USA music 1936 bw 110 min.
Director: James Whale
CAV: out-of-print collectible
           3 discs, catalog # CC1144L
CLV: out-of-print collectible
           1 disc, catalog # CC1191L
Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern created this enchanting musical, based on Edna Ferber's best-selling novel about the performers on a Mississippi steamboat. The film, directed by George Sidney, features superb performances by Irene Dunne, Hattie McDaniel, and Paul Robeson. Both Criterion editions contain audio commentary by musical theater expert Miles Kreuger, providing information on the actors and comparisons to other versions of Show Boat.

The CAV edition also contains:

  • Excerpts from the 1929 film version and 1932 stage version
  • Life Aboard a Real Showboat, a short documentary made in the 1930s
  • Radio Hall of Fame and Orson Welles' "Campbell Soup Playhouse" radio dramas based on Ferber's novel
  • More than 300 photos tracing the evolution of showboats and the history of Show Boat


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