Morocco (film) agreed to bring the German actress to Hollywood under a two-picture contract, in February 1930. When Dietrich arrived in the United States to begin filming "Morocco" "[she] was subjected to the full power of Paramount's public relations machine" launching her into "international stardom" "before" American moviegoers had seen her as Lola Lola in "The Blue Angel", which appeared in U.S. theatres in 1931. Premiering in New York City on December 6, 1930, "Morocco"s success at the box-office was "immediate and impressive". Accolades for the film were issued by Soviet director Sergei Eisenstein, film critic Robert E. Sherwood and filmmaker Charles
Marlene Dietrich again cast as a cabaret singer. The film is best remembered for the sequence in which she performs a song dressed in a man's white tie and kisses another woman, both provocative for the era. The film earned Dietrich her only Academy Award nomination. "Morocco" was followed by "Dishonored" (1931), a major success with Dietrich cast as a Mata Hari-like spy. "Shanghai Express" (1932), which was dubbed by the critics ""Grand Hotel" on wheels", was Sternberg and Dietrich's biggest box office success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1932. Dietrich and Sternberg again collaborated on the romance "Blonde Venus" (1932). Dietrich