H Lime-2

This short is a take-off on the Ronald Colman version of Prisoner of Zenda, sort of like a 1930's Abraham-Zucker film. The King is going to outlaw swing music upon his coronation so his loyal retainers have him kidnapped & replaced with his cousin, who looks just like him. It's very funny & surprisingly well done and you'll especially enjoy it if you've seen the film. The characterizations and mannerisms are spot on & the only flaw is that the sound quality isn't optimal. But it's worth putting up with to be able to see the film.

This appears as one of the extras on the recently-released DVD of Dawn Patrol.

As others have noted, this is a cheap rip-off of Gilligan's Island. Now, ripping off Gilligan's Island isn't such a bad idea given the popularity of that show but you would think that the creators of Dusty would have used at least a little creativity. Maybe replace the bickering rich couple with a pair of bickering trapeze artists! Or replace the innocent Iowa farm girl with an innocent Bulgarian farm girl who doesn't speak English! But no, this is a paint-by-numbers re-run of Gilligan which is shot through with cheap opportunism & cheaper production values.

The one thing the show had going for it was that it aired at an odd time, just before the networks prime time began. So if you wanted a sitcom at 7:30 on (I think) Friday night Dusty was your only choice. It's indicative of how bad the show was that it failed almost immediately in spite of that. I saw every episode when it first ran & that's the main reason I did so.

I have an especial animus for this show because the theme song has been imprinted on my memory ever since the show aired:

"Dusty's the reason for their plight; Thanks to Dusty, nothing's right! Only the Wagonmaster's hand; Can keep them a-rollin' to the promised land!", etc.

Maybe electro-shock therapy can get rid of it.

I saw this one on TNT several years ago. It's a pre-code Hollywood version of the novel which has little or nothing to do with the book. Barrymore plays Ahab who, as the film begins, has both his legs. After a gory meeting with Moby Dick in which he has his leg bloodily chewed off, Ahab returns to New Bedford where he meets the scorn of his fiancee because of his wooden prosthesis. Vowing revenge, he returns to sea, kills Moby Dick, & (I kid you not) gets the girl.

The film is ridiculous with the story completely re-written & Barrymore as a good-natured, capering Ahab. But at this late date it does provide some silly fun & a good view of how Hollywood can (& still does) ruin great literature.

I think it's worth a look--I wish I had taped it.