Monsieur Beaucaire
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
George Marshall
Bob Hope
Joan Caulfield
Patric Knowles
Marjorie Reynolds
Cecil Kellaway
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
King Philip V of Spain offers his daughter, Princess Maria, as part of a royal union between his country and France in order to avoid war, and asks King Louis XV to pick his most noble Frenchman for her husband. Louis chooses the Duke de Chandre, known for his expert swordsmanship and his popularity with women. The duke is currently involved with Madame Pompadour, who is also favored by the king. The king's barber, Monsieur Beaucaire, a dandy, is in love with beautiful chambermaid Mimi, who hopes to become a lady of the court. When, in the presence of the queen, Beaucaire mentions Madame Pompadour's familiarity with the king, the king exiles him from the palace. Before Beaucaire leaves, he indulges a whim and dons the king's garb, and Mimi, mistaking him for the king, throws herself at him. She is caught by the queen and exiled to Spain. Beaucaire later helps the duke hide Madame Pompadour, and in return the duke helps Beaucaire escape by dressing him as the duke. Beaucaire and the duke leave for Spain with the Count d'Armand, one of the king's men. As Princess Maria travels incognito with her duenna from a Swiss convent via France to Madrid, General Don Francisco, the head of King Philip's army, plans a coup d'état. When the general's men ambush Maria's coach, de Chandre rescues her and they fall in love, unaware of the other's real identity. D'Armand escorts Beaucaire to the palace to pose as de Chandre until he finishes his rendezvous. At the palace, Don Francisco rescues Mimi from Spanish soldiers and offers her a chateau in exchange for her help in killing the duke. Meanwhile, Maria's duenna separates the lovers, and the duke searches for the princess in vain. Mimi steals Beaucaire's sword, leaving him defenseless when the general's soldiers attack him, but de Chandre rescues him. De Chandre and Maria are reunited in the palace gardens, and she refuses to receive her fiancé at King Philip's welcoming banquet. Beaucaire bungles the affair, and the king is furious. When de Chandre is seen leaving Maria's chambers, her duenna has him locked up in the palace dungeon. Only when the general proclaims that de Chandre has dishonored the princess does the duke realize he is to marry the woman he loves, and confesses his identity. The general plans to keep him locked up until after the wedding the next morning, and then to expose King Louis' "double-cross" and incite war. Mimi helps the duke escape, and before the general can have Beaucaire and the king and queen of France arrested, Beaucaire engages him in a swordfight. De Chandre relieves Beaucaire and beats the general, then kisses his bride. King Philip's soldiers then go after the general, and Mimi, believing the soldiers are after her and Beaucaire, flees in a coach, followed by the general who hops on the back. Some time later, in America, General Don Francisco is the shoeshiner at the Beaucaires' barbershop. The Beaucaires also have a baby, who is the spitting image of his father.
Director
George Marshall
Cast
Bob Hope
Joan Caulfield
Patric Knowles
Marjorie Reynolds
Cecil Kellaway
Joseph Schildkraut
Reginald Owen
Constance Collier
Hillary Brooke
Fortunio Bonanova
Douglass Dumbrille
Mary Nash
Leonid Kinskey
Howard Freeman
Anthony Caruso
John Mylong
Jean Del Val
Jean Debriac
Antonio Filauri
Dorothy Vernon
Martin Garralaga
Hugh Prosser
John Maxwell
Alan Hale Jr.
Philip Van Zandt
Crane Whitley
Victor Romito
Rudolph Germaine
Bob Hartford
George Magrill
Jack Mulhall
Charley Cooley
William Meader
Saul Gorss
Eric Alden
Albert Cavens
George Bruggeman
Bert Lebaron
Eddie Hall
Nanette Vallon
Nan Holliday
Yola D'avril
Stan Johnson
Lane Chandler
Nino Pipitone
Paul Bradley
Lynne Lyons
Mona Maris
Helen Freeman
Len Hendry
Ralph Navarro
Charles Coleman
Brandon Hurst
Torben Meyer
Carl Neubert
George Sorel
Al Calm
Don Avalier
Johnnie Berkes
Lewis Russell
William Frambes
Carl Russell
Buddy Roosevelt
Manuel Paris
Catherine Craig
Audrey Young
Noreen Nash
Elaine Riley
Llorna Jordan
Tony Paton
George Lynn
Nina Borget
Sherry Hall
Robert "buddy" Shaw
Crew
Monte Brice
Sam Comer
Billy Daniels
Mary Kay Dodson
Robert Emmett Dolan
Jan Domela
Ross Dowd
Hans Dreier
Josephine Earl
Farciot Edouart
Ray Evans
Melvin Frank
Constance Grant
Loyal Griggs
Earl Hedrick
Devereux Jennings
Gordon Jennings
Don Johnson
Paul Jones
Ken Lane
Paul Lerpae
Lionel Lindon
Jay Livingston
Gene Merritt
Norman Panama
Helen Gladys Percey
William Rand
Irmin Roberts
Eddie Salven
Arthur Schmidt
Gile Steele
Wally Westmore
Philip G. Wisdom
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Bob Hope appears as the baby in the final scene. According to Hollywood Reporter news items, Gail Russell, Paulette Goddard, Olga San Juan and Hedy Lamarr were considered for the female lead in this film. Portions of the film were shot in Chatsworth and in the Santa Monica Mountains, CA. According to a contemporary source, the Louis XV room interiors used in the film were bought from the William Randolph Hearst collection, and Patric Knowles spent five weeks learning 2,000 sword movements for his role as "de Chandre." Several reviews mentioned the hilarity of the slapstick duel that occurs between Beaucaire and the general. Cue called it "one of the funniest duel scenes Hollywood has ever filmed-a duel in which a harpsichord, a harp, a bass 'cello and assorted instruments (none of them swords) play important and comic roles." In 1924, Paramount released Monsieur Beaucaire, which was based on the same source and starred Rudolph Valentino (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1921-30; F2.3681). Bob Hope and Joan Caulfield reprised their roles in a Lux Radio Theatre broadcast on April 14, 1947.
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States on Video May 19, 1993
Released in United States Summer August 30, 1946
Released in United States on Video May 19, 1993
Released in United States Summer August 30, 1946
