Cinema Circus (1937)

Various entertainment celebrities take part in a circus performance, along with authentic acrobats and other performers of the big top.

Director:

Roy Rowland

Writer:

John W. Krafft (dialogue)

Stars:

Lee Tracy, California Collegians, Marcus Show Girls

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Lee Tracy	...	Himself - Ringmaster
California Collegians	...	Themselves
Marcus Show Girls	...	Themselves
The Fanchonettes	...	Themselves
Gay Boys	...	Themselves
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gladys Ahern	...	Herself
Will Ahern	...	Himself
Baby LeRoy	...	Himself
George Barbier	...	Himself
Rex Bell	...	Himself
Leo Carrillo	...	Himself
Chester Conklin	...	Himself
Cliff Edwards	...	Himself - Singer
Alice Faye	...	Herself
James Gleason	...	Himself

Storyline

Actor Lee Tracy presides as ringmaster over a show that combines the best elements of cinema with the circus, what he calls a Cinema Circus. Tracy introduces a number of professional circus acts, plus a cavalcade of movie stars who have side shows under the open air big tent. There is as much action in the audience as Tracy identifies a number of movie stars watching the proceedings incognito, having their own fun in the stands, and sometimes interacting with the circus acts.

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Plot Keywords:

circus | celebrity | variety | title spoken by character

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Genres:

Comedy | Short | Family

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 1937 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Pan-Pacific Auditorium - 7600 W. Beverly Boulevard, Fairfax, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Louis Lewyn Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

19 min

Sound Mix:

Mono Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A copy of this film is held by the UCLA Film and Television Archives.

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Soundtracks

"Sobre las olas (Over the Waves)"
(uncredited)
Music by Juventino Rosas
Played during the aerial act

User Reviews

Pretty Bland From Start to Finish

Cinema Circus (1937)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Back in the Golden Age of Hollywood, several short subjects were produced just to show various stars in their off time or fooling around on the set. This Technicolor short takes place at a circus where we get to see various acts perform but the real reason this was made was to show off several stars. Most of the time the stars are just sitting in the crowd where they get a quick introduction. We get the likes of Boris Karloff, William S. Hart, Alice Faye, The Ritz Brothers, Ben Turpin, James Gleason, Charles Murray and several others. The "ringmaster" of the event is Lee Tracy and we also get a man in a gorilla suit. I've seen quite a few of these "show off the stars" shorts and there's no question that this one here is the most boring. Yes, it was fun seeing the stars and yes the Technicolor looks amazing but this is really all there is and it's not enough to carry the 19-minute running time. I will admit that I was deadly bored throughout the running time because there just wasn't enough going on to keep you interested or entertained. I will say that the final cameo by a star who I won't name was very funny and it almost makes the entire thing worth sitting through. Or, perhaps you can just fast forward to the end.