Legends Podcast

Seventy years ago, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s famed producer Arthur Freed, the force behind hits like The Wizard of Oz and Meet Me in St. Louis, released one of the most adored movie musicals of all time. Starring Gene Kelly (who co-choreograhped the film’s extensive tap numbers), Donald O’Connor, and Debbie Reynolds, the film is set at the dawn of “talkie” films and follows the trio through the reinvention of motion pictures. The film largely features songs from previous MGM musical films of the 1929–39 period, with only two original songs written specifically for the movie. The lavish musical was only a modest box office success for MGM, but - and I’m quoting directly from Wikipedia here - “it has since been accorded legendary status by contemporary critics, and is often regarded as the greatest musical film ever made and one of the greatest films ever made.” Now we’re donning our galoshes to watch Singin’ in the Rain and decide for ourselves if it deserves the praise… or fails to make a splash.   For more geeky