Earthworm Tractors

The world premier of this movie was held in Peoria Illinois in 1936. Peoria is the home of Caterpillar tractor company on which the Earthworm tractor was loosely based. The movie referred to Peoria being the base for Earthworm Tractor Co. Joe E. Brown attended the premier and the street in front of the Madison theater was packed. It was also one of the hottest nights of the season.

Earthworm Tractors is the name of the product that Joe E. Brown is hired to sell. Of course it would be helpful if he actually knew the product. But things like lack of knowledge stopped the bragadocious Brown before in this or any other film.

Brown gets assigned a territory where his biggest potential customer is the cranky, cantankerous Guy Kibbee who is a wee bit deaf. Kibbee owns the biggest lumber company in the area and it's a big commission at stake. His daughter June Travis is pulling for Joe, but Kibbee is a hard sell.

This is one of Joe E. Brown's best comedies for Warner Brothers in the 30s. Two really great scenes are in this showing Brown's comedic ability to great advantage. The first is Brown moving the Kibbee/Travis house with them inside. The second is Brown and Kibbee on a wild rollercoaster like ride on the tractor over a mountain which is being dynamited. I guarantee the laughs will be many.

Earthworm Tractors still holds up well from the Depression 30s and still has a lot of laughs. A must for Joe E. Brown fans.

Alexander C. Botts - a natural born salesman - tries to sell EARTHWORM TRACTORS to a most unwilling businessman.

Based on William Hazlett Upson's short stories for the Saturday Evening Post, this very funny, fast-paced film is an excellent vehicle for Joe E. Brown. His great rubbery face registering amusement, determination or frustration, Brown propels himself from one slapstick situation to another. His goofy antics - moving his girlfriend's house without her permission is just one of them - are genuinely hilarious.

Human pepper pot Guy Kibbee is Brown's perfect foil. Eyes bulging & voice booming, he inevitably finds himself involved in Brown's more dangerous schemes. At one point, words utterly failing him, he discovers his only possible response to Brown's incredible behavior is a quick sock on the jaw.

Mention should be made of laconic Olin Howlin, shoe polish guzzling Gene Lockhart & telephone operator Rosalind Marquis, each of whom add bright moments to the film.

Alert movie mavens will spot two humorous goofs early in the film: 1) In the first scene, when rival Dick Foran parks his car in front of pretty Carol Hughes' home, the cameraman & camera are perfectly reflected in the convertible's driver side window; 2) A little later on, Joe E. Brown's white suit is mad-splattered when he tries to extricate lovely June Travis' auto from a puddle - but when he jumps in with her moments later the fabric has miraculously laundered itself.

"Earthworm Tractors" is a very good 30's-style comedy, with pleasantly silly main characters and a story designed to set up some good comic sequences. It's the kind of movie that can easily come out badly if not done with some skill, but this one is done nicely and it works.

Joe E. Brown plays Alexander Botts, a self-described born salesman and master mechanic, whose real talent is for getting in over his head. His attempts to make a big sale of tractors to grumpy, old-fashioned lumberman Johnson (Guy Kibbee) lead him into one disaster after another. Much of it is stock humor, but it is pleasantly done, and there are some particularly funny sequences of the tractor rampaging out of control. Kibbee and Brown are both good, giving deliberately exaggerated performances that work well. It's mostly a two-man show, but the rest of the cast does well when called on.

Anyone who likes comedies of the era should enjoy this film. It's very pleasant, and at times is hilarious.

This exceptionally noisy comedy is an absolute must for all Joe E. Brown and mechanical tractor fans. Others may find Mr Brown's determined camera-hogging heavy going, though it must be admitted that all the other major male players (with the notable exception of Dick Foran) try to steal scenes too by constantly shouting at the top of their voices.

Although June Travis is pretty enough, the girls get hardly a look-in.

Of course there are also several spectacularly staged accidents to keep our eyes riveted on Mr Brown. And it must be admitted, director Enright keeps the plot moving along at a commendably rapid pace.