Kitty from Kansas City

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"Kitty from Kansas City" is a "comedy fox trot song" with lyrics by Harry Rose and music by Jesse Greer,[1] popularized in 1930 by the singer, Rudy Vallée.

(Photos of sheet music, apparently from 1921, provide the names of Rose and Greer,[1] as does a listing for Milt Coleman's 1930 recording.[2] "New Arrangement" by Vallée and Geroge Bronson appears just below the names of Rose and Greer on the 1931 sheet music.[1][3] However, photos of the phonograph record, Victor 22419-A list "Rose-Branson-Vallée" as the authors.[4]

The song is about a Midwestern girl called Kitty. Verses repeat the phrases, "She wasn't pretty," "She's so dumb," and "She wasn't hard to see; she weighed 243" as setups for punned gag lines. For example, "She's so dumb, her brain is in a whirl/Why, she thinks that Babe Ruth is a chorus girl!"

Yet, the singer professes, he loves Kitty nonetheless.

The song was recorded by Vallée, the , , and Milt Coleman.

In the animated short film, "Kitty from Kansas City" (1931), the cartoon character, Betty Boop, travels by train to Rudy Valley, where, in a live-action sequence, Rudy Vallée sings the song while a bouncing ball follows the lyrics on screen.[5][6][7]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c "Kitty From Kansas City". Halcyon Days Music: Kitty From Kansas City. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  2. ^ "78 Discography.com: HARMONY 1000 - end (Harmony records)". 78discography.com. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  3. ^ "eBay: Listing for "Kitty from Kansas City" sheet music". Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  4. ^ "1930 HITS ARCHIVE: Kitty From Kansas City - Rudy Vallee (his original version)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  5. ^ "http://www.cinemacats.com/?p=5871". Cinema Cats. Retrieved 2019-06-05. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  6. ^ "Fleischer AllStars: Kitty From Kansas City". Fleischer AllStars: Kitty From Kansas City. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
  7. ^ "IMDB: Kitty From Kansas City". Retrieved 2019-06-05.
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