Stage Door Canteen is a 1943 American musical film produced by Sol Lesser Productions and directed by Frank Borzage. It can be viewed on AmazonPrime or on You Tube in a digitally remastered 2012 version. The film features many celebrity cameo appearances as it relates a simple drama set in the famed New York City restaurant and nightclub for American and Allied servicemen during WorldWarII.
Stage Door Canteen was made under the auspices of the NYC American Theater Wing. The actual Stage Door Canteen in New York City opened March 2, 1942. It was a basement club located in the 44th Street Theater. The actual theater could not be used for the filming as it was too busy receiving servicemen. The settings were recreated at the Fox Movietone Studio in New York and at RKO Pathé Studios in Los Angeles. Stage Door Canteen was in production from November 30, 1942, to late January 1943.
These WWII soldiers are descendants of the 1776 Continental Army, formed from the colonists, tradesmen, and farmers who were building our new country, but who took time off to defeat King George III after we stated our Declaration of Independence on July 4, with its now famous second sentence: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
THEN and since, after our CONSTITUTION was ratified in 1789 (yes thirteen years later) all members of our military forces swear their service oaths to now the Constitution, not the King. They swear ‘to protect and defend it against all enemies, foreign and domestic.'
They are also descendants of those soldiers, tradesmen, farmers, new factory workers, free blacks and freed slaves, who, under Abraham Lincoln's s leadership, preserved the union of these United States. At Gettysburg, Lincoln memorialized the sacrifices of those who gave their lives to ensure the survival of the United States of America and its Representative Democracy: Our "government of the people, by the people, for the people.
SO HERE in this, almost documentary, movie, we meet the 1942 version of the US Servicemen: the students, workers, farmers, teachers, engineers, and men and women of talent, who were called up to build a huge war machine with which to defend our Democracy, and to help win back European democracies, by defeating Hitler's Nazism and Mussolini's fascism.
AND REMEMBER at the very same time, they had to fight off Japan's bloody vision of global conquest.
In the movie, every one of our service branches is depicted, in uniform. They include all our ALLIES such as British, Canadian, Australian and a Scot in a kilt. AND we meet, also in uniform, actual Russian submariners and Chinese pilots. The Russians are introduced and interviewed in Russian, by comedian Sam Jaffe. The Marines are specially announced and separated via the Halls of Montezuma as they are off to the Pacific war theater.
Over 82 Broadway and Hollywood actors and actresses, using their own identities, did their part for our cause by appearing here, under the auspices of the NYC American Theater Wing. For a few this is their ONLY film record. Most of the roles are cameos, so you have to be quick to recognize them, as Hostesses, Busboys, Chefs etc. A few did full production numbers with the six Big Bands included. Numbers include: Edgar Bergen, Ray Bolger, Ethel Mermen, Gypsy Rose Lee and Peggy Lee, who introduced the ’Weed Song’ ‘Do Like Other Men Do’ in this movie. Big Bands shown here include Dorsey, Goodman, Count Bassie and Xavier Cougat with his Latin band.
LIFE magazine did a full magazine piece on the movie in 1943. They did the counting. IF you want, you could bone up after viewing, via IMDB so you can become a true #StageDoorCanteen trivia buff. YES here was a Canteen in London, and others around the world. SEE PIC.
ALSO, most of you have heard of or seen the entertainment industries traveling shows under the auspices of the USO. Bob Hope headlined them for years.
It is worth being a buff because the StageDoorCanteen is still OPEN, via an endowment from the Bob Hope Foundation. This iteration, #BBsStageDoorCanteen, is located in the New Orleans WWII Museum. They do various shows and productions during the year as well as act as an event venue. Last night, they did a full FRANK SINATRA New Years Eve show.. it was SOLDOUT. See the website for the Schedule of this years groups and shows.
MEANWHILE, as our current US Military probably should be aware, the our military still do their own Canteen shows. HERE is the poster for 22nd annual one in 2015 ,on the USS Lexington. … Get your act up for the one next year.
ENJOY the movie. Then study your own families history of veterans, especially #WWII veterans, and support these people who cranked out this stupendous effort of blood, sweat and tears.
They are the ones who #MadeAmericaGreat.