Orchestra Wives is one of the 20th Century Fox musicals of the 40s that were made on B-budgets, but are elevated to A-status by their music and cinematography. It’s a dreamy jazz band movie with almost zero narrative — but very funny and erotic, with great music and the best routine by The Nichols Brothers I’ve ever seen. The orchestra is a fictionalized (but totally real) Glenn Miller Orchestra. I’d always felt that the Miller Orchestra was insufficiently jazzy — too white, too tame, too Hollywood. But this film shows they were great — it’s basically a movie-length music video of the Miller band. The film was directed by Archie Mayo, an unpredictable, volatile personality, and there are some shots to die for. In some ways it feels like it was made in 1932 not ’42 — but that works with Miller, who had a lot of early Duke and Fletcher Henderson in him.
Actually, there is a narrative, thin but classic. Small-town Iowa beauty Connie (Ann Rutherford) is in fangirl ecstasy over the handsome trumpet player, Bill Abbot (George Montgomery), for the Gene Morrison Band, which is straining under the pressure of constant playing on the road.
The “orchestra” plays in Connie’s town, and she’s starstruck. But Bill’s not the only star. There’s also the bombshell diva singer, Jaynie (Lynn Bari).
Bill puts the moves on Connie, to the chagrin of her hometown soda-jerk would-be paramour. So, yup, it’s a rock and roll band-and-fan movie, only with a jazz band. I’m not a big fan of George Montgomery, but he’s sleazy enough in this film for me to enjoy him. I can see Christopher Walken in his role. (And yes, that’s Jackie Gleason.)
Bill actually does fall for Connie, and they get married. The trouble is that orchestra wives are always under pressure — mainly because of the erotically dangerous presence of Jaynie. And if there’s one thing she can’t stand, “it’s a leaky dame.”
The pressures are too great — constant traveling and constant erotic intrigues and suspicions. The band breaks up and Connie returns to the corn desert.
When the band regroups, Connie conspires with her father to trick Bill back into her arms.
The finale is the Mack-Warren song “I’ve Got a Gal in Kalamazoo” that was a big hit in ’42 for the Miller band. The rendition follows the usual protocol of jazzy musicals of the time — it’s first introduced in a corny standard white radio style, then shifts abruptly to a hipper, energetic black jump style, done by the Nichols Brothers in their best performance I’ve seen so far.
