The Cool Ones

The Cool Ones
The Cool Ones
Directed by	Gene Nelson
Written by	Joyce Geller; Gene Nelson (adaptation); Robert Kaufman (adaptation)
Produced by	William Conrad (executive producer); Jimmy Lydon (uncredited)
Starring	Roddy McDowall; Debbie Watson; Gil Peterson; Phil Harris; Robert Coote; Nita Talbot; George Furth
Cinematography	Floyd Crosby
Edited by	James T. Heckert
Music by	Ernie Freeman
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	April 12, 1967;
Running time	95 minutes
Country	United States

The Cool Ones (aka Cool, Baby Cool) is a 1967 film starring Roddy McDowall and directed by Gene Nelson.^[1]^[2]^[3] The 1960s novelty singer known as Mrs. Miller performs in a cameo role, and the film features performances by the bands the Leaves and the Bantams as well as a brief appearance by Glen Campbell, playing a fictional singer.

Plot

Hallie Rodgers is a backup singer on the TV show Whizbang. One evening, she boldly steps out of the chorus and begins singing “Just One of Those Things.” The young people in the audience love her singing, but the producer Fred MacElewine fires her.

A little later she goes into a bar, and Cliff Donner, a former singing star, tells Hallie he saw her on television and liked her singing. Tony Krum, a music promoter, suggests Hallie and Cliff sing together, and the duo become popular recording artists. They also fall in love.^[4]

Cast

Roddy McDowall as Tony Krum
Debbie Watson as Hallie Rodgers
Gil Peterson as Cliff Donner
Phil Harris as Fred MacElewine
Robert Coote as Herbert Krum
Nita Talbot as Deedee Howitzer
George Furth as Howie
Glen Campbell as Patrick
James Millhollin as Manager
Ilona Massey as Toni Karpathy (uncredited)

In an uncredited appearance: one of the dancers is Teri Garr, specifically as one of the Whiz-Bam girls.^[5]

Reception

The film received mostly negative reviews, and it now is viewed as something of a 1960s cult musical. From the blog Comet Over Hollywood:

The Cool Ones has earned a place on my list of the worst movies that I have ever seen. But then at the same time, it's so bad you can't look away and have to watch the whole movie.^[6]

And from the New York Times:

The Cool Ones [is] a rock 'n' roll comedy, so-called, about a pop singer (Debbie Watson) who is on the rise and a big-name crooner (Gil Peterson) who is on the skids. Roddy McDowall is their manager who engineers them into a publicity romance which has—shall we say?—repercussions. I venture to guess this will disgust even the kids.^[2]