Year of Ann Dvorak: Day 297

I was thrilled to have recently acquired these three photos from the abandoned MGM feature The March of Time, made when Ann Dvorak was still a chorus girl at the studio. The film was supposed to have been the most grandiose of the early 1930s musical revues as is evident in the above image showing the 80 foot high set for the “Lock Step” number featuring the Dodge Sisters and a bevy of dancing jail birds. By the time the film was nearing its 1930 release date, these types of musicals had aggressively fallen out of fashion with audiences so MGM thought it best to scrap The March of Time. They would end up recycling some of the musical numbers in later films.

These are the first three images from The March of Time be added to my collection. The photo directly above came up on eBay around nine years ago and I stopped bidding when it got up to $45. To get it for $10 earlier this month was thrilling indeed! I always assumed Ann would be among the girls in the Native American inspired costumes, and I was bitterly disappointed when I initially did not see her among the group.  Then I was able to breathe a sigh of relief when I spotted her in the bottom left side sporting her teen-aged grin.

The third photo is another spectacular behind the scenes shot of the “Father Time” number on the stairs.

Unfortunately, the two girls costumed like Ann are out of focus, but I think it’s possible the one on the right with her head turned could be our gal (yes, I realize this is hard to make out).

Back to the “Lock Step” photo at the top of the post. I am not 100% certain, but the jail bird on the far left second floor looks more like Ann-D than any of the others.

For a more in-depth look at The March of Time including some clips, check out this fantastic post over at All Talking! All Singing! All Dancing!