Pirate Party on Catalina Isle

Enchanting short from producer Louis Lewyn, who specialised in star-packed revues such as this one, Star Night at the Cocoanut Grove, Starlit Days at the Lido, all shot in ravishing 3-strip Technicolor in the mid-30s. Here we catch glimpses of Cary Grant, Randolph Scott, Errol Flynn, etc, supposedly enjoying the pirate revue outside the St Catherine Hotal on Descanso Beach, Avalon. (I'm sure they were there but revealingly we never see the stars in the same frame as the acts and it's a safe bet that the revue was filmed separately and the star shots blended seamlessly in). It doesn't matter a jot though, it's all hugely enjoyable, with Chester Morris hamming it up as the Pirate Captain, abetted by his motley crew of Leon Errol, Sid Silvers and others whom you feel you should recognize but don't quite.

Nice to see Lee Tracy pop up briefly. This was two years after the notorious incident on the Mexican shoot of Viva Villa which saw him fired from MGM by an incandescent LB Mayer and quickly smuggled back to the US. (Let's just say it involved a hotel balcony, a passing Mexican military parade below, and a jaybird-naked and drunken Lee Tracy answering the urgent call of Nature. Please don't rain on my parade indeed! To sum up, a glimpse of Paradise, Hollywood-style. I give it a resounding 10!

Just imagine you're sitting in a movie theater in 1935 waiting for the feature to come on and suddenly this thing explodes on the screen in Full Color oh my gosh what a mindblower! Yes there were two strip technical color films but they are simply awful to look at muddy dull fake the worst. Yes the whole thing is kind of dopey with all these people dancing and singing with the big band playing, and cameos of famous stars just hanging around and smiling to the camera. I wonder if they got paid anything to do this? Maybe a trip to Catalina Island in the summer with food drinking music was enough. This is spectacular look how it survives now! Sort of like the first time I saw Star Wars in 1977 in Dolby surround that was something.

If anyone is still seeing this, do you know if it was Mr. Rogers who also sang the Avalon song at the movies beginning title? Am thinking it must have been, the singer pronounced every word so clearly and had such a pleasant voice. I think this Mr. Rogers must have been a wonderful person, and so talented! Not only was he so lively and cheerful, but he played all those musical instruments! I read also that he was an flying instructor during the war. Really multi talented! Am sorry failed to write him a letter before he died to tell him how much he is admired in this house.

We have the Pirates Party on one of those disks that look like a 45rmp record. It is so clear, almost "HD," and in full color. Enjoyed it very much. I think also their version of We're in the money was even better than the one from the Warner Bros. movie.

If you're a fan of Catalina Island as i am, you'll really enjoy this MGM short. Buddy Rogers' band is set up on the front of the late, great Hotel St. Catherine, which burned to the ground decades ago, and is now the Descanso Beach area and campgrounds. The great song, AVALON (Catalina's main tourist village), plays in the background. An earlier review already mentioned some of the mid 30s most famous stars, supposedly sitting near the water taking in all this entertainment, who squeeze out a smile for their day's wages. Chester Morris is rather annoying and way overdone as the blustery captain, but Becky Burgess is leggy and delectable as she and Johnny Long sing a nice little ditty, SMOOTH SAILING. The humor is 30s corn, but this is a time capsule, so that's forgiven. I always take this to Catalina with me to watch in my room at the Hotel Atwater (not shown here, but was in business at this time) and get a good feeling knowing this whole short was shot within two blocks of my snug little room. If you're going to Catalina this summer, first check out MURDER ON A HONEYMOON w/ Edna May Oliver, a splendid comedy/ mystery (also shot on the Island) and YOU'RE ONLY YOUNG ONCE, the second ANDY HARDY movie where the Judge's family head to Catalina for vacation. Over and out!

Among the earliest Technicolor films using the Three-Color process are a set of promotional films made in the mid-1930s. They all supposedly show the stars in their off hours hanging out at a nightclub sort of setting...during which various adequate acts entertain.

In this one, Chester Morris is the emcee and he introduces the acts and points out the movie stars. A few of the stars hanging out on this beachfront nightclub DURING THE DAY is Mickey Rooney, Errol Flynn, Leon Errol, Cary Grant and Randolph Scott*. Most of the acts aren't very good, but their rendition of "We're in the Money" is very catchy. The theme is pirates and the acts mostly sport Hollywood versions of pirate costumes.

This is the sort of film that would appeal to folks who adore old Hollywood. Otherwise, it will be tough going as the film does come off as very staged and silly.