''Cha-Cha-Cha Boom!'' is a 1956 American musical film starring

Dámaso Pérez Prado Dámaso is a Spanish masculine given name. The name is equivalent to that of Pope Damasus I in English. The name also exists in Italian as Damaso, though it is uncommon. People * Dámaso Alonso (1898–1990), Spanish poet * Dámaso Berenguer, 1st ...

, Stephen Dunne, the

Mary Kaye Mary Kaye (née Malia Ka'aihue; January 9, 1924 – February 17, 2007) was an American guitarist and performer. She was active from the 1940s through 1960s. Biography Malia Ka'aihue was born on January 9, 1924, in Detroit, Michigan, to father J ...

Trio,

Helen Grayco Helen Grayco (; September 20, 1924 – August 20, 2022) was an American singer and actress active from the 1930s to the 1960s. She was most famous for appearances with her husband Spike Jones on ''The Spike Jones Show'' in the 1950s and the 19 ...

, Luis Arcaraz and his Orchestra, Lucerto Bárcenas, and Manny López and his Orchestra. It was produced by

Sam Katzman Sam Katzman (July 7, 1901 – August 4, 1973) was an American film producer and director. Katzman produced low-budget genre films, including serials, which had disproportionately high returns for the studios and his financial backers. Ea ...

for

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the multi ...

and directed by

Fred F. Sears Frederick Francis Sears (July 7, 1913 – November 30, 1957) was an American film actor and director. Biography Sears, formerly based in Boston as a dramatic director and instructor, was hired as a dialogue director by Columbia Pictures i ...

and was their immediate follow-up to ''

Rock Around the Clock "Rock Around the Clock" is a rock and roll song in the Twelve-bar blues, 12-bar blues format written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (the latter being under the pseudonym "Jimmy De Knight") in 1952. The best-known and most successful ren ...

'' (actress

Alix Talton Alix (Alice) Talton (June 7, 1920 – April 7, 1992) was an American actress. A former Miss Georgia, from 1953-1955, Talton portrayed both Myrna Cobb and Myrna Shepard, next door neighbors in the television version of ''My Favorite Husband''. ...

appeared in both films). Filming started 14 May 1956. It was also known as ''Cha Cha Cha''.

Plot

An American record executive ( Stephen Dunne) travels to Cuba to find some talent for his record label.

Cast

* Stephen Dunne ... Bill Haven * Damaso Perez Prado ... Himself *

... Herself *

... Debbie Farmer *

Jose Gonzales-Gonzales Jose Gonzalez-Gonzalez (December 7, 1922 – December 15, 2000) was a Mexican American character actor and the brother of actor Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez. Life and career Born Jose Gonzalez-Gonzalez in Guadalajara, Mexico to a Mexican American f ...

... Pedro Fernandez *

Sylvia Lewis Sylvia Lewis is an American actress, dancer and choreographer. Career Sylvia Lewis was born in York, Pennsylvania. She first performed as a young child in the last days of vaudeville in Baltimore, Maryland. She received her first classical tra ...

... Nita Munay *

Bernie Lowe Bernard Lowe (born Lowenthal, November 22, 1917 – September 1, 1993) was an American songwriter, record producer, arranger, pianist and bandleader. Born in Philadelphia, Lowe started Teen Records and in 1955 was working with Freddie Bell and t ...

... Himself *

Dante DiPaolo Dante Cesare DiPaolo (February 18, 1926 – September 4, 2013) was an American dancer and actor. Sometimes, he also appeared under the name of Dante De Paulo, Dante D' Paulo, and Dante Di Paola. Biography The son of an immigrant miner from Italy, ...

... Elvarez *Ruben Rodriguez ... Timbale Player

Soundtrack

''Year 'Round Love''
Written by Rose Marie McCoy, and Charles Singleton
''Crazy Crazy''
Music by

''Mambo No. 8''
Music by Dámaso Pérez Prado
''Que Rico El Mambo''
Music by Dámaso Pérez Prado
''Voodoo Suite''
Music by Dámaso Pérez Prado
''La niña Popoff''
Written by Dámaso Pérez Prado, Albrecht Marcuse and Aguste G. Schmutz
''Cuban Rock and Roll''
Music by Dámaso Pérez Prado
''El Marinero''
Written by Ricardo Rico
''

The Lonesome Road "The Lonesome Road" is a 1927 song with music by Nathaniel Shilkret and lyrics by Gene Austin, alternately titled "Lonesome Road", "Look Down that Lonesome Road" and "Lonesome Road Blues." It was written in the style of an African-American folk ...

''
Music by Nathaniel Shilkret
Lyrics by

Gene Austin Lemeul Eugene Lucas (June 24, 1900 – January 24, 1972), better known by his stage name Gene Austin, was an American singer and songwriter, one of the early "crooners". His recording of " My Blue Heaven" sold over 5 million copies and was for a ...

Performed by the

Trio
'' Get Happy''
Music by

Harold Arlen Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer of popular music, who composed over 500 songs, a number of which have become known worldwide. In addition to composing the songs for the 1939 film ...

Lyrics by

Ted Koehler Ted L. Koehler (July 14, 1894 – January 17, 1973) was an American lyricist. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1972. Life and career Koehler was born in 1894 in Washington, D.C. He started out as a photo-engraver, but ...

Performed by the

Trio
''Lilly's Lament''
Written by Frances Maurine Barris, Robert Wells, Jack Allison and Loyce Whiteman
Performed by

''Save Your Sorrow''
Lyrics by

Buddy G. DeSylva George Gard "Buddy" DeSylva (January 27, 1895 – July 11, 1950) was an American songwriter, film producer and record executive. He wrote or co-wrote many popular songs and, along with Johnny Mercer and Glenn Wallichs, he co-founded Capitol Reco ...

Music by

Al Sherman Avrum Sherman (September 7, 1897 – September 16, 1973), pen name Al Sherman, was a Russian-American songwriter and composer active during the Tin Pan Alley era in American music history. Some of his most recognizable song titles include: " Y ...

''Despacho''
''Diosa''
Written by Manny Lopez and Jorge Hernández
''Mi musica es para ti''
Written by

René Touzet René Touzet y Monte (September 8, 1916 in Havana, Cuba – June 15, 2003 in Miami, Florida) was a Cuban-born American composer, pianist and bandleader. Career as bandleader Living in the city of Cojimar, he learned classical piano from the ag ...

''Gelatina''
Written by Carlos Molina and Alvaro Escobar
''Lucero''
Written by Carlos Molina and Alvaro Escobar
''Theme from

Picnic A picnic is a meal taken outdoors ( ''al fresco'') as part of an excursion, especially in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view, or else in conjunction with a public event such as precedi ...

''
Music by

George Duning George Duning (February 25, 1908 – February 27, 2000) was an American musician and film composer. He was born in Richmond, Indiana, and educated in Cincinnati, Ohio, at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, where his mentor was Mario Castelnu ...

References

External links

* *
Review of film
at ''Variety'' 1956 films Columbia Pictures films Films set in Cuba 1956 musical films Films directed by Fred F. Sears 1950s English-language films American musical films American black-and-white films {{musical-film-stub