Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round

Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round
Directed byBenjamin Stoloff
Written byLeon Gordon
Produced byEdward Small
CinematographyTed Tetzlaff
Edited byHanson T. Fritch
Grant Whytock
Music byAlfred Newman
Richard A. Whiting
Production
company
Reliance Pictures
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • November 2, 1934 (1934-11-02)
Running time
91 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round is a 1934 American drama film with musical and comedic elements, directed by Benjamin Stoloff.

Plot

Gangster Lee Lother (Sidney Blackmer) is shot and killed during an ocean liner cruise, and we're introduced in flashback to the interwoven stories and characters of the suspects: con-man and jewel-thief Jimmy Brett and his accomplice, a wife who bids goodbye to her husband without realizing he'll stowaway to spy on her, the star of the ship's entertainment revue and her brother with gambling debts, and the Inspector who interrupts his vacation to solve the case.

The film's many musical numbers include a Busby Berkeley-like number with chorus girls in geometric patterns filmed from overhead. A song performed by The Boswell Sisters titled "Rock and Roll", written by Richard A. Whiting and Sidney Clare, is sometimes credited as the first use of that term in a popular song,[1] although in this case the lyrics referred to the motion of the ocean.[2]

Cast

Production

London comic Sydney Howard was imported to star. The original title was London Showboat or Showboat of 1934.[4]

References

  1. ^ Young, William H.; Young, Nancy K. (2007). The Great Depression in America: A Cultural Encyclopedia, Volume 1. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. p. 506. ISBN 978-0-313-33521-1. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  2. ^ "Rock and Roll - the Boswell Sisters".
  3. ^ Schallert, Edwin (July 19, 1934). "Mitzi Green, Former Child Star, Gets First Grown-up Role in Edward Small Feature: ACTRESS SCHEDULED TO DO HER IMPERSONATIONS D. W. Griffith Signs to Direct English Pictures; Jack Oakie Stays on at Paramount". Los Angeles Times. p. 11.
  4. ^ Schallert, Edwin (May 3, 1934). "Sydney Howard, Top-Notch Comedy Star of England, Signed for Work in Hollywood: "LONDON SHOW BOAT" TO EXPLOIT STAR'S TALENT "Serenade" by Rex Beach May Be Lilian Harvey Film; Peggy Wood Leaves for East". Los Angeles Times. p. 13.