Too Much Harmony

Too Much Harmony is a 1933 American black-and-white pre-Code musical film directed by A. Edward Sutherland and starring Bing Crosby, Jack Oakie, Richard "Skeets" Gallagher, Harry Green, and Judith Allen. It was released by Paramount Pictures. Plot A backstage musical about a Broadway star, Eddie Bronson, who is stranded with his plane in Ohio where he discovers a small-time variety act, Dixon and Day and their assistant Ruth who is also Ben Day's fiancée. When he returns to New York following a try-out of a new show, Bronson arranges for the irascible producer, Max Merlin, to put them in the show and the story develops around the mutual interest which grows between Eddie and Ruth. At a party Bronson sings 'The Day You Came Along' and his own fiancée, Lucille, is jealous of his attentions to Ruth. Rehearsals of the show prove to be disappointing but Eddie encourages Ruth and they sing 'Thanks'. Ben decides to give up Ruth so that she can marry Eddie but Lucille will not release Eddie. Ben, with Johnny's help, masquerades as a tobacco millionaire, Charles W. Beaumont Jr., and pretends to be infatuated with Lucille, who, in her enthusiasm to obtain a millionaire husband, abandons Eddie and tells him she is breaking the engagement, which of course has the desired effect of leaving him free to marry Ruth. The opening night is a huge success. The show includes a spectacular production number, 'Black Moonlight', sung by one of the leading ladies standing on a bridge while dancers perform on a huge draped drum. Other featured numbers are Dixon and Day's 'The Kelly's and the Cohen's', 'Cradle Me with a 'Hocha' Lullaby', 'Boo-boo-boo' and the finale 'Buckin' the Wind'.