'Hold That Ghost' has flaws but Lou Costello makes it lots of fun

Hold That Ghost (1941)
Starring: Lou Costello, Bud Abbott, Joan Davis, Richard Carlson, and Evelyn Ankers
Director: Arthur Lubin
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Two friends (Abbott and Costello) inherit a derelict roadhouse within which a gangster may have hidden a large fortune. Upon being stranded there one stormy night with several strangers (inlcuding Ankers, Carlson, and Davis), they discover it may be haunted by murderous ghosts as well.

"Hold That Ghost" is a spoof of once popular 'dark old house' thriller genre, which included such great early films as the original "The Cat and the Canary" and the straight-forwardly named "The Old Dark House". It is sort of a precursor to the many horror spoofs Abbott & Costello would make a decade or later involving the various iconic Universal Monsters.


Unfortunately, this film is flawed at its foundation. While all the actors are clearly game and do the best they can with the material, almost every character in this film feels flat and entirely too much of the plot only works because the characters are stupid even by comedy standards, or very forgetful. Even worse, while Abbott's character is often brusque and even mean toward Costello's character, he is often excessively so in this film. I think this may be the first Abbott & Costello film I've seen where I don't understand why the two main characters want anything to do with each other.

On the positive side, the weaknesses mentioned above are largely made up for by Lou Costello giving some really funny performances, especially relating to the running gag that he is almost always the only person who happens to see the mysterious going-ons in the creepy roadhouse the characters are stuck in. He also has a cute dance routine with Joan Davis, who, in an unusual twist for an A&B film, shows romantic interest in Costello without having an ulterior motive. Another positive of the film is the elaborate sets that make up the dilapited roadhouse and the moody lighting within it.

In the final analysis, "Hold That Ghost" isn't be best of Abbott & Costello's films, but it is still well worth your time, especially if you enjoy the creepy house horror/mystery films.

Happy birthday to Julie Newmar!

Catwoman turns 85 years old today!

The Wisdom of InspiroBot!

One of the greatest internet toys is InspiroBot, a website that randomly mixes phrases and pictures so you can create "motivational poster"-type graphics. Some may be seem insightful and profound, but most will be bizarre and make you smile or even laugh. (The conceit is that it's the world's first motivational A.I.... and if you click long enough, you'll get a surprise!)
Most of the InspiroBot's offerings are in color, but a few are in black-and-white and therefore suitabe for posting here on Shades of Gray. Here are some that I have generated during my many visits to the site... which has become a go-to activity when I'm feeling lazy or need a few grins.

Torchy Blane's 3rd adventure is a mixed bag

Torchy Blane, the Adventurous Blonde (1937)
Starring: Glenda Farrell, Barton McLane, Tom Kennedy, Anderson Lawler, Anne Nagel, Charles Foy,  Bobby Watson, and Natalie Moorehead
Director: Frank MacDonald
Rating: Six of Ten Stars

Reporters at a rival paper (Foy and Watson) arrange a hoax murder to humiliate Torchy (Farrell) and expose what they view as favoritism toward her by her homicide detective boyfriend (McClane) when it comes to information. However, the hoax becomes very real when someone uses it as an opportunity to commit an actual murder.

"The Adventurous Blonde" is the third Torchy Blane movie, and it is a mix of really bad and really good material.

On the good side, we've got a back-and-forth subplot about Torchy and Steve's looming marriage. It was inching closer during the first two films, and it seems like it might actually happen in this one... but the various reasons for it being delayed--even as the magistrate stands ready to perform the ceremony--add to fun of the film. We're also treated to lots of witty dialogue, not only from McLane and Farrell as Steve and Torchy banter and bicker their way through the movie, but from the supporting cast as well. Even dimwitted Gahagan (Tom Kennedy) gets a couple good zingers. Finally, the intersection of Torchy and Steve's professional lives serves as a plot complication with both members of the media and the police department raising questions about the propriety of a crimebeat reporter and a police detective being in an intimate relationship with each other.

The intersection of police work and journalism is also what gives rise to some of the film's worst points. First, there's the hoax murder that Torchy's rivals stage. Initially, it makes sense within the rules that exist in the breezy, pulp-fiction universe of Torchy Blane... but as it continues, it becomes less and less believable. By the time the "corpse" is being loaded onto the coroner's transport vehicle, it has become downright stupid in its execution. How could the ambulance crew not notice the corpse wasn't dead? Or were they paid off to further the hoax? And if they were paid off, why didn't they give the hoaxters a heads-up that the hoax had turned real? But even before we get to that point, the number of people involved in the hoax beyond newspaper staff--people who will be serving jail-time for giving false evidence to the police--have gotten to the number where the intended reason for it was going to fail anyway. Finally, there's the "creative detective work" that Torchy engages in during the second half of the film. It's amusing, but it's doing things the hard way... and in a way that barely makes any sense and is as unethical (perhaps evenmoreso) than the hoax that set the events of the movie in motion.

In balance, "Torchy Blane, the Adventurous Blonde" is a fun romp, but it's not one that you want to think too hard about while it unfolds. Ultimately, the best part of the film ends up being the will-they or won't-they about Steve and Torchy's nuptuials and the many caustic exchanages between characters.

Blondes and Redheads look for 'Bridal Bail'

Bridal Bail (1934)
Starring: June Brewster, Grady Sutton, Carol Tevis, George Lewis, Sam Appel, and Matt McHugh
Director: George Stevens
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

When a local theater offers to pay a couple to get married in front of an audience, sisters June and Carol (Brewster and Tevis) concoct a plan to use the occassion for June to marry and elope with her boyfriend (Lewis). Everything that can go wrong, does go wrong.

"Bridal Bail" is a wild comedy of errors that hits the ground running and keeps building speed and layering complications until almost the very last minute. The story features the perfect storm of good intentions going sideways that makes the best of these old short films so much fun. They're even more fun when, like here, the cast is all perfect in their roles and working with snappy dialogue. Grady Sutton and June Brewster are particularly funny in this outing, which was the third entry in a series of relationship-based comedies they starred in along with Carol Tevis.

This film belongs to Sutton and Brewster, with Tevis is in a supporting role in this outing. Still, she is excellent in her part, playing well off Matt McHugh (the boorish police officer who wants to marry June, but whom June wants nothing to do with) and George Lewis (the handsome gentleman June wants to marry), as she and the rest of the supporting cast becomes swept up in the swirling mess that June and Grady create after following through on a really bad idea suggested by Carol

"Bridal Bail" is one of four short films included on "Blondes and Redheads Volume 2" and it's worth the price of admission almost by itself.

Picture Perfect Wednesday: Adam Warren

A few drawings from writer/artist Adam Warren!

NINJA CUTIES
ala WARREN!

Warren's Signature Character, Empowered, Unwinding After a Busy Day



'A Slip at the Switch' is lots of fun

A Slip at the Switch (1932)
Starring: Charles 'Chic' Sale, Bud Jamison, George 'Gabby' Hayes, Charlie Hall, Monte Collins, and Phil Dunham
Director: Mark Sandrich
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars

A small-town rail crossing and switch operator (Sale) must fight off a couple of robbers (Hall and Jamison) and stop two trains from colliding on the track.

"A Slip at the Switch" is an early action-comedy featuring a cast who got their start appearing in silent movies. It's a fast-paced little film where gags and slapstick action are flying fast and furiously from the very beginning of the first scene to the final moment.

It's easy to see why Charles Sale was a pop culture sensation during the late 1920s until his untimely death in 1937. He is hilarious as the tenacious and brave, but dimwitted, railway worker, playing the part with perfect comedic timing and lots of energy. Sale also has a screen presence that almost overwhelms that of Bud Jamison who plays a surprisingly intimidating bad guy.

"A Slip at the Switch" is one of six short films included on "Ultra-Rare Pre-Code Comedies Vol 3" from Alpha Video. The footage from which the transfer was made was in decent shape which will make it even more enjoyable for you to take some 13-wellspent minutes to watch this one.

Fantastic Friday!

Next week, the new "Fantastic Four" #1 arrives in comics shops. I hope you are looking forward to it as much as I am! As I have on the past few Fridays, here's are some glances back at the Fantastic Four that has been...

By John Byrne

By Art Adams

By Dean Kotz

By George Perez

By Art Adams

By Brian Ching

And, finally, a brief look at the Fantastic Four, brought to us by the first artist of their new series, Sara Pichelli.

By Sara Pichelli