In Society
| In Society | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jean Yarbrough |
| Produced by | Edmund L. Hartmann |
| Written by |
John Grant Edmund Hartmann Hal Fimberg |
| Starring |
Bud Abbott Lou Costello Marion Hutton Kirby Grant Arthur Treacher |
| Music by | Edgar Fairchild |
| Edited by | Philip Cahn |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 74 min |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $659,526.14[1] |
In Society is a 1944 film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It was the first of five Abbott and Costello films to be directed by Jean Yarbrough. It was re-released in 1953.
Plot
Eddie Harrington (Bud Abbott) and Albert Mansfield (Lou Costello) are plumbers who receive a call about a leak in the private bathroom of Mr. Van Cleve (Thurston Hall), a wealthy businessman. The leak is keeping him awake, but the costume ball that his wife (Nella Walker) is throwing downstairs is not.
Eddie and Albert enlist the aid of a friend, Elsie Hammerdingle (Marion Hutton), a taxi driver, to take them to the mansion. While they are upstairs attempting to fix the leak—but flooding the room instead—Peter Evans (Kirby Grant), a guest dressed as a cab driver, mistakes Elsie for another costumed guest, despite her insistence that she really is just a cab driver. He winds up inviting her to another gala event, Mrs. Winthrop's (Margaret Irving) estate Briarwood, where a valuable painting, The Plunger, is to be unveiled.
Meanwhile, Eddie and Albert mistakenly receive their own invitation to the event, as Mrs. Van Cleave was intending to send them a letter of complaint for the devastation that they inflicted on her home, but instead mails them her invitation to Briarwood. They think it is a reward for a job well done and look at it as a chance to meet other wealthy clients. Eddie and Albert attend the unveiling of the "The Plunger" (a heavy gambler). Albert, being a plumber, can only think of a plumbing tool and is amazed at the value of "The Plunger". However, a loan shark named Drexel (Thomas Gomez) to whom they owe money demands they steal the painting while they are there. When they refuse to go through with the plan, Drexel and Marlow (Murray Leonard), a crooked chauffeur at the party, attempt to steal the painting themselves. When the painting is discovered as missing, Gloria Winthrop (Ann Gillis), accuses Elsie, Eddie and Albert of being the thieves. However, they clear their names when Eddie and Albert, in a fire truck, capture Drexel and Marlow and recover the painting.
Some guests, however, claim that Eddie and Albert stole their tuxedoes and the two are chased across a field.
Routines
This film includes the classic Bagel Street scene—itself adapted from the popular vaudeville routine Floogle Street—during which Abbott and Costello attempt to deliver straw hats to the Susquehanna Hat Co., but everyone they meet along the way has a reason for hating that company and each of them destroys a hat until there are none left.
Production
Filmed from June 12 through July 21, 1944, with much of it being filmed at the Jewett Estate on Arden Road in Pasadena, California.
Although Abbott and Costello filmed this Universal Pictures film after they filmed Lost in a Harem for MGM, this film was released first.
Lou Costello had recently returned to work following a battle with rheumatic fever. As a result, Universal wanted to release this film as quickly as possible. To save time, much of the climatic fire engine chase was lifted from W.C. Fields' Never Give a Sucker an Even Break.
DVD release
This film has been released twice on DVD. The first time, on The Best of Abbott and Costello Volume Two, on May 4, 2004, and again on October 28, 2008 as part of Abbott and Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection.
References
- ↑ Furmanek, Bob and Ron Palumbo (1991). Abbott and Costello in Hollywood. New York: Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-51605-0 p 108
External links
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