.....very typical of the time and place-mixture of disparate comedians from film, stage and radio, pseudo-unplotted plot about a TV and some bidding, rambunctious action and a sense of overall farce.
I liked it of course. You have some rather raunchy pre-Code dialogue-esp the 'Wu-hu!'/'Don't let the posie fool ya...' routine. (I found out after some little digging who the mysterious Phyllis Joyce etc person was--think Paris Hilton mixed w/ Liz Taylor's marital career. A big time passing celeb of the day, like Paris to be forgotten completely after the era passes.) No one seems to take it all that seriously--WC kinda walks scornfully thru his role, Pangborn plays the gay official for the 34th time to a tee, George and Gracie are George and Gracie, plus the usual mix of musical numbers are kinda fun. There you have Rose Marie from Dick Van Dyke singing--I take it she was a combo of Shirley Temple and Brenda Lee but way back? Cab Calloway, the guy who did Winnie the Pooh's voice as a singing sailor(!) and of course Bela Lugosi chewing the scenery as only Bela could.
I did find Gracie to be grating after a time, and as for Stu Erwin...Egads. Turns out he was a familiar face in many a flick and TV show, but here--lights out.
A good bad mixed bag, but hey-a Confucian Mandarin Inventor sharing space w. a passel of radio comics and an early Coptor? Works for me.
*** outta ****.
I liked it of course. You have some rather raunchy pre-Code dialogue-esp the 'Wu-hu!'/'Don't let the posie fool ya...' routine. (I found out after some little digging who the mysterious Phyllis Joyce etc person was--think Paris Hilton mixed w/ Liz Taylor's marital career. A big time passing celeb of the day, like Paris to be forgotten completely after the era passes.) No one seems to take it all that seriously--WC kinda walks scornfully thru his role, Pangborn plays the gay official for the 34th time to a tee, George and Gracie are George and Gracie, plus the usual mix of musical numbers are kinda fun. There you have Rose Marie from Dick Van Dyke singing--I take it she was a combo of Shirley Temple and Brenda Lee but way back? Cab Calloway, the guy who did Winnie the Pooh's voice as a singing sailor(!) and of course Bela Lugosi chewing the scenery as only Bela could.
I did find Gracie to be grating after a time, and as for Stu Erwin...Egads. Turns out he was a familiar face in many a flick and TV show, but here--lights out.
A good bad mixed bag, but hey-a Confucian Mandarin Inventor sharing space w. a passel of radio comics and an early Coptor? Works for me.
*** outta ****.