Road to Morocco (1942)

Two carefree castaways on a desert shore find an Arabian Nights city, where they compete for the luscious Princess Shalmar.

Director:

David Butler

Writers:

Frank Butler (original screenplay), Don Hartman (original screenplay)

Stars:

Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bing Crosby	...	Jeff Peters
Bob Hope	...	Orville 'Turkey' Jackson / Aunt Lucy
Dorothy Lamour	...	Princess Shalmar
Anthony Quinn	...	Mullay Kasim
Dona Drake	...	Mihirmah
Vladimir Sokoloff	...	Hyder Khan
Mikhail Rasumny	...	Ahmed Fey
George Givot	...	Neb Jolla

Storyline

Jeff and Turkey, two wild and crazy guys adrift on a raft in the Mediterranean, are cast away on a desert shore and hop a convenient camel to an Arabian Nights city where Turkey soon finds himself sold as a slave...to luscious Princess Shalmar of Karameesh. Naturally, Jeff would like to rescue Turkey from this "dire" fate, even if it means taking his place! But they haven't figured on virile desert chieftain Mullay Kassim, who has designs on the princess himself...

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Plot Keywords:

national film registry | princess | desert | rescue | castaway | 

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Taglines:

You'll Shriek At These Shieks! . . . trying the double - Oh! on Sheikess Dorothy Lamour!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Family | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 April 1943 (Mexico)

Also Known As:

A Sedução de Marrocos

Filming Locations:

Castle Dome Peak, Yuma, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$1,626,400, 20 January 1943

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

82 min (DVD) 81 min (copyright length)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scene where the camel spits in Turkey's (Bob Hope's) face wasn't planned. The camel did it of its own accord while the cameras were rolling, and Hope's recoil and Bing Crosby's reaction were so funny that it was left in the final cut of the film.

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Goofs

When Jeff agrees to marry Princess Shalmar, Orville tells Jeff that he will have the happiest week of his life. Although Orville has discovered that marrying her is certain to result in death, he has not been told the specific expected lifespan.

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Quotes

Turkey Jackson: How do you figure on paying for all this?
Jeff Peters: What are you, scared? You got red blood, ain't you?
Turkey Jackson: Yeah, but I don't want to get it all over strangers.
Jeff Peters: Go ahead, eat up, eat up son. I'll think of something.
Turkey Jackson: These guys don't monkey around, they got knives, they're liable to try and get the food back the hard way.

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Connections

Featured in 100 Years at the Movies (1994)

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Soundtracks

Ain't Got a Dime to My Name (Ho Hum)
(1942)
Written by Jimmy Van Heusen
Lyrics by Johnny Burke
Played during the opening credits
Performed by Bing Crosby

User Reviews

Zany fun, pure old-fashioned escapism with a string of gags for good measure...

This is a typical ROAD movie with the boys chasing Lamour as the audience waits to see who Dotty will wind up with. The script is pure escapist, light-hearted stuff and everyone seems to enjoy the tongue in cheek style of all the gags.

Bing is his usual affable self, tossing off a few songs in the Crosby manner--the best of which is "Moonlight Becomes You". Dorothy Lamour is at her peak of lush beauty as the princess and manages to keep a straight face while the boys cut capers. Bob Hope shines in a part totally suited to his comic skills with one-liners and double takes that keep the high spirits flowing.

If you're a fan of ROAD movies, you'll definitely enjoy this one--although my own personal favorite is still ROAD TO UTOPIA.