Emil Sitka's diary entry:
http://www.emilsitka.com/meetmrmischief1947.htmlhttps://www.imdb.com/title/tt0171519/Harry von Zell was, in the 1930s to 1950s, one of the most famous radio voices in America. He worked with, among others, George Burns, Eddie Cantor, and Dinah Shore. His fame was such that he emceed a nationally televised birthday tribute to then-President Herbert Hoover, famously saying Hoover's name wrong on air. Unsurprisingly, the Harry von Zell series of Columbia shorts features the misadventures of a radio host. von Zell is one of the few non-Stooge actors to have his face on the title card of a short.
MEET MR. MISCHIEF is the second short in the series, as the first (supposedly a dud) is unavailable as of this post. This short has, overall, one of the most cohesive plots that we will ever see in a Columbia short. The laughs come quickly and in a variety of ways, which makes this one never really boring. You won't be disappointed.
Harry immediately establishes himself as the appropriately titled Mr. Mischief, a guy who will take every possible opportunity to pull a prank on someone or make a wise crack. All sorts of slapstick and all manners of joke ensue from this and see Harry torment his coworkers, his friends, and his wife. We can't ruin the short by detailing it all though. The entire angle of the man wanting Harry's head and then chasing him all over the studio was hilariously dark, especially with how Harry handles it. The chase through the different shows and attracting the hire of the various hosts leads to an appropriately mischievous courtroom scene with a satisfying conclusion.
Harry is great. Christine McIntyre is great as Harry's long-suffering wife. Emil Sitka is always a hoot as the nervous, eccentric old man. Dudley Dickerson is always great when scare reactions are needed. Symona Boniface, Victor Potel, and Fred Kelsey all deserve mentions for their roles. But Ralf Harolde is definitely the highlight as the cult leader looking to decapitate Harry; he's slimy, perseverant, and fearless. He would have done great as a slimy Phil von Zandt type if he had been in more shorts.
Some might be tempted to dismiss this as a scare comedy, but really Harry does more panicking than scare reactions. Overall, it's really more about the comic chase than the scare angle. All the scares are delivered by Dudley Dickerson, while Harry is more bumbling and running. Harry's radio talents translate well into his character here, and I think you won't be disappointed.
9/10