Topic: In the Dog House (1934) - Andy Clyde

[Paul Pain]

IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0162397/

IN THE DOG HOUSE was Andy Clyde's 2nd Columbia short, following the unavailable short IT'S THE CATS.  Until today, I never knew that Vivien Oakland appeared in Columbia shorts, but here she is as Andy's wife, Tallulah.  Look up Tallulah Bankhead to see who likely influenced the choice of this name for Vivien's character.

This short has some struggles for sure, especially given the extremely poor quality of the print.  The premise is this: Andy is married to Tallulah, but he hid from her that he was a widower with an orphaned grandson.  Tallulah hates the kid's guts and wants to send him back to the orphanage, and Andy naturally objects.  The kid gets revenge though.

I never thought I'd see a Columbia short, or any old comedy for that matter, where the child plays a significant role without being a little terrorist, but Delmar Watson as Jimmy Clyde does just that.  This short has a complete plot that moves along, but the laughs are few.  It's hard to laugh when it's basically the original Cruella DeVille versus the 101 Dalmatians (I just gave a fine estimate of my age) in this short.  There are many laughs, but the groans (albeit fewer in number) take up much more time.

The laughs: Vivien with the poker attacking everyone, Chuck Callahan as the sarcastic dog-catcher, Vivien taking a pie in the kisser, Delmar punching Andy, the breakfast scene, and the chloroform.

The groans: the entire plot, the rear-projection/driving scene (recognize some of those clips and/or places from other shorts?).

5/10

[HomokHarcos]

I will say I think the plot is well structured here instead of being a gag comedy. One downside though is this seemed more like a drama with comedic elements than a comedy, similar to some of the Our Gang shorts. The abusive adult and the eating under the table were both used in Our Gang. I wish there would have been more comedy with Vivian Oakland and Andy Clyde, like Paul I didn't know she appeared in a Columbia comedy short. I actually thought the driving scene was the funniest part.

[metaldams]

Yeah, I agree with Homok, reminds me of an Our Gang short - and not the kind I like.  The Our Gang shorts where kids are being seriously disciplined never did it for me.  I suppose they’re meant to be dramas in a sense but they just don’t work for me.  I like the comedy stuff they do better.

Really, I like the pie gag and rear projection aside, the chase at the end.  That’s it.  The husband/wife relationship is uncomfortable and I have no doubt this series is going to get better.  Released one week before THREE LITTLE PIGSKINS.

Having just watched the entirety of Charley Chase’s 1934 shorts, I can safely say I enjoy every one of them better than this short.

[Paul Pain]

Yeah, I agree with Homok, reminds me of an Our Gang short - and not the kind I like.  The Our Gang shorts where kids are being seriously disciplined never did it for me.  I suppose they’re meant to be dramas in a sense but they just don’t work for me.  I like the comedy stuff they do better.

Really, I like the pie gag and rear projection aside, the chase at the end.  That’s it.  The husband/wife relationship is uncomfortable and I have no doubt this series is going to get better.  Released one week before THREE LITTLE PIGSKINS.

Having just watched the entirety of Charley Chase’s 1934 shorts, I can safely say I enjoy every one of them better than this short.

I just realized something funny in that way that only the old Columbia and Educational shorts can do.  Andy Clyde is only 3 years older than Vivien Oakland, as Andy was just 42 years of age when this was filmed (Vivien was 39).  Andy, like Emil Sitka, always was cast playing men many years older than he really was, even back in the 1920s.

[metaldams]

I just realized something funny in that way that only the old Columbia and Educational shorts can do.  Andy Clyde is only 3 years older than Vivien Oakland, as Andy was just 42 years of age when this was filmed (Vivien was 39).  Andy, like Emil Sitka, always was cast playing men many years older than he really was, even back in the 1920s.

Yeah, Andy is my age here.  You’re right, him and Sitka usually played older than they actually were.