Studio: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
Running time: 135 minutes
That’s Entertainment! (1974)
“M-G-M marked its 50th anniversary with this outstanding collection of musical performances from the studio’s reign as the king of the genre during Hollywood’s golden era. Drawing from more than 100 feature films, writer/producer/director Jack Haley Jr.’s compilation took the box-office by storm, becoming one of the highest grossing films of 1974, and brought excerpts from timeless gems from An American in Paris to Ziegfeld Follies to audiences new and old in just 135 magical minutes. For this special occasion, Haley called upon talented stars to ‘host’ this brilliantly conceived cinematic event: Fred Astaire, Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly, Peter Lawford, Liza Minnelli, Donald O’Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Mickey Rooney, Frank Sinatra, James Stewart and Elizabeth Taylor.” [From the Blu-ray]
Cast
Fred Astaire
Bing Crosby
Gene Kelly
Peter Lawford
Liza Minnelli
Donald O’Connor
Debbie Reynolds
Mickey Rooney
James Stewart
Elizabeth Taylor
Crew
Director-Producer-Writer: Jack Haley, Jr.
Executive Producer: Daniel Melnick
Cinematographers: Gene Polito, Ernest Laszlo, Russell Metty, Ennio Guarnieri, and Allan Green
Opticals: Robert Hoag and Jim Liles
Editors: Bud Friedgen and David E. Blewitt
Film Librarian: Mort Feinstein
Music Supervision: Jesse Kaye and Henry Mancini
Sound: Hal Watkins, Aaron Rochin, Lyle Burbridge, Harry W. Tetrick, and William L. McCaughey
Assistant Directors: Richard Bremerkamp, David Silver, and Claude Binyon, Jr.
Did You Know?
Elizabeth filmed her segment for That’s Entertainment!, a celebration of the MGM dream factory’s finest musicals, not on the studio’s crumbling backlot like many of her colleagues who appear in the film, but in Rome, where she was making The Driver's Seat in 1973. She wore her kunzite, amethyst, and diamond “Triphanes” sautoir and ear pendants by Van Cleef & Arpels, gifts from Richard.
Among the iconic MGM clips featured in the documentary are two from Elizabeth Taylor films: The Melody of Spring from 1947’s Cynthia, and Love Is Where You Find It from A Date with Judy (1948).
