Rock Pretty Baby (1956)

A high school senior (John Saxon) yearns to be a professional musician, much to the disappointment of his father (Edward Platt). He sets out to prove he can make it in the rock 'n roll scene in Los Angeles. Directed by Richard Bartlett (JOE DAKOTA). Never one to pass up making a quick buck, Hollywood jumped on the rock 'n roll band wagon in the 1950s with movies like ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK, ROCK ROCK ROCK (with Tuesday Weld), JAMBOREE, SHAKE RATTLE AND ROCK among them. This movie is the rock 'n roll equivalent of those adolescent Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland musicals from the 1930s and 40s. Alas, the songs are lackluster and the performances insignificant. A surly John Saxon scowls like a teenage Brando while Sal Mineo tries too hard to get us to believe he's a hep cat (he was much more convincing in THE GENE KRUPA STORY). With Luana Patten, Fay Wray, Shelley Fabares, George Winslow and popular 60s poet, Rod McKuen.