''The Half-Naked Truth'' is a 1932 American
pre-Code
Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry between the widespread adoption of sound in film in 1929LaSalle (2002), p. 1. and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorshi ...
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
Gregory La Cava
Gregory La Cava (March 10, 1892 – March 1, 1952) was an American film director of Italian descent best known for his films of the 1930s, including ''My Man Godfrey'' and ''Stage Door'', which earned him nominations for Academy Award for Best ...
. The plot involves
Lee Tracy
William Lee Tracy (April 14, 1898 – October 18, 1968) was an American stage, film, and television actor. He is known foremost for his portrayals between the late 1920s and 1940s of fast-talking, wisecracking news reporters, press agents, lawye ...
as a carnival pitchman who finagles his girlfriend, a fiery
hoochie dancer played by
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 ...
, into a major
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
revue under the auspices of an impresario portrayed by
Frank Morgan
Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous soun ...
. The film was released on December 16, 1932 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
Fast-talking Jimmy Bates takes responsibility for publicity for a struggling carnival owned by Colonel Munday. His latest scheme to attract customers involves promising to reveal the identity of the father (allegedly one of the local town's residents) of his hot-tempered girlfriend, "hootch dancer" Teresita. However, when the local sheriff learns that it is all a con, Bates, his friend Achilles and Teresita flee to New York City.
Bates has always bragged about his close friendship with powerful theater
impresario
An impresario (from the Italian ''impresa'', "an enterprise or undertaking") is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays, or operas, performing a role in stage arts that is similar to that of a film or television producer.
Hist ...
Merle Farrell. Bates promises to make Teresita a star, but it soon becomes clear that Farrell does not know him. Undaunted, Bates promotes Teresita as Princess Exotica, an escapee from a Turkish
harem
Harem (Persian: حرمسرا ''haramsarā'', ar, حَرِيمٌ ''ḥarīm'', "a sacred inviolable place; harem; female members of the family") refers to domestic spaces that are reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A hare ...
, with Achilles as a
eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...
servant and a lion. Bates informs reporters that she is to star in Farrell's show. At first, Farrell is outraged, but after a sharp increase in ticket sales, he signs Teresita to a contract.
Farrell insists that Teresita perform a slow Middle Eastern-style dance, which bores the audience. Bates instructs her to sing a modern song, which is a hit. Teresita becomes a star, while Bates becomes Farrell's publicity manager.
With Bates away on a business trip, Teresita begins a romance with the married Farrell. When Bates learns of the affair, he quits Ferrell's employ and promises to make the first girl whom he sees into a sensation that will eclipse Teresita's stardom. The girl whom he selects is blond hotel maid Gladys, whom Achilles is trying to romance. Bates has Gladys pretend to be Eve, the leader of a group of
nudists
Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ar ...
. Armed with a compromising photograph of Farrell and Teresita, Bates blackmails Farrell into signing Eve to his show. Meanwhile, the public has begun to tire of Teresita.
Achilles returns to the carnival life and purchases Colonel Munday's business. Bates later becomes dissatisfied with New York and visits Achilles, and he finds Teresita singing as one of the carnival's attractions.
Cast
*
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 ...
as Teresita
*
Lee Tracy
William Lee Tracy (April 14, 1898 – October 18, 1968) was an American stage, film, and television actor. He is known foremost for his portrayals between the late 1920s and 1940s of fast-talking, wisecracking news reporters, press agents, lawye ...
as Bates
*
Eugene Pallette
Eugene William Pallette (July 8, 1889 – September 3, 1954) was an American actor who worked in both the silent and sound eras, performing in more than 240 productions between 1913 and 1946.
After an early career as a slender leading man, ...
as Achilles
*
Frank Morgan
Francis Phillip Wuppermann (June 1, 1890 – September 18, 1949), known professionally as Frank Morgan, was an American character actor. He was best known for his appearances in films starting in the silent era in 1916, and then numerous soun ...
as Farrell
*
Shirley Chambers
Shirley Chambers (December 20, 1913 – September 11, 2011) was an American film actress of the 1930s. She was notable for playing 'dumb blonde' roles in musical comedy films. She was discovered by press agent Harry Reichenbach.
Biography
Cham ...
as Gladys
*
Franklin Pangborn
Franklin Pangborn (January 23, 1889 – July 20, 1958) was an American comedic character actor famous for playing small but memorable roles with comic flair. He appeared in many Preston Sturges movies as well as the W. C. Fields films '' Interna ...
as Hotel Clerk
*
Robert McKenzie as Colonel
*
Theresa Harris
Theresa Harris (December 31, 1906 – October 8, 1985) was an American television and film actress, singer and dancer.
Early life
Harris was born on New Year's Eve 1906 (some sources indicate 1909) in Houston, Texas, to Isaiah and Mable Harris ...
as Emily (uncredited)
References
External links
*
*
*
*
1932 films
1932 comedy films
American comedy films
Circus films
Films scored by Max Steiner
Films directed by Gregory La Cava
American black-and-white films
1930s English-language films
1930s American films
{{1930s-US-film-stub