BIRD OF PARADISE

 "BIRD OF PARADISE" --- (1932) --- 

SYNOPSIS: "When a young South Seas sailor falls overboard, the beautiful daughter of a Polynesian king dives in and saves his life. Thus begins the romance of Johnny and Luana. Though Luana is promised to another man, Johnny whisks her away, and for a brief time the lovers live very happily together. But, when a local volcano threatens their lives, Luana knows that she must sacrifice herself to the volcanic gods in order to save her island."

STARRING: Joel McCrea, Dolores del Río, Lon Chaney, Jr., John Halliday, Bert Roach and Richard "Skeets" Gallagher.

SCREENPLAY: Wells Root, Wanda Tuchock and Leonard Praskins; Based on The Bird of Paradise - 1912 play by Richard Walton Tully.

DIRECTOR: King Vidor

INTERESTING FILM FACTS:

The native dance sequences were boom-shot in Hollywood and choreographed by an uncredited Busby Berkeley.

This film was almost the first sound film to utilize a full symphonic score from beginning to end.

The Film created a scandal after its release owing to a scene which appeared to show Dolores del Río swimming naked. She was, in fact, wearing a flesh-colored G-string. The film was made before the Production Code was strictly enforced, so brief nudity in American movies is still allowed and was seen in a few films.