The Midnight Patrol (1933)

Director:

Lloyd French

Writers:

Release Date:

3 August 1933 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Comedy

Plot:

Novice policemen Stanley and Oliver, eating lunch in their patrol car, nearly have their spare tire stolen by a thief and his sassy partner...

Plot Keywords:

Safecracker | Sauerkraut | Car Trouble | False Arrest | Homicide

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Stan Laurel	...	Officer Stanley Laurel
Oliver Hardy	...	Officer Oliver Hardy
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Louise Beavers	...	Maid (scenes deleted)
Harry Bernard	...	Jail visitor
Billy Bletcher	...	Radio dispatcher (voice)
Frank Brownlee	...	Police Chief Ramsbottom
Edgar Dearing	...	Policeman
Eddie Dunn	...	Sergeant
Charlie Hall	...	Tire thief's partner
Bob Kortman	...	Tire thief
James C. Morton	...	Policeman
Tiny Sandford	...	Policeman
Frank Terry	...	Safecracker (as Walter Plinge)

Runtime:

20 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:G | Germany:o.Al. | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Hal Roach Studios - 8822 Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Hal Roach Studios

Trivia:

The cast list includes "Frank Terry (as Walter Plinge)". This draws on an old theatre tradition: When one actor has to play two separate parts, the credit for the second part is given to a fictitious actor named "Walter Plinge".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The marble bench floats.

Quotes:

Stanley: [sympathetically watching the burglar pound on the sides of the safe with a hammer - - Stan never suspects that the man is really a burglar and not just the store's owner] What's the matter? Did you lose the combination?
Safecracker: [feigning exasperated embarrassment and disgust] Yehhhss!
Stanley: They're really hard to open, aren't they?
Safecracker: Very!
Stanley: Why don't you try hitting it over here?
Safecracker: I've alrready tried it there.

Funny moments for Laurel

Laurel and Hardy are police officers. They must get a burglar although we know that the man they are looking for is no real burglar. He just wasn't able to enter his own house.

With some very funny moments for Laurel and some pretty nice verbal jokes as well this short is entertaining enough although I have seen better from Laurel and Hardy. The story itself has some nice surprises.