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

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1996.

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Goofs

When Jeff enters the room where Orville and Princess Shalmar are watching the dancing girls, he walks down the center and then drifts slightly over to the left decorative border on the floor. In the next shot, he is well past the left border, standing near a column.

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Quotes

Jeff Peters: Orville, where are you?
Turkey Jackson: Right over here, behind these goosepimples.

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Connections

Referenced in The Princess and the Pirate (1944)

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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

Goofy Stuff, But Rather Enjoyable

With Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, and Dorothy Lamour all in good form, plus an interesting if wacky story, "Road to Morocco" is rather enjoyable despite the goofy nature of a lot of the material. It has a good variety of settings and comic material that help it keep going, and for all that much if it is silly, it is always good-natured and sometimes imaginative.

The desert setting and characters work all right as long as you don't take them too seriously or view it as any kind of commentary. The gently comic view of the characters and their habits is the source of some good gags, and the contrast between the locals and the two main characters is also used relatively well. There are several self-referential jokes (perhaps a couple too many) to make sure nothing is taken too seriously.

Besides Hope and Crosby, Lamour seems to relish her chance to play a princess, and Anthony Quinn is a suitably menacing adversary. Overall, it has to rank among the better of the stars' collaborations, not memorable so much for the material as for the chance to see the performers together.