''Paradise Isle'' is a 1937 American film directed by Arthur Greville Collins with sequences shot in

American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...

. The film was produced by

Dorothy Davenport Fannie Dorothy Davenport (March 13, 1895 – October 12, 1977) was an American actress, screenwriter, film director, and producer. Born into a family of film performers, Davenport had her own independent career before her marriage to the film a ...

under the name "Dorothy Reid" and was released by

Monogram Pictures Monogram Pictures Corporation was an American film studio that produced mostly low-budget films between 1931 and 1953, when the firm completed a transition to the name Allied Artists Pictures Corporation. Monogram was among the smaller studios i ...

. The film stars Mexican actress

Movita Castaneda Maria Luisa Castaneda (April 12, 1916 – February 12, 2015) was an American actress and the second wife of actor Marlon Brando. In films, she played exotic women and singers, such as in '' Flying Down to Rio'' (1933) and ''Mutiny on the Boun ...

continuing her persona of a South Seas Island girl that began with ''

Mutiny on the Bounty The mutiny on the ''Bounty'' occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of the ship, , from their captain, Lieutenant (navy), Lieutenant William Bli ...

'' (1935).

Plot summary

Kennedy is a shipwrecked blind artist who is washed ashore on an island en route to meeting an eminent eye surgeon in

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

who is the only chance to restore his sight. He is nursed back to health by Ida, an island girl. When Kennedy is distraught that he cannot pay for the operation due to his money being lost when his ship went down, Ida obtains a valuable black pearl that sets scheming in motion on the island paradise.

Cast

as Ida *

Warren Hull John Warren Hull (January 17, 1903 – September 14, 1974), known professionally as Warren Hull, was an American actor, singer and television personality active from the 1930s through the 1960s. He was one of the most popular serial actors in t ...

as Kennedy * William B. Davidson as Hoener * John St. Polis as Coxon *George Piltz as Tono (as George Pilita) *

Pierre Watkin Pierre Frank Watkin (December 29, 1887 – February 3, 1960) was an American character actor best known for playing distinguished authority figures throughout the Golden Age of Hollywood. He is best remembered for his roles of Mr. Skinner the b ...

as Steinmeyer *

Kenneth Harlan Kenneth Daniel Harlan (July 26, 1895 – March 6, 1967) was a popular American actor during the silent film era, playing mostly romantic leads or adventurer roles. His career extended into the sound film era, but during that span he rarely c ...

as Johnson * Russell Simpson as Baxter

Crew

(Associate Producer) *Sam Koki (Original Music) *

Gilbert Warrenton Gilbert Warrenton (March 7, 1894, Paterson, New Jersey - August 21, 1980, Riverside County, California) was a prominent American silent and sound film cinematographer. He filmed over 150 films before his death. Notable credits include '' The ...

(Cinematographer) *Russell F. Schoengarth (Film Editor) * Scott R. Dunlap (Production Manager) *Harry Knight (Assistant Director) * William A. Wilmarth (Sound Recordist) *

Fred Jackman Fred Wood Jackman Sr. (July 9, 1881 – August 27, 1959), was an American cinematographer and film director of the silent era. He worked on 58 films as a cinematographer between 1916 and 1925. He also directed eleven films between 1919 and ...

(Special Effects) *E.R. Hickson (Technical Director)

Soundtrack

* Warren Hull - "Paradise Isle" (written by Lani McIntyre and

Napo Tuiteleleapaga Napoleon A. Tuiteleleapaga (II) (May 25, 1904 – December 25, 1988) was a prominent figure of both Western and American Samoa. He was a lawyer, author, amateur poet and musician from Leone, Tutuila, American Samoa. He is best known for co ...

) *"Hawaiian Chant" (written by Lani McIntyre and Napo Tuiteleleapaga)

External links

* *
Southseascinema.com
1937 films 1937 adventure films American black-and-white films 1937 romantic drama films Monogram Pictures films American romantic drama films Films set in Oceania Films based on short fiction Films shot in American Samoa Films directed by Arthur Greville Collins 1930s English-language films 1930s American films English-language romantic drama films English-language adventure films {{1930s-romantic-drama-film-stub