Puttin' on the Ritz

This agonisingly stilted early musical is notable for the title number, being staged here in its original 'Negro' version ('a bevy of high-browns from the levee' - lyrics later reworked for Fred Astaire) and for Menzies' extravagant production design. One set actually gyrates in rhythm to the song. The film was planned as a star-making vehicle for Harry Richman, a popular crooner of the day. But his onscreen presence, combining the manner of Liberace and the looks of Bela Lugosi, ensured that little further was heard of him.