1933 in film

Events

March 2 - King Kong premieres in New York City.

June 6 - The first drive-in theater opens, in Camden, New Jersey.

British Film Institute founded.

GPO Film Unit established in the United Kingdom under John Grierson, taking over responsibility for documentary film making from the Empire Marketing Board.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) once again expresses interest in the Wizard of Oz books for a series of animated cartoons, but they once again failed to make a deal with the estate of creator L. Frank Baum

Ecstasy, a Czechoslovak film, shocks audiences when actress Hedy Lamarr is seen naked in the film.

The Private Life of Henry VIII becomes the first British film to win an American Academy Award.

Academy Awards

Best Picture: Cavalcade - Fox

Best Actor: Charles Laughton - The Private Life of Henry VIII

Best Actress: Katharine Hepburn - Morning Glory

1933 film releases

U.S.A. unless stated

January–March

January 1933

3 January

The Bitter Tea of General Yen

10 January

The Vampire Bat

13 January

The Monkey's Paw

20 January

Ecstasy (Czechoslovakia)

21 January

Tonight Is Ours

27 January

She Done Him Wrong

28 January

Hard to Handle

Parachute Jumper

February 1933

3 February

Hallelujah, I'm a Bum

4 February

Ladies They Talk About

10 February

State Fair

17 February

Men Must Fight

18 February

Mystery of the Wax Museum

22 February

The House of Dora Green (Germany)

23 February

Our Betters

24 February

Perfect Understanding (GB)

Topaze

28 February

The Good Companions

March 1933

2 March

King Kong

10 March

Fast Workers

Liebelei (Germany)

11 March

42nd Street

15 March

In the Wake of the Bounty (Australia)

21 March

The Flower of Hawaii (Die Blume von Hawaii)

24 March

Pick-Up

25 March

Okraina (The Outskirts) (U.S.S.R.)

31 March

Gabriel Over the White House

April–June

April 1933

7 April

Zero for Conduct (Zéro de conduite) (France)

14 April

Today We Live

15 April

Cavalcade

20 April

The Working Man

21 April

Supernatural

22 April

A Bedtime Story

27 April

Dragnet Girl (Hijosen no onna)

28 April

Looking Forward

May 1933

5 May

The Devil's Brother

6 May

The Eagle and the Hawk

Picture Snatcher

12 May

The Story of Temple Drake

14 May

A Study in Scarlet

15 May

Ex-Lady

19 May

Adorable

25 May

Don Quixote

26 May

Peg o' My Heart

27 May

Gold Diggers of 1933

International House

29 May

Ganga Bruta (Brazil)

June 1933

9 June

Professional Sweetheart

23 June

The Mayor of Hell

When Ladies Meet

30 June

Hold Your Man

Midnight Mary

July–September

July 1933

1 July

Baby Face

3 July

Loyalties

8 July

It's Great to Be Alive

14 July

Bed of Roses

15 July

She Done Him Wrong

17 June

Heroes for Sale

20 July

Secret of the Blue Room

28 July

The Stranger's Return

29 July

Midnight Club

August 1933

1 August

Employees' Entrance

5 August

Voltaire

8 August

Three-Cornered Moon

13 August

Deluge

16 August

The Power and the Glory

17 August

The Private Life of Henry VIII

18 August

Morning Glory

Pilgrimage

25 August

This Day and Age

Turn Back the Clock

29 August

Dinner at Eight

30 August

S.O.S Iceberg (S.O.S. Eisberg) (Germany)

31 August

Bitter Sweet (GB)

September 1933

1 September

Beauty for Sale

One Sunday Afternoon

7 September

Passing Fancy (Dekigokoro) (Japan)

8 September

Penthouse

Torch Singer

13 September

Lady for a Day

15 September

Berkeley Square

16 September

Bureau of Missing Persons

20 September

Footlight Parade

22 September

Doctor Bull

29 September

The Emperor Jones

October–December

October 1933

6 October

I'm No Angel

7 October

The Bowery

Wild Boys of the Road

13 October

Bombshell

Tillie and Gus

26 October

After Tonight

27 October

Man's Castle

28 October

Ever in My Heart

November 1933

1 November

Only Yesterday

10 November

The Prizefighter and the Lady

13 November

The Invisible Man

16 November

Little Women

17 November

Blood Money

Duck Soup

24 November

Dancing Lady

25 November

The World Changes

December 1933

3 December

Lady Killer

11 December

Counsellor at Law

18 December

By Candlelight

22 December

Alice in Wonderland

Going Hollywood

22 December

The Son of Kong

23 December

The House on 56th Street

Viktor und Viktoria (Germany)

25 December

Roman Scandals

26 December

Queen Christina

29 December

Design for Living

Flying Down to Rio

Sons of the Desert

Notable films released in 1933

U.S.A. unless stated

42nd Street, Directed by Lloyd Bacon, starring Dick Powell, Ruby Keeler, Ginger Rogers

Adorable, directed by William Dieterle, starring Janet Gaynor

Don Quixote, directed by G.W. Pabst, starring Feodor Chaliapin - (France/GB)

After Tonight, starring Constance Bennett

Alice in Wonderland, starring Charlotte Henry and virtually every Paramount star at the time

Baby Face, starring Barbara Stanwyck and George Brent

Beauty for Sale, starring Madge Evans and Alice Brady

Bed of Roses, starring Constance Bennett and Joel McCrea

A Bedtime Story, starring Maurice Chevalier

Berkeley Square

Bitter Sweet, starring Anna Neagle - (GB)

The Bitter Tea of General Yen, starring Barbara Stanwyck

Blood Money, starring George Bancroft

Bombshell, starring Jean Harlow

The Bowery, starring Wallace Beery and George Raft

Bureau of Missing Persons, starring Bette Davis and Pat O'Brien

By Candlelight, directed by James Whale

Cash, directed by Zoltan Korda, starring Robert Donat - (GB)

Cavalcade, starring Diana Wynyard, Clive Brook, Una O'Connor and Herbert Mundin

Der Choral von Leuthen (The Hymn of Leuthen), directed by Carl Froelich - (Germany)

Counsellor at Law, starring John Barrymore and Bebe Daniels

Dancing Lady, starring Joan Crawford and Clark Gable

Daybreak (Tiānmíng) - (China)

Deluge, starring Sidney Blackmer

The Deserter - (U.S.S.R.)

Design for Living, starring Fredric March, Gary Cooper and Miriam Hopkins

The Devil's Brother, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

Dick Turpin, directed by Victor Hanbury, starring Victor McLaglen (GB)

Dinner at Eight, directed by George Cukor and featuring an all-star cast

Doctor Bull, starring Will Rogers

Dora's Dunking Doughnuts, starring Shirley Temple

Dragnet Girl (Hijosen no onna), starring Kinuyo Tanaka, directed by Yasujirō Ozu - (Japan)

Duck Soup, directed by Leo McCarey, starring the Marx Brothers

The Eagle and the Hawk, starring Fredric March, Cary Grant, Carole Lombard

Ecstasy, starring Hedy Lamarr - (Czechoslovakia)

The Emperor Jones, starring Paul Robeson

Employees' Entrance, starring Warren William and Loretta Young

Ever in My Heart, starring Barbara Stanwyck

Ex-Lady, starring Bette Davis

Fast Workers, starring John Gilbert and Mae Clarke

The Flower of Hawaii (Die Blume von Hawaii), directed by Richard Oswald - (Germany)

Flüchtlinge (Refugees) - (Germany)

Flying Down to Rio, starring Dolores del Río and Gene Raymond. Also starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in their first of 10 films together

Footlight Parade, starring James Cagney, Joan Blondell and Ruby Keeler

Friday the Thirteenth, directed by Victor Saville, starring Jessie Matthews - (GB)

Gabriel Over the White House, directed by Gregory La Cava, starring Walter Huston, Produced by William Randolph Hearst

Ganga Bruta, directed by Humberto Mauro, starring Durval Bellini and Déa Selva (Brazil)

The Ghoul, starring Boris Karloff, Cedric Hardwicke and Ernest Thesiger - (GB)

The Ghost Camera, directed by Bernard Vorhaus, starring Ida Lupino, John Mills - (GB)

Going Hollywood, starring Marion Davies, Bing Crosby, Patsy Kelly, Fifi D'Orsay, and Sterling Holloway

Gold Diggers of 1933, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell, Ginger Rogers and Warren William

The Good Companions, directed by Victor Saville, starring Jessie Matthews, Edmund Gwenn and John Gielgud - (GB)

Goodbye Again, starring Joan Blondell and Warren William

Hallelujah, I'm a Bum, starring Al Jolson

Hard to Handle, starring James Cagney

Heroes for Sale, starring Loretta Young and Richard Barthelmess

Hold Your Man, starring Jean Harlow and Clark Gable

The House on 56th Street, starring Kay Francis

The House of Dora Green, directed by Henrik Galeen, starring Mady Christians - (Germany)

I'm No Angel, starring Mae West and Cary Grant. West also wrote the story and screenplay.

In the Wake of the Bounty, starring Errol Flynn as Fletcher Christian - (Australia)

International House, starring W. C. Fields, George Burns, Gracie Allen

The Invisible Man, starring Claude Rains in the title role with Gloria Stuart

It's Great to Be Alive, directed by Alfred L. Werker and starring Raul Roulien and Gloria Stuart

Każdemu wolno kochać (Anybody Can Love), by Mieczysław Krawicz - (Poland)

King Kong, starring Fay Wray and Robert Armstrong

Ladies They Talk About, starring Barbara Stanwyck

Lady for a Day, directed by Frank Capra, starring Warren William and May Robson

Lady Killer, starring James Cagney

Liebelei, directed by Max Ophüls - (Germany)

Life Is a Dog (Život je pes), directed by Martin Frič - (Czechoslovakia)

Little Toys (Xiáo wǎnyì), directed by Sun Yu - (China)

Little Women, directed by George Cukor, starring Katharine Hepburn and Joan Bennett

Looking Forward, directed by Clarence Brown, starring Lionel Barrymore

Lot in Sodom, starring Friedrich Haak

Loyalties, starring Basil Rathbone - (GB)

Man's Castle, starring Spencer Tracy and Loretta Young

The Mayor of Hell, starring James Cagney

Men Must Fight, starring Diana Wynyard

Midnight Club, starring George Raft and Clive Brook

Midnight Mary, directed by William A. Wellman, starring Loretta Young

The Midnight Patrol, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

Money for Speed, directed by Bernard Vorhaus, starring John Loder and Ida Lupino - (GB)

The Monkey's Paw, directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack

Morning Glory, starring Katharine Hepburn and Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

Mystery of the Wax Museum, starring Lionel Atwill and Fay Wray

Okraina (The Outskirts) - (U.S.S.R.)

One Sunday Afternoon, starring Gary Cooper and Fay Wray

Only Yesterday, starring Margaret Sullavan

Our Betters, starring Constance Bennett, Gilbert Roland, and Anita Louise

Parachute Jumper, starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Bette Davis, and Frank McHugh

Passing Fancy (Dekigokoro), directed by Yasujirō Ozu - (Japan)

Peg o' My Heart, starring Marion Davies, Onslow Stevens, and J. Farrell MacDonald

Penthouse, starring Warner Baxter and Myrna Loy

Perfect Understanding, starring Gloria Swanson and Laurence Olivier - (GB)

Pick-Up, starring Sylvia Sydney and George Raft

Picture Snatcher, starring James Cagney

Pilgrimage, directed by John Ford

The Power and the Glory, starring Spencer Tracy

The Private Life of Henry VIII, directed by Alexander Korda, starring Charles Laughton - (GB)

The Prizefighter and the Lady, starring Max Baer, Myrna Loy, Primo Carnera and Jack Dempsey

Professional Sweetheart, starring Ginger Rogers

Queen Christina, directed by Rouben Mamoulian, starring Greta Garbo and John Gilbert

Roman Scandals, starring Eddie Cantor, Ruth Etting, Gloria Stuart

S.O.S Iceberg (S.O.S. Eisberg), starring Leni Riefenstahl - (Germany)

Secret of the Blue Room, starring Paul Lukas, Gloria Stuart and Lionel Atwill

Secrets, starring Mary Pickford in her last film

She Done Him Wrong, starring Mae West and Cary Grant in his first notable film role

She Had to Say Yes, starring Loretta Young and Lyle Talbot, directed by Busby Berkeley and George Amy

The Son of Kong, starring Robert Armstrong and Helen Mack

Sons of the Desert, starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy

A Southern Maid, starring Bebe Daniels and Clifford Mollison - (GB)

'Spring Silkworms (Chung Can) - (China)

State Fair, starring Janet Gaynor, Will Rogers and Lew Ayres

The Story of Temple Drake, starring Miriam Hopkins and Jack La Rue

The Stranger's Return, starring Miriam Hopkins and Lionel Barrymore

A Study in Scarlet, starring Reginald Owen

Supernatural, starring Carole Lombard, Alan Dinehart, Vivienne Osborne and Randolph Scott

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, directed by Fritz Lang, starring Otto Wernicke - (Germany)

This Day and Age, Cecil B. Demille's now cult-favorite, starring Richard Cromwell and featuring then-teenager: Baby Peggy.

This Week of Grace' directed by Maurice Elvey, starring Gracie Fields - (Britain)

Three-Cornered Moon, starring Claudette Colbert and Richard Arlen

Three Little Pigs, an animated short

Tillie and Gus, starring Alison Skipworth and W. C. Fields

Today We Live, starring Joan Crawford and Gary Cooper

Tonight Is Ours, starring Fredric March and Claudette Colbert

Topaze, starring John Barrymore and Myrna Loy

Torch Singer, starring Claudette Colbert

Tugboat Annie, starring Marie Dressler and Wallace Beery

Turn Back the Clock, starring Lee Tracy and Mae Clarke

The Vampire Bat, starring Lionel Atwill and Fay Wray

Viktor und Viktoria - (Germany)

Voltaire, starring George Arliss

When Ladies Meet, starring Ann Harding, Robert Montgomery and Myrna Loy

The World Changes, starring Mary Astor and Paul Muni

Wild Boys of the Road, starring Frankie Darro and Edwin Phillips

The Working Man, starring George Arliss and Bette Davis

You Made Me Love You starring Stanley Lupino and Thelma Todd - (GB)

Zero for Conduct (Zéro de conduite), directed by Jean Vigo - (France)

Serials

Clancy of the Mounted

Fighting with Kit Carson

Gordon of Ghost City

The Mystery Squadron

The Perils of Pauline, starring Evalyn Knapp

The Phantom of the Air

The Return of Chandu

Tarzan the Fearless, starring Buster Crabbe

The Three Musketeers, starring Jack Mulhall and John Wayne

The Whispering Shadow, starring Bela Lugosi

The Wolf Dog, starring Rin Tin Tin

Comedy film series

Harold Lloyd (1913–1938)

Charlie Chaplin (1914–1940)

Lupino Lane (1915–1939)

Buster Keaton (1917–1944)

Laurel and Hardy (1921–1945)

Dirty Work

Our Gang (1922–1944)

Harry Langdon (1924–1936)

Wheeler and Woolsey (1929–1937)

Marx Brothers (1929–1946)

The Three Stooges (1933-1962)

Animated short film series

Aesop's Film Fables (1921-1933)

Krazy Kat (1925–1940)

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (1927–1938)

Mickey Mouse (1928–1953)

Silly Symphonies

Birds in the Spring

Father Noah's Ark

Three Little Pigs

Old King Cole

Lullaby Land

The Pied Piper

The Night Before Christmas

Screen Songs (1929–1938)

Looney Tunes (1930–1969)

Flip the Frog (1930-1933)

Terrytoons (1930–1964)

Merrie Melodies (1931–1969)

Scrappy (1931–1941)

Tom and Jerry (Van Beuren) (1931-1933)

Betty Boop (1932–1939)

Betty Boop's Ker-Choo

Betty Boop's Crazy Inventions

Is My Palm Read?

Betty Boop's Penthouse

Snow White

Betty Boop's Birthday Party

Betty Boop's May Party

Betty Boop's Big Boss

Mother Goose Land

Popeye the Sailor (first Popeye cartoon)

The Old Man of the Mountain

I Heard

Morning, Noon and Night

Betty Boop's Hallowe'en Party

Parade of the Wooden Soldiers

Popeye (1933-1957)

Popeye the Sailor (Betty Boop cartoon)

Pooch the Pup (1932-1933)

Willie Whopper (1933-1934)

ComiColor Cartoons (1933-1936)

Cubby Bear (1933-1934)

The Little King (1933-1934)

Births

January 8 - Jean-Marie Straub, French director (died 2006)

January 12 - Liliana Cavani, Italian director

January 18 - John Boorman, English director

January 23 - Chita Rivera, American actress, dancer and singer

January 28 - Jack Hill, American director and screenwriter

February 13 - Kim Novak, American actress

February 18 - Mary Ure, Scottish actress (died 1975)

March 14 - Michael Caine, English actor

April 5 - Frank Gorshin, actor and comedian (died 2005)

April 19 - Jayne Mansfield, actress (died 1967)

April 26 - Carol Burnett, actress, television host and comedian

May 10 - Francoise Fabian, French actress

May 23 - Joan Collins, English actress

June 11 - Gene Wilder, American comic actor (died 2016)

June 20 - Danny Aiello, American actor

July 29 - Lou Albano, Italian-born American professional wrestler and actor (died 2009)

August 1 - Dom DeLuise, American actor and comedian (died 2009)

August 2 - Tom Bell, English actor (died 2006)

August 16 - Julie Newmar, actress, dancer and singer

August 18 - Roman Polanski, Polish director

August 25 - Tom Skerritt, American actor

August 28 - Philip French, English critic (died 2015)

September 18 - Robert Blake, American actor

November 3 - Jeremy Brett, English actor (died 1995)

November 28 - Hope Lange, actress (died 2003)

December 15 - Tim Conway, actor and comedian

Deaths

January 3 – Jack Pickford, Canadian-born American actor and director

January 25 – Lewis J. Selznick, Ukrainian-born American producer

February 15 – Pat Sullivan, Australian-born American director/producer of animated films, alleged co-creator of Felix the Cat

February 23 – David Horsley, English-born American film executive

February 26 – Spottiswoode Aitken, American actor

March 8 – Alan Roscoe, American actor

March 23 – Francine Mussey, French actress

June 29 – Roscoe Arbuckle, American actor

August 18 – James Williamson, Scottish film developer and film director

August 28 – Helen Dunbar, American actress

September 24 – Ferdinand Bonn, German actor

October 5 – Renée Adorée, French actress

October 30 – Svend Kornbeck, Danish actor

December 19 – Jimmie Adams, American comedian

Film debuts

Morris Ankrum - Reunion in Vienna

Dame Peggy Ashcroft - The Wandering Jew

Fred Astaire - Flying Down to Rio

Lucille Ball - The Bowery

Frances Drake - The Jewel

Errol Flynn - In the Wake of the Bounty

Margaret Hamilton - Another Language

Phil Harris - Melody Cruise

Will Hay - Know Your Apples

King Kong

Dorothy Lamour - Footlight Parade

Cesar Romero - The Shadow Laughs

Margaret Sullavan - Only Yesterday