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Elstree Calling

Elstree Calling

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Andre Charlot

Jack Hulbert

Paul Murray

Written by Adrian Brunel

Walter C. Mycroft

Val Valentine

Starring Teddy Brown

Helen Burnell

Donald Calthrop

Cinematography Claude Friese-Greene

Distributed by British International Pictures (UK)

Release date(s) 1930

Running time 86 minutes

Country United Kingdom

Elstree Calling (1930) is a film directed by Andre Charlot, Jack Hulbert, Paul Murray, and Alfred Hitchcock at

Elstree Studios.

Synopsis

The film, referred to as "A Cine-Radio Revue" in its original publicity, is a lavish musical film revue and wasBritain's answer to the Hollywood revues which had been produced by the major studios in the United States, such as

Paramount on Parade (1930) and Hollywood Review of 1929. The revue has a slim storyline about it being a

television broadcast. The film consists of 19 comedy and music vignettes linked by running jokes of an aspiring

Shakespearean actor and technical problems with a viewer's TV set.

Hitchcock's contribution was the comic linking segments about a man trying to "tune in" the revue on his television

set, but always failing to get the picture for long because of his needless tinkering. (In the UK, John Logie Baird's

work in mechanical television in the 1920s made television a topical subject at the time.) In imitation of the lavish

use of Technicolor by Hollywood studios at that time, two sequences of the film were photographed using the

Pathcolor stencil colour process.

In their bookFilm's musical moment, Ian Conrich and Estella Tincknell write:

"The British equivalent of Hollywood's all-star revues was Elstree Calling (1930), produced by British

International Pictures (BIP), which consisted mainly of musical and comedy items from stage shows of the day

introduced by compare Tommy Handley. Lacking the lavish production values and visual spectacle of its

Hollywood equivalents,Elstree Calling is now something of a curio item interesting chiefly for two reasons:

Alfred Hitchcock (then contracted to BIP) was one of several directors employed on the production; and the

film is quite possibly the first ever to refer directly to television (the linking narrative concerns a television

broadcast of the revue, some six years before the BBC began regular television transmissions)."[1]

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alfred_Hitchcockhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tommy_Handleyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_International_Pictureshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_International_Pictureshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Stencilhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Path%C3%A9colorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Technicolorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mechanical_televisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Logie_Bairdhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=TV_sethttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Shakespearehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Running_jokeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vignette_%28literature%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Televisionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hollywood_Review_of_1929http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Paramount_on_Paradehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Revuehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Musical_filmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Elstree_Studioshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alfred_Hitchcockhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jack_Hulberthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andre_Charlothttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=British_International_Pictureshttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Claude_Friese-Greenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Donald_Calthrophttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Teddy_Brownhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Val_Valentinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Walter_C._Mycrofthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Adrian_Brunelhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jack_Hulberthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Andre_Charlothttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alfred_Hitchcock

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Cast

Teddy Brown

Helen Burnell

Donald Calthrop

Bobbie Comber

Cicely Courtneidge

The 3 Eddies

Will Fyffe

Tommy Handley

Gordon Harker

Jack Hulbert

Hannah Jones

John Longden

Ivor McLaren

Lily Morris

Nathan Shacknovsky

John Stuart

Gordon Begg

Jameson Thomas

Anna May Wong

References

[1] Ian Conrich, Estella Tincknell,Film's musical moments, Publ. Edinburgh University Press, 2006, ISBN 0-7486-2345-0, ISBN

978-0-7486-2345-7, 226 pages ( page 32 (http://books. google. co.uk/books?id=PZS5vb7nQ_UC& lpg=PA32& dq="elstree calling"&

pg=PA32#v=onepage& q="elstree calling"&f=false))

External links

Elstree Calling (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020852/) at the Internet Movie Database

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Internet_Movie_Databasehttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020852/http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PZS5vb7nQ_UC&lpg=PA32&dq=%22elstree%20calling%22&pg=PA32#v=onepage&q=%22elstree%20calling%22&f=falsehttp://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PZS5vb7nQ_UC&lpg=PA32&dq=%22elstree%20calling%22&pg=PA32#v=onepage&q=%22elstree%20calling%22&f=falsehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anna_May_Wonghttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jameson_Thomashttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gordon_Begghttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Stuart_%28actor%29http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lily_Morrishttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=John_Longdenhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jack_Hulberthttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gordon_Harkerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tommy_Handleyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Will_Fyffehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cicely_Courtneidgehttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bobbie_Comberhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Donald_Calthrophttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Teddy_Brown

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Article Sources and Contributors 3

Article Sources and ContributorsElstree Calling Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=550839513 Contributors: AllTalking, Aspects, Bobo192, Darev, Davepattern, Dr Don, Films addicted, Fortdj33, Grstain,

Iantresman, Kilo-Lima, Lord Cornwallis, Lucobrat, Lugnuts, MarnetteD, Mikomaid, Pearle, Pegship, Polisher of Cobwebs, SMcCandlish, Ser Amantio di Nicolao, SidP, SkeletorUK, Skier Dude,

Sreejithk2000, Tjmayerinsf, WOSlinker, Webrarian, Wool Mintons, Ydam, Zzyzx11, 4 anonymous edits

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