A Vitaphone Varieties short. Features costumed children in a cavern-like land of make-believe where they sing and tap-dance. Marjorie Kane sings an introductory song. A very young Judy Garland, in one of her earliest surviving film appearances, performs the song "The Land of Let's Pretend" as part of the vaudeville act "The Gumm Sisters".
Acting
Seven-year-old Judy already out-singing everyone.
Production
Bizarre cave sets that haunt my dreams.
Practical Effects
Pre-digital tap dancing in a literal grotto.
Director
Roy Mack
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Judy's first on-screen performance after joining the Gumm Sisters act at age two-and-a-half. She'd be dropped from the group for being 'too talented' shortly after.
Vitaphone Varieties were Warner Bros.' attempt to kill silent films with synchronized sound shorts—this one accidentally preserved a legend before she knew she was one.
US
