The Princess and the Pirate

Director: David Butler David Butler

Overview

Bob Hope turns the high seas upside down in this lively swashbuckler as he plays a loony vaudevillian who is captured by pirates. While upon their vessel he ends up falling in love for a beautiful captured princess. Comical mayhem ensues when he and she escape and try to flee from the murderous buccaneers.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/26/2021
UPC:	0883929730520
Original Release:	1944
Rating:	NR
Source:	Warner Archives
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Mono, Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	1:34:00
Sales rank:	38,580

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Bob Hope	Sylvester the Great
Virginia Mayo	Princess Margaret
Walter Brennan	Featherhead
Walter Slezak	La Roche
Victor McLaglen	The Hook
Marc Lawrence	Pedro
Hugo Haas	'Bucket of Blood' Proprietor
Maude Eburne	'Boar's Head Inn' Landlady
Adia Kuznetzoff	Don Jose
Brandon Hurst	Mr. Pelly
Tom Kennedy	Alonzo
Stanley Andrews	Captain of the Mary Ann
Robert Warwick	The King
Tom Tyler	Lieutenant
Rondo Hatton	Gorilla Man
Richard Alexander	Holdup Man,Goldwyn Girl
Ernie Adams	Citizen,Citizen
Constantine Romanoff	Citizen
Robert Hale	Citizen,Citizen
Ralph Dunn	Murderous Pirate
Francis Ford	Drunken Pirate
Bert Roach	Drunken Pirate's Companion
Edwin Stanley	Captain of the King's Ship
Jack Carr	Bartender
Sammy Stein	Black Jack Thug
Colin Kenny	First Mate Mary Ann
Weldon Heyburn	Palace Guard
Edward Peil Sr.	Palace Guard
Ray Teal	Guard
Crane Whitley	Soldier
James Flavin	Naval Officer
Alan Bridge	Pirate,Pirate
Al Hill	Pirate
Mike Mazurki	Pirate
Dick Rich	Pirate
Frank Moran	Heckler
Dutch Hendrian	Heckler
Alma Carroll	Handmaiden
Ruth Valmy	Handmaiden
Bing Crosby	Himself
Lillian Molieri	Goldwyn Girl
Loretta Daye	Goldwyn Girl
Betty Caldwell	Goldwyn Girl
Betty Thurston	Goldwyn Girl
Pat Farrell	Goldwyn Girl
Kay Morley	Goldwyn Girl
Bill Hunter	Soldier at the Gate,Actor
Stewart Garner	Sailor on the 'Mary Ann'
Art Miles	Thug
Vic Christy	Thug
Ted Billings	Citizen
David Rose	Composer

Technical Credits

Don Hartman

Curtis Kenyon

Allen Boretz

Everett Freeman

Melville Shavelson

David Butler	Director
Don Hartman	Screenwriter,Producer
Curtis Kenyon	Screenwriter
Allen Boretz	Screenwriter
Everett Freeman	Screenwriter
Melville Shavelson	Screenwriter
Ray Binger	Special Effects
Clarence Slifer	Special Effects
Samuel Goldwyn	Producer

Editorial Reviews

The Technicolor is glorious in The Princess and the Pirate, and the sets and costumes are quite lovely and lavish -- so who cares if the screenplay isn't any great shakes? Besides, this is a Bob Hope vehicle, so there's nothing really needed except a script that lets the star do his thing, right? If that's your thinking, Pirate will be right up your alley, and deservedly so. Hope is highlighted at every twist and turn, supplied with a ready string of one-liners and comebacks that may not always be gems but which Hope bats so well that they score much more often than they really deserve to. And though it's entirely his show, the star comic is aided by a delightful supporting cast. As his love interest, Virginia Mayo proves that she was made for sumptuous color photography. Walter Brennan is wildly amusing as an over-the-top pirate chum, and Victor McLaglen chews scenery in the most engaging fashion as the villainous pirate that sets things in motion. David Butler's direction is smooth and efficient, if not necessarily distinctive. But then there's that screenplay, which in addition to being slapdash and unconvincing, stops too often to allow the swashbuckling elements to come into play: it's not that kind of picture, and instead of just dropping them in and quickly moving on, a bit too much time is spent on them. Still, Pirate is an amusing way to pass the time.