Abbott und Costello in Hollywood

Can you imagine A Night at the Opera with only two Marx Brothers? That's essentially what you get in Abbott and Costello in Hollywood.

As good as they were, the Marx Brothers never got their names into the title of any picture they did. That's because they weren't half the box office draw that Bud and Lou were.

Like Chico and Harpo, Bud and Lou are barbers who get the idea to be agents. They decide to handle the career of Robert Stanton the same way Chico and Harpo sign up Allan Jones. And crooner Stanton does get into the picture in just about the same way Jones broke into Il Trovatore.

Too bad though that Stanton never got to sing some songs as good as Cosi-Cosa or Alone. Might have a career for him.

A&C got some good bits in. They had a good scene with MGM comedian Rags Ragland after Ragland comes in for a shave. And Costello being chased through the finale in a midway sequence is pretty funny.

This was the last of three films that Universal loaned out the boys to MGM for the glossier productions than what they were used to at Universal. My favorite of the three MGM films has always been Lost in a Harem. That has more the zany quality of the Universal films than either Abbott and Costello in Hollywood or Rio Rita has.

This one did only so-so box office as compared to the Universal product and Carl Laemmle, Jr. lent them out no more.

This is one of the three pictures Abbott and Costello made for MGM-- who proved with Buster Keaton, the Marx Brothers films after "A Day At the Races and Laurel and Hardy's late releases," that they really don't have much of a "touch" for this kind of comedy. Abbott and Costello fared much better at Universal with films such as "Hold That Ghost," "Buck Privates," "Who Done It?" "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," "The Time of Their Lives," etc. That's not to say that the film is terrible, it just suffers from sloppy pacing, almost no story, and somewhat weaker material for A&C (which was much sharper in the Universal films).

It definitely has its funny points, but it doesn't hold together very well as a complete film. Best to stick to the Universal's--- especially if you are a first time viewer of Abbott and Costello.

Returning to the MGM lot in the Spring of 1945, Abbott and Costello make what would be their last, and funniest, film at the Tiffany of studios. Declining revenues during the war took its toll at MGM, and the loan-out deal with Universal was not renewed. Bud and Lou probably didn't mind, as there was a downturn in script quality at MGM -- not to mention a downturn in their salaries!!!

"In Hollywood" isn't as poor as their first two MGM films, however. "Rio Rita" and "Lost In A Harem" suffered from poor pacing; here, the pacing is fine. And it's fun to see Lou get into trouble on the MGM lot(in the film, the studio is Mammoth.) Incidentally, MGM lifted the idea of Lou's cavorting on the set from Buster Keaton's 1930 MGM film "Free and Easy." Another fun scene is on the midway set; it's ludicrous to believe that Costello is staying balanced on one wheel on the roller coaster, but, hey, that's what makes the scene funny and enjoyable to watch. The best scene in the film is the "insomnia" sketch, where Costello finds it impossible to sleep through the record that's supposed to put him to sleep (people raised only on CDs can't relate to this!)

All in all, "In Hollywood" is a few notches above A&C's other MGM films. Video collectors take note: although "The Noose Hangs High" and "Dance With Me, Henry" were released on video by MGM/UA, they were actually independent productions. "In Hollywood" was their last MGM film, and a decent one at that. 7 out of 10.

I don't know why this AC movie is so underrated though includes a lot of funny routines and scenes, watch the "drop dummy" one, will surely laugh a lot.

Being yet still in the womb and pondering my next move when this was released in the UK, it was to be several years before I actually caught up with it - during an Abbott & Costello festival at my hometown theater.

One's opinion these days depends whether you "recall it" as life WAS in the mid fifties or as an entity in its own right in 2003. Fact is, it was one funny movie and as well as being the last they actually made for MGM and remembering, that the war was not officially over during early filming, it actually had a sizeable budget allocated to it.

Way better than LOST IN A HAREM, Lou was a hoot here as a Hollywood agent (with Bud) trying to get their client the lead role in a musical. Arguably the best routine on offer was that wherein Lou remains awake listening to a record designed to make him sleep.

One of their more enduring films.