… During that period Walsh directed his first musical, Going Hollywood. He was given the job by William Randolph Hearst himself, and Ms. Davies was naturally chosen as the leading lady. The film is based on a spirited script by Donald Ogden Stewart who was also an actor and a comedy writer, as well as Cukor’s (in particular) brilliant co-writer. The story is about a French schoolmarm who follows her idol of song (Bing Crosby, who was then at the beginning of his rise to success) to the film capital, and manages to make it big as an actress, but not without first ousting the singer’s prior flame (Fifi D’Orsay) from his heart. The musical aspect of the film is handled with great naturalness. Walsh films incredibly vast scenes with agility (Metro Studios were utilized). We see giant squads of dancers carrying out numbers which evolve from geometric symmetry to bizarre tastes, Busby Berkeley style (choreographers are Albertina Rasch, wife of Dimitri Tiomkin, and George Cunningham). One of the six songs in the film Temptation (five are written by Tin Pan Alley giants, Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed) becomes a hit. The entire cast had fun making Going Hollywood: it took six months to finish due to continuous interruptions from games, tricks and impromptu numbers on the set.

E. Comuzio, Raoul Walsh, Firenze, La nuova Italia, 1982