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Marvel Movie Minute Season Five • Captain America: The First Avenger • Minute 49

CATFA 049: Bing Bang Boom! I’m Alan Menken!

Minute Forty-Nine: From Steve Not Knowing If He Can Do This to The Star-Spangled Man With a Plan

Joining us on the show today and the rest of the week, it’s Jessica Plummer, author of Sword, Stone and Table as well as the host of Flights and Tights: A Superman Movie Podcast.

In the forty-ninth minute of Joe Johnston’s 2011 film Captain America: The First Avenger

It turns out that Senator Brandt’s plan was to have Steve perform in the USO tour selling Series-E Defense Bonds. Brandt’s Aide gives Steve a bit of a pep talk – BING BANG BOOM. How does it work for us to have Steve used in this way? And how recursive is the story becoming as the character in the movie is becoming reflective not just of the character in the comic books but also of how Captain America was actually used during WWII to sell war bonds.

Once things get going, we turn to our love for Alan Menken. We celebrate him and David Zippel, his collaborator on the Star-Spangled Man song, and the work they did with this song. But what about the rhyming patterns? And the meter? There might be a few complaints to lodge for those in the know.

Regardless, it’s still a spectacular minute that celebrates musicals and the 40s USO Tours and we’re here for it.

Should Chris Evans be in a musical? Tune in!

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Film Sundries

We could do this all week.

Andy Nelson and Pete Wright pick up the Infinity Saga Phase I mantle with Captain America: The First Avenger one patriotic minute at a time.

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