Jack Kelly, that Banner-Carrying King of New York

What’s not to love about Christian Bale singing and dancing, being all tough but showing an emotional side, becoming a fearless leader, fighting for his friends, and eventually leading them to victory? Jack Kelly, aka young Christian Bale with the most perfect hair, was my first celebrity crush– or maybe I should say “character crush” as I was enamored by the onscreen Newsy than the man who, unbeknownst to me at the time, also played Batman. Newsies became a favorite movie of mine just a few frames in. There’s a magic about it that any other Newsies fan can vouch for, I’m sure! I remember being completely pulled into the 1899 New York City setting when I heard a little ragtime piano riff in the background of the opening scene. After the big opening number, Carrying the Banner, I was all in, ready to side with these boys in whatever they took on. Jack Kelly was an intriguing character, confident, if a little bit arrogant, with a particular kind of intelligence, and of course, charming as they come. He had the New York accent and the hair that fell perfectly in front of his face. But I really fell in love when he began to sing, “Santa Fe.” Here are some of the reasons I fell head over heels for this banner-carrying, day-seizing king of New York.

The looks

To start with the basics, he’s easy on the eyes. There’s something about the way his hair is always a bit disheveled, and falls just slightly onto his face. He also likes to sport a vest, a red ascot, and a flat cap, and young me was really into that look (as I still am)/

His emotional side

He began with the heartbreaking opening lines of, “so that’s what they call a family, mother daughter, father, son. Guess that everything you heard about is true.” That was enough to make young me shed a tear for Jack Kelly, who, I now understood, puts on a brave face everyday, pretends to be the guy who has everything figured out, when deep down, he isn’t that guy at all. He had a deep longing in his heart, a longing that he thought would be fulfilled by Santa Fe, where, “dreams come true, yeah they do.” But I could see that what he was really longing for was friendship, love, and family.

His commitment to justice

The movie went on, and I saw more and more how Jack was really a caring, loving human being, despite his tough guy facade. It takes a real man to organize a strike against the powerful Mr. Pulitzer. But he did it because he recognized that he and his friends weren’t being treated fairly. He understood that many of his friends, like Crutchie, needed fair pay even more than he did. He took a stand, and got all of the Newsies from across New York to get behind him. Young me was so impressed by Jack’s moral courage.

The simple fact that he was singing and dancing

I’m a huge musical theatre girl, so any guy who can sing or dance, or even is willing to try gets extra points in my book. Although Christian Bale isn’t known as a musical actor, I consider Newsies to be one of his finest performances and I think he really rocks the musical numbers!

This childhood crush has continued into adulthood, I might add. I have now seen the stage production of Newsies twice and regularly listen to the cast album on Spotify. I have a Newsies tote bag and a “King of New York” t-shirt that I wear on a regular basis. I have come to terms with the fact that Jack Kelly is only a fictional character, so if you happen to know any real-life Newsies, send ‘em my way!