadwhitecracker]

Ben Turpin is a riot.

[@XX-gy7ue]

wonderful

[@andrewbarrett1537]

Thanks for sharing this clip! The technicolor looks great!

[@3DPhilBrown]

stunning

[@joysticktroy]

Very impressive

[@davidlee4619]

Excellent upload

[@MrEjidorie]

1935 was a happy year for American people. They didn`t know World War II yet. Pearl Harbor was not attacked yet. They enjoyed peace and the highest living standard in the world. Such a nice time will never come back again.

[@jackusdk]

I'm afraid not. 1935 was the middle of America's Great Depression, when unemployment was 20% and poverty was everywhere. For 25¢ ordinary people could escape sad reality, transported by the big screen, to glamour and adventure, sometimes with a cherry on top, like this colorful confection.

[@nocount1]

@@jackusdk Thank you.

[@johnclarke5459]

In the middle of the Depression within the Greats Depression a kid on a Saturday could frequent the Lower East Nabe for seven cents: two features, five cartoons. a serial, a travelog, no air conditioning and no censorship. Jean Harlow went butt to butt with Mae West, Incest was explored in Scarface and DeMillian hot stuff in the Sign of the Cross. No AC just two fans a blowing. The summer sun lurking out side the Bijou did a number on my eyes

[@hebneh]

@@johnclarke5459 "No censorship" - ? Nope. Censorship had started in earnest the year before, in 1934. The hot stuff was now prohibited. The forbidden scenes or clips were cut out of films that were still in circulation, and some entire movies were just put away completely. A few were intentionally destroyed because it seemed they could never be shown again.

[@larryshaver3568]

this song was used in sweet and lowdown

[@Jerkcurb1]

fascinating

[@Donde_Lieta]

1935 caught in 4K

[@LaurenceDay-d2p]

Garbo's CAMILLE was made in 1936, and could have used the process. Would love to see Garbo in color! She never made a color picture, alas.

[@roderickfernandez5382]

And why can't we see the full short it's wonderful I seen it

[@hebneh]

1:47 - When I first saw Francis Lederer smearing red stuff on the ball I mistakenly thought he'd cut his thumb, and it was blood! I couldn't imagine why he'd first pushed his bloody thumb into the young woman's mouth. Of course, that was actually red lipstick. This gag could only have worked in color.

[@vertxxgg]

Francis Lederer at 1:40

[@jacintoguevara2692]

No mention of Ben Turpin?

[@simonlunt353]

I know that when these films are put onto HD they is a lot of work but all of these films dose not matter what format they dam good quality they are lots of films l would like you own on Blu ray but I can’t get them in the uk 🇬🇧 thanks for your video 👏👏👏👍

[@HardCold-Alquan]

I can't help but to think of foreign gangsterism when I think of those times.

[@rjmcallister1888]

Three-strip was used for awhile in shorts and cartoons, but was considered too expensive for features. MGM made this short to show the new process' potential; far better than the two-strip process. RKO finally took the dive with "Becky Sharp" later in 1935.

[@Chapin-pc2kz]

I must say RKO are OK 👌

[@JonnokNZ]

Here is a more recent (and still working) upload of the full Cliff Edwards section of this 1935 short: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3KqfWaqmdxjipo

[@jackusdk]

I've updated the link. Thanks for the heads-up!

[@starbuono3333]

Can Technicolor still be used ? if so , why don't they use it anymore ? thank you ? Ps please pardon my ignorance : ( !

[@jackusdk]

Technicolor is a film process. Technicolor is wonderful when new, but it doesn't last. Film celluloid is subject to the ravages of time. It fades, shrinks and decays. The clip has been digitally restored to something near the original look. Although film is still used in shooting the movie, for exhibition it is transferred to video disks, which are more resilient and far easier to distribute than stacks of film cans.

[@hebneh]

The process of filming in 3-strip Technicolor was extremely cumbersome and difficult. The special cameras were owned by the Technicolor company and had to be transported to a movie studio each day, then taken back every night. Making a film print was very expensive as well. The end result looked wonderful for audiences, but the cost made Technicolor films comparatively rare.

[@itisonlyadream]

Technicolor was photographed by a special 35mm camera that ran three strips of black and white film through the camera simultaneously. A special Prism and color filters separated the light into the three primary colors and directed each color to the appropriate strip of film that was sensitized to the corresponding part of the spectrum. All other colors were produced by mixing the three primary colors. The prints were made by overprinting the three images with a complementary dye in what was called the dye transfer process that worked by subtracting colors from white light during projection. It took Technicolor more than ten years to perfect three strip Technicolor. Technicolor movies could only be photographed by cameras owned by Technicolor and the film could only be processed by labs owned by Technicolor. And, to use Technicolor, the studios had to sign an agreement to hire the wife of the head of Technicolor, Natalie Kalmus, as an advisor on every Technicolor film, to insure that the colors used in make-up, sets and costumes would look good in Technicolor. Natalie even got screen credit on Technicolor films for more than ten years. The dyes used in technicolor films are stable and if the print is stored properly in a dry climate controlled vault, then the colors don't fade like other 35mm color prints do, which is why films like this one look so good, even without restoration. Technicolor was so superior to other color systems that the studios put up with all these demands, but by the early nineteen fifties, Kodak had perfected a single monopack film that could record full color in high quality and it could be used in any black and white camera. That was the beginning of the end for Technicolor. Today, the only original three-strip technicolor processing equipment that remains is located in China, and with the advances in digital cinematography, it's doubtful if it is still in use.

[@Mxsmanic]

Fabulous image quality; looks like it was made yesterday.. But who is that strange person at 1:09?

[@Mxsmanic]

I think it might be Ed Wynn. Apparently he had some gimmick that involved wearing a fireman's hat.

[@srfurley]

Notice how they put plenty of blue in the costumes!

[@keithkirk8697]

I gotta comment on the comment about braless chorus girls. Indeed they were, but that's what women's swimsuits were back then, minus the leggings. How do I know? My mother, born 1918, had photos of herself as a teen wearing one. Let's just say I could see what my father saw in her.

[@KB4QAA]

Absolutely. I have seen photos of my aunt in similar swimming attire on Daytona Beach in the 20's.

[@MayorMcCheeseStalker]

Really? What's her number? Giggity.

[@timothylakaseru302]

@@KB4QAA It’s somehow surprising that all the jiggling got past the draconian Hays Code.

[@hebneh]

Not just swimwear, but slinky form-fitting gowns made of clinging satin were commonly worn in movies at this time as well. And they are quite revealing as well, with no bras being worn underneath.

[@cattycorner8]

😍

[@jamesbusse1543]

Great grand uncle is pretty good, don't you think? Other busse's include medal of honor Civil war.. first German mayor of Chicago and so many others. great family great name.

[@croonyerzoonyer]

God I wish I lived back then, with all its pros and cons I’d choose it over today’s world. That’s something I’ve thought over many times over many years.

[@WedgePee]

Absolutely not. 1935 was the middle of the Great Depression and the rise of Nazism and fascism.

[@claush7492]

Gorgeous clip, but the aspect ratio appears off. It's supposed to be Academy, but it is cropped to something wider ...

[@firstnamelastname5407]

Wasn't the Disney film Flowers and Trees the first three strip technicolor film?

[@jackusdk]

Yep, and the first feature was Becky Sharp, which was the same year as this short. Hollywood was trying to promote color, but it was very hot in the studios, so many of the promos -- this one, Catalina and Santa Barbara -- were done outdoors, in southern coastal California's strong sunshine with cool air.

[@hebneh]

@@jackusdk Jean Harlow's eyes were literally burned on the surface from the terribly intense lights that were required to shoot "Hell's Angels" in 2-strip Technicolor. It took months for her to recover.

[@davidreece6193]

Wow. Slight improvement on the blues that turned out green in a previous video age of jazz? Although the blues are there are they correct? You can see that they are using a colour card to get best out of the technology of the time.

[@jackusdk]

David Reece I’m over-simplifying a bit, but basically the two-strip process yielded a beam split into red and green, while the three-strip process yield beams of red, green and blue. The end result was three discrete, balanced primary colors. The blues you see are “correct,” in that they are the blues yielded by the original three-strip process. The colour card is used, as in all image restorations, to compensate for the fading in time of all colors. So the punchy blues you see on display here were originally intended to showcase the balanced color of three-strip over the blue-weak two-strip process. I do not believe the restoration has added anything that wasn’t there before. There may be gamma correction to adapt original luminescence to modern projection and video displays. This is a studio restoration, and studios are very scrupulous about their restorations’ conforming to the original.

[@DarqeDestroyer]

Strange how they had got color film recording so good by that point, but the fidelity of sound recordings was still lagging behind. Audio from the 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s always seems kinda flat and hissy, a bit like listening to someone talking on the phone. As far as I can tell the switch to "modern sounding" audio seems to have occurred around the early 1960s, but I have no idea why, or what technological developments were involved in that.

[@jackusdk]

Yeah, “high fidelity” is a post-war term. I think the problem was that the sound strip width, which was fixed, limited the dynamic range. Anyway, people back then were probably saying the same thing, about how good their sound was compared to the old wind-up gramophones.

[@davidlogansr8007]

@@jackusdk Hi Fidelity was introduced in 1932 by RCA VICTOR. Their early “24000” series records by George Olsen and other notables of that era when found in excellent condition, add a dimension you didn’t know existed! There are a few on KZbin. I can’t recall all the ‘32 notables who recorded during that short lived experiment. It was over by the time of this Marvelous Film, to which I have returned over 100 times, as I like the song, and love seeing old Technicolor the way it actually was. As a fairly involved 78 rpm record collector I no longer even hear the needle hiss! I have 6 machines from 1898-1929 vintage, with 3 from the mid to late 20’s, and over 2000 paired down records.

[@jackusdk]

@@davidlogansr8007 Thanks for sharing the knowledge!

[@davidlogansr8007]

@@jackusdk interestingly, the Best sound before RCA VICTOR Hi Fidelity was Edison’s short lived foray into more conventional 78 rpm records from Roughly March to October of 1929. I have exactly one due to them being highly prized by us record collectors. I can attest to its superior sound ability! Also remarkable are my German issue Comedian Harmonists records, numbering about 10. I paid hefty prices for them with exorbitant shipping but all arrived safely, so there is that! Ribbon Mikes made a massive difference appearing after 1932, which doubtless enabled RCA VICTORS forays into Hi-Fi. The monstrosity heavy pickups used on early electrical phonographs were not really capable of picking up all the quality sound that had been laid down. Like early Stereo, it requires a special playback system to derive full enjoyment, and even early Stereo pickups are unthinkably heavy by today’s standards! I know, I have a 1958 Magnavox Brittany console with separate speaker for true Stereo. It’s pickup weighs over 4oz! Today 1.8oz is the normal weight.

[@smadaf]

It's too bad that someone in the digital age has stretched the aspect ratio out of shape. What a shame!

[@ThreadBomb]

The "comedy" is terrible, but the picture is great! I don't understand why the movie industry didn't instantly go to color, when they knew it could look this amazing.

[@jackusdk]

Unfortunately, because of copyright, I couldn't upload the entire movie, so you could see the skits in context. They were funny for the time. The industry didn't go full color immediately because two-strip color wasn't very good, and when three-strip arrived, it demanded very bright, hot lighting that made closed sound stages miserable to work in. It's why, for example, this short was shot in the bright California sun.. And it was an expensive process. Routine productions could not make money in color because of the overheard. Though the year this short was made saw the first full-length Technicolor feature film, with more and more following, it wasn't until the 1960s that color became the default movie format.

[@martinhughes2549]

@@jackusdk It took the development of Eastman Color in 1950 & Ansco Color & other subtractive Negative/Positive films in good quality to lower the cost and make it practical to shoot in Colour.( the Germans developed Agfa Neu Colour Negative /Positive printing in 1941; but the results were inconsistent, 15 films were made by 1945, but the colour was pastelly, Eastman developed better stabler, more practical filmstock) The Technicolor (iv) process was very slow and needs large amounts of lighting, even outside. Technicolor only had 32 cameras available at its peak and limited printing facilities for IB printing. There were other colour systems such as Cinecolor and Trucolor which were two Colour systems( and inferior looking/ limited gamut). About 10% of films were in Colour in the 1940s. This rose to 50% in the 1950s. ( because of the threat of TV). In 1970 94% of films where in Eastman Color subtractive chromogenic films or allied systems. Technicolor IB printing survived till the late 1970s but based on Eastman negatives or similar subtractive negatives.

[@esmeephillips5888]

@@martinhughes2549 I don't know that Agfacolor was always washed-out. Not in 'Munchausen' (1943) nor in Eisenstein's 'Ivan the Terrible' Pt 2, whose 'Sovcolor' process used looted Agfa stock. In 1935 the tech boys were not yet confident about using tripack Technicolor in natural light. 'La Cucuracha' is set in darkish interiors to keep the heat down, and 'Becky Sharp' is a chamber piece. So this short, with its sharp shadows, is perhaps a breakthrough. Then came 'Trail of the Lonesome Pine' and 'Wings of the Morning', which showed that if the balance was right three-strip was fine for exteriors and landscapes (and for Henry Fonda, who starred in both).

[@sarpsarp8987]

@@jackusdk I'd say color movies became common in the second half of 1950s in the USA.

[@hebneh]

@@sarpsarp8987 Black & white films were being released into the middle 1960s. I remember as a kid being disappointed when I went to a movie and it turned out to be b&w. "The Shaggy Dog" was one such example, and I was surprised that Disney would be so cheap.

[@flashkingbro8704]

who is the singer

[@kablamoman]

Nobody's going to say a word about the non-sensical cut to weird guy in the pink fireman's hat having some kind of a stroke?

[@alankanen1052]

The Rhapsody in Blue opens with a clarinet solo, which was not Busse's instrument.

[@jackusdk]

You're right. Busse was a founding member of Paul Whiteman's orchestra, which popularized Rhapsony in Blue. Busse played a trumpet version of Rhapsony in Blue, but indeed the opening solo, as scored, is a clarinet. Thanks for the correction, which I applied to the notes.

[@tooleyheadbang4239]

@@jackusdk It was Busse, I believe, who wrote the word 'glisse' on the score at that point.

[@kfl611]

The color looks great and the music is nice, but I'm not so sure about those funky costumes. Although I like the shoes.

[@EJannings]

The world is completely blind. This upload is stretched in the width, and everyone is talking about the perfect picture quality. Fools.

[@markostermayer3614]

EJannings sorry, but you’re not correct. If you look closely, especially for round objects you can tell that’s not the case. For example- the life saver at the diving board. The beach ball, etc would be stretched

[@jouniko]

*Finds two comments about the wrong aspect ratio at 52,519 views.* World is not completely blind after all!

[@tooleyheadbang4239]

@@jouniko The aspect ratio is wrong because of cropping, though, not 'stretch', as Jennings rudely suggested.

[@jouniko]

​@@tooleyheadbang4239 Well, anyway, this other clip from the end looks proper to me: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5fLgI15bdRqjqc

[@alansmith1989]

Ironic that this early 3 strip Technicolour effort is by MGM as they were the last major studio to produce a full feature (1938) in the format. Yes- Columbia and Universal didn't produce 3 strip features till the 1940s- but they were minor players that era. "RKO, `Paramount` `20th Century Fox` `Warner Bros` and `Selsnick ` studios all produced 3 strip features ahead of MGM 1935 to 1937.

[@jackusdk]

Great point. Some personal thoughts . . . Short subjects-newsreels, cartoons, travelogues, and novelties-were important to exhibitors. They served as appetizers for the main course (also so latecomers would still come in and to make the popcorn lines longer). If sound made movies more real, then color was the next logical step, and 3-Strip got color right. Problem was, color sets were very hot (I think to the point of being toxic), and color film processing was complex and expensive. So, here's MGM making already expensive "grand" movies, confronted with making them even more expensive. Though 3-Strip had to be compelling, I don't think the suits saw it as a must-have, like sound was. In fact, no studio made color routine except Disney, and then 20th-Fox in the 40s. Otherwise, color was occasional or, in MGM's case, small. I think it worked fine for them. In fact, they were vindicated, in a perverse way, when black-and-white (and later, beige) TV almost killed Hollywood. The MGM color shorts began, in 1934, with "Starlit Night at the Cocoanut Grove". It was an indoor location. After that, all the shorts were outdoor-this one, Catalina, Santa Barbara and Palm Springs. It was literally the difference between night and day, with MGM saying, "Indoors won't do. Hot, expensive and forced. From now on, it's outdoors." Coastal southern California's perfect climate is bright sun and mild temperatures-at once solving the saturation and heat problems.

[@alansmith1989]

@@jackusdk The 1934 short "La Cucaracha" was indoors too. Another interesting point is that the Summer climate in British Isles was found to be better for outdoor colour shooting than blazing Californian sun. "Wings of the Morning" is seen as better in colour because it was UK shot - and to contemporary critics looked better. Many other US majors saw Colour as a way of competing against MGM -who were `top dog` studio of the 1930s. MGM could certainly afford more colour films than they made 1938-39 - but why bother when you are doing so well? Of course even mighty MGM occasional balked at prospect of colour. Example= 1938s "Marie Antoinette" This was initially mooted for Technicolor - but because costs were at an (for 1938) incredible 2.9 Million, it was decided to shoot it black & white. I think it was the most expensive Black & White film to that date. Colour would have increased costs close to the total budget of "Gone With the Wind" P>S I spell Color as Colour cos i'm English!

[@jackusdk]

@@alansmith1989 "Colour" means you're either a Brit or pretentious. Ha! Sometimes a movie cried out for color. The one that sticks in my mind is Prince of Foxes. Tyrone Power pleaded with Zanuck to make it color-and Fox was big on color-alas, to no avail. Every time I see it, I groan with Ty-all that color in black and white!

[@esmeephillips5888]

@@jackusdk As late as 1962, Zanuck personally produced 'The Longest Day in b&w, partly because it was easier to match newsreel inserts but also because he felt action and psychological drama could be starker in monochrome with expressive lighting; color was liable to over-prettify and muffle contrasts. Not for nothing was a genre called 'film noir'. 'The Longest Day' was far more profitable than Zanuck's concurrent folie de grandeur, 'Cleopatra', despite being at $10m the priciest b&w production until 'Schindler's List' 30 years later. Its success may have delayed the wholesale changeover to color for a few years, despite TV networks demanding it because they felt buyers of color sets would feel cheated if b&w movies turned up in prime time.

[@musicaltheatergeek79]

I must say RKO are okay! 👌

[@joep8787]

Not a backward baseball cap or tattoo in sight.

[@Mike-zh1ew]

Marvelous, isn’t it?

[@oberon79]

In hindsight, things started going downhill in the 50's, with the "rebels without a cause" generation.

[@jackusdk]

S N What we call rigid and restrictive they might call polite and and responsible. From their vantage point I'm not sure, aside from wealth and technology, they'd be very impressed with us.

[@jackusdk]

oberon79 Yeah, with the rise of TV. Not a coincidence. We got the images, TV got our souls.

[@ringamybell]

this is ignorant lol

[@fernandoponce587]

Detrás de la rubia tocando el ukulele se ve que hay un tipo pasándole un cigarro a Cliff Edwards...