Cairo (1942 film)
Cairo is a 1942 musical comedy film made by MGM and Loew's, and directed by W. S. Van Dyke. The screenplay was written by John McClain, based on an idea by Ladislas Fodor about a news reporter shipwrecked in a torpedo attack, who teams up with a Hollywood singer and her maid to foil Nazi spies. The music score is by Herbert Stothart. This film was Jeanette MacDonald's last film on her MGM contract.[3]
| Cairo | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | W. S. Van Dyke |
| Produced by | Joseph L. Mankiewicz (uncredited) |
| Written by | Concept: Ladislas Fodor |
| Screenplay by | John McClain |
| Starring | Jeanette MacDonald Robert Young |
| Music by | Herbert Stothart |
| Cinematography | Ray June |
| Edited by | James E. Newcom |
Production company | |
Release date | August 17, 1942 |
Running time | 101 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $924,000[1][2] |
| Box office | $1,197,000[1][2] |
The film was poorly received upon its initial release.[4]
Plot
Actress Marcia Warren (Jeanette MacDonald), while "between pictures" in London, hires an American named Homer Smith (Robert Young), as her butler. What Marcia doesn't know is that Smith is a newspaperman, who strongly suspects that she is a Nazi spy. (The real enemy agent is Mrs. Morrison (Mona Barrie).
Cast
- Jeanette MacDonald as Marcia Warren
- Robert Young as Homer Smith, aka Juniper Jones
- Ethel Waters as Cleona Jones, Marcia's Maid
- Reginald Owen as Philo Cobson
- Grant Mitchell as Mr. O.H.P. Boggs
- Lionel Atwill as Teutonic gentleman
- Eduardo Ciannelli as Ahmed Ben Hassan
- Mitchell Lewis as Ludwig
- Dooley Wilson as Hector
- Larry Nunn as Bernie
- Dennis Hoey as Col. Woodhue
- Mona Barrie as Mrs. Morrison
- Rhys Williams as Strange man
- Cecil Cunningham as Mme. Laruga
- Harry Worth as Viceroy Hotel bartender
- Frank Richards as Alfred
- Faten Hamama as Amina
Reception
According to MGM records. the film earned $616,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $581,000 elsewhere, meaning the studio recorded a profit of $273,000.[2]
References
- Turk, Edward Baron "Hollywood Diva: A Biography of Jeanette MacDonald" (University of California Press, 1998)
- "The Eddie Mannix Ledger." Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study (Los Angeles).
- "Cairo (1942) - W.S. Van Dyke | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie". AllMovie. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
- "Cairo (1942) - Articles - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 2018-03-14.
External links
- Cairo on IMDb
- Cairo at AllMovie
- Cairo at the TCM Movie Database
- Cairo at the American Film Institute Catalog
- Cairo at the British Film Institute's Film and TV Database