Slave Girl
Cast & Crew
Charles Lamont
Yvonne Decarlo
George Brent
Broderick Crawford
Albert Dekker
Lois Collier
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Southern playboy Matt Claibourne is called to the majestic estate of his uncle, a U.S. Senator, who informs him that he has ruined the family name once too often. In order to avoid further scandal, the Senator sends Matt on a government mission to Tripoli, where he is to arrange for the release of ten American seamen held hostage by Barbary pirates. To protect the ransom and his nephew, the Senator hires Chips Jackson as Matt's bodyguard. Arriving in Tripoli, Matt quickly falls for the charms of Francesca, an alluring dancing girl, while bargain-hunter Chips purchases a beautiful slave girl named Aleta. After Francesca and her cohorts steal the Americans' ransom, Matt and Chips fill the now-empty strongbox with bricks and deliver it to the Pasha. When the Pasha discovers the deception, Matt confesses all and claims that Chips is arranging for new payment through the American consul. Matt then recognizes Francesca among the dancing girls, only to be informed that she is the Pasha's fiancée. After being warned by Yusef, the Pasha's chief advisor, that familiarity with Francesca would mean death for both of them, Matt recants his identification and is thrown into the dungeon with the hostage sailors. Meanwhile, the Pasha announces his intention to force Francesca to marry him, though she is secretly in love with El Hamid, the Pasha's political rival. When Chips is later captured by the Pasha's men, all hope seems lost for Matt and the sailors until Aleta appears with the key to the dungeon. With the help of Thomas "Liverpool" Griswald, a British prisoner, the Americans make their escape into the night. Knowing that their only way home is to recover the stolen ransom, Matt and the seamen go in search of Francesca, unaware that she is now the Pasha's prisoner, having been caught in a compromising position by Yusef. Before Francesca is put on the torture rack, however, the Americans break into the palace and free her. They all go to the "Sign of the Grapes" café, where Francesca tells Matt that she is an Italian who was captured by the Pasha while on her way to Paris, and that she stole his gold in order to finance El Hamid's revolution against the Pasha. When Matt still refuses to let her keep the ransom, Francesca escapes the café and heads to El Hamid's camp. She is followed by Matt and his men, and at the camp, El Hamid informs them that he plans to use the gold to purchase 1,000 mercenary troops. El Hamid then asks Matt to join his cause, offering to double the lost gold with riches captured from the Pasha's coffers. Later, when he meets with Telek Taurog, a desert chieftain, El Hamid reveals his plan to betray the Americans, as well as agreeing to Telek's demand for the favors of Francesca. Aleta overhears El Hamid's deceptions, however, so the Americans fight off the Arabs and make off with both the gold and Francesca. While the Americans argue about how they will leave Tripoli, however, Liverpool informs them that the camel carrying the gold has run off. Matt and Francesca chase the camel into the Pasha's camp, where they once again become his prisoners. After Francesca confesses her love for Matt, the Pasha orders the two executed by firing squad, but before the execution takes place, they are rescued by Liverpool and the sailors. Soon they all become trapped in the mountainside by the Pasha's men, so Francesca rides to El Hamid's camp with the gold and entices them to follow her back to the mountainside. The two Arab forces then attack and kill one another, and the Americans happily leave Tripoli with both the gold and the women.
Director
Charles Lamont
Cast
Yvonne Decarlo
George Brent
Broderick Crawford
Albert Dekker
Lois Collier
Andy Devine
Arthur Treacher
Carl Esmond
Dan Seymour
Philip Van Zandt
Trevor Bardette
Humpy
Eddie Dunn
Mickey Simpson
Rex Lease
George J. Lewis
Jack Ingram
Harold Goodwin
Don Turner
Phil Schumacher
Jack Shutta
Paul Bratti
Joseph Haworth
Toni Raimondo
June Marlowe
Shimen Ruskin
Nancy Brinckman
Roseanne Murray
Harry Cording
Noble Johnson
Jack Reitzen
Raman Al Amar
Yussef Ali
Gerardo Sei Groves
Rudolph Medina
Harry Lamont
Tony Del Rio
Bert Richman
Eddie Abdo
Michael Gaddis
Laciba Sonami
Lloyd Ingraham
Crew
Glenn E. Anderson
Howard Benedict
Si-lan Chen
Carmen Dirigo
Charles Felstead
Michael Fessier
Michael Fessier
William Fritzsche
Russell A. Gausman
W. Howard Greene
Frank Gross
Abraham Grossman
Natalie Kalmus
Ernest Pagano
Ernest Pagano
Jack P. Pierce
Edward R. Robinson
George Robinson
Milton Rosen
Ralph Slosser
David Tamkin
Ben Turpin
Yvonne Wood
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Flame of Tripoli. The film begins with the following written foreword: "This tale was liberally adapted from an old Tripoli legend which reads simply:" The legend is then written in Arabic without translation. As the legend was scored with comedic music, it is highly likely that the characters were nonsensical. The onscreen credits for Michael Fessier and Ernest Pagano read: "Written for the screen and produced by." Throughout the film, Humpy, the "talking" camel, delivers humorous pieces of narration. According to New York Times, Slave Girl was originally shot as a serious melodrama. When they realized that the film was not working, Fessier and Pagano tried to punch up the film at the last minute with some comedic moments. After test screenings, however, Universal executives discovered that they had a $1,600,000 "turkey" on their hands. The picture sat on the shelf for months, then was assigned to executive producer William Dozier. Aware that the only positive reactions test audiences had to the film were to scenes featuring a camel, Dozier inserted a title card, with a picture of the camel on it, which read: "Look, folks, this is a comedy. You're supposed to laugh." When audiences responded to the card, Dozier then ordered the addition of the talking camel narrator.
According to Hollywood Reporter news items, actress Dona Drake was originally cast in the role of "Aleta." She become ill with yellow jaundice, however, which required her hospitalization for six weeks. She was then replaced in the role by Lois Collier. Hollywood Reporter news items and production charts include Kurt Katch in the cast, but his appearance in the released film has not been confirmed. According to Hollywood Reporter news items, some scenes were shot near Malibu, CA, where high tides washed out an Arab tent village set.
