El espía espiado

Contrary to popular belief, A SOUTHERN YANKEE is NOT a remake of Buster Keaton's 1927 silent THE GENERAL. Both films take place during the American Civil War and include gags devised by Keaton -- other than that, there's little resemblance. (The only remake of THE GENERAL is Walt Disney's 1956 THE GREAT LOCOMOTIVE CHASE.) YANKEE's story, by the writing team of Panama and Frank, was later recycled in part for THE COURT JESTER (1956, also by Panama and Frank -- and starring Danny Kaye).

Keaton's contributions to YANKEE include his suggestion to the producer that the opening scenes be toned down in order to make Red Skelton's character more sympathetic; the memorable two-sided flag gag (derived from a two-sided costume gag Keaton used in his silent days); some of the climactic chase sequence (a gag with a horse and a dress is lifted directly from Keaton's 1923 OUR HOSPITALITY); and, presumably, the acrobatic dentist sequence and, very likely, the astonishing scene involving a 19th century "lawn mower" and a land mine.

First saw this movie on late 1950's TV, about 10 years after it was made. As a kid, I thought it was hilarious. Just watched again in 2011 and wondered if I would perceive it to be as funny as I did 50 years ago. I still love it. Not as much as a 10 year old perhaps, but Skelton can hold his own in his comedic genius through the decades. Of course the writing team of Frank & Panama also later wrote Danny Kaye's "The Court Jester" where they use the same tongue-twister rhyming lines to make hilarious running gags... and the hero's continuous use of secret code questions...to all the wrong people. Makes me want to revisit all the old Red Skelton movies of the late 40's and early 50's.

THE GENERAL is my favorite movie of all time while Red Skelton is not a favorite of mine (I don't hate him, he's just not my cup of tea), so I am ashamed to admit I went into A SOUTHERN YANKEE fully expecting to hate it. To my surprise, it was not bad.

Though often called a "remake" of the Buster Keaton classic, A SOUTHERN YANKEE's plot is entirely different: Skelton plays a bellboy/aspiring secret agent who bumbles onto a real Confederate spy plot. General farce ensues, with only a few gags lifted from Keaton's earlier film. For what it is, A SOUTHERN YANKEE is quite enjoyable. Even some of the dumber gags had me howling.

This fun 1948 comedy by Edward Sedgwick is like a cross between "Uncivil Warriors" (the 1935 Three Stooges short with the stooges playing Capt. Dodge, Lt. Duck, and Lt. Hyde) and "Advance to the Rear" (a 1964 comedy starring Glenn Ford and Stella Stevens). It is not quite as zany as the Stooge classic but has more physical comedy than Ford's film, including stunts designed by Buster Keaton.

Red Skelton plays Aubrey Filmore, a bumbling hotel bellboy in 1865 St. Louis, who spends most of his working hours tracking down imaginary spies among the guests. Aubrey's bumbling pays off one afternoon when he accidentally knocks out a guest who turns out to be a legendary Confederate spy called the "grey spider". His good fortune continues when a southern belle, Sallyann Weatherby (Arlene Dahl) mistakes him for the spider. Wanting to exploit these events, the Union secret service gives him phony plans to pass along to the enemy and instructions to pass along to another union agent behind enemy lines. Predictably Aubrey gets the two packets of information mixed up and places the union agent and himself in jeopardy.

"A Southern Yankee" is quite funny if not especially noteworthy, the cast is solid and the production design of good quality.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

Skelton fans should get a laugh-fest out of this nifty slice of slapstick. Seems Red's a Union-loving bellboy in the Civil War South. Through typical Skelton mishaps, he's mistaken for the South's best spy, The Grey Spider. Only instead of spying for the South, he's persuaded to do same for the Yankees. Except as a spy, he keeps switching uniforms from one side to the other. Naturally, this leads to a rollicking series of mishaps, with Red scoring more mugs and pratfalls per minute than a road racer's RPM's. But that's got nothing on the uniform changes that are faster than a hooker in a rain storm. My guess is the scripters must have gone home in a permanent daze. But don't feel bad for our hero. He does get to romance the South's most delectable magnolia, Arlene Dahl, and right away I'm wondering where I can join up on her side.

All in all, it's a fine vehicle for Red's brand of comedy. Just one thing—I always thought the War was fought on the East Coast. But now I know it was really fought inside greater LA's scrublands. Thanks MGM for setting the history books straight.