Slave Girl is a 1947 American Technicolor adventure comedy film directed by Charles Lamont and starring Yvonne De Carlo and George Brent.
| Slave Girl | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Charles Lamont |
| Written by | Michael Fessier Ernest Pagano |
| Produced by | Michael Fessier Ernest Pagano |
| Starring | Yvonne De Carlo George Brent |
| Cinematography | W. Howard Greene George Robinson |
| Edited by | Frank Gross |
| Music by | Milton Rosen |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | >$1.6 million[1] |
| Box office | $2 million (US rentals)[2] |
Plot
editWhen American playboy Matt Claiborne (George Brent) embarks on a mission to Tripoli, he finds forbidden love and political intrigue when he falls for a dancing girl involved with rival lords. Matt is supposed to trade gold with the Pasha for American sailors being held hostage. However, the Pasha's fiancée, Francesca (Yvonne De Carlo), steals it, hoping to finance her lover El Hamid's (Carl Esmond) revolution. But when El Hamid betrays Francesca, she and Matt join forces and find true love.
Cast
edit- Yvonne De Carlo as Francesca
- George Brent as Matt Claibourne aka Pierre
- Broderick Crawford as Chips Jackson
- Albert Dekker as Pasha
- Lois Collier as Aleta
- Andy Devine as Ben the Fat Sailor
- Arthur Treacher as Thomas 'Liverpool' Griswold
- Carl Esmond as El Hamid
- Dan Seymour as Telek the Tuareg Chieftain
- Philip Van Zandt as Yusef
- Trevor Bardette as Hadji the Cafe Proprietor
Production
editThe film was originally called The Flame of Tripoli. It was announced in April 1946 with Yvonne De Carlo and George Brent attached, and was written and produced by the team of Michael Fessiner and Ernest Pagano, who had made Frontier Gal with De Carlo.[3] The budget was $1.6 million.[1]
Filming started on 18 July 1946. Dona Drake was to appear in the film but fell ill and was replaced by Lois Collier.[4] Parts of the film were shot in Paria Canyon and the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in Utah.[5]: 288
The movie was envisioned as a melodrama but during the shoot the writer-producers decided to add more comedy to liven up the film. Previews were not encouraging. By this stage Universal had merged with International and the film came under the supervision of William Dozier. He added a card with a title card involving a camel that indicated the film was to be a comedy. This was previewed to good response, so Dozier arranged for additional scenes involving the camel commenting on the action to be added .[1]
De Carlo was unhappy because several of her dances were removed. She also felt George Brent was too old for his part.[6]
Reception
editThe film was a hit at the box office, earning over $2 million in the US.[2]
"The film offers laughs" said the Los Angeles Times.[7]
See also
edit- Barbary Pirate (1949)
- Tripoli (1950)
References
edit- ^ a b c CONTRACT TIME IN HOLLYWOOD: Actors Guild Presents Demands -- Soviet Spy Film -- Other Items By THOMAS F. BEADY. New York Times 13 Apr 1947: 69.
- ^ a b "Top Grossers of 1947". Variety. 7 January 1948. p. 63.
- ^ MEREDITH TO PLAY PRESIDENT MADISON: Signed by Skirball-Manning for 'The Magnificent Doll,' With Ginger Rogers and Niven Of Local Origin Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES. 26 Apr 1946: 29.
- ^ Film Junkets Planned to Ireland and Italy Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 7 Aug 1946: A2.
- ^ D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: A history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.
- ^ De Carlo, Yvonne; Warren, Doug (1987). Yvonne : an autobiography. St Martins Press. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-312-00217-6.
- ^ Hookah Melodramas Kidded at Last Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 1 Aug 1947: 6.
External links
edit- Slave Girl at TCMDB
- Slave Girl at IMDb