IMDb RATING
6.8/10
3.9K
YOUR RATING
A gangster hires a down-and-out press agent to make his airheaded girlfriend a singing star.A gangster hires a down-and-out press agent to make his airheaded girlfriend a singing star.A gangster hires a down-and-out press agent to make his airheaded girlfriend a singing star.
- Awards
- 1 win & 1 nomination
Little Richard and His Band
- Themselves
- (as Little Richard and his Band)
Gene Vincent and His Blue Caps
- Themselves
- (as Gene Vincent and his Blue Caps)
- Director
- Writers
- Frank Tashlin
- Herbert Baker
- Garson Kanin(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to Paul McCartney, he and John Lennon were underage when the film was released, and sneaked into the theater by wearing fake mustaches to make themselves look older. The movie is one of their earlier musical influences.
- GoofsIn Toby Miller's commentary in the 2006 DVD release of "The Girl Can't Help It", he erroneously says that Little Richard is singing "The Girl Can't Help It" in his appearance with his band in the nightclub scene. Little Richard is in fact singing his hit titled "Ready Teddy" in that scene.
...and follows it up with a shortened version of the title track.
- Quotes
Tom Miller: You don't want a career?
Jerri Jordan: I just want to be a wife. Have kids. But everyone figures me for a sexpot! No one thinks I'm equipped for motherhood!
- Alternate versionsA black and white print of the film has also been shown on television.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The South Bank Show: Little Richard (1985)
Featured review
More Socially Advanced than Radio of the Time
Nobody is going to award this screenplay awards for being anything more than a satire of the music industry, with scenery chewing main characters playing it big and obvious...no subtlety here, Jayne Mansfield, a stunning beauty, has the most restrained performance of all of the main characters. The '50s broad stroke comedy hasn't aged as well as other films, but, that is to be expected as the beloved popular music of the generation that produced this film gave way to the genre that was actually being satirized, Rock and Roll.
That being said, the film was AHEAD of it's time in showing artists doing their originals for a mass appeal production. AT THE TIME, segregation existed in both CONCERTS and RADIO. Some radio stations would only play Pennimen (Little Richard), Domino and other black artist's songs that white artists had covered...The inclusion of the the original artists was a bold and interesting move, as, even in film history, there had been films targeted for audiences by race in much the same way as was the radio practice of the time.
The influence of those assembled artists, even the ones that the dialog was mocking, for instance, Eddie Cochran, can still be heard over 40 years after his untimely death...Summertime Blues is STILL a rock standard, and classic rock stations still play Little Richard, Fats Domino, and the Platters...Even the faded ghost of the music that was passing (literally and figuratively in the movie), Julie London, has gotten re-issues of re-mastered material on CD recently.
An entertainment on many levels, this film still exudes an exuberance, and quite unintentionally, preserves a visual record of the musical legacy of artists from Jazz to Rockibilly to R&B to Early Rock...and the joy of those performances is still infectious in the 21st century.
That being said, the film was AHEAD of it's time in showing artists doing their originals for a mass appeal production. AT THE TIME, segregation existed in both CONCERTS and RADIO. Some radio stations would only play Pennimen (Little Richard), Domino and other black artist's songs that white artists had covered...The inclusion of the the original artists was a bold and interesting move, as, even in film history, there had been films targeted for audiences by race in much the same way as was the radio practice of the time.
The influence of those assembled artists, even the ones that the dialog was mocking, for instance, Eddie Cochran, can still be heard over 40 years after his untimely death...Summertime Blues is STILL a rock standard, and classic rock stations still play Little Richard, Fats Domino, and the Platters...Even the faded ghost of the music that was passing (literally and figuratively in the movie), Julie London, has gotten re-issues of re-mastered material on CD recently.
An entertainment on many levels, this film still exudes an exuberance, and quite unintentionally, preserves a visual record of the musical legacy of artists from Jazz to Rockibilly to R&B to Early Rock...and the joy of those performances is still infectious in the 21st century.
helpful•60
- theFoss
- Sep 25, 2010
- How long is The Girl Can't Help It?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Do Re Mi
- Filming locations
- Westward Beach - Westward Beach Road, Malibu, California, USA(Jerri and Tom picnic on the beach)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 38 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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Top Gap
By what name was The Girl Can't Help It (1956) officially released in Canada in English?
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