TromboneChat

Can y'all suggest some trombone movies besides The Fabulous Dorsey's and The Glenn Miller Story?

Paris Blues - 1961, featuring Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier

Not a movie, but Treme features a trombone playing central character. I couldn't stand watching because he spent the first episode riding around in a cab with his horn in his hand and didn't seem to own a case. Very stressful to see.

Brassed Off has a trombone-playing character that is fun to make fun of.

Sun Valley Serenade and Orchestra Wives have Glenn Miller in them.

The French comedy Le Prénom has an important character who's an orchestral trombonist (and is otherwise a hilarious movie). There's also another new French movie with a trombone-playing important character, haven't seen it yet so can't comment on it :

What's clear in this thread is that we need more trombone movies. Blockbusters all, I tell ya!

The trombone moments in Disney’s Soul are wonderful.

VJOFan wrote: Thu Dec 05, 2024 7:28 am The trombone moments in Disney’s Soul are wonderful.

Yup! You can thank Andy Martin for those moments.

As an ex tuba doubler, the Patrick Stewart version of A Christmas Carol, at Fezziwig's, has a Serpent.

And for serpent movies, it's hard to beat the 1934 Scarlet Pimpernel, especially since you don't have to watch the whole thing.

When the band enters the square at about 2:30 in, you can see a serpent player in the first rank.

The Scarlet Pimpernel was a secret superhero similar to Zorro, who I think maybe was based on him. The novel was 1905. Anyway, here's a link to the movie:

Thom wrote: Tue Dec 03, 2024 1:17 pm Can y'all suggest some trombone movies besides The Fabulous Dorsey's and The Glenn Miller Story?

Do you mean documentary or more Hollywood style? I watched Laurel and Hardy when I was a kid and remember some trombone disaster there. Also old Disney movies had some fun trombone moments. Documentary I remember Christian Lindbergh on Swedish television long time ago. The only thing I remember is he practiced a lot, and on holidays his family go camping with him inside the caravan wagon. Practicing when the wife drive. It's not allowed today!

Leif

Savio wrote: Fri Dec 06, 2024 10:35 am

Thom wrote: Tue Dec 03, 2024 1:17 pm Can y'all suggest some trombone movies besides The Fabulous Dorsey's and The Glenn Miller Story?

Do you mean documentary or more Hollywood style? I watched Laurel and Hardy when I was a kid and remember some trombone disaster there. Also old Disney movies had some fun trombone moments. Documentary I remember Christian Lindbergh on Swedish television long time ago. The only thing I remember is he practiced a lot, and on holidays his family go camping with him inside the caravan wagon. Practicing when the wife drive. It's not allowed today!

Leif

Any and all are appreciated.

Then there's the 2007 Deathproof. Not x rated but also very much not family safe. There are no trombones visible but there is a pretty awesome bass trombone solo in one of the bar scenes. I've always wondered who played that solo.

I know this thread is about films with Trombone players visually in them, can we include Trombone players that are IN the movie when you watch it but not visually ?

I'm led to believe Lloyd Ulyate , Dick Nash and George Roberts were the Trombone section on Rocky II
This is track 06 - Overture. They were definitely the Trombone Section on the Original Rocky score with
the famous Gonna Fly Now ( Go George ).

I apologise if I've come in from the wrong angle here.....

Al

TheConnArtist70H wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 2:56 am I know this thread is about films with Trombone players visually in them, can we include Trombone players that are IN the movie when you watch it but not visually ?

I'm led to believe Lloyd Ulyate , Dick Nash and George Roberts were the Trombone section on Rocky II

Dick, Lloyd and George were in every movie for decades.

Oh Yes Dana, and some of the greatest soundtracks of All time and only the three of them playing. they sounded like 10 players. Mind I think it's disgrace why the musicians who make these big Films come alive, they create emotion, atmosphere, excitement, happiness and yet they are not mentioned in the final credits..... Oh but they do list everyone else like the Janitor stunt double, the Cameraman's Coffee assistant, the Light bulb techician, the boom grip etc.... aaarrrrhhhhhhh !

Calm....

Or do the musicians sign an agreement not to be included in credits ? It really bugs me, can you tell

TheConnArtist70H wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 10:36 amMind I think it's disgrace why the musicians who make these big Films come alive, they create emotion, atmosphere, excitement, happiness and yet they are not mentioned in the final credits..... Oh but they do list everyone else like the Janitor stunt double, the Cameraman's Coffee assistant, the Light bulb techician, the boom grip etc.... aaarrrrhhhhhhh !

Musicians do get credit for theatrical motion pictures now...
https://internationalmusician.org/agree ... producers/

TheConnArtist70H wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2024 10:36 am Oh Yes Dana, and some of the greatest soundtracks of All time and only the three of them playing. they sounded like 10 players. Mind I think it's disgrace why the musicians who make these big Films come alive, they create emotion, atmosphere, excitement, happiness and yet they are not mentioned in the final credits..... Oh but they do list everyone else like the Janitor stunt double, the Cameraman's Coffee assistant, the Light bulb techician, the boom grip etc.... aaarrrrhhhhhhh !

That was true, and it used to drive me crazy because, as you say, even the assistant in the legal department got credit, the caterer got credit, etc. For decades the Musicians Union negotiated contracts that gave away the credits in favor of higher wages, then gave away credits for payment for reuse in emerging secondary markets (e.g., VHS, cable), then went on strike in 1980 and lost ground on everything.

But modernly, the musicians do get credit on the end titles for theatrical release films. It was implemented just before the pandemic shut everything down and movies stopped being made, in a cruelly hilarious bit of irony. (The old saying, "God is a comedian playing to an audience that is afraid to laugh" seems appropriate for that one. ) But for any movie made after 2020, the musicians should be listed in the end credits. Way near the end, of course.

Of course, the trombone is a must-have for any cartoon with musicians on screen.

The Band Concert and The Barnyard Concert leap to mind.


Mickey Mouse plays a trombone in one of the rotating opens to "The Mickey Mouse Club"



The ultimate may be "Trombone Trouble"
Yesterday was Clarence Nash's birthday. No relation to Dick Nash AFAIK.



There's a nice trombone solo over the titles of the WB short "Orange Blossoms For Violet". Don't know who played it.

The origin of this film is uncertain. Some have it that WB acquired footage from an uncompleted silent-era Hal Roach project (or was it Mack Sennet? Or MGM? or...?). Friz Freleng and Chuck Jones wrote a new script for it.

VJOFan wrote: Wed Dec 04, 2024 7:38 am I couldn't stand watching because he spent the first episode riding around in a cab with his horn in his hand and didn't seem to own a case.

Robert Redford stole it for his lucky baseball bat in The Natural.

Robert Redford stole it for his lucky baseball bat in The Natural.

Tommy Dorsey was actually in a bunch of movies.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0234186/

Here's a clip from Ships Ahoy. Arguably, showcasing a young Buddy rich over-playing the band. But that could also be the fault of the engineers/film editors.

"Used People" from 1993. Music during opening credits of movie is a trombone solo. It's based on a song "The Sky Fell Down" (recorded by Tommy Dorsey and Frank Sinatra) that plays on a radio during the opening scene. Rachel Portman did the music. From the credits it looks like it was recorded in London. My guess is the trombone player might have been Don Lusher. If anyone can confirm it was him or knows who else it might have been it would be great to know.

I should have included TV shows as well. BTW, there is no trombone in the season 1 episode 7 "Merry Christmas, Mr. Bean", but the Salvation Army Brass Ensemble plays a cool jazzy rendition of a Christmas Carol

TV show: Great British Baking Show, the New Year Holiday show.

We just watched it. One of the contestants plays trombone, and at the end of the show there's a nicely done trombone quartet. Possibly some forum members are on that.

Has everybody forgotten Jerry Colonna ?? He was Bob Hope's sidekick back in the 1940's qnd 50's and started his career as a trombone player. I know that I've seen him play the trombone in a film somewhere back in the dark ages but can't remember in what film that was. Anybody ? Old movie buffs ? With his "earlier than Marty Feldman's Google Eyes in The Young Frankenstein", and famous handlebar mustache he was a comedic genius. HIs voice was unmistakable after the first hearing, being placed somewhere between a shout and a seismic occurrence !! Come to think about it, that's what a trombone player tries to accomplish every day on the quaint and antiquated instruments that we apply to our faces !

Whomever comes up with the correct assignation as to who so famously was quoted as the author of that last reference : "Bass Trombonist ! Is that the greatest amount of sound that you can summon from that quaint and antiquated instrument that you apply to your face" wins the grand prize ------ [to be announced]. British members are excluded from this contest due to familiarity to the author !! Chris Stearns and Peter Harvey are specifically excluded !

2bobone wrote: Sun Dec 22, 2024 5:18 pm Whomever comes up with the correct assignation as to who so famously was quoted as the author of that last reference : "Bass Trombonist ! Is that the greatest amount of sound that you can summon from that quaint and antiquated instrument that you apply to your face" wins the grand prize ------ [to be announced]. British members are excluded from this contest due to familiarity to the author !! Chris Stearns and Peter Harvey are specifically excluded !

Jack Quinn

2bobone wrote: Sun Dec 22, 2024 5:18 pm Has everybody forgotten Jerry Colonna ?? He was Bob Hope's sidekick back in the 1940's qnd 50's and started his career as a trombone player. I know that I've seen him play the trombone in a film somewhere back in the dark ages but can't remember in what film that was. Anybody ? Old movie buffs ?

I was not aware of his trombone playing.

I'm not sure if he's actually playing in this clip, however. This appears to be from a TV show.

robcat2075 wrote: Thu May 22, 2025 9:01 amI'm not sure if he's actually playing in this clip, however. This appears to be from a TV show.

If the good doctor isn't playing, he's doing one heck of job faking it.

Jerry Colonna is kinda my hero. I've got a pretty good line of "back row snark", but he made a career of it.