{ "id": "epapxqem47", "slug": "girl-crazy-1943-film", "title": "Girl Crazy (1943 film)", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music", "label": "Musical and music films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music.musical-films-of-the-1930s-to-1960s", "label": "Musical films of the 1930s to 1960s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music.musical-films-of-the-1930s-to-1960s" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music", "label": "United States · 1800 to 1945: Musical and music films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800", "label": "United States · 1800 to 1945", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music", "label": "Musical and music films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t1800.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Girl Crazy (1943) is an MGM musical comedy, the last co-starring film of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, adapted from the 1930 Gershwin Broadway hit, directed by Norman Taurog with Busby Berkeley's \"I Got Rhythm\" finale, released November 26, 1943.", "snippet": "Girl Crazy (1943) is an MGM musical comedy, the last co-starring film of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, adapted from the 1930 Gershwin Broadway hit, directed by Norman Taurog with Busby Berkeley's \"I Got Rhythm\" finale, released November 26, 1943.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.musical-music.musical-films-of-the-1930s-to-1960s", "markdown": "# Girl Crazy (1943 film)\n\n**Girl Crazy** (1943) is an American black-and-white musical comedy from [Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer](https://www.edgepedia.org/metro-goldwyn-mayer), directed by Norman Taurog and starring [Mickey Rooney](https://www.edgepedia.org/mickey-rooney) as playboy Danny Churchill Jr. and [Judy Garland](https://www.edgepedia.org/judy-garland) as Ginger Gray, in the last film in which the two were co-starred.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) It is the second screen adaptation of the Gershwins' 1930 Broadway hit *Girl Crazy*, after an RKO version in 1932.[2](https://player.bfi.org.uk/rentals/film/watch-girl-crazy-1943-online)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Release | November 26, 1943 (MGM); 99 minutes, black and white[3](https://www.thejudyroom.com/filmography/girlcrazy/) |\n| Source | 1930 Broadway musical with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin, book by Guy Bolton and Jack McGowan[4](https://gershwin.com/publications/girl-crazy-1943/) |\n| Directors | Norman Taurog; Busby Berkeley staged the \"I Got Rhythm\" finale and received an onscreen credit for it[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY) |\n| Producer | Arthur Freed (MGM Freed Unit)[4](https://gershwin.com/publications/girl-crazy-1943/) |\n| Leads | Mickey Rooney (Danny Churchill Jr.), Judy Garland (Ginger Gray)[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) |\n| Box office | Initial gross of $3,771,000 against a production cost of $1,410,850.85[3](https://www.thejudyroom.com/filmography/girlcrazy/) |\n| Reception | 100% Tomatometer from 6 critics on Rotten Tomatoes; 74% audience score[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/girl_crazy) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nDanny Churchill Jr., the playboy son of a New York publisher, is sent by his father to Cody, an all-male mining college in the West, on the understanding that no women will be around.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY) Before he reaches campus he meets Ginger Gray, the local postmistress and granddaughter of the dean, whose car has broken down.[7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/girl-crazy) When Ginger explains that the financially strapped college faces closure, Danny organizes a fundraiser, a rodeo and beauty-pageant extravaganza, that showcases the pair's song-and-dance skills and cements their bond.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/girl_crazy)\n\n## Production\n\nMGM bought the property in 1939 and first considered it as a follow-up vehicle for [Fred Astaire](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-astaire) and [Eleanor Powell](https://www.edgepedia.org/eleanor-powell) after *Broadway Melody of 1940*; music supervisor Roger Edens later persuaded a reluctant Garland, who wanted adult roles, to take on one more re-teaming with Rooney as rambunctious teens.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) Production ran from November 30, 1942 to June 9, 1943, with soundtrack recording sessions by [Tommy Dorsey](https://www.edgepedia.org/tommy-dorsey) and his band beginning in December 1942.[3](https://www.thejudyroom.com/filmography/girlcrazy/)\n\n**Berkeley's dismissal.** [Busby Berkeley](https://www.edgepedia.org/busby-berkeley), who had directed the previous Rooney-Garland musicals *[Babes in Arms](https://www.edgepedia.org/babes-in-arms)*, *Strike Up the Band*, and *[Babes on Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/babes-on-broadway)*, began as the film's director but was replaced by Norman Taurog in early February 1943 after staging only the \"I Got Rhythm\" number.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) A contemporary Hollywood Reporter item attributed his departure to illness, but modern sources contend that producer Arthur Freed fired him over excessive spending on the \"I Got Rhythm\" number; Freed later claimed the dismissal followed a personality clash with Garland.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY) Berkeley clashed with Edens over staging, and Garland later described his demanding manner harshly.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) His elaborate finale remained in the film, and he received onscreen credit for it.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY)\n\n## Songs\n\nThe film restores the show's Gershwin score and adds \"Fascinatin' Rhythm\" from *Lady Be Good*.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) Rooney and Garland perform \"Could You Use Me?\" and \"I Got Rhythm\"; Garland solos on \"Bidin' My Time,\" \"Embraceable You,\" and \"But Not For Me\"; [June Allyson](https://www.edgepedia.org/june-allyson) partners Rooney on \"Treat Me Rough\"; and Rooney plays piano with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra during \"Fascinatin' Rhythm.\"[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) Garland had already made a best-selling recording of \"Embraceable You\" before the film was cast.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY)\n\n## Cast\n\nAlongside Rooney and Garland, the cast included Gil Stratton (Bud Livermore), Robert E. Strickland (Henry Lathrop), Rags Ragland, June Allyson, Nancy Walker, Guy Kibbee, Frances Rafferty, and Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra.[8](https://www.netflix.com/title/70075670) The film marked the screen debut of showgirl Kathleen \"Kay\" Williams, who some years later married [Clark Gable](https://www.edgepedia.org/clark-gable), and of Gil Stratton, a former Broadway musical player who later became a Los Angeles television sports announcer.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY)\n\n## Rooney and Garland's last co-starring film\n\n*Girl Crazy* is the ninth of ten movies in which Rooney and Garland appear together and the last in which they were co-starred; their final joint appearance was as guest stars in 1948's *Words and Music*.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) The film finished production in the spring of 1943 and made $3.7 million.[9](https://www.highdefwatch.com/post/rooney-garland-still-have-it-strike-up-the-band-girl-crazy) According to modern sources, it was one of the top box office films of 1943.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY)\n\n## Reception and assessment\n\nThe New York Times critic Theodore Strauss wrote that \"the immortal Mickey... is an entertainer to his fingertips. And with Judy, who sings and acts like an earthbound angel, to temper his brashness, well, they can do almost anything they wish, and we'll like it even in spite of ourselves.\"[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) Film historian Frank N. Magill wrote that Taurog's direction and staging of the musical numbers reflected the beginnings of a new, \"integrated\" style in film musicals, in which songs and dances express character development.[1](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943) On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a 100% Tomatometer from six critics and a 74% audience score from more than 500 ratings.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/girl_crazy)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Girl Crazy (1943), Turner Classic Movies article by Roger Fristoe](https://www.tcm.com/articles/25891/girl-crazy-1943)\n2. [Watch Girl Crazy online, BFI Player](https://player.bfi.org.uk/rentals/film/watch-girl-crazy-1943-online)\n3. [Girl Crazy, The Judy Room filmography](https://www.thejudyroom.com/filmography/girlcrazy/)\n4. [Girl Crazy [F, 1943], Gershwin.com](https://gershwin.com/publications/girl-crazy-1943/)\n5. [Girl Crazy (1943), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/454-GIRL-CRAZY)\n6. [Girl Crazy, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/girl_crazy)\n7. [Girl Crazy streaming: where to watch online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/girl-crazy)\n8. [Girl Crazy, Netflix](https://www.netflix.com/title/70075670)\n9. [Rooney & Garland still have it: \"Strike Up the Band\" & \"Girl Crazy\", HighDefWatch](https://www.highdefwatch.com/post/rooney-garland-still-have-it-strike-up-the-band-girl-crazy)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Musical and music films (individual works) › Musical films of the 1930s to 1960s*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Girl Crazy (1943 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Girl Crazy (1943 film)](https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film](https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Girl Crazy (1943 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/girl-crazy-1943-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Girl Crazy is an MGM musical comedy, the last co-starring film of Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland, adapted from the 1930 Gershwin Broadway hit, directed by Norman Taurog with Busby Berkeley's \"I Got Rhythm\" finale, released November 26, 1943." }