Main Cast: Sal Mineo, John Saxon, Luana Patten, Edward Platt, Fay Wray
Release Year: 1956
Country: US
Run Time: 89 minutes
Plot
A must-see for students of 1950s pop culture, Rock, Pretty Baby was Universal-International's earliest acknowledgement of the rock 'n' roll craze. John Saxon plays 18-year-old high schooler Jimmy Daley, who intends to pursue a musical career despite the objections of his physician father (Edward C. Platt). Daley organizes a student band, then tries his best to obtain bookings. One of Jimmy's musical cohorts is none other than Rod McKuen, cast as one "Ox Bentley". Inevitably, the film comes to a noissome conclusion during a televised "bandstand" show, hosted by LA deejay Johnny Grant. The supporting cast of Rock, Pretty Baby runs the age gamut from teenaged Sal Mineo to veteran film favorite Fay Wray. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Juvenile delinquency was a big buzzword in the 1950s, and many parents and professionals worried that the new rock-n-roll music was a pathway into a life of youthful crime. Rock, Pretty Baby is one of the many flicks of the period that capitalized on (or exploited, if you prefer) this premise, and like most of them, it presents a banal story with mostly black-and-white conflicts and characterizations. Unlike more memorable examples of the genre, however, there's less entertainment with Pretty Baby -- there's little of the "hip" slang that aficionados expect, for example, and the conflicts come across as remarkably dull. The moralizing is overly earnest, but not exaggerated enough to be fun, and the predictability of the entire enterprise becomes numbing after a while. The cast unfortunately takes things entirely too seriously, with the exceptions of Sal Mineo and to a lesser extent Shelley Fabares. The score, often a saving grace in this kind of film, is a disappointment, being too obviously NOT rock. There are some snatches of genuine artistry in the cinematography, most notably in the "necking on the beach" sequence, which makes good use of shadows, but it's too little too late. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Rod McKuen - "Ox" Bentley; John Wilder - "Fingers" Porter; Alan Reed, Sr. - "Sax"Lewis; Douglas Fowley - "Pop" Wright; Bob Courtney - "Half-Note" Harris; Shelley Fabares - Twinkey Daley; April Kent - Kay Norton; Sue George - Lori Parker; Walter Reed - Mr. Reid; Glen Kramer - Bruce Carter; Johnny Grant - Himself; George Winslow - Thomas Daley Jr.
Credit
Alexander Golitzen - Art Director, Phil Barber - Art Director, Rosemary Odell - Costume Designer, Bill Thomas - Costume Designer, Richard H. Bartlett - Director, Frederick Y. Smith - Editor, Sonny Burke - Composer (Music Score), Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score), Joseph E. Gershenson - Musical Direction/Supervision, Bobby Troup - Songwriter, Sonny Burke - Songwriter, Rod McKuen - Songwriter, Phil Tuminello - Songwriter, Bill Carey - Songwriter, George Robinson - Cinematographer, Edmond Chevie - Producer, Bill Raynor - Screenwriter, Herbert Margolis - Screenwriter
