Sing Sister Sing

They say a friend is those what help you move, but a real friend is one who'll help you move bodies, and that's kind of what I'm here to discuss.

When poor little pixie Patsy is put out in the cold, her friend, Toots, (that is, Thelma, not Thielemans) she gives her a place to stay providing she adheres to her simple set of rules. Simple, huh? Judging by Kelly's scowl at all this, I'm not sure HOW simple.

Thelma insists that when one is near the boiling point, song is encouraged, such as singing "I Wake Up With A Song," or some such other memorable melody. I would've suggested "I Dreamt I Dwelt In Marble Halls" by Balfe myself, a song she was not unfamiliar with.

Share and share alike, bear and forbear. We see some cute sequences in this short, some involving a mess of hats Patsy tries on, and them trying to use the bathroom at the same time.

That's just for starters, however. Then there's the part involving the radiator. And the part with the fire hose. Cuteness abounds here.

The action continues further on atop the window ledge, and we have the girls performing some hair-raising nonsense up there. (See "County Hospital" for comparison)

It's as if they're both blowing two totally different horns while splitting a place of residence: Thelma's wailing on a trumpet, Patsy's tooting a saxophone, and neither of them can quite play in total harmony when sharing an apartment together.

One of the better Kelly-Todd entries, this one had no plot at all, just a series of gags dominated by Patsy Kelly. Thelma has little to do but be somewhat annoying, but Jimmy Parrott's direction and the above average gags make this a winner. A good running gag leaves Patsy with nowhere to put her clothes because Thelma's crowd every closet and drawer, to the point of crawling out when they're opened. Charlie Hall and Arthur Houseman get in in the fun, too, and LeRoy Shields' wonderful background themes run throughout the short.

Sing, Sister, Sing (1935)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Another decent entry in Hal Roach's "Girlfriends" series with Patsy Kelly and Thelma Todd. This time out Todd is living in a fancy hotel but she invites Kelly to stay with her. Todd sets down many rules for the place but soon she's breaking all of them and Kelly is taking the heat for it. This isn't the best film in the series but there are enough good moments to make it worth viewing. I'd add that this here is probably one of the most unusual entries in the series because you're really not getting the typical type of humor, which usually depends on Todd doing everything she can to stay out of trouble while Kelly would come along to mess everything up. In this short things are pretty much turned around as it's Todd who is being the annoying one and getting all the trouble started. I think it's a pretty good move by switching things up a bit as we're not left with the same type of humor. Instead we're giving a screenplay that's better written than normal and we get several scenes where the comedy has time to grow instead of just getting one small gag and then off for the next one. The highlight of the film is a scene where the fire hose gets turned on and a drunk walks out of his room and thinks there's a snake loose.

Todd invites Kelly to become her room mate at a resident hotel. The thing is, Todd has a long list of rules, like having to sing when one is mad. Although Todd has told Kelly that they will equally share all the space, she has filled up all the closet and drawer space with her own clothes. To Kelly's increase chagrin, Todd has a number of other annoying habits such as insisting a table light be on all during the night. Add to that is Todd's sleepwalking and Kelly's frantic efforts to keep her safe. There are some funny bits, particularly the ones with the Murphy bed and a drunk's mistaking a fire hose for a snake. It's a fun entry in the series in great part because of the change up in the respective roles of Todd and Kelly. In this case it's Todd that causes all the trouble.

This late entry in the 'Girl Friends' series is arguably the best one since Zasu Pitts left the series. I attribute this largely to two factors: a script in which the two ladies' personalities are more clearly differentiated than in other efforts -- Thelma is anal retentive and gets on the nerves of the short-tempered Patsy to highly amusing effect -- and to the superior comedy direction of Paul Parrott, Charley Chase's brother, who directed several of Laurel & Hardy's better shorts and who knew how to use the Roach studio's comedy staff to advantage. It is a pity that he did not stay on, but drug problems that led to his early death meant that he was on the downward slope, and Roach's closing of short subjects production the following year and Thelma Todd's murder put paid to any future.

In the meantime, this fine example of comedy remains. If you have a chance to see it, do so.