The Pip from Pittsburg

"The Pip from Pittsburgh" is undoubtedly a great short which can compete with the top shorts of any comedian of that time. But personally I can't quiet understand the high praise it usually gets; to me this is NOT Chase's best sound short. A few years later his style has much more refined. The shorts under his own direction (signed with his real name, Charles Parrott) were real masterpieces of subtle screwball comedy. "You Said A Hatful", "The Count Takes the Count" or "Neighbourhood House" all have a touch of real originality - they were films that only could have been made by Charley Chase. "The Pip" wears not quiet his own personal style of handwriting - but it is developing.

Hal Roach is best known as the genius behind many Laurel & Hardy shorts. However, Roach went far beyond the Laurel and Hardy series. This is one example of his genius. The talented Thelma Todd, who starred with the Marx Brothers, steals the show in this hilarious short. "The Pip From Pittsburgh" (aka Chasing Charley) was just shown on TCM and it was great from beginning to end. The dance scene appears to have been a Stan Laurel creation, as he was in the background of many a Roach production as well as some major films, most notably "Bringing Up Baby" (1938) when Katherine Hepburn tore the back of her dress in front of a crowded banquet room. The background music from this short was also standard for the Roach comedies and was so successful in conveying hilarity to a movie that it proved influential with other directors and producers later on.

This short should be marketed on DVD along with many other gems that Roach produced. Hopefully this will come to be in the future. Two thumbs up!

This is just classic timeless comedy. A man (Charlie Chase) is set up on a blind date by his roommate for a dance. Charlie is leery because his roommate set him up with "the pip from Pittsburgh" who Charlie did not find very attractive. So he wears an old dirty suit, does not shave, and eats garlic to repel the girl. Unfortunately, the girl is the charming Thelma Todd. So on the way to and at the dance Charlie has to come up with clever ways to shave without a razor, freshen his breath, and change into his new suit, which his roommate happens to be wearing. Also at the dance is "The Pip" who still has quite a crush on Charlie. It's not like Charlie and Thelma had long meaningful conversations in these shorts, but the chemistry between them is undeniable. The whole thing ends rather abruptly and predictably, but it is the hilarious journey in this one, not the destination, that is so alluring.

In the 1920s and 30s, Charley Chase was a very popular comedian--having starred in about 250 short films as well as directing quite a few as well (under his real name 'Charles Parrott'). While the quality of these films vary tremendously, his better films compare quite favorably to comedians such as Laurel and Hardy and Harold Lloyd. Unfortunately, especially during the sound era, his films also too often were very disappointing as well due to lousy scripts. I really think that most of the time, other Roach stars (in particular Laurel and Hardy) were given the better scripts and Chase was given those that didn't quite cut it. This might be much of the reason his name is so rarely recognized today.

However, it's nice to see that Chase is in excellent form in this film. While certainly not among his funniest, this is a very pleasant comedy that nearly earns an 8 because it has some very funny bits.

Charley's friend is trying to fix him up on a blind date with some girl from Pittsburgh. Charley naturally is less than excited and assumes the girl is horrible--after all, it IS a blind date. So his friend gives him the idea of dressing in old clothes, not shaving and eating lots of garlic to keep this "Thelma from Pittsburgh" at a distance. The plan backfires, though, when Thelma turns out to be the lovely and shapely Thelma Todd--a familiar star in Roach films of the early 30s.

So Charley decides he must clean up his act quickly so he can win her heart and he does so in some clever and funny ways. For example, he manages to shave quite covertly at the dance hall, clean his breath AND strip his friend of his suit--all to impress Thelma. It's very, very funny though I am sure uptight politically correct types might be offended at the breath cleaning scene--you just have to see it to see what I mean.

Overall, not among Charley's best (such as MIGHTY LIKE A MOOSE) but a nice old comedy short nonetheless.

Pip from Pittsburg, The (1931)

*** (out of 4)

A simple story made hilarious due to the talents of Charley Chase and Thelma Todd. In the film Chase plays a man forced by his buddy to go on a blind date. Chase is a little worried since the last blind date he went on led to him being stalked so he decides to dress, smell and act like a bum so that the girl won't have anything to do with him. It turns out the girl (Todd) is beautiful so Chase must then try and find a way to appeal to her. While this isn't a classic it's still a very pleasant little gem that has the two stars at the top of their game and delivering some very big laughs. There are countless funny moments but one of the best happens early on when Chase is trying to shave but warning his friend that he doesn't want to go on the date. Chase is then forced on the phone to talk with the girl and everything that happens in these few minutes are very funny. Another excellent scene happens during a dance where the lights go off and each time they do Chase tries to change into a different outfit. Chase and Todd made quite a few shorts together and it's a real shame they didn't do some sort of comic team where they both had equal billing. There's no doubt that Chase is the star of this thing but each time he and Todd are together real magic happens. The two certainly knew how to work off the other and in the end it's their charm that makes this a winner.