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| Written and filmed July-September, 1929.
Produced by
Irving Thalberg. Directed by Lionel Barrymore. Laurel and Hardy scenes
directed by Hal Roach. Released by MGM, January, 1930. 115 minutes.
Cast: Lawrence Tibbett, Catherine Dale Owen, Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy. |
STORY: Opera star Lawrence Tibbett plays Yegor, a rogue bandit who happens to have a beautiful singing voice. Laurel and Hardy play Ali-Bek and Murza-Bek, his bumbling assistants. | |
 One
of the most sought-after Lost Films in all of moviedom, and the second
most unfortunate missing link in the L&H catalog next to Hats
Off. Despite its popularity in its day and despite earning an
Academy
Award nomination for its star, no known print of ROGUE SONG exists.
MGM's
original negative and stock print were destroyed in a fire, while all
other
prints seem to have decomposed away, owing to the fragile state of the
old two-color technicolor film stock. It was apparently screened in
Russia
as recently as the 1960's, but it has been well over sixty years since
the film has been seen in America or Europe. |
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The original trailers and a
three-minute
L&H sequence have been discovered, and the complete soundtrack
still
exists on disc. Until a complete print is discovered, these fragments
are
all we have with which to judge the film. |
Copyright © John Larrabee, John V. Brennan 2002. All Rights Reserved.
Though the film was conceived as a vehicle for Metropolitan Opera star
Lawrence Tibbett, the film is considered an important loss for Laurel
and
Hardy fans for several reasons. First is the fact that it features
L&H
in the most prominent of their guest-star appearances. They are
featured
in eight scenes, totalling about twenty minutes of screen time. Next is
the fact that ROGUE SONG marks their feature-film debut. Though they
play
supporting roles, it was the most lavish production in which they were
ever to appear. Finally, it marks the only vintage appearance by
L&H
in color.