Side Show is a 1931

1931 in film

-Top grossing films:-Academy Awards:*Best Picture: Cimarron - MGM*Best Actor: Lionel Barrymore - A Free Soul*Best Actor: Wallace Beery - The Champ*Best Actor: Fredric March - Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde...

 all-talking musical comedy film starring Winnie Lightner

Winnie Lightner

Winnie Lightner was an American motion picture actress. Perhaps her most famous role was as a gold-digger named Mabel, in Gold Diggers of Broadway...

 and Charles Butterworth

Charles Butterworth (actor)

Charles Butterworth was an American actor specializing in comedy roles, often in musicals. In his obituary, he was described as "the man who could not make up his mind". Butterworth's distinct voice was the inspiration for the Cap'n Crunch commercials from the Jay Ward studio...

 and released by Warner Bros.

Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...

Production

The film was originally intended to be released, in the United States, early in 1931, but was shelved due to public apathy towards musicals. Despite waiting a number of months, the public proved obstinate and the Warner Bros. reluctantly released the film in September 1931 after removing all the music except for one song which was sung by Winnie Lightner. The film was released outside the United States (since there was no backlash against musicals outside the United States) as a full musical comedy early in 1931.

Trivia

The director of the film, Roy Del Ruth, would later end up falling in love with Winnie Lightner. They were married in 1948.

Songs

Only one song was left in the movie in the print released in the United States. The song was called "What Do You Think of Me Now?" and was sung by Lightner.

Preservation

Only the cut print released in 1931 in the United States seems to have survived. The complete film was released intact in countries outside the United States where a backlash against musicals never occurred. It is unknown whether a copy of this full version still exists.