Another Fine Mess
Another Fine Mess is a 1930 short comedy film directed by James Parrott and starring Laurel and Hardy. It is based on the 1908 play Home from the Honeymoon by Arthur J. Jefferson, Stan Laurel's father, and is a remake of their earlier silent film (and debut as an "official" duo), Duck Soup.
| Another Fine Mess | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | James Parrott |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Written by | H.M. Walker |
| Based on | Home from the Honeymoon 1908 play by Arthur J. Jefferson[1] |
| Starring | Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy |
| Music by | Leroy Shield |
| Cinematography | Jack Stevens |
| Edited by | Richard C. Currier |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release date | November 29, 1930 |
Running time | 28' 09" |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Plot
Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel are vagabonds being chased by the police. They hide in the cellar of the mansion of a Quatermain-esque adventurer, Colonel Wilberforce Buckshot (James Finlayson), and get trapped there. The colonel is not home, having departed for a safari in South Africa. The mansion is to be rented out until his return, but the staff sneak off for a holiday, leaving the house empty. The house is surrounded by police and the duo has to deceive a rich couple wanting to rent the house. Ollie disguises himself as Buckshot and Stan disguises himself as both butler Hives and chambermaid Agnes.
During a girl-talk scene with Thelma Todd and Stan (disguised as Agnes), Stan's comments get sillier and sillier. The real Colonel accidentally returns to fetch his bow and arrows, to find the disorder that had ensued after his departure. Ollie continues his masquerade as Colonel Buckshot to the real colonel, until he sees the portrait on the wall of the real owner. The colonel calls the police for assistance. Stan and Ollie escape the ensuing row dressed as a wildebeest on a stolen tandem bicycle. They ride into a railroad tunnel and encounter a tram, but emerge riding unicycles.
Cast
- Stan Laurel as Stan[2]
- Oliver Hardy as Ollie
Uncredited
- Harry Bernard as policeman
- Bobby Burns as bicyclist
- Betty Mae Crane as talking titles
- Beverly Crane as talking titles
- Eddie Dunn as Meadows
- James Finlayson as Colonel Wilberforce Buckshot
- Charles K. Gerrard as Lord Leopold Ambrose Plumtree
- Bill Knight as policeman
- Bob Mimford as policeman
- Gertrude Sutton as Agnes the maid
- Thelma Todd as Lady Plumtree
Production
Unlike other Laurel and Hardy shorts, the technical credits are recited by two girls in usherette outfits at the beginning of the film. Beverly and Betty Mae Crane performed the "talking titles" for several Roach productions during the 1930–31 season as an experimental alternative to standard title cards.[3]
This was also the first Laurel and Hardy film to feature the well-known Leroy Shield scorings for background music. A handful of previous Laurel & Hardy "talkie" shorts experimented with music scores; beginning with this film, these tunes would be heard regularly in Laurel & Hardy, Our Gang, Charley Chase, The Boy Friends, and other Hal Roach series and productions. Unlike several contemporaneous Laurel & Hardy films, no foreign-language versions are known to exist of this short.[3]
Exteriors were filmed at the former Guasti Villa at 3500 West Adams Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, which still stands, and is the home of the Peace Theological Seminary & College of Philosophy.[4]
See also
References
- Rowan, Terry. The Kings & Queens of Hollywood Comedy. ISBN 978-1-365-85364-7.
- "Another Fine Mess – Cast". IMDb
- Skretvedt, Randy. (1987). Laurel and Hardy : the magic behind the movies (1st ed.). Beverly Hills, CA: Moonstone Press. ISBN 0-940410-78-8. OCLC 15108873.
- Bengtson, John (February 1, 2015). "How Laurel and Hardy Filmed Another Fine Mess". Chaplin-Keaton-Lloyd film locations (and more). Retrieved September 4, 2020.