The Princess and the Pirate finds Virginia Mayo taken prisoner by the infamous pirate the Hook played by Victor McLaglen. She's a princess who's run away to marry a commoner, a reverse on what had happened in the United Kingdom a few years back. Unfortunately the only help she can find is a ham actor who's running away from bad notices and bill collectors and he's none other than Bob Hope.
Hope did two films for Samuel Goldwyn and Goldwyn paid dear to Paramount for his services. Right after this film, success though it was, the price for Hope's services convinced Goldwyn he'd better sign a comedy star of his own as he had in the Thirties with Eddie Cantor. That was why Danny Kaye was brought over from New York to start his Hollywood career in Goldwyn's next film.
But The Princess and the Pirate turned out to be one of the biggest successes for both Sam Goldwyn and Bob Hope. Hope is really at the top of his game in this one. Virginia Mayo makes a perfect foil for Hope, it's a pity she didn't do more films with him. Walter Brennan plays an addled old pirate who's not quite as dumb as he lets everyone think he is and he and McLaglen compete with Hope for laughs.
The only one who looks like he's enjoying himself, but playing it very straight is crooked island governor Walter Slezak. He's got a working arrangement with McLaglen, but the two of them aren't above a little double cross.
Of course this is a Bob Hope movie and Hope manages to blunder his way through to survival. But as we learn he loses Mayo right at the end to a visiting bit player from Paramount.
Hope did make good on his word, he never did do another film for Goldwyn again. I guess he wanted to go out on a high note and The Princess and the Pirate is as high a comic note as Bob Hope ever struck in any of his films. Not to be missed by his legion of fans.
