I had forgotten what a completely enjoyable movie “The Five Pennies” can be, until I rediscovered it a few nights ago. It’s a semi-biographical 1959 musical, starring Danny Kay as jazz cornet player/bandleader Loring “Red” Nichols. “Red” is a determined musician who leaves his small town home in Ogden, Utah and moves to the big city, seeking fame and fortune. The story is funny, yet poignant, and supremely entertaining … with a soundtrack that will knock your musical socks off! The cast is topped off with icons like Louis Armstrong, Shelly Manne, Bob Crosby, Ray Anthony, and Johnnie Ray. While Danny Kaye practiced for months to accurately simulate playing the cornet, it was the real “Red” Nichols who provided all the cornet playing in the movie.

Below are a pair of musical scenes from “The Five Pennies.” Top most is a spirited interplay with Satchmo Armstrong on When The Saints Go Marching In (aka Battle Hymn of the Republic). Beneath that, Glory, Glory Hallelujah is a trumpet/cornet duet between Kaye and Armstrong. Finally, at the bottom is a performance of Maple Leaf Rag by the real “Red” Nichols.