Strike Up the Band (film)


Strike Up the Band is a 1940 American musical film produced by the Arthur Freed unit at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film was directed by Busby Berkeley and stars Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, in the second of a series of musicals they co-starred in, after Babes in Arms, all directed by Berkeley.

Plot

Jimmy Connors, a student at Riverwood High School, plays the drums in the school band but dreams of playing in a dance band. He and his “gal” Mary Holden sell the school principal on the idea of forming a dance orchestra and putting on a dance to raise money. The principal is initially doubtful but then agrees to buy the first ticket. The event is a success, and the school's debt for the instruments is paid off.
Famous band leader Paul Whiteman sponsors a contest in Chicago for the best high school musical group, and Jimmy decides that the band must compete. In three weeks, the kids write, plan, and put on a show. The melodrama, called "Nell from New Rochelle", is also a success and raises almost enough money for the band to go to Chicago, but they're still short. A loan from Whiteman himself solves that problem. However when, Willie, a member of the band who had been injured, needs a critical and urgent operation, the band uses the money so that the injured student can be flown to Chicago for the operation.
The band gets a last minute gift of a free ride on a fast train to Chicago. The band competes in Chicago and wins the $500 prize. Jimmy gets the honor of leading all of the bands in a grand finale performance of the title song.

Cast

In keeping with MGM's practice of the time, the film soundtrack was recorded in stereophonic sound but released with conventional monaural sound. At least some of the original stereo recording has survived and been included in some home video releases, including the Mickey Rooney - Judy Garland Collection.

Box office

According to MGM records the film earned $2,265,000 in the US and Canada and $1,229,000 elsewhere resulting in a profit of $1,539,000.

Critical response

Daily Variety:
Movie and Radio Guide, 1940:
Variety, September 18, 1940:

Awards and honors

In 1941, the year after the film was released, the film was nominated for three Academy Awards. Douglas Shearer won a Best Sound, Recording and Roger Edens and George Stoll were nominated for an Oscar in the category of Best Music, Original Song for the song "Our Love Affair". George Stoll and Roger Edens were also nominated for an Oscar in the category of Best Original Score.
The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists:
As well as being commercially released in its own right on VHS on January 30, 1991 by MGM, the DVD version was released on September 25, 2007 by Warner Home Video as part of The Mickey Rooney & Judy Garland Collection until it was finally been given an individual release on October 2, 2018 by Warner Archive Collection who also released the Blu-ray format on June 23, 2020.

In popular culture

Strike Up the Band is featured in: