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Film & Shorts Discussions => Abbott and Costello => Topic started by: metaldams on June 08, 2020, 06:03:09 PM

Title: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on June 08, 2020, 06:03:09 PM
      Well; we’ve made it to DANCE WITH ME, HENRY; the very last Abbott and Costello film.  Until last night, I have never seen this movie.  Every other Abbott and Costello film I’ve reviewed was at the very least on my second viewing and a lot of times more, but not here.  This is very different from any other Abbott and Costello film for lots reasons and it is probably for the best it was the last film I’ve seen.  I also think I saw this in the best case scenario.  After viewing the entire starring feature film filmography, ending on such a different note was quite fascinating.

      The first thing that is very different is the amount of drama and relative lack of comedy for an Abbott and Costello film.  So yes, if you’re a beginner to Bud and Lou, I would highly suggest saving this one for last for this reason alone.  Bud is actually quite a sad character in this one, a man with a gambling addiction who gets caught up with the mob and is desperate to get out of trouble.  Lou is the most adult he has ever been on screen.  He owns a well kept middle class house and is the single father of an adopted young boy and an adopted teenaged girl.  Part of the plot involves Lou sadly trying to prove to the state he’s worthy of caring for these minors.  They also get caught up with mobsters Bud knows through his gambling and get caught up in a murder and stolen money racket, trying to prove their innocence.  So yes, not exactly comic material here, and these plot devices take up a good portion of the movie.

      As far as the comedy, there’s really not much.  In the beginning of the film there is a half hearted attempt at a verbal routine about Lou asking Bud questions and Bud being thrown off by it, but it doesn’t really work or have much wit.  Bud and Lou dramatically work fine together, but with how much screen time they share, it’s really shocking how few comedy routines they have with each other.  The best comic moment by far is Lou solo.  After getting questioned at the police station for eighteen hours, the cops are flabbergasted Lou can stand the interrogation for so long.  When they finally leave the room, Lou takes out coffee and a sandwich all hidden in his coat in a meticulous manner, even having an ink pen filled with cream to pour in the coffee.  Clever gag.  Not much else good in the comedy department.  A little girl gets interrogated and exaggerates like only a child can and when it looks like the final slapstick finale with Bud and Lou versus the crooks is building steam, a group of kids completely takes over!  I am convinced using kids like this was a a way to capitalize in The Little Rascals, who were popular on TV at the time.

      For me, the most fascinating thing about DANCE WITH ME, HENRY is that it is really the only time we see Bud and Lou in 1950’s Eisenhower America.  If you think about the other films of the past few years, it’s either fairy tales, horror, sci-fi or turn of the century America.  Here we finally see 50’s America inhabited with Bud and Lou and it is symbolic of the world that will pass them by.  The boyfriend of Lou’s adopted teen daughter speaks jive talk and likes Rock ‘n’ Roll.  Whether it is Stooge films with Elvis and Beatles references, Buster Keaton in Beach Party films or Bud and Lou here, watching these men co-exist with Rock ‘n’ Roll really is the sign it’s the end.  My grandparents did not fit in with rock - these comics are the generation of my great grandparents - the generation before.  So yes, really fascinating seeing Bud and Lou in this teen culture environment and fitting for their last movie.

      Thanks to everybody who has read and commented on these Bud and Lou reviews.  I had a really good time doing this and found a few films of theirs I really liked more than I realized.  Again, just about everything they did had some level of merit and considering the crazy pace these guys made movies, in addition to television and radio, the material wore out quicker than it really needed to if they just paced themselves more.  Still, Bud and Lou’s chemistry and natural talent always carried anything they appeared in, these guys are legends and I’ll always be a fan.  Now excuse me, I’m going to post this and watch some of their TV episodes.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Larrys#1 on January 03, 2021, 01:56:26 AM
The is the only A&C movie I don't own nor have I seen. It's available to watch for free on youtube so it's right there for me to watch whenever I'm in the mood. The problem is, I can't get myself in the mood to see it because I've always heard the movie is really bad and completely unfunny. Very hard to digest the fact that you can have a A&C film that's "completely unfunny." I hope that maybe one day, I can get myself to watch this one. I really should watch it just for the bragging rights, so I can officially claim that I've seen every A&C film!
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on January 03, 2021, 07:22:50 AM
The is the only A&C movie I don't own nor have I seen. It's available to watch for free on youtube so it's right there for me to watch whenever I'm in the mood. The problem is, I can't get myself in the mood to see it because I've always heard the movie is really bad and completely unfunny. Very hard to digest the fact that you can have a A&C film that's "completely unfunny." I hope that maybe one day, I can get myself to watch this one. I really should watch it just for the bragging rights, so I can officially claim that I've seen every A&C film!

I was in the same boat as you, the last film of their’s I saw.  I bought a copy knowing I was going to review it about a year before the review and didn’t watch it until it was review time.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: NoahYoung on February 20, 2022, 06:19:33 PM
I have long held the belief that the sole purpose of this lackluster film is to make it easy for us fans to decide and agree that this is their worst film, hands down!

 'Nuff said.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Shemp_Diesel on April 06, 2022, 04:01:11 PM
Very disappointing ending for one of the Giants of Classic Comedy. The dynamic is still there as far as Bud and Lou being best friends, but the comedy relationship is rendered damn near null & void. There's not even one instance of Bud slapping Lou, no witty banter, no Bud trying to scam his partner out of some dough, no "Who's on First."

In fact, this feels like maybe some sort of test run to see if Lou could make it playing more serious, somewhat dramatic roles. And, as we all know, the team split up for good after this movie, so maybe it was. And now that I'm thinking about it, it seems like a lot of my favorite comedy teams ended on some kind of sour note. The Marx Brothers officially ended with Love Happy, and depending on how you want to view their careers, the stooges ended on 2 big duds, Sappy Bullfighters and The Outlaws is Coming. Very sad indeed...

2/10...
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 06, 2022, 04:54:18 PM
It seems like a lot of my favorite comedy teams ended on some kind of sour note.

Did any classic film comedian end their career on a high note?
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Shemp_Diesel on April 06, 2022, 05:07:37 PM
Did any classic film comedian end their career on a high note?

That's a good question. I'm not as well versed in Charlie Chaplin as I would like to be, how did his career end?
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 06, 2022, 05:14:22 PM
I'm not as well versed in Charlie Chaplin as I would like to be, how did his career end?

Chaplin's starring career ended with "A King in New York" (1957) and his filmmaking career ended with "A Countess From Hong Kong" (1967) — both low points in his filmography. However, some disagree with that assessment.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 06, 2022, 05:40:44 PM
If you count starring vehicles and not small parts, NEVER GIVE A SUCKER AN EVEN BREAK is not a bad end for W.C. Fields.  Beyond that, I can’t think of any.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 06, 2022, 07:04:58 PM
If you consider "A Night in Casablanca" their last full-fledged film (unlike "Love Happy"), the Marx Brothers didn't fare badly either. However, their individual swan songs were disasters:  Harpo and Chico in "The Story of Mankind" (1957) and Groucho in "Skidoo" (1968).
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Umbrella Sam on April 06, 2022, 07:26:22 PM
I mean, if we are counting small parts, then we could say Raymond Griffith considering his last film was ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (yeah, it’s a drama, but...hey, we didn’t say they had to be comedies. ;))
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 06, 2022, 08:38:15 PM
If you consider "A Night in Casablanca" their last full-fledged film (unlike "Love Happy"), the Marx Brothers didn't fare badly either. However, their individual swan songs were disasters:  Harpo and Chico in "The Story of Mankind" (1957) and Groucho in "Skidoo" (1968).

I enjoy LOVE HAPPY as a movie, but it’s not a good Marx Brothers movie, if that makes sense.  Hence, not a good swan song for the team in my opinion.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 06, 2022, 08:38:43 PM
I mean, if we are counting small parts, then we could say Raymond Griffith considering his last film was ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (yeah, it’s a drama, but...hey, we didn’t say they had to be comedies. ;))

I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t have that thought.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 07, 2022, 01:25:11 AM
I enjoy LOVE HAPPY as a movie, but it’s not a good Marx Brothers movie, if that makes sense. Hence, not a good swan song for the team in my opinion.

"Love Happy" should be regarded as a starring vehicle for Harpo (he receives top billing in the end credits). I do not consider it a Marx Brothers movie because the three never appear in a single scene together. There's a sloppy attempt to create an ending with Chico and Groucho (who sports a real mustache — no more greasepaint), but they're never in the same shot. In his 1961 autobiography, Harpo referred to "A Night in Casablanca" as "our last picture" and never acknowledged "Love Happy" . . . which is understandable.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Freddie Sanborn on April 07, 2022, 06:18:49 AM
Harold Lloyd ended with The Sin of Harold Diddlebock, which ain’t bad, except for the rear-screen “thrill” ending.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 07, 2022, 06:41:30 AM
Harold Lloyd ended with The Sin of Harold Diddlebock, which ain’t bad, except for the rear-screen “thrill” ending.

Haven’t seen that in probably 15 years.  Harold did that one with Preston Sturges.  A film I should revisit.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Paul Pain on April 07, 2022, 07:18:17 AM
Charley Chase didn't go out whimpering like many others did, but his last short was far from his best too.  However, he was in a nice cushy spot doubling as a Columbia Shorts starring actor and co-head of a production team.  However, he never had anything near the stardom of feature films.

Let's face it: the reason most comedians go out is because people no longer find them to be funny (whether it be because of their own flaws or because of the material given).
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 07, 2022, 10:13:15 AM
The Martin and Lewis swan song "Hollywood or Bust" (1956) remains one of the team's better films. However, the tension between Dean and Jerry is evident in a few scenes — the comedy equivalent of The Beatles' "Let It Be" (1970).


Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 07, 2022, 11:23:34 AM
Dean and Jerry are a unique situation.  They called it quits as a team in their prime, artistically and commercially.  They were also culturally still relevant and young men, I think Jerry was only 30.  They also had successful solo careers after.  More comparisons which can be made to The Beatles.

W.C. Fields is the rare comedian who had the prime of his film career later in his life.

Charley Chase kind of stayed somewhat consistent, worked in shorts and died in his early middle aged years.  He’s another somewhat unique case.

Abbott and Costello are more like the norm.  Making films in a world where they have been overtaken by others and are performing in a culture we don’t know them for.  They co-exist with early rock music in DANCE WITH ME, HENRY.  Seems foreign to the swing era they are associated with.

The Three Stooges had an identity crisis in KOOK’S TOUR, basically denouncing their old style to be clean and not offend the PTA groups.  That to me is one of the saddest declines of them all.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Shemp_Diesel on April 07, 2022, 11:27:33 AM
Damn, how could I have forgotten that Kook's Tour was officially the last stooge film. Maybe I didn't want to remember, kind of like some of those lame bumpers from the New 3 Stooges cartoon...   :-\
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Umbrella Sam on April 07, 2022, 06:27:09 PM
I agree that Chase is an exception. I don’t think HIS BRIDAL FRIGHT is perfect, but he still feels like Charley Chase throughout and clearly was still capable of turning out quality shorts like THE HECKLER even in the last year of his life. Incidentally, I recently noticed Chase’s production credit disappeared shortly after TEACHER’S PEST. Was Chase possibly lightening his workload as a result of his brother Jimmy’s death? (SMILE WHEN THE RAINDROPS FALL is next on my reading list after I finish the James Curtis Buster Keaton biography).

At least it’s clear from Keaton’s final works that he was much more respected than he had been years earlier at MGM. His last feature film, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, is a terrible movie, but it at least feels like they tried to get the best they could out of him given his health.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 07, 2022, 09:49:11 PM
I agree that Chase is an exception. I don’t think HIS BRIDAL FRIGHT is perfect, but he still feels like Charley Chase throughout and clearly was still capable of turning out quality shorts like THE HECKLER even in the last year of his life. Incidentally, I recently noticed Chase’s production credit disappeared shortly after TEACHER’S PEST. Was Chase possibly lightening his workload as a result of his brother Jimmy’s death? (SMILE WHEN THE RAINDROPS FALL is next on my reading list after I finish the James Curtis Buster Keaton biography).

At least it’s clear from Keaton’s final works that he was much more respected than he had been years earlier at MGM. His last feature film, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM, is a terrible movie, but it at least feels like they tried to get the best they could out of him given his health.

A good theory about Chase, but I’m not sure.  I too need to read that biography and catch up on Chase in general.  I’m currently reading Harry Langdon: King of Silent Comedy.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: GreenCanaries on April 08, 2022, 01:50:53 AM
I need to take a looksie at my copy of SWTRF again (got it as a Christmas present a few years ago, but I'm at work right now and don't have it handy at the moment), but as I remember: yes, Charley didn't co-produce or direct in the last season of shorts he worked on (1939-40) due to his health -- which, while already quite precarious, curtailed even further after Jimmy's death, which understandably hit big brother Charley very hard and which he felt personal guilt about (IIRC, he had refused to lend Jimmy more money, knowing it would go to Jimmy's own addictions).

I also remember the book mentioning that Columbia were eager to resign Charley for the 1940-41 season and that the contract even also called for him to direct shorts again, but it was apparently never signed before his demise.

Very much a "what could have been" situation. Imagine Charley with Christine... (sigh)
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 08, 2022, 06:40:19 AM
I need to take a looksie at my copy of SWTRF again (got it as a Christmas present a few years ago, but I'm at work right now and don't have it handy at the moment), but as I remember: yes, Charley didn't co-produce or direct in the last season of shorts he worked on (1939-40) due to his health -- which, while already quite precarious, curtailed even further after Jimmy's death, which understandably hit big brother Charley very hard and which he felt personal guilt about (IIRC, he had refused to lend Jimmy more money, knowing it would go to Jimmy's own addictions).

I also remember the book mentioning that Columbia were eager to resign Charley for the 1940-41 season and that the contract even also called for him to direct shorts again, but it was apparently never signed before his demise.

Very much a "what could have been" situation. Imagine Charley with Christine... (sigh)

Thanks GreenCanaries, makes perfect sense…..and Charley working with Christine McIntyre?  Never thought of it, but wow, it would have been great if the timing was better.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Paul Pain on April 08, 2022, 07:15:45 AM
Yeah, Charley and Christine would have been a sight to behold, now wouldn't it?

I have wracked my brain over this since yesterday, and I haven't actually come up with a different comedian who didn't go out with a whimper.

Now, let's be fair, the re-release of films with sudden renewed interest did make so that at least Keaton, Lloyd, Chaplin, etc. had at least a decent level of respect in their olden years.

As much as I have watching these films, I never want to read an actual biography lest I learn facts that tarnish the respect I have for comedy masters.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: HomokHarcos on April 08, 2022, 07:41:19 AM
I’ve heard that Mabel Normand’s work with Hal Roach is enjoyable. I haven’t heard seen her work there, though.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Freddie Sanborn on April 08, 2022, 11:27:04 AM
Mabel’s last, Should Married Men Walk Home? is one of her best but, as with Charley Chase, her’s was more of a case of dying prematurely than fading away.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 08, 2022, 11:35:22 AM
It’s interesting to think what Mabel would have done in talkies.  Hollywood tended not to make leading ladies pushing forty, but I wonder how she would have done in character or supporting parts or perhaps she would have went the Mae Busch route.  Plus we don’t know what she sounded like, so maybe talkies would have ended her?  Yeah, she’s a case of dying too young.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Umbrella Sam on April 09, 2022, 06:30:18 PM
Thank you very much for the information on Chase, GreenCanaries. Yes, very much a “what could have been” situation with him has he lived (I assume he would have continued directing Three Stooges comedies too).

I didn’t realize Mabel Normand never made a talkie; I guess since she died in 1930, I must have assumed she was working until the very end. I’m curious, does anyone know if any recordings of Mabel Normand’s voice were ever made? I know Rudolph Valentino made a record of himself singing, so I wouldn’t imagine it’s entirely out of the question that she could have made some type of recording or done a radio broadcast at some point, even if it doesn’t survive.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 09, 2022, 06:40:17 PM
As far as ai know, no recordings of her voice exist, but I’d love to be proven wrong.  Unfortunately, Mabel was sick for years so in spite of her young death, I doubt she recorded anything.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Freddie Sanborn on April 09, 2022, 06:47:29 PM
She spent the last couple of years of her life in a sanitarium.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 09, 2022, 07:03:19 PM
She spent the last couple of years of her life in a sanitarium.

Yeah, incredibly unfortunate.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Umbrella Sam on April 09, 2022, 07:20:29 PM
I wasn’t aware Mabel had been that sick for that long. Very sad; even just reading her Wikipedia page, it seems like she was cursed with bad luck both personally and professionally.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Dr. Mabuse on April 11, 2022, 03:08:16 PM
It just dawned on me that Clark & McCullough ended their film career on a high note with "Alibi Bye Bye" (1935). However, if McCullough had lived, they would have been diminished by the Production Code in the same manner as Wheeler & Woolsey.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: metaldams on April 11, 2022, 05:41:11 PM
It just dawned on me that Clark & McCullough ended their film career on a high note with "Alibi Bye Bye" (1935). However, if McCullough had lived, they would have been diminished by the Production Code in the same manner as Wheeler & Woolsey.

That’s another case where the partnership ended prematurely, unfortunately. 

Speaking of RKO and production code, Wheeler and Woolsey also ended prematurely but their last films were lesser than their earlier efforts anyway.
Title: Re: Dance With Me, Henry (1956) - Abbott and Costello
Post by: Big Chief Apumtagribonitz on December 26, 2022, 01:15:27 PM
I brought up the point with the Besser Stooges how much they seemed influenced by '50's TV sitcoms, and Dance With Me Henry seems every bit as much if not more.  If DWMH had a laugh track it would seem exactly the same look, style, and tone as Leave it to Beaver or Ozzie and Harriet.  Rusty Hammer later played Danny Thomas's son in Make Room For Daddy.  Real comedy seems secondary to a gentle kidding of the '50's suburban lifestyle.