Ghost Chasers

While loquacious Leo Gorcey (as Terence Aloysius "Slip" Mahoney) tries to teach a girlfriend English diction ("How, now, brown, cow…"), simple-minded Huntz Hall (as Horace De Bussy "Sach" Jones) joins "Bowery Boys" William "Billy" Benedict (as Whitey), Buddy Gorman (as Butch), and David Gorcey (as Chuck) in a séance. The spirit world isn't really contacted, but Mr. Benedict remains a believer; he invites Mr. Hall to join his ghost-contacting group, which intends to contact a dead magician named "Leonardi".

The group turns out to be a racket, as Mr. Gorcey suspects. Gorcey decides to expose the group by persuading fatherly "Sweet Shop" owner Bernard Gorcey (as Louis "Louie" Dumbrowsky) to contact his debtor uncle "Jake" through "Margo the Medium" (Lela Bliss). Hall, meanwhile, befriends 300-year-old pilgrim Lloyd Corrigan (as Edgar Alden Franklin Smith), who steals the show. Edward J. Kay's finely-tuned musical direction, and Mr. Corrigan's spirited mission, help make "Ghost Chasers" an above average series entry.

***** Ghost Chasers (4/29/51) William Beaudine ~ Huntz Hall, Leo Gorcey, Lloyd Corrigan

When Leo Gorcey's mother's neighbor Argentina Brunetti starts spending money and borrowing from people to talk to her dead son, it becomes time for the Bowery Boys to spring into action. In their own inimitable style Gorcey, Huntz Hall and the gang track down a whole gang of these fake mediums led by Lela Bliss.

In their quest they're aided and abetted by a real ghost, a gentlemen in a Quaker suit played by Lloyd Corrigan. Corrigan also communicates to the world through a medium and the one he's chosen is Huntz Hall. He finds him an amiable fellow and one with 'a nose like Cyrano'.

Corrigan is pretty useful when the guys invade the haunted house where the fake mediums do their thing. Of course he creates some real tricks, my favorite being the creation and disappearance of doors when needed.

All in all a good Bowery Boys film, the best scenes are those that involve Lloyd Corrigan and Huntz Hall.

GHOST CHASERS is a whole lot of fun as the gang exposes a fake spiritualist racket, headed by Margo the Medium! You may notice the bad guys mansion (complete with sliding doors and hidden rooms) is the same old dark house used in SMUGGLERS COVE a few years earlier.

Also a super gag running through the film where Sach (and only Sach) can see and hear Edgar the ghost, who is just hanging around the mansion. Edgar is played by none other than popular character actor and director Lloyd Corrigan.

This episode also features some solid supporting players, like Philip Van Zandt as a phony doctor, Robert Coogan (Jackie's brother) as goofy detective Jack Eagan, Argentina Brunetti as Mama Parelli (Slip's neighbor who is being duped by the ghost racket) and Lela Bliss as Margo. Best line department: the gang is locked in a room that is flooded, to which Slip yells, "I think the walls are sweating!"

This was one of the first Bowery Boys to be released on vhs in 1992. Remastered via Warner Brothers dvd box set in 2012. The sets generally contain eight episodes each. Check out the classic color covers and movie posters.

The Bowery Boys get involved with spiritualism. Uncle Louie is desperate to contact Jake on the other side. Slip smells a con with his mother is being tricked by a spiritualist. It turns out to be a vast network of con people headed by famous spiritualist Margo the Medium. Sach meets an actual ghost and only he can see it.

It's another Scooby-Doo adventure with The Bowery Boys. It would be more compelling if Slip's mom is being tricked directly by Margo the Medium. It would make their revenge more delicious. It's set to be a fine adventure and then it adds a fun little twist, Edgar. I like Edgar and the premise that only Sach can see him. It has lots of potential fun. It's a bit of a mess but it's The Bowery Boys.

I've seen a few of these "Bowery Boys" romps by now, and they all seem to follow a similar pattern: no matter what the plot or the (supposed) setting, they ultimately end up in a single set (after all, they were made by the infamously cost-conscious Monogram studios), where the boys chase, and are chased around, by crooks. "Ghost Chasers" is no different, except that there is a rare - if brief - dramatic component, with a mother trying to get in contact with her dead son. The film is padded and overlong (even at 69 minutes), though there is the occasional funny line, and "Edgar", the one real, friendly ghost, is amusingly played by Lloyd Corrigan. ** out of 4.