Buccaneer's Girl

Last updated
Buccaneer's Girl
Poster - Buccaneer's Girl 01.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Frederick de Cordova
Written by Joseph Hoffman
Harold Shumate
Story by Joe May
Samuel R. Golding
Produced by Robert Arthur
John W. Rogers
Starring Yvonne De Carlo
Philip Friend
Robert Douglas
Elsa Lanchester
Andrea King
Cinematography Russell Metty
Edited byOtto Ludwig
Music by Walter Scharf
Production
company
Universal Pictures
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date
  • March 1, 1950 (1950-03-01)(United States)
Running time
77 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office2,007,030 admissions (France) [1]

Buccaneer's Girl is a 1950 American Technicolor romantic adventure film directed by Frederick de Cordova starring Yvonne De Carlo and Philip Friend. [2] [3]

Contents

Plot

Deborah McCoy, a New Orleans singer, is on a ship that is captured by the forces of the pirate captain Fredric Baptiste. Baptiste keeps McCoy captive but she escapes in New Orleans and is hired as a singer by Mme. Brizar, the proprietor of a school for young ladies.

Deborah is sent to a party held by Captain Robert Kingston, the head of the Seaman's Fund. Robert is also Baptiste. She discovers that Baptiste uses his piracy activities to subsidise the Fund, which supports local seamen. Robert is engaged to Arlene Villon.

The businessman Narbonne discovers Baptiste's ruse and sets a trap for him. Deborah overhears this and joins Baptiste on the open seas. They attack Narbonne's ships.

Baptiste is captured by Narbonne but Deborah helps him escape.

Cast

Production

Yvonne De Carlo as Deborah McCoy, the title role Yvonne De Carlo in Buccaneer's Girl trailer.jpg
Yvonne De Carlo as Deborah McCoy, the title role

The film was originally known as Mademoiselle McCoy and the Pirates. In May 1949 Joseph Hoffman was hired to work on the script. [4]

It appears to have always been considered a vehicle for Yvonne De Carlo. Paul Christian was originally announced as her co-star. [5] Christian ended up being replaced by Philip Friend, who was cast on the basis of his performance in another Universal film, Sword in the Desert (1949).

Robert Douglas was cast as the lead villain in the film, the first of a three-picture contract he made with Universal. [6]

Filming began July 1949.

The supporting cast included Ethel Ince, widow of John Ince, playing her first role in thirty years. [7]

When asked about the film, De Carlo said, "What a dilly! I had six knock down, drag out fights in that one. And I was just recuperating from an operation." [8]

Reception

De Carlo wrote in her memoirs that while she was touring Argentina, she got a phone call from Eva Perón praising her movies, particularly Buccaneer's Girl. De Carlo wrote, "It later dawned on me that she could identify with the character of Deborah McCoy, who capitalized on her position as a prostitute to move up into high society." [9]

Dudley Early of Austin American-Statesman said that "[...] this highly improbable tale fails to click despite its presentation." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yvonne De Carlo</span> Canadian-born American actress, dancer and singer (1922–2007)

Margaret Yvonne Kao Middleton, known professionally as Yvonne De Carlo, was a Canadian-American actress, dancer and singer. She became a Hollywood film star in the 1940s and 1950s, made several recordings, and later acted on television and stage.

<i>The Captains Paradise</i> 1953 film by Anthony Kimmins

The Captain's Paradise is a 1953 British comedy film produced and directed by Anthony Kimmins, and starring Alec Guinness, Yvonne De Carlo and Celia Johnson. Guinness plays the captain of a passenger ship that travels regularly between Gibraltar and Spanish Morocco. De Carlo plays his Moroccan wife and Johnson plays his British wife. The film begins at just before the end of the story, which is then told in a series of flashbacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corinne Calvet</span> French actress (1925–2001)

Corinne Calvet, born Corinne Dibos, was a French actress who appeared mostly in American films. According to one obituary, she was promoted "as a combination of Dietrich and Rita Hayworth", but her persona failed to live up to this description, though the fault lay as much with a string of mediocre films as with a lack of a compelling talent, for Calvet's sultry looks and flashing eyes were allied with an impish sense of humor. She eventually became better known for her fiery private life and some well-publicized legal battles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helena Carter</span> American actress (1923–2000)

Helena Carter was an American film actress in the 1940s and 1950s who is best known for her work in the film Invaders from Mars as Dr. Patricia Blake. From 1947 to 1953 she would appear in 13 films, during which time she also worked as a model.

<i>Against All Flags</i> 1952 film by George Sherman

Against All Flags is a 1952 American pirate film directed by George Sherman, with uncredited assist from Douglas Sirk. It features Errol Flynn as Lt. Brian Hawke, Maureen O'Hara as Prudence "Spitfire" Stevens, and Anthony Quinn as Roc Brasiliano. The film is set in 1700, on the coast of Madagascar.

<i>Anne of the Indies</i> 1951 film by Jacques Tourneur

Anne of the Indies is a 1951 Technicolor adventure film made by 20th Century Fox. It was directed by Jacques Tourneur and produced by George Jessel.

<i>That Forsyte Woman</i> 1949 film by Compton Bennett

That Forsyte Woman is a 1949 American romantic drama film directed by Compton Bennett and starring Greer Garson, Errol Flynn, Walter Pidgeon, Robert Young and Janet Leigh. It is an adaptation of the 1906 novel The Man of Property, the first book in The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connie Gilchrist</span> American actress (1895–1985)

Rose Constance Gilchrist was an American stage, film, and television actress. Among her screen credits are roles in the Hollywood productions Cry 'Havoc' (1943), A Letter to Three Wives (1949), Little Women (1949), Tripoli (1950), Houdini (1953), Some Came Running (1958), and Auntie Mame (1958).

<i>Hotel Sahara</i> 1951 British comedy film

Hotel Sahara is a 1951 British war comedy film directed by Ken Annakin and starring Yvonne De Carlo, Peter Ustinov and David Tomlinson. It was produced and co-written by George Hambley Brown.

<i>Pirates of Tortuga</i> 1961 film by Robert D. Webb

Pirates of Tortuga is a 1961 American swashbuckler film which invented an alternate history for the actual Welsh privateer Henry Morgan. It was released in October 1961 in the United States in CinemaScope.

<i>Sea Devils</i> (1953 film) 1953 film by Raoul Walsh

Sea Devils is a 1953 colour British–American historical adventure film, directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Rock Hudson, Yvonne De Carlo, and Maxwell Reed. The story is based on Victor Hugo's novel Toilers of the Sea which was the working title of the film. The scenes at sea were shot around the Channel Islands, and much of the rest of the film was shot on location in those islands as well.

<i>The Desert Hawk</i> (1950 film) 1950 film by Frederick de Cordova

The Desert Hawk is a 1950 action adventure film directed by Frederick De Cordova starring Yvonne De Carlo and Richard Greene.

<i>Duel in the Jungle</i> 1954 film

Duel in the Jungle is a 1954 British adventure film combining the detective film with the jungle adventure genres directed by George Marshall and starring Dana Andrews, Jeanne Crain and David Farrar. It was shot at the Elstree Studios near London and on location in Southern Africa. The film's sets were designed by the art director Terence Verity. It was produced by Associated British in conjunction with Marcel Hellman. It was released in the United States by Warner Bros.

<i>Double Crossbones</i> 1951 film by Charles Barton

Double Crossbones is a 1951 American comedy adventure film distributed by Universal International, produced by Leonard Goldstein, directed by Charles Barton, and stars Donald O'Connor and Helena Carter. It was shot in Technicolor and was released on January 22. The story is of shopkeeper apprentice Davey Crandall becoming a pirate after being accused falsely of being involved of selling stolen goods.

<i>Song of Scheherazade</i> 1947 film by Walter Reisch

Song of Scheherazade is a 1947 American musical film directed by Walter Reisch. It tells the story of an imaginary episode in the life of the Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, in 1865, when he was a young naval officer on shore leave in Morocco. It also features Yvonne De Carlo as a Spanish dancer named Cara de Talavera, Eve Arden as her mother, and Brian Donlevy as the ship's captain. Charles Kullman, a tenor with the Metropolitan Opera, plays the ship's doctor, Klin, who sings two of Rimsky-Korsakov's melodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yvonne De Carlo performances</span> List of media and stage plays featuring Yvonne De Carlo

This is the complete filmography of actress Yvonne De Carlo.

<i>Fort Algiers</i> 1953 film by Lesley Selander

Fort Algiers is a 1953 American adventure film directed by Lesley Selander and written by Theodore St John. The film reused action sequences from Outpost in Morocco (1949) and starred Yvonne De Carlo, Carlos Thompson, Raymond Burr, Leif Erickson, Anthony Caruso, John Dehner, Robert Boon and Henry Corden. The film was released on July 15, 1953, by United Artists.

<i>Slave Girl</i> (1947 film) 1947 film by Charles Lamont

Slave Girl is a 1947 American Technicolor adventure comedy film directed by Charles Lamont and starring Yvonne De Carlo and George Brent.

<i>The San Francisco Story</i> 1952 film by Robert Parrish

The San Francisco Story is a 1952 American Western film directed by Robert Parrish and starring Joel McCrea and Yvonne De Carlo. The rough and tumble Barbary Coast of San Francisco is recreated with attention to detail, including Florence Bates as a saloon keeper Shanghaiing the unwary. Noir elements include many shadows, a discordant musical score, snappy dialogue, a disabused hero who resists the good fight, and a femme fatale. A schematic but insightful rendering of political corruption, the film is essentially about standing up to bullies.

<i>Last of the Buccaneers</i> 1950 film by Lew Landers

Last of the Buccaneers is a 1950 American Technicolor adventure film directed by Lew Landers and starring Paul Henreid as Jean Lafitte.

References

  1. "1950 Box Office in France". Box Office Story.
  2. Buccaneer's Girl , British Film Institute
  3. "Yvonne De Carlo Wields Mean Cutlass as Pirate" Scheuer, Philip K. Los Angeles Times, 16 March 1950: A9
  4. Brady, Thomas F. (11 June 1949). "COLUMBIA NAMES LEADS FOR MOVIE: Broderick Crawford and John Ireland in 'Tougher They Come,' Story About Sea". New York Times. p. 11.
  5. "Looking at Hollywood" Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Daily Tribune, 21 June 1949: 19.
  6. "FELDMAN WORKING ON FOUR PICTURES: 'Silver Whistle,' 'Wayward Bus,' 'Finian's Rainbow' and 'Tender Mercy' Are Projects" by THOMAS F. BRADY Special to THE NEW YORK TIMES. New York Times 30 June 1949: 19.
  7. "Garfield to Do Story of Toscanini Protege; Wyler Gets Gotham Hit" SCALLERT, EDWIN. Los Angeles Times, 22 July 1949: 13
  8. Hopper, Hedda (29 January 1950). "Yvonne, the Wanderer". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. C22.
  9. De Carlo, Yvonne; Warren, Doug (1987). Yvonne : an autobiography . St Martins Press. p.  159.
  10. Early, Dudley (August 30, 1950). "Show World - Buccaneer's Girl". Austin American-Statesman . Gannett.