The second film featuring Bill Haley and the Comets, DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK, features a lot of great music from Haley's Comets, Little Richard, and the Treniers, and this is probably the biggest dramatic role that Alan Freed had in any of his 1950's rock and roll epics, a role that he handles quite well. Bill Haley also seems more relaxed here in his dialogue scenes than he was in ROCK AROUND THE CLOCk, although Bill and band are really not the stars of the film. The character of Arnie Haines, played by Alan Dale, is the protagonist of the film, and Haines' story is the one told here. Dale sings three songs--a ballad that could have come from the big band era, a Johnnie Ray-style emotion-filled number, and a semi rock and roll number in the Bobby Darin vein. Dale is a fine actor and he has the dramatic ability and charisma to carry a film on his own. I was unfamiliar with him and wondered why he got the role in the film, since he was not playing himself. It seems Mr. Dale made his mark as a singer late in the big band era, and had his own television show in 1948. He had a number of hit records in the late 40s and early 50s produced by Bob Thiele (later of Flying Dutchman records fame, for those of us under 50). He was evidently a very talented man, as well as a courageous (standing up to the mob) and intelligent (published author) one. However, he is really not a rock and roll performer. If you can get past that, the rest of the movie is a lot of fun, the performances are exciting, and the show even gives away some of the phony tricks and staged events of the music promotion world. Haley never starred in a third film (although he and the band were in others, both here and abroad), and despite a half dozen hot songs in this one, he and band are basically guest stars in their own film. Little Richard does two of his best-known numbers in classic style (playing the piano while standing with his back to it, playing the piano while one leg is over the top of the piano, etc.), and the Treniers do two numbers that give some hint about why they were so legendary for their live act (although I'm sure this is a VERY watered down version of what they did live). I like Dave Appell's music, in the Philadelphia jive-rock style, but the number he does here is not that impressive. Overall, this is a nice window into 1950's rock and roll and a good opportunity to see some of the best artists of the period performing (or should I say miming). Worth finding for the 50's fan.