''Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round'' is a 1934 American
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...
with musical and comedic elements, directed by
Benjamin Stoloff
Benjamin Stoloff (October 6, 1895 – September 8, 1960) was an American film director and producer. He began his career as a director of short films, and he moved into directing and producing feature films.
Director filmography 1940s–1950s
*' ...
.
Plot
Gangster Lee Lother (
Sidney Blackmer
Sidney Alderman Blackmer (July 13, 1895 – October 6, 1973) was an American Broadway theatre, Broadway and film actor active between 1914 and 1971, usually in major supporting roles.
Biography
Blackmer was born and raised in Salisbury, ...
) is shot and killed during an ocean liner cruise, and we're introduced in flashback to the interwoven stories and characters of the suspects: con-man and jewel-thief Jimmy Brett and his accomplice, a wife who bids goodbye to her husband without realizing he'll stowaway to spy on her, the star of the ship's entertainment revue and her brother with gambling debts, and the Inspector who interrupts his vacation to solve the case.
The film's many musical numbers include a Busby Berkeley-like number with chorus girls in geometric patterns filmed from overhead. A song performed by The Boswell Sisters titled "Rock and Roll", written by Richard A. Whiting and Sidney Clare, is sometimes credited as the first use of that term in a popular song, although in this case the lyrics referred to the motion of the ocean.
Sidney Blackmer
Sidney Alderman Blackmer (July 13, 1895 – October 6, 1973) was an American Broadway theatre, Broadway and film actor active between 1914 and 1971, usually in major supporting roles.
Biography
Blackmer was born and raised in Salisbury, ...
Allan Cavan
Allan Cavan (March 25, 1880 – January 19, 1941) was an American film actor. He appeared in 145 films between 1917 and 1941.
Cavan was the son of Mrs. Averila Cavan, and he had a brother, Carl. He began working on films with Sam Goldwyn S ...
as Ship's Officer (uncredited)
* André Cheron as Frenchman (uncredited)
* Wallis Clark as Ship's Captain (uncredited)
* Don Douglas as Purser (uncredited)
* Bess Flowers as Woman in Audience (uncredited)
*
Mary Forbes
Mary Forbes (born Ethel Louise Young; 1 January 1883 – 22 July 1974) was a British-American film actress, based in the United States in her latter years, where she died. She appeared in more than 130 films from 1919 to 1958.Esther Howard as Passenger (uncredited)
*
Wilfred Lucas
Wilfred Van Norman Lucas (January 30, 1871 – December 13, 1940) was a Canadian American stage actor who found success in film as an actor, director, and screenwriter.
Early life
Lucas was born in Norfolk County, Ontario on January 30, 1871,US ...
as Policeman at Dock (uncredited)
* Tom McGuire as Detective (uncredited)
* Wedgwood Nowell as Waiter (uncredited)
*
Dennis O'Keefe
Dennis O'Keefe (born Edward Vance Flanagan; March 29, 1908 – August 31, 1968) was an American actor.
Early years
O'Keefe was born in Fort Madison, Iowa, as Edward Vance Flanagan, the son of Edward J. Flanagan and Charlotte Flanagan ( ...
as Passenger Watching Revue (uncredited)
* Lee Phelps as Porter at Dock (uncredited)
* Syd Saylor as Campbell's Taxi Driver (uncredited)
* Larry Steers as Passenger Asked to Get Purser (uncredited)
Production
London comic Sydney Howard was imported to star. The original title was ''London Showboat'' or ''Showboat of 1934''.