''Mexican Spitfire Sees a Ghost'' is a 1942 American

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

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 and Monte Brice. It is the sequel to the 1942 film '' Mexican Spitfire at Sea'', and the sixth of eight in the franchise. The film stars

Lupe Vélez María Guadalupe "Lupe" Villalobos Vélez (July 18, 1908 – December 14, 1944) was a Mexican actress, singer, and dancer during the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema. Vélez began her career as a performer in Mexican vaudeville in the early 1920s ...

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 Earl ...

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 from 1913 to 1952. A beauty in her youth, she usually played in society parts. In later yea ...

Donald MacBride Donald Hugh MacBride (June 23, 1893 – June 21, 1957) was an American character actor on stage, in films, and on television. MacBride launched his career as a chorister at St Thomas Fifth Avenue and then at Garden City Cathedral in New Yo ...

and

Minna Gombell Minna Marie Gombell (''née'' Gombel; May 28, 1892 – April 14, 1973) was an American stage and film actress. Early years She was born Minna Marie Gombel in Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of William and Emma M. Debring Gombel. Her father was ...

. The film was released on June 26, 1942, by

RKO Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the major film studios, "Big Five" film studios of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood's Clas ...

. It is notorious as the film representing the top half of a

double bill The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theaters would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which the presentation of one feature film would be followed by various short subject reel ...

, in which the film at the bottom of the bill was

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

' now-classic second feature film ''

The Magnificent Ambersons ''The Magnificent Ambersons'' is a 1918 novel by Booth Tarkington, the second in his ''Growth'' trilogy after '' The Turmoil'' (1915) and before ''The Midlander'' (1923, retitled ''National Avenue'' in 1927). It won the Pulitzer Prize for fict ...

'', also produced by RKO Pictures.

Plot

Cast

as Carmelita Lindsay *

as Uncle Matt Lindsay / Lord Basil Epping *

as Dennis Lindsay *

as Aunt Della Lindsay *

as Percy Fitzbadden *

as Edith Fitzbadden * Don Barclay as Fingers O'Toole * John McGuire as Luders *

Lillian Randolph Lillian Randolph (December 14, 1898 – September 12, 1980) was an American actress and singer, a veteran of radio, film, and television. She worked in entertainment from the 1930s until shortly before her death. She appeared in hundreds of radi ...

as Hyacinth *

Mantan Moreland Mantan Moreland (September 3, 1902 – September 28, 1973) was an American actor and comedian most popular in the 1930s and 1940s. He starred in numerous films. His daughter Marcella Moreland appeared as a child actor in several films. Ear ...

as Lightnin' * Harry Tyler as Bascombe * Marten Lamont as Mr. Harcourt

Reception

''Variety'' said "Leon Errol's corking, if repetitious, dual comedy impersonation should carry this B programmer through as a supporting feature for satisfactory returns. In essence, it's more like a vaudeville skit in which Errol delivers a 70-minute impersonation of a screwy, comic opera English lord. But it will likely register for a healthy laugh score in the subsequents. Donald MacBride, as another slightly berserk, dyspeptic Englishman with high blood pressure, is teamed up with Errol for some hilarious business."

References

External links

*
''Mexican Spitfire Sees a Ghost'' at AllMovie
* * 1942 films American black-and-white films RKO Pictures films Films directed by Leslie Goodwins 1942 comedy films American comedy films Films produced by Cliff Reid 1940s English-language films 1940s American films {{1940s-US-comedy-film-stub