Pauline Byrne

Sailors and spies mingle in between the acts at Hattie's nightclub in the Canal Zone.

Hat check man Louis Blore is in love with nightclub star May Daly. May, however, is in love with a poor dancer but wants to marry for money. When Louis wins the Irish Sweepstakes, he asks May to marry him and she accepts even though she doesn't love him. Soon after, Louis has an accident and gets knocked on the head, where he dreams that he's King Louis XV pursuing the infamous Madame Du Barry.

The story—in which an American heiress on holiday in South America falls in love with an Argentine horse breeder against the wishes of their families—takes a backseat to the spectacular location shooting and parade of extravagant musical numbers, which include the larger-than-life Carmen Miranda singing the hit “South American Way” and a showstopping dance routine by the always amazing Nicholas Brothers.

Flanagan is an early film by Thaddeus O’Sullivan, devised when he was a postgraduate student at the Royal College of Art.

A musical which begins with six men and a woman singing; then a dance number; finally, the six men and woman sing again.