Paul and Corey Cross the Streams is a bi-monthly podcast in which hosts Paul Pakler and Corey Pepper watch and review streaming content. It’s the Great American Podcast where two friends learn about life as they float down the river of streaming services.

Let’s put on a show! It’s season 8 for Paul and Corey Cross the Streams, and this season we’re watching musicals. It’s a singular art form with a dynamic history, and we get to listen to a lot of cast recordings…

It may be the Great Depression, but Paul and Corey are in the money! Yes, this week’s episode is Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933). Directed by Mervyn Leroy, music & lyrics by Harry Warren and Al Dubin, choreography by Busby Berkeley, and starring Joan Blondell, Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, Ginger Rogers, and Aline MacMahon (and more), Gold Diggers of 1933 was and is a classic of Hollywood musicals.

However, Corey really didn’t like it.

The boys discuss sexism and the Male Gaze, the Hayes Code, spectacle and Busby Berkeley’s impact on filmmaking, the reappraisal of musicals of the ’20s and ’30s that happened in the ’70s, and even the Bonus Army.

This Episode’s Focus: Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
Host’s Choice: Paul Pakler
Stream on: Currently streaming on The Criterion Channel. Rent on all the usual suspects
Corey’s Recipe Recommendations for This Episode: Depression-Era Bread and Depression-Era Recipes

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Special thanks to Tobin for our incredible theme song and Dave Droxler for our podcast’s logo and artwork.