Da, Dah Da Dah (The Glenn Miller Story (DVD))

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Product:	The Glenn Miller Story (DVD)
Date:	28/11/00 (81 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great music

Disadvantages: It had to end

One of the few things in this world capable of dragging me away from the keyboard apart from the need to sleep and eat was the showing of The Glen Miller Story on ITV on Sunday. The Benny Goodman Story, The Al Jolson Story and The Great Caruso are three others of a very limited list.

Starring James Stewart and June Allyson and supported by Henry Morgan (of MASH fame) this purports to be the story of how the Glen Miller Orchestra became famous world wide. O.K. so it dramatised things quite a bit but essentially it sort of followed his life. However they couldn't "fake" the music and the "sound". That was real and a treat to hear.

James Stewart was the ideal person to play Glen Miller as he had more than just a passing resemblance to the trombone player and June Allyson, with her slightly husky voice, sent many a young man's heart racing.

Made in 1953 and set in the late thirties and forties this was a film absolutely loaded with nostalgia as Glen and the "boys" tried to get together an orchestra that was different and had a special sound.

Success came quite by accident as during a practice session a trumpet player banged his lip and cut it so badly he had to leave the band. This meant an all night session by Glen to re-write the score for a clarinet lead and the rest as they say is history. Whether this is what really happened is open to discussion but then this is Hollywood.

Full of Miller classics like Pennsylvania 65000, In the Mood and of course what has become to be known as his signature tune, Moonlight Serenade, the film gently carries the viewer through a period of time where dancing was an art and people actually held each other as they danced.

This is a film of an era long gone and probably never to return unless there is a major world wide power cut. It is a mushy, slushy, grab at your hanky kind of film but the Glen's music was also very sentimental.

O
nly Hollywood could dream up such a poignant ending as Helen Miller sat at home with friends and two adopted children at Xmas time listening to the Glen Miller band broadcasting from France. There couldn't have been a dry eye in the house as Glen's death was announced and the band played Little Brown Jug a long time favourite of Helen's.

Although the music is over half a century old it still holds a magical appeal for some of the kids of today but surely must live forever in the hearts of people from that era.

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