The Kissing Bandit (film)

The Kissing Bandit is a 1948 American comedy musical Western film directed by László Benedek. It stars Frank Sinatra and Kathryn Grayson, with J. Carrol Naish in a supporting role, and Ricardo Montalbán, Ann Miller and Cyd Charisse in cameo roles.

Plot
In the early nineteenth century, Ricardo, the son of a robber known as the Kissing Bandit, is a shy, Boston-bred young man who does not know how to sit on a horse. He falls for the daughter of the Spanish Governor of California.

Cast

 * Frank Sinatra as Ricardo
 * Kathryn Grayson as Teresa
 * J. Carrol Naish as Chico
 * Mildred Natwick as Isabella
 * Mikhail Rasumny as Don Jose
 * Billy Gilbert as General Felipe Torro
 * Sono Osato as Bianca
 * Clinton Sundberg as Colonel Gomez
 * Carleton G. Young as Count Ricardo Belmonte
 * Ricardo Montalbán as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
 * Ann Miller as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
 * Cyd Charisse as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
 * Sally Forrest as Fiesta Specialty Dancer
 * Edna Skinner as Juanita
 * Vicente Gómez as Mexican Guitarist
 * Mitchell Lewis as Fernando (uncredited)

Songs

 * "Tomorrow Means Romance" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by William Katz) – Sung by Kathryn Grayson
 * "What's Wrong With Me?" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Earl K. Brent) – Sung by Kathryn Grayson, Frank Sinatra
 * "If I Steal a Kiss" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Edward Heyman) – Sung by Frank Sinatra; reprised by Kathryn Grayson
 * "I Like You" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Edward Heyman) – Sung and danced by Sono Osato
 * "Siesta" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Edward Heyman) – Sung by Frank Sinatra
 * "Dance of Fury" (music by Nacio Herb Brown) – Danced by Ricardo Montalban, Cyd Charisse and Ann Miller
 * "Señorita" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Earl K. Brent) – Sung by Frank Sinatra and Kathryn Grayson
 * "Love Is Where You Find It" (music by Nacio Herb Brown; lyrics by Earl K. Brent) – Sung by Kathryn Grayson

Reception
The film was a financial disaster, earning $969,000 in the US and Canada and $412,000 overseas, resulting in a loss to MGM of $2,643,000. This made it one of the least successful musicals in MGM history.

It was reviewed unfavorably in Picturegoer: "The progress of [the] romance is uninspired and very dull. The one worthwhile performance comes from J. Carrol Naish as The Kissing Bandit 's henchman."

On an episode of the radio show, Light Up Time, Sinatra referred to himself as "star of The Kissing Bandit, the script of which somebody should have put a match to."

Australian armed robbery
On December 10, 1950, a 19-year-old Estonian Australian immigrant named Peeter Pedaja hijacked a motorcycle while brandishing a toy gun somewhere on the road near Gympie, Queensland. Heading farther south, he forced a car to stop between Landsborough and Nambour, and demanded money from the driver before speeding off, eventually being arrested by Queensland police. He told the court that he meant no harm, and was inspired to "do something unusual" after watching The Kissing Bandit. Pedaja was released on a suspended sentence, and was eventually proclaimed "The Kissing Bandit in Real Life" by the Australian media.