''Mexican Spitfire at Sea'' is a 1942 American

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Leslie Goodwins Leslie Goodwins (17 September 1899 – 8 January 1969) was an English film director and screenwriter. He directed nearly 100 films between 1926 and 1967, notably 27 features and shorts with Leon Errol, including the Mexican Spitfire series. ...

and written by

Charles E. Roberts Charles E. Roberts (March 13, 1843 – March 1934) was an American engineer, inventor and an important early client and patron of Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1896, Wright remodeled Robert's house in Oak Park. Personal life Charles E Roberts was b ...

and Jerry Cady. It is the fourth film in the ''Mexican Spitfire'' series, which began in 1939. The film stars

Lupe Vélez María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez (July 18, 1908 – December 13, 1944), known professionally as Lupe Vélez, was a Mexican actress, singer and dancer during the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. Vélez began her career as a performer in Mexican ...

Leon Errol Leon Errol (born Leonce Errol Sims, July 3, 1881 – October 12, 1951) was an Australian-American comedian and actor in the United States, popular in the first half of the 20th century for his appearances in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in film ...

Charles "Buddy" Rogers Charles Edward "Buddy" Rogers (August 13, 1904 – April 21, 1999) was an American film actor and musician. During the peak of his popularity in the late 1920s and early 1930s he was publicized as "America's Boyfriend". Life and career Early ...

ZaSu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...

Elisabeth Risdon Elisabeth Risdon (born Daisy Cartwright Risdon; 26 April 1887 – 20 December 1958) was an English film actress. She appeared in more than 140 films between 1913 and 1952. A beauty in her youth, she usually played in society parts. In later ...

, and

Florence Bates Florence Bates ( Rabe; April 15, 1888 - January 31, 1954), was an American film and stage character actress who often played grande dame characters in supporting roles. Life and career Bates was the second child born to Jewish immigrant pare ...

. The film was released on March 13, 1942, by

RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...

Plot

Carmelita Lindsay (Lupe Vélez) believes she's finally going away on a honeymoon, which she has been unable to arrange due to her husband Dennis's constant business deals. Dennis (Charles "Buddy" Rogers) secretly intends to use this ocean voyage to sell advertising to the well-to-do Baldwins (Florence Bates and Harry Holman), with help from his Uncle Matt and Aunt Della (Leon Errol and Elisabeth Risdon). On the cruise, a quarrel with Carmelita results in Dennis being thrown out of his cabin and into another occupied by Parisian blonde Fifi Russell (Marion Martin). The Baldwins, assuming that Dennis and Fifi are man and wife, insist on arranging a meeting with British nobleman Lord Epping. Mistaken identities multiply thereafter, as Carmelita recruits Uncle Matt to pose as Lord Epping, and they both prevail upon passenger Emily Pepper (ZaSu Pitts) to impersonate Lady Epping. Further complicating matters, Carmelita and Dennis's business rival (Eddie Dunn) make Dennis jealous. The multiple motives and identities become so scrambled that Uncle Matt is cornered. He desperately sounds an alarm, evacuating the passengers so he can escape in the confusion.

Cast

as Carmelita Lindsay *

as Uncle Matt Lindsay / Lord Basil Epping *

as Dennis Lindsay *

as Emily Pepper *

as Aunt Della Lindsay *

as Minerva Baldwin *

Marion Martin Marion Suplee (born June 7, 1909 – August 13, 1985) known professionally as Marion Martin was an American film and stage actress. Biography Martin was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of a Bethlehem Steel executive. She became ...

as Fifi Russell *

Lydia Bilbrook Lydia Bilbrook (6 May 1888 – 4 January 1990; sometimes credited as Bilbrooke) was an English actress whose career spanned four decades, first as a stage performer in the West End, and later in films. Bilbrook made her first stage appearan ...

as Lady Ada Epping * Eddie Dunn as George Skinner *

Harry Holman Harry James Holman (March 15, 1862 – May 3, 1947) was an American character actor. He appeared in approximately 130 films between 1923 and 1947. Biography Born in Conway, Missouri, Holman dropped out of school in the ninth grade and ...

as Joshua Baldwin * Marten Lamont as Purser

References

External links

* * * * 1942 films American black-and-white films RKO Pictures films Films directed by Leslie Goodwins 1942 comedy films Films produced by Cliff Reid American comedy films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films {{1940s-comedy-film-stub