''The Cuckoos'' is a 1930 American

Pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was the brief era in the 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 censorship guidelines, popularly known ...

musical comedy film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

released 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-Orph ...

and partially filmed in two-strip

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

. Directed by

Paul Sloane Paul Sloane (April 19, 1893 November 15, 1963) was an American screenwriter and film director who directed 26 films from 1925 to 1952, and wrote or co-wrote 35 films. His movies include ''Hearts in Dixie'' (1929) with Stepin Fetchit, ''The Wom ...

, the screenplay was adapted by Cyrus Wood from the 1926 Broadway musical ''The Ramblers'' by

Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred ...

Bert Kalmar Bert Kalmar (February 10, 1884 – September 18, 1947) was an American songwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. He was also a screenwriter. Biography Kalmar, a native of New York City, left school at an early ag ...

and

Harry Ruby Harry Rubenstein (January 27, 1895 – February 23, 1974), known professionally as Harry Ruby, was an American actor, pianist, composer, songwriter and screenwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Bert Wheeler Albert Jerome Wheeler (April 7, 1895 – January 18, 1968) was an American comedian who performed in Broadway theatre, American comedy feature films, and vaudeville acts. He was the comedy partner of Robert Woolsey, and together they formed ...

and

Robert Woolsey Robert Rollie Woolsey (August 14, 1888 – October 31, 1938) was an American stage and screen comedian and half of the 1930s comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey. Early life Robert Rollie (sometimes spelled Rolla or even Raleigh) was born on Aug ...

, and while they had appeared on Broadway and in other films together (most notably RKO's '' Rio Rita'' the year before), this was their first time starring as a team. The success of this picture, combined with ''Rio Rita'' being their most successful film of 1929, convinced the studio to headline them as the comedy team

Wheeler & Woolsey Wheeler & Woolsey were an American vaudeville comedy double act who performed together in comedy films from the late 1920s. The team comprised Bert Wheeler (1895–1968) of New Jersey and Robert Woolsey (1888–1938) of Illinois. Collaboration a ...

, through 1937.

Plot

Professor Bird (Woolsey) and his partner, Sparrow (Wheeler), are a pair of charlatan fortune tellers who are bankrupt and stranded at a Mexican resort just south of the border. An heiress, Ruth Chester (

June Clyde June Clyde (born Ina Parton, December 2, 1909 – October 1, 1987) was an American actress, singer and dancer known for roles in such pre-Code films as ''A Strange Adventure'' (1932) and ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1933). Early years June Clyd ...

), appears, who is running away from her aunt, Fanny Furst (

Jobyna Howland Jobyna Howland (March 31, 1880 – June 7, 1936) was an American stage and screen actress. Early years Howland was born on March 31, 1880, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Her parents were Joby Howland, a Civil War veteran who at age 11 was one ...

). She is in love with an American pilot, Billy Shannon ( Hugh Trevor), but her aunt wishes her to marry the European nobleman, The Baron (

Ivan Lebedeff Ivan Lebedeff (born Ivan Vasilyevich Lebedev ( rus, Иван Васильевич Лебедев), 18 June 1894 – 31 March 1953) was a Russian film actor, lecturer and writer. He appeared in 66 films between 1926 and 1953. In 1940, his no ...

), whom the aunt believes is the "right" type of person for her niece. Sparrow, meanwhile has fallen in love with a young American girl, Anita ( Dorothy Lee), who has been living with a band of

Gypsies The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

. This creates an issue, since the leader of the Gypsy band, Julius ( Mitchell Lewis), has had his eye on Anita for years. When Fannie Furst arrives, she attempts to persuade Ruth into marrying the Baron, but unbeknownst by Fannie, The Baron is only interested in marrying Ruth for her money. During the course of events, Fannie falls in love with Bird, but when the Baron finds out that Ruth is engaged to Billy, he conspires with Julius to kidnap her. During the kidnapping, Anita is also taken, and the girls are taken deeper into Mexico. Bird, Sparrow and Billy track them down and recover the girls, and they live happily ever after.

Cast

Bert Wheeler Albert Jerome Wheeler (April 7, 1895 – January 18, 1968) was an American comedian who performed in Broadway theatre, American comedy feature films, and vaudeville acts. He was the comedy partner of Robert Woolsey, and together they formed ...

as Sparrow *

as Professor Bird * Dorothy Lee as Anita *

as Fannie Furst * Hugh Trevor as Billy Shannon *

as Ruth Chester *

as The Baron * Marguerita Padula as Gypsy Queen * Mitchell Lewis as Julius

Song List

All songs are music by Harry Ruby with lyrics by Bert Kalmar, unless otherwise noted. *"Down in Mexico" - chorus *"Oh! How we love our Alma Mater" - Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey *"All Alone Monday" - June Clyde and Hugh Trevor *"California Skies" - chorus *"Wherever You Are" - Hugh Trevor and June Clyde *"I'm a Gypsy" - Robert Woolsey *"Goodbye" - Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey and Jobyna Howland with chorus *"Tomorrow Never Comes - Raymond Maurel with chorus *"I Love You So Much (It's a Wonder You Don't Feel It)" - Dorothy Lee and Bert Wheeler *"Knock Knees" *"Looking for the Lovelight in Your Eyes" *"Dancing The Devil Away" - words by Otto Harbach and Bert Kalmar, music by Harry Ruby, sung by Marguarete Padua and danced by Dorothy Lee *"If I Were a Traveling Salesman" - words and music by Al Dubin and Joe Burke

Reception

The film made a profit of $335,000. The ''New York Times'' gave the film a positive review, calling it, " pleasantly irrational screen comedy, with sequences in color and riotous and, at times, ribald buffoonery ..."

Notes

This film contains a fiery

dance sequence with Anita and the Gypsy Queen, titled . The Broadway musical this film is based on, ''The Ramblers'', ran from September 1926 through May 1927 at the Lyric Theater. It had lyrics and music by

and

Harry Ruby Harry Rubenstein (January 27, 1895 – February 23, 1974), known professionally as Harry Ruby, was an American actor, pianist, composer, songwriter and screenwriter, who was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970.Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. Bolton preferred ...

, Kalmar and Ruby. The film has three of its musical numbers shot in

: the aforementioned "Dancing the Devil Away", "Goodbye", and the finale, "I Love You So Much (It's a Wonder You Don't Feel It)".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cuckoos, The 1930 films 1930 musical comedy films 1930s color films American musical comedy films Films set in Mexico RKO Pictures films Films based on musicals American films based on plays Films with screenplays by Roscoe Arbuckle American black-and-white films Films directed by Paul Sloane Early color films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films