Strike Me Lucky
Encyclopedia
Strike Me Lucky is a 1934 comedy starring popular stage comic Roy Rene
in his first and only film.
impersonator Kate (Yvonne Banvard) kidnap the girl and Mo is blamed for her disappearance. He and Donald take off into the bush looking for a gold mine (a storyline inspired by the 1930 expedition to find Lasseter's Reef
), where they are attacked by a tribe of cannibals before discovering their names are cleared.
". The female ingenue part was played by 18 year old actor from amateur theatre and an acting family, Lorraine Smith.
Cinesound almost doubled the size of their studio to make the film, and also in anticipation for what they thought would be a boost in production following the introduction of a film quota. Shooting took place in June and July 1934.
claims it was the only one of his films not to go straight into profit, blaming the poor script and Roy Rene's awkwardness in front of the camera as opposed to a live audience. He also felt that Rene was too adult in his humor. "He was a very funny man, wonderfully talented," said Hall later. "But he wasn't a 'family' comic. You didn't take the kids."
Roy Rene
Roy Rene , born Harry van der Sluys, was an Australian comedian and vaudevillian. As the bawdy character Mo McCackie, Rene was one of the most well-known and successful Australian comedians of the 20th century. Roy Rene was born in Adelaide in the 15 of February 1892 with the name Harry van der...
in his first and only film.
Synopsis
‘Mo’ McIsaac (Roy Rene) and his sidekick Donald (Alex McKinnon) try to find work to support a young orphan girl he finds dancing for pennies in the street, Miriam ('Baby’ Pamela Bevan), unaware she is really the missing daughter of rich aristocrat, Major Burnett (Dan Agar). Gangster Al Baloney (Eric Masters) and Mae WestMae West
Mae West was an American actress, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades....
impersonator Kate (Yvonne Banvard) kidnap the girl and Mo is blamed for her disappearance. He and Donald take off into the bush looking for a gold mine (a storyline inspired by the 1930 expedition to find Lasseter's Reef
Lasseter's Reef
Lasseter's Reef refers to the purported discovery, in 1897, of a fabulously rich gold deposit in a remote and desolate corner of central Australia...
), where they are attacked by a tribe of cannibals before discovering their names are cleared.
Production
'Baby' Pamela Bevan was only five years old and was advertised as "Australia's Shirley TempleShirley Temple
Shirley Temple Black , born Shirley Jane Temple, is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, autobiographer, and former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia...
". The female ingenue part was played by 18 year old actor from amateur theatre and an acting family, Lorraine Smith.
Cinesound almost doubled the size of their studio to make the film, and also in anticipation for what they thought would be a boost in production following the introduction of a film quota. Shooting took place in June and July 1934.
Reception
The film was not a success at the box office, despite a strong reception at first, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne. Director Ken G. HallKen G. Hall
Kenneth George Hall, AO OBE , better known as Ken G. Hall, was an Australian film director, considered one of the most important figures in the history of the Australian film industry.-Early years:...
claims it was the only one of his films not to go straight into profit, blaming the poor script and Roy Rene's awkwardness in front of the camera as opposed to a live audience. He also felt that Rene was too adult in his humor. "He was a very funny man, wonderfully talented," said Hall later. "But he wasn't a 'family' comic. You didn't take the kids."
Cast
- Roy ReneRoy ReneRoy Rene , born Harry van der Sluys, was an Australian comedian and vaudevillian. As the bawdy character Mo McCackie, Rene was one of the most well-known and successful Australian comedians of the 20th century. Roy Rene was born in Adelaide in the 15 of February 1892 with the name Harry van der...
as ‘Mo’ McIsaac - Alex McKinnon as Donald
- 'Baby' Pamela Bevan as Miriam
- Eric Masters as Al Baloney
- Yvonne Banvard as Kate
External links
- Strike Me Lucky in the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Me Lucky at Australian Screen OnlineAustralian Screen OnlineAustralian Screen Online is an on-line database operated by the Australian National Film and Sound Archive. It provides information about and excerpts from a wide selection of Australian feature films, documentaries, television programs, newsreels, short films, animations, and home-movies. It also...
- 'Strike Me Lucky: Social Difference and Consumer Culture in Roy Rene’s Only Film' by Lesley Speed at Senses of CinemaSenses of CinemaSenses of Cinema is a quarterly online film magazine founded in 1999 by filmmaker Bill Mousoulis. Based in Melbourne, Australia, Senses of Cinema publishes work by film critics from all over the world, including critical essays, career overviews of the works of key directors, and coverage of many...
Issue 52