It didn’t take long for RKO Pictures, a California movie studio, to notice Johnny’s many abilities, and make him an offer to move out to Hollywood, thinking he could be a “triple threat” in the pictures: songwriting, singing and acting. But Johnny was still under contract to Mr. Whiteman, so the studio had to be willing to pay Mr. Whiteman to use Johnny’s services. The two parties settled on $500 a week! That was the same amount the studio was going to pay Johnny, so essentially they were paying $1000 a week to use Johnny’s talents as a songwriter, singer and actor.

Johnny jumped at the chance; he’d left Savannah to make it big as an actor in New York and after so many years someone finally wanted everything he had to offer. He was excited, but humble, as he knew he would be in a whole new environment working with people that didn’t know what a talented and hard worker he was, so he was essentially starting over – although with a generous salary.

“Unlike ‘show biz kids’ like Mickey Rooney and Mel Torme, I didn’t really have the background to stand in the company of the illustrious musicians and composers I was lucky enough to collaborate with,” Johnny said. But he was confident in his abilities, and musical movies were making a comeback. Technology had advanced so actors and singers could move around the set while talking and singing, instead of standing in one place to ensure their voices recorded evenly.

After arriving in Hollywood, Johnny was surprised to discover he was working mostly on “B” movies, low-budget pictures theatres had to play before they could play the big budget “A” movies. He acted in two B-movies, but it was clear his acting skills didn’t even compare to his songwriting or singing, and despite the studio’s initial enthusiasm for Johnny, RKO did not renew his contract.

Johnny and Ginger decided to make a trip to Savannah, and not too long after Johnny was offered a job to write lyrics for a revue in England. Even more exciting, he’d be able to write on a cruise across the Atlantic; this was before air travel was widely popular. This sounded like a good opportunity, but once Johnny and Ginger were in England he soon found out there wasn’t enough money for his salary. He had no prospects for future career plans, and it seemed like his career in Hollywood might be over.

Vocabulary

Comeback - a return to a former position or condition, a recovery

Contract - a binding agreement between two or more persons or parties

Pictures – a slang term for movies

Salary – regular payment for services

Studio – a company that produces motion pictures, movies

Teaching Tips

Find an inflation calculator online and find out how much money $500 and $1000 translates into 2009 dollars. Discuss with students how much money this is compared to the medium annual salary in your region.

Have students research cruise ships and lines from the early 20th century, such as the Queen Mary and the Titanic. They can create a chart showing the different levels of service available to passengers, such as those in first class or steerage, write an essay about the conditions on the ship, and how long it might take for it to travel across the ocean.

Sources

Philip Furia, Skylark: The Life and Times of Johnny Mercer (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2003).75, 78, 80, 89, 93