Unusually elaborate for a PRC film, Minstrel Man is a lively musical drama built around the talents of veteran vaudevillian Benny Fields. The star is cast as Dixie Boy Johnson, who rises from the ranks of minstrel shows to become a top Broadway attraction. On the opening night of his greatest stage triumph, Dixie Boy's wife dies in childbirth. Profoundly shaken, he walks out of the show, leaving the baby to be raised by his showbiz pals Mae and Lasses White (Gladys George, Roscoe Karns). The kid grows up to be an attractive young woman named Caroline (Judy Clark), who follows in her dad's footsteps by billing herself as-that's right-Dixie Girl Johnson. This leads to a tearful reunion between Caroline and the father she'd long assumed to be dead. If Minstrel Man seems at times to be a dress rehearsal for Columbia's The Jolson Story (1946), it shouldn't surprising: the PRC film was directed by Joseph H. Lewis, who went on to helm Jolson Story's musical highlights.
Credits
Minstrel Man Cast
| Name |
Character |
|
Jerome Cowan
He was 46, 74 years old when he died
|
as Bill Evans |
|
Gladys George
She was 39, 50 years old when she died
|
as Mae White |
|
Alan Dinehart
He was 54, 54 years old when he died
|
as Lew Dunn |
|
Molly Lamont
She was 33, 91 years old when she died
|
as Caroline Johnson |
|
John Raitt
He was 26, 88 years old when he died
|
as Singer |
|
Judy Clark
She was 4, now 75 years old
|
as Caroline Jr.-16 years old |
|
Roscoe Karns
He was 52, 78 years old when he died
|
as Lasses White |
Minstrel Man Crew
