Hollywood Canteen (1944)
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73% of users liked it
(418 ratings)
The West Coast's answer to Broadway's Stage Door Canteen, the Hollywood Canteen was created as a GI morale-booster by film stars Bette Davis and John Garfield. The Canteen was established so that Our Boys on leave in Tinseltown could have a good time with good food and good dancing -- and,… More The West Coast's answer to Broadway's Stage Door Canteen, the Hollywood Canteen was created as a GI morale-booster by film stars Bette Davis and John Garfield. The Canteen was established so that Our Boys on leave in Tinseltown could have a good time with good food and good dancing -- and, as a bonus, rub shoulders with their favorite movie personalities, who functioned as waiters, chefs, busboys and dancing partners. Since the 1944 all-star flick Hollywood Canteen was produced by Warner Bros., it was only to be expected that the celebrities seen herein would consist mostly of Warner Bros. contract players. The frail plot concerns a soldier on medical leave (played by Robert Hutton) who falls in love with lovely leading lady Joan Leslie (played by Joan Leslie) while visiting the Canteen. Bette Davis and John Garfield are on hand to emcee the Canteen's variety acts, and to act as cupids for the Hutton/Leslie romance. The "supporting cast" includes the likes of The Andrews Sisters, Jack Benny, Joe E. Brown, Eddie Cantor, Sidney Greenstreet, Paul Henreid, Peter Lorre, Ida Lupino, Dennis Morgan, Roy Rogers, S.Z. Sakall, Barbara Stanwyck, and the Jimmy Dorsey and Carmen Cavallaro musical aggregations. Virtually everyone involved donated their salaries to the Canteen fund--even Jack Benny. As with most of these patriotic wartime star rallies, the results are a mixed bag: the best sequences include Benny's violin "duel" with Joseph Szigeti and Roy Rogers and the Sons of the Pioneers introducing Cole Porter's Don't Fence Me In. Hollywood Canteen won three Oscar nominations, more for its good intentions than its inherent excellence. Still, don't pass up the opportunity when this "movie star salad" shows up on cable TV. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Delmer Daves
- Written By
- Delmer Daves
- Genres
- Romance, Musical & Performing Arts, Classics, Comedy
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1944 Wide
- On DVD
- Nov 11, 2008
Critic Reviews
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David Cornelius, DVDTalk.com
The countless musical performances and celebrity cameos keep everything moving wonderfully, but it's the underlying tale that leaves us smiling wide.
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Cast
- The Andrews Sisters
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Robert Hutton
as Slim
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Jack Benny
as Guest
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Joan Leslie
as Herself
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Julie Bishop
as Herself
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Bette Davis
as Herself
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John Garfield
as Himself
- Betty Brodel
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Barbara Brown
as Mrs. Brodel
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Sydney Greenstreet
as Himself
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Joan Crawford
as Guest
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Joe E. Brown
as Himself
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Eddie Cantor
as Himself
-
Kitty Carlisle
as Herself
-
Jack Carson
as Himself
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Dane Clark
as Sergeant
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Helmut Dantine
as Himself
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Faye Emerson
as Herself
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Victor Francen
as Himself
- The Golden Gate Quartet
- Mary Gordon
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Alan Hale
as Himself
-
Paul Henreid
as Guest
-
Andrea King
as Herself
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Peter Lorre
as Himself
-
Ida Lupino
as Guest
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Irene Manning
as Herself
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Eddie Marr
as Dance Director
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Joan McCracken
as Herself
- Chef Joseph Milani
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Dolores Moran
as Herself
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Janis Paige
as Angela
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Eleanor Parker
as Guest
-
William Prince
as Himself
-
John Ridgely
as Himself
-
Roy Rogers
as Himself
-
Zachary Scott
as Guest
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Robert Shayne
as Himself
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Alexis Smith
as Guest
- Sons of the Pioneers
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Barbara Stanwyck
as Guest
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Craig Stevens
as Himself
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Theodore von Eltz
as Director
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Donald Woods
as Himself
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Jane Wyman
as Guest
-
Betty Alexander
as Herself
-
Lynne Baggett
as Herself
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Betty Bryson
as Dancer
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Carmen Cavallaro
as Himself
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Jimmy Dorsey
as Himself
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James Flavin
as Marine Sergeant
- Angela Greene
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Jonathan Hale
as Mr. Brodel
- Bill Kennedy
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Dorothy Malone
as Herself
- Johnny Mitchell
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Dennis Morgan
as Guest
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Virginia Patton
as Herself
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Joyce Reynolds
as Herself
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S.Z. Sakall
as Himself
- Lynne Shane
- John Sheridan
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Mark Stevens
as Soldier on Deck
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Ray Teal
as Captain
- Colleen Townsend
- Trigger the Horse
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George Turner
as Dancer
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Richard Erdman
as Soldier on Deck
- Errol Flynn
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Rudy Friml
as Orchestra Leader
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Patty Andrews
as Herself
-
Nora Lou Martin
as Herself
- Marianne O'Brien
-
Laverne Andrews
as Herself
-
Maxene Andrews
as Herself
- Joseph Szigeti
- Rosario & Antonio
- Paul Brooke
