Yankee Doodle Dandy

(Leo McCarey, US 1945, 126 min., 35mm)

Always at the Dryden. A biographical musical with a towering performance at its center, Yankee Doodle Dandy stars James Cagney as George M. Cohan, “The Man Who Owned Broadway.” George is born into a showbiz family, and he and his little sister join the act as soon as they can dance and sing, forming “The Four Cohans.” The family is successful and invited to star in “Peck’s Bad Boy,” and George excels in the lead part. The attention soon gets the best of George, and the family is blackballed due to his behavior, leading him to struggle and truly appreciate his rise to the top.

Note start time.