Bowery Bombshell

Slip (Leo Gorcey), Sach (Huntz Hall), Bobby (Bobby Jordan), Whitey (Billy Benedict) and Chuck (David Gorcey) unsuccessfully try to sell a dilapidated card to a street cleaner (Vince Barnett) for a fabulous amount, so they can get enough money to save Louie's (Bernard Gorcey) Malt Shop.

Sidewalk photographer Cathy Smith (Teala Loring) snaps a pictures of three bank robbers as they are fleeing a robbery but when the Bowery Boys and Cathy realize that Sach is also in the photograph, they break into the photo lab to destroy the negative, which might make the police think Sach was involved in the robbery.

An explosion in the lab, caused by one of the inventions of Professor Schrackenberger (Milton Parsons), brings in Detective O'Malley (James Burke) and his assistant Dugan (William Newell), who get the negative.

Gangster Ace Deuce (Sheldon Leonard), who actually engineered the bank robbery with Feather-Fingers (Lester Dorr), gives out the story that it was the job of a rival gang. Impersonating the rival gang, the Bowery Boys frighten Ace into giving them evidence that his boys committed the robbery. With one of the Professor's wild inventions, the Bowery Boys capture the gang and turn them over to the Police. They get the reward money and give it to Louie to save his shop, and Cathy gets a newspaper job as the result of her photograph.

Dawn Kennedy sings "I Love Him", written by the father-and-daughter team of Lou and Ruth Herscher, cute-and-cuddly Nancy Brinckman has a bit as a hatcheck girl, and Teala Loring brightens the landscape more than somewhat.

At the time this was made, Leo Gorcey was also appearing weekly on Bob "Bazooka" Burns N.B.C. radio program, and Sheldon Leonard could be heard on that network's "Maisie" show (with Ann Southern)as well as on the comedy program starring Parkyakarkus.

Bowery Bombshell (1946)

*** (out of 4)

Third film in the series has Sach (Huntz Hall) getting his picture taken outside a bank that's being robbed and soon the picture is in the newspaper with the ad that he was the thief. Slip (Leo Gorcey) and the rest of the gang must try to keep the police away from him while at the same time trying to catch the real crook, which just happens to be gangster Ace Baker (Sheldon Leonard). Up to this point in the series this entry is without question the funniest and I'd say it's probably the best film I've seen from them no matter what you want to call them. While this isn't a classic like their drama pics at Warner, it does manage to be their funniest film with one big laugh after another. The first thirty-minutes is near classic as we get incredibly fast jokes that are flying left and right and the shocking thing is that the majority of them hit their mark. A lot of the films going back to the East Side Kids featured decent laughs no matter how bad the movie was but this is the first time where I was actually laughing out loud. The film starts off with the boys trying to sell a junk car and quickly moves to the robbery where Sach gets a $1,000 reward place on his head. The jokes keep flying with one very memorable one is the "shakes" Slip gets as he discovers a large bill on Sach. This is followed by even funnier sequence including one where Sach has to hide in a phone booth while Slip tries talking a cop away. All of this leads up to another very funny sequence with Sach going in drag. What really helps this film, at least over the previous two, is that the screenplay seems to have been written with care and a lot of details are given to the characters. Slip has his typical mangled words but they are double layered here as they are funny because of how dumb it is to mangle them but then there's an added laugh because of what he's says and how it goes against what the situation is at the time. The screenplay is also smart enough to take some of the spotlight off Gorcey and passing it around. Sach gets more time here and does well with it but Bobby Jordan is still stuck in the background. Another major plus are the supporting players with Leonard, William 'Wee Willie' Davis and James Burke doing fine work. The second half of the movie isn't as funny as the first but things finally pick up again when the boys enter Leonard's nightclub acting like they're the gangsters. In the end, this is a very funny movie that will appeal to more than just fans of the series.

The gang's hangout Louie's Malt Shop is in danger. Their friend Louie needs $300 and quick. The guys try to sell their car but nobody is willing to pay for the jalopy. They happen upon a bank robbery and their friend Cathy takes a picture. It shows Sach picking up the stolen loot not knowing that it was stolen. The picture gets on the newspaper and Sach becomes a wanted man.

The setup is great. I really like the premise. The story gets more and more muddled as it goes. It concentrates more on being a screwball comedy. That aspect is fun. There are some good laughs. All in all, the gang has some fun.

A really early chapter in the bowery boys adventures, and leo gorcey already has his brother and dad in on the act. If pops can't come up with some cash fast, he's going to lose the ice cream shop. So slip and the boys try to raise money any way they can. And get caught up in a bank robbery. And now, it's sach's photo on the front page. They will need cathy's help to get out of this jam. Co-stars huntz hall and teala loring. Even sheldon leonard, who snagged parts in some huge films...to have and have not, guys and dolls, and it's a wonderful life. He did it all... producer, director, actor. The usual shenanigans, and clever word play, when slip mixes his metaphors. Even a silas marner reference, a story about being falsely accused of a crime. From 1861! This is one of the better chapters of the boys. And all neatly wrapped up in 65 minutes. Directed by phil karlson, who only made two films with the boys. Fun !

When I was a kid back in the 1940's, a "Bowery Boys" film was one of the most anticipated "Saturday Mornings at the Movies" draws. And incredibly, the films attracted both adults and the pre-teen set almost equally. Upon examination, I would suspect the explanation for this bi-level attraction was the group's ability to know their cinematic level. And not only did they manage to maintained this level through a slew of inexpensive, quickly made films, but also excelled within the films limited sphere. In essence, they were unique on the cheap.

This group, starting out in the late 30's film, "Dead End", progressed to the "Eastside Kids" by the mid 40's, finally settling in as the "Bowery Boys" during the mid to late 1950's. At about that time, their comic style succumbed to the rapidly changing demands of the comedy scene on all levels and the "Boys" simply ran out of steam.

If however, you've ever wondered what made them so popular in the first place, pop some popcorn, empty your mind of any serious thought and sit back and enjoy this excellent entry for nothing more than it is. Trust me, you'll enjoy it.