"Song o' My Heart"

In the Frank Borzage film "Song o' My Heart" (Fox Film Corporation, 1930) John McCormack performs a number of songs supposedly at a concert in New York. The numbers were filmed in late 1929 at the Philharmonic Auditorium, 5th & Olive. The concert sequence begins about 54 minutes in. 

Film historian Miles Kruger discusses the production in "Song o' My Heart - A Hollywood Venture," an article that's on the John McCormack Society website. Miles notes that it was filmed both in 35mm and the short-lived 70mm Fox Grandeur process. Evidently nothing survives from the wide screen version. 

 

The film also features Maureen O'Sullivan, Tommy Clifford, Alice Joyce, Edwin Schneider, John Garrick and Effie Ellsler. The cinematography is credited to Chester A. Lyons. Uncredited in that department (on the 35mm version) were Al Brick and J.O. Taylor.  Miles notes that Taylor shot the Grandeur version. 

 

 

 

John McCormack, on the right, is headed out to the stage. This dressing room scene starts the concert sequence at the Philharmonic. He's already sung a couple of numbers that we don't see and has been taking a break with his longtime accompanist Edwin "Teddy" Schneider, here seen at the center. In the film John plays an Irish singer named Sean. Teddy is given the name Vincent.

 

 

A view of the house electrician off right. It's not the theatre's original board. This dead front version was evidently installed sometime in the 20s.  

 

 

John and Teddy coming out from the dressing room area. 

 

 

Onstage singing. There's virtually no action. He just stands near the piano with his prompt book in his hands for each number. The songs in the concert sequence for the U.S. version are "Luoghi Sereni e Cari," "Little Boy Blue," "Ireland, Mother Ireland" and "I Hear You Calling." Two other numbers done at the Auditorium, "Plaisir D'Amour" and "All' mein Gedanken," were included in foreign versions of the film.  

 

 

A balcony view at the end of one of the numbers. 

 

 

A nice shot from house left. 

 

 

Offstage right again. That's John on the left and his character asks his accompanist "What's wrong, Vincent?" He say's it's nothing but he's actually received a telegram advising that the mother of John's character has died. They go out and do another number but later upon hearing the news, the rest of the tour is cancelled for a return to Ireland.  

 

 

Another look off right as John and Teddy exit.

John Downe notes that "Ireland, Mother Ireland" and "I Hear You Calling Me," two songs from the concert sequence, are on YouTube. 

The full film is also on YouTube in a good looking 1:27 U.S. version from John McMahon. Also see a slightly longer version running 1:34 posted by Irish Mike that restores two songs from the concert sequence ("Plaisir D'Amour" and "All' mein Gedanken") that were not originally seen in the U.S. version. 

See the page about the Philharmonic Auditorium on the Los Angeles Theatres site for many photos of the building, demolished in 1985.

On IMDb: "Song o' My Heart" 

 

This lobby card appears with the John McCormack Society's McCormack on Film page. Also see the Pinnacle 1919 - 1931 section on their home page. 

 

 

The film opened in regular 35mm, not the Grandeur version, at Grauman's Chinese on April 19, 1930.  Thanks to Ken McIntyre for locating the April 30 L.A. Evening Post-Record ad (and others) for a post on the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group. See Kurt Wahlner's listing for the engagement on his site GraumansChinese.org.