White Christmas

White Christmas (1954)

5 commented-on entries

(9 votes)

Corrected entry: When Bob and Phil sub in for the girls during their "Sisters" number at Novello's in Florida, they have only heard the song performed once and we are supposed to believe that they memorized all of the lyrics? Also, in the same scene, there is an "ooh!" after they sing the line "the same in the rain or sun." Obviously, the men are lip-syncing to a recording made by the Haynes Sisters, but the sisters' live performance did not contain the "ooh!" so how did Bob and Phil know to do this? (00:34:40)

Correction: They didn't just sing the song from memory. They found the record in the dressing room and listened to that a couple times. Remember the club owner was keeping the sheriff busy with a meal so Danny and Bing had time to hear the song a couple times and put together a quick bit of choreography.

In addition, after announcing that the guys will be performing the number he puts on our record next to the orchestra, I guess we have a record playing next to the orchestra playing? Of course, it makes no sense, but it is a movie.

Other mistake: In the Christmas party scene all the soldiers are in uniform wearing military boots. Except Bing Crosby, who is in his uniform wearing brown dress shoes, in a war zone. (00:03:00)

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Suggested correction: Crosby is wearing dress shoes because he is on stage, entertaining the troops with dancing and singing. It would be hard to do a "soft shoe" tap dance in combat boots. Danny Kaye is wearing boots, but he only does a few simpler dance steps. Crosby is the main entertainer and he would change back into his combat boots once the show was over.

raywest

Bombs dropping around them. So shiny brogues were out of the question... and you can't call what Bing does was a dance.

Question: What is the white drink the bartender makes on the train?

Answer: It looks like a frozen daiquiri, a drink made with rum, lime juice, light syrup, and ice that is mixed in a blender to make it slushy.

raywest

Answer: Orders a Malt just after Mary orders a lemonade.

Answer: Vanilla-rum malted milkshake.

Answer: Definitely not a daiquiri. This looks like a shaken drink. Blended daiquiris were not a thing in the 50s.

The frozen daiquiri was invented sometime between the late 1920s and early 1930s by a Cuban bartender in Havana, using shaved ice and an electric blender. It was a favorite of Ernest Hemingway and became popular in the United States in the 1940s and 1950s, along with other tropical cocktails. Cuba and Cuban culture were fashionable during this era, at least until the Communist takeover. To clarify: the foursome have various beverages on their table (coffee, lemonade, a malted milkshake, and two other drinks). In the foreground, the bartender is pouring the slushy white drink mixture into four cocktail glasses sitting on the bar. That is when they sing, "Snow," and is what looks like frozen daiquiris. The scene is on YouTube.

raywest

Continuity mistake: During the morning outside following the buttermilk scene in the inn where "Counting My Blessings" was sung, Bob arrives in a jeep to talk to the general. Bob shows him a hand bill for the upcoming show, which has a reddish top trim. He sits down with the hand bill on his leg in order to light a match for the general's cigarette. The hand bill falls to the ground. However, in the next shot, the hand bill is in Bob's right outside coat pocket with other papers (he may have done that after the previous shot to keep it from falling to the ground but it wasn't caught). (01:08:00)

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Suggested correction: He has multiple playbills in his hand. He takes one and puts the rest in his pocket. This doesn't seem to be a goof.

Just watched it. The playbill falls to the ground and goes out of frame, no attempt to pick it up, but later when they stand up the playbill is not on the ground where it fell. The playbills in the coat pocket are unrelated to the continuity error.

Continuity mistake: When Wallace and Davis are on the train heading for the club car, they bump the door to the stateroom where the Haynes' sisters are. In the morning when they are getting ready to disembark, the sisters are in sleeping berths, not the stateroom.

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Suggested correction: They all change to berths because they have to split the cost of a room for two to sleeping for 4. Intentional not an error.

Not possible since the conductor said to Wallace and Davis there was no room on the train. He said if they buy tickets, they can sit up in the Club Car all night.

Possibly a change of trains in D, C, OR MY.

Yes. They HAD to change trains. No direct service from Florida to Vermont back then. Or today either, matter of fact.

It takes more than one night to get to Vermont. The train would stop in New York before Vermont so there would conceivably be more room when people left the train.

I don' think so. Because when the guys get on the train and don't have the ticket's the conductor tells them all that the train is full and all that is left is the club car. There must be a cut scene or something because this one sticks out like a sore thumb.

Wrong! It takes TWO trains to get from Florida to NY. Still does even today on Amtrak.

Tickets were to New York, not Vermont. Obviously new accommodations.

The conductor said there was no space available. The train was all booked up so there were no berths available even if they wanted to that. It's just another continuity error, period.

They changed trains in New York. Other commenters have clarified this already.

Continuity mistake: When they are at the table in the train's dining car, there is a large menu against the window. The menu is horizontal. When they start singing, the menu is suddenly vertical.

More mistakes in White Christmas

Danny Kaye: My friend, when what's left of you gets around to what's left to be gotten, what's left to be gotten won't be worth getting whatever it is you've got left.

More quotes from White Christmas

Trivia: Vera-Ellen was a great dancer and decent actress. She couldn't sing well enough for the movie, though. All of her singing parts are dubbed. Her part in the Sisters song was actually Rosemary Clooney who sang both parts. For all the other songs it was Trudy Stevens. The only time Vera Ellen's voice is heard is when they got off the train, they all sing the first verse from the song Snow.

Zwn Annwn

More trivia for White Christmas

Question: At the Vermont lodge Judy is dancing with the same male dancer that Betty dances with at the same time in New York City at a nightclub. How can that happen?

Answer: The actors appear similar but they are different people. John Brascia danced with Vera Ellen in Vermont. George Chakiris danced with Rosemary Clooney in New York.

Answer: George Chakiris is in the background as a dancer in Vermont, but then mysteriously shows up in New York.

More questions & answers from White Christmas

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