Hellzapoppin'

Director: H.C. Potter H.C. Potter

Overview

Hellzapoppin' is the film version of the "anything goes" Broadway hit starring Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson. The original production was part musical comedy, part "blackout" revue, with wild sight gags, zany props, audience participation sequences, dirty jokes, and never-ending gunshots. There was no plot, and in fact no two performances were exactly alike. When Hellzapoppin' was optioned by Universal, the original intention was to film the play as it stood (minus the more ribald one-liners), but the studio got cold feet and grafted on a conventional plot and romantic interest. The film's story concerns a musical show being staged at a fancy estate, and the romantic triangle of the show's producer (Robert Paige), the wealthy girl who lives at the estate (Jane Frazee), and the girl's erstwhile fiance (Lewis Howard). The show's stars are Olsen, Johnson, and Martha Raye. Martha is mistaken for the wealthy girl by a penniless Russian aristocrat (Mischa Auer), and the entire proceedings are "investigated" by a goofy private detective (Hugh Herbert). Olsen and Johnson are thus reduced to supporting players in their own film, but when they do manage to command the screen, the results are hilarious. The best moments range from a throwaway gag about Citizen Kane (Johnson finds a sled marked "Rosebud" and mutters "I thought they burned that!") to the more elaborate special-effects routines involving the mixed-up projectionist (Shemp Howard) who's ostensibly running Hellzapoppin for the benefit of the film audience. While the movie version fails to completely capture the spirit of the original play (except in a bizarre opening sequence), and the finale is a major disappointment, Hellzapoppin remains one of the few sustained filmic examples of the "nut humor" exemplified by Olsen and Johnson.

Product Details

Release Date:	07/15/2015
UPC:	0644827257522
Original Release:	1941
Source:	Reel Vault
Region Code:	1
Language:	English
Time:	1:24:00
Sales rank:	4,839

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Martha Raye	Betty Johnson
Hugh Herbert	Detective Quimby
Mischa Auer	Pepi
Jane Frazee	Kitty Rand
Ole Olsen	Ole
Chic Johnson	Chic
Robert Paige	Jeff Hunter
Lewis Howard	Woody Tyler,Louie
Clarence Kolb	Mr. Rand
Nella Walker	Mrs. Rand
Richard Lane	Director
Elisha Cook Jr.	Assistant Director
Olive Hatch	Specialty
Jody Gilbert	Blonde,Blonde
Andrew Tombes	Producer
George Davis	Butler
Hal K. Dawson	Photographer
Frank Darien	Photographer
Eddie Acuff	Drafted Devil
Billy Curtis	Taxi Driver
Harry Monti	Midget
Don Brodie	Theater Manager
Gil Perkins	Butler in Pool
Dale Van Sickel	Man Who Falls into Pool
Gus Schilling	Orchestra Leader
Sig Arno	Cellist
Bert Roach	Man in Audience
Slim and Sam	Actor
George Chandler	Man
Slim and Slam	Specialty
Harry Monty	Midget
Elisha Cook	Actor
Gene de Paul	Composer

Technical Credits

Nat Perrin

Warren Wilson

John P. Fulton	Special Effects
Jules Levy	Producer
H.C. Potter	Director
Nat Perrin	Screenwriter
Warren Wilson	Screenwriter
Alex Gottlieb	Producer
Glenn Tryon	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Not many film comedies, especially from the 1940s, would open in Hell, but that's how Hellzapoppin gets off to its zany start. It isn't really Hell, of course, but it's still a starling thing to see in a studio film of the period, and if only Hellzapoppin had stuck strictly to this kind of surprise, it would probably be a film that many people know, rather than one which is rarely shown nowadays. Unfortunately, the powers that be saw fit to saddle this revue with a vapid, irritating storyline, and that diminishes the fun somewhat; still, even with this storyline, the creators manage to have some fun, as when the romantic dup interrupt their wooing to tell an audience member that he needs to go home because his mother is calling him. When Hellzapoppin is "on," it's similar to one of Mel Brooks' wackier efforts, and the humor is infectious. Even when its jokes don't really land or land with a groan, which is actually fairly often, it's still entertaining, because it's simply daffy. The style of the humor, and of its main creators, Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson, won't be for everyone; but those who tune in to it will find Hellzapoppin fun and flighty.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler