Ann Blyth and Friends Sing The Oceana Roll

Ann Blyth sings "The Oceana Roll" in Jack Carson's waterfront dive tonight as Turner Classic Movies gives us another chance to visit Mildred Pierce (1945).

From my book, Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star. --

Much later on in the movie we will see that when Joan Crawford kicks Veda out of the house and Veda has to find work, she ends up in Jack Carson’s waterfront dive singing the ragtime saloon song “The Oceana Roll” and we may wonder if she got her training for that unlikely career by playing with Kay in the living room singing a song like “South American Way.”  She has a little of Kay’s flamboyance if not her unselfconscious joy, as she is leered at by sailors in the dismal dive.

Joan Crawford’s sickened expression in the saloon watching her daughter is priceless.

Ann's chum Jane Powell also got a turn to sing the old ragtime tune in Two Weeks with Love (1950), a much more family-friendly performance here from YouTube:

Vaudevillian Beatrice Kay also revived the number, probably for television, in 1956 here:

Both charming performances with a turn-of-the-20th century flare.  For a little ragtime raciness, however, tune in tonight for Ann's come-hither vamp of the old piano roll favorite.  Catch Mildred Pierce tonight on TCM at 10 p.m. ET.

Candlelight and love songs - Ann Blyth and Robert Mitchum

Today we celebrate Valentine's Day with a lovely scene between Ann Blyth and Robert Mitchum singing love songs to each other in One Minute to Zero (1952).

From my book, Ann Blyth: Actress. Singer. Star.:

Their most intriguing scene together, however, is playing sitting opposite each other at a kitchen table after she has made supper for him at her apartment in Japan, their first date.  The candles burn down, and both, slightly slumped over the table, he with his chin on his hand, give the impression of being all talked out.  A soothing, lazy tune, in a delicately Asian style, penetrates their silence, coming, we are told in a quick camera shot from a record on a portable record player.  Suddenly, Robert Mitchum begins to sing along to the tune, in Japanese.  Catch Ann’s expression of surprised delight.  She is glued to his face, watching him sing, fascinated by him.  It opens the door to their romance.  She sees there is more to him than just a blustering alpha male dismissive of her opinions on the war...

As Robert Mitchum lazily smokes a cigarette (his trademark sleepy performance punctuates pretty nearly everything he does in this movie), he coaxes Ann, who confesses she knows only the English words to that tune, to sing.  So now it’s her turn at bat, and Ann sings an English verse of “Golden Moon.”  It is low, quiet, and lovely, and the really tender aspect about this scene is that they both appear to be singing “live.”  It does not appear they’re lip-syncing to a pre-recorded track.  It’s easier to keep the flow of singing and dialogue in this quiet, moody setting by having them do it live.  What we get is a very casual, natural, and intimate moment.

Here is that moment, from a clip on YouTube.  Happy Valentine's Day...