When we see Ruby Keeler being introduced to the film, she gets teased by a few girls who lead her to almost walk into the men's room, and then to walk in on Dick Powell. Powell takes an immediate fondness to Ruby, just like in the other 1930s films with Powell and Ruby. I can never blame Powell, Ruby is beautiful and wonderful. We also meet beautiful girls Una Merkel and Ginger Rogers. Ginger is.'Anytime Annie', who "never says no except for once when she didn't hear the question". Una looked different in this film from some of her other films such as "Born to dance" and "Broadway Melody 36", not just younger (since this film came earlier from the other mentioned two) but she just looked sort of different altogether in this film. She was still very pretty just like in her other films. I loved her fun, quirky character in this film.Warner Baxter, who was warned by his doctor to take it easy, ignores him and finds his number one goal and dream, is to put on a dazzling, amazing show. If he can go through with that, nothing else matters. He is a very determined and aspiring director. The main story with rehearsals was very good in this film, along with good humor too. The musical numbers were wonderful. 42nd street, Shuffle off to Buffalo (with Ginger and Una sitting on a top bunk eating a banana), You're young and healthy , and You're getting to be a habit with me. Bebe Daniels likes Guy Kibby (I like the "things can never be the same now" bit), until Bebe calls Guy "you sucka!" while drunk at a party. I liked the passion between Ruby and George Brent (I think that this was the only of Busby's 1930s films where Ruby eloped with someone besides Powell. I cannot blame either of those guys though for being fond of lovely Ruby.I also found amusing near the beginning when Ruby was accepted into tryouts with the help of Powell, and Una and Ginger. We see them all throughout a couple of tryout scenes, then we get the scene where one of the slightly uppity girls is showing herself to the producers, and Ginger says "and is her homework tough", with Ruby laughing with Ginger and Una still standing amongst them. Then the film cuts to a moment after some more tryouts that weren't shown in the film, and now Ruby was asleep on a nearby bench while Warner was huffing about them being a girl short. Powell mentioned how Ruby was cut (somewhere between the previous shown tryout scenes and the present scene). Warner and his assistant call out to Ruby to wake up and all the girls on stage giggle. For some reason, I found all that very amusing, I liked that. I don't know why Ruby was cut when everyone seemed to like her the first time they saw her, and then they all looked quite happy to have her back (including Una I could see). I was happy to see Ruby back too.I loved the passionate moment from Warner to Ruby right before going on stage "You're going out an aspired actress and you're coming back a star!" His predictions were right on. Ruby shined beautifully through her songs, especially "42nd Street". But Ruby was wonderful through all.There's also a few cheeky lines in this film such as "you got the busiest hands" and "I'm sitting on a flagpole" from Una after a guy had crossed bounds with her a bit more than she wanted. Also Una doing an implicating gesture with her mouth after seeing Ruby and Powell together. Cheeky Una.

At one level this is less a musical and more a movie about musicals and theatre. Full of shonky businessmen, the odd sexual favour, a frustrated and cantankerous director, actors and dancers just wanting a piece of the action or struggling to get by. Throw in some quick one liners, numerous wannabes and there you have 42nd Street. And there's some dancing and singing. And there you have the template for Fame, Flashdance, Centre Stage et al. There are better musicals. But this is a very good movie about musicals.

My observations: Let's hear it for the dancers. I am a tap dancer. All the boo hoo about Ruby's tap dancing is absurd. She was a star, and you are not. In the 42nd street title dance sequence, she is tap dancing in what we of modern tap dance styles call "rhythm tap", in which the dancer dances closer to the ground and may even pitch a little forward on the toe taps. The old style of tap dance is called "Broadway tap", where the woman is up on the higher heeled tap shoes and the carriage is held higher and posture more erect. As far as Ruby's "clumsy" dancing, that is also absurd. She was dancing in flat tap shoes, whereas when she and other women danced in higher heeled tap shoes they more tended to "dance on air". IMO, high heeled tap shoes are more elegant and sexy. I have tap danced in both types.Furthermore, most of the time you only saw women tap dancing in the higher heeled tap shoes, anyway, ala Ann Miller, Ginger Rogers, Eleanor Powell, Marge Champion, et al. Flat tap shoes ala 42nd Street number by Ruby Keeler always make a louder, stronger tap sound. They are what the men wear. I mean, did you ever see movie men tap dance in high heeled tap shoes? Additionally, notice other early tap movies. Old fashioned stories such as Shirley Temple (a child, of course), wearing her long dresses while tapping in flat tap shoes without much sound: tap's early days were done with wooden taps; metal taps came along much later. Lots of tap movies done with old wooden taps didn't have much sound. As a matter of fact, in tap movies the sound was added later; there were no microphones on the tap shoes or on the floors. This is why, I think, that upon seeing old tap movies today I can hear many more taps than the dancer could possibly dance in the time depicted.Further, high heeled tap shoes have smaller taps in general. The toe taps can be smaller than on the flat tap shoes, or what I call the men's tap shoes. A big man has gigantic toe taps. The high heeled women's tap shoes have tiny, little heel taps, that don't make much sound.More observations about this film: Julian Marsh reminds me of Florenz Ziegfeld. After the 1929 Stock Market Crash and ensuing Great Depression, Ziggy was bankrupt and in ill health, and later passed away, his wife Billie Burke going back to work to pay his bills (witness her daffy characters in some movies plus her later blockbuster Wizard of Oz).Julian Marsh was a desperate, formerly on top Broadway producer, in ill health and who I feel had a terminal illness diagnosis from his physician on the phone earlier in the film.1933 was six years after the 1927 Jazz Singer sound debut. 1933 was in The Great Depression. I thought that the film 42nd Street did very well, considering these things. Additionally, in Singin' in the Rain, 1951, it shows how early sound films had problems with production values such as microphones. I like 42nd Street. It still gets people interested in tap dancing.Broadway also fared badly during and after World War One. Audiences stayed away, men were sent off to war, shows closed, bankruptcies abounded. In my opinion, wars and economic downturns affect Broadway. There are some success stories, however. During World War Two, Broadway fared well with dancing musicals such as Oklahoma and Carousel; they both had ballet dances included in the storytelling.Broadway is still here. Musicals still abound. Silent movies, sound movies and television never killed Broadway. Movies and TV preserve actor's/dancers'/singers' performances, yes, but even those -- as they age -- are subject to faulty and expensive preservation techniques.Viva La Broadway Show, and filmed depictions thereof.10/10

I just saw this movie this weekend for the first time all the way through and really enjoyed it. I love classic movies but tended to shy away from the musicals until I read a few bios lately on various stars and directors of the genre and was glad when this one came so I could tape it and watch it.The story is basic, of course, but it moves quickly, seems realistic as far it goes, the acting is good without any noticeable overacting that often comes across when we watch these old movies 50+ years later. I really like Ruby Keeler and also Bebe Daniels in their roles. And it was funny to see Ginger Rogers in a such a small part.