La Cucaracha (1934 film)
Encyclopedia
La Cucaracha is a 1934 short musical film
directed by Lloyd Corrigan
. It was designed by Pioneer Pictures
to display the new full-color Technicolor
Process No. 4 ("three-strip" Technicolor), which had been used since 1932 mainly in Walt Disney
cartoons. Jock Whitney
and his cousin C. V. Whitney
, the owners of Pioneer, were also major investors in Technicolor, Inc.
La Cucaracha was made like a short feature and cost about $65,000. The usual short cost little more than $15,000.
Although La Cucaracha is sometimes called the first live-action use of Process No. 4, it was preceded by a musical number in the feature film The Cat and the Fiddle, released by MGM
in February 1934, and in some short sequences filmed for other movies made during 1934, including the final sequences of The House of Rothschild (20th Century Pictures/United Artists
) with George Arliss
. Also, Warner Brothers released two Leon Errol
shorts, Service With a Smile (28 July 1934) and Good Morning, Eve! (5 August 1934), just before La Cucaracha.
Producer Kenneth Macgowan
won an Academy Award in 1935
for Best Short Subject (Comedy)
for this film.
Musical film
The musical film is a film genre in which songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, though in some cases they serve merely as breaks in the storyline, often as elaborate...
directed by Lloyd Corrigan
Lloyd Corrigan
Lloyd Corrigan was an American film actor, producer, screenwriter and director who began working in films in the 1920s...
. It was designed by Pioneer Pictures
Pioneer Pictures
Pioneer Pictures, Inc. was a Hollywood motion picture company, most noted for its early commitment to making color films. Pioneer was initially affiliated with RKO Pictures, whose production facilities in Culver City, California were used by Pioneer, and who distributed Pioneer's films...
to display the new full-color Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
Process No. 4 ("three-strip" Technicolor), which had been used since 1932 mainly in Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
cartoons. Jock Whitney
John Hay Whitney
John Hay Whitney , colloquially known as "Jock" Whitney, was U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, publisher of the New York Herald Tribune, and a member of the Whitney family.-Family:...
and his cousin C. V. Whitney
Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney
Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney was an American businessman, film producer, writer, and government official, as well as the owner of a leading stable of thoroughbred racehorses....
, the owners of Pioneer, were also major investors in Technicolor, Inc.
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
La Cucaracha was made like a short feature and cost about $65,000. The usual short cost little more than $15,000.
Although La Cucaracha is sometimes called the first live-action use of Process No. 4, it was preceded by a musical number in the feature film The Cat and the Fiddle, released by MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
in February 1934, and in some short sequences filmed for other movies made during 1934, including the final sequences of The House of Rothschild (20th Century Pictures/United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
) with George Arliss
George Arliss
George Arliss was an English actor, author and filmmaker who found success in the United States. He was the first British actor to win an Academy Award.-Life and career:...
. Also, Warner Brothers released two Leon Errol
Leon Errol
Leon Errol , was an Australian-born American comedian and actor, popular in the first half of the 20th century.-Biography:...
shorts, Service With a Smile (28 July 1934) and Good Morning, Eve! (5 August 1934), just before La Cucaracha.
Producer Kenneth Macgowan
Kenneth Macgowan
Kenneth Macgowan was an American film producer. He won an Academy Award for Best Color Short Film for La Cucaracha , the first live-action short film made in the three-color Technicolor process....
won an Academy Award in 1935
7th Academy Awards
The 7th Academy Awards, honoring the best in film for 1934, were held on February 27, 1935 at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California. They were hosted by Irvin S...
for Best Short Subject (Comedy)
Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film
This name for the Academy Award for Live Action Short Film was introduced in 1974. For the three preceding years it was known as "Short Subjects, Live Action Films." The term "Short Subjects, Live Action Subjects" was used from 1957 until 1970. From 1936 until 1956 there were two separate...
for this film.
Cast
- Steffi DunaSteffi DunaSteffi Duna was a Hungarian-born film actress popular in American and British films during the 1930s.-Hungarian Dancer:...
as Chatita - Don AlvaradoDon AlvaradoDon Alvarado was an American actor, assistant film director, and film production manager.-Life and career:Born as José Paige in Albuquerque, New Mexico...
as Pancho - Paul PorcasiPaul PorcasiPaul Porcasi was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 142 films between 1917 and 1945.He was born in Palermo, Sicily and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:* Broadway...
as Señor Esteban Martinez - Eduardo Durant as Orchestra Leader