By Marilyn Lester***Back in action now that pandemic restrictions are over, Hollywood Canteen—The Radio Show returned, scripted by and co-hosted by Warren Schein and Patricia Fitzpatrick, taking its Don’t Tell Mama audience back to the 1940s. For those needing a refresher, during World War II, John Garfield, Bette Davis and Jules C. Stein founded and operated The Hollywood Canteen in Los Angeles from October 1942 to November 1945. The club offered food, dancing and entertainment for servicemen, free of charge, with the odds of mingling with celebrities pretty much assured.
As with previous editions of the show, the idea is to evoke the broadcasts coming from the Canteen via CBS Radio, complete with the co-hosts singing the Maxwell House coffee jingle. In character, Schein sung as both Al Jolson and Mel Tormé, while Fitzpatrick portrayed Bette Davis. Of course, if there’s Schein, there’s comedy—he’s a funny, engaging guy—and Fitzpatrick didn’t lose a beat in keeping up with the antics, many of which were off the cuff.
In fact, this was an edition of the show that was often organic. But this cast of professionals handled well the bits that leaned off-script, ad-libbing over missed cues and the like. Mardie Millet, as Judy Garland, for example, completing a lovely rendition of “Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart” (James F. Hanley) and about to exit the stage, had a curve ball thrown her way—music director Bryon Sommers began a piano introduction to “You Made Me Love You (I Didn’t Want to Do It)” (James V. Monaco, Joseph McCarthy). The surprised Millet jumped right in and saved the day.
The pluses of this Hollywood Canteen Radio Show were nonetheless many and it was all in very good fun. Standards of the day abounded. Schein delivered songs from his repertoire—an opening of Jolson hits to a beautifully emotive “The Nearness of You” (Hoagy Carmichael, Ned Washington). Fitzpatrick in her rich alto delivered “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” (Irving Berlin) and “What a Wonderful World” (Bob Thiele—as “George Douglas,” George David Weiss) with plenty of heart. Even Sommers, with percussive piano gusto throughout and a lush, classically-based style, got to sing. With special guest Christopher Brooke he dueted on a sweet “When You Wish Upon a Star” (Leigh Harline, Ned Washington) and gave an emotive solo on “As Time Goes By” (Herman Hupfeld).
A sweet segment of the show involved breaking character; it was Fitzpatrick’s birthday and of course the audience sang a joyful “Happy Birthday” to her. While the Hollywood Canteen existed specific to the world at war in the 1940s, there were unspoken undercurrents to the wars of now, specifically the invasion of Ukraine by Russia dominating the headlines. In an audience sing-along of the finale number, “I’ll Be Seeing You” (Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal), the cast evoked deep feelings of both the Greatest Generation who fought that past war, and of those today who see a loved one off to fight. It was a touching and fitting finale to a memorably upbeat show, with Sommers providing a robust play-out of Armed Forces theme songs.
