Block-Heads (1938)

It's 1938, but Stan doesn't know the war is over; he's still patrolling the trenches in France, and shoots down a French aviator. Oliver sees his old chum's picture in the paper and goes to... See full summary »

Director:

John G. Blystone

Writers:

Charley Rogers (original story and screen play), Felix Adler (original story and screen play),

Stars:

Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Patricia Ellis

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Stan Laurel	...	Stan
Oliver Hardy	...	Ollie
Patricia Ellis	...	Mrs. Gilbert
Minna Gombell	...	Mrs. Hardy
Billy Gilbert	...	Mr. Gilbert
James Finlayson	...	Finn - Man on Stairs
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Zeffie Tilbury	...	Dowager Seated Near Stairs (scenes deleted)

Storyline

It's 1938, but Stan doesn't know the war is over; he's still patrolling the trenches in France, and shoots down a French aviator. Oliver sees his old chum's picture in the paper and goes to visit Stan at the Soldier's Home. Thinking Stan is disabled (it's just that he's sitting on his leg), Oliver takes pity on him and takes him home for a nice home-cooked meal. But Oliver's wife has other ideas and leaves him to fend for himself. After blowing up the kitchen, Oliver is helped by his next-door neighbor, Mrs. Gilbert... until the big-game hunting Mr. Gilbert comes home unexpectedly, carrying a shotgun.

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Plot Keywords:

fake chair | trunk | elephant gun | plane | laurel and hardy | 

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Taglines:

90 minutes of happiness and hi-jinks

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Genres:

Comedy | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 August 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

Just a Jiffy

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hal Roach Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

57 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

George Chandler as "Reporter" is in studio records/casting call lists for this movie, but he was not seen in the viewed print.

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Goofs

When Mr. Gilbert is talking to the reporters about his hunting trip, you can see the shadow of the boom mic on the wall behind him.

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Quotes

Stan: [to 901 guy] There's going to be a fight.
Stan: [to bypassers] There's going to be a fight.
Stan: [to guy going into apartment] Hey, there's going to be a fight.
Stan: [to desk guy] You better call an ambulance. It's going to be terrible. There's going to be a fight.

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Crazy Credits

The events and characters depicted in this photoplay are fictious. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental, and not our fault! (signed Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy)

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Connections

Remake of Unaccustomed As We Are (1929)

User Reviews

Stan and Ollie at their best

As Blockheads opens, World War I is raging, and Stan and Ollie are in the trenches. As the troops prepare to go over the top, Stan is ordered to guard the post. As a flashy montage brings us to 1938, Stan is still at his post, unaware that the war is over. In a great shot, he tosses a can of beans onto a mountain of cans that has been accumulating for 20 years.

Meanwhile, marital bliss has finally come to Oliver Hardy. Dressed in an apron, he cooks breakfast for Mrs. Hardy (Minna Gombell). He's a total wimp, completely dominated by his wife (she even gives him an allowance!). Yet when Mrs. Hardy tries to get him to realize that today is their anniversary, he isn't even close. "Was that the day I fell off the bicycle and skinned my knee?" When he finds out what day it is, he talks about whispering "sweet nothings" in his wife's ear. As he tells her that he's going to be gone for an hour, Mrs. Hardy says, "And make that hour short!"

When Ollie leaves, presumably to buy his wife a present, he hears about a soldier who stayed in the trenches for 20 years and didn't know the war was over. "I can't imagine anybody being that dumb." As he looks at Stan's picture in the paper, he quickly changes his mind. "OH YES I CAN!"

Ollie goes to the soldier's home to see Stan. Stan decides that sitting in a wheelchair with a pillow on it is more comfortable than a park bench. The chair, however, was designed for an amputee, and in order to sit in it, Stan tucks one of his legs under him. Ollie of course thinks that Stan has only one leg. There is one goof in this part of the film. As Ollie goes to get some water for Stan, Stan turns on the water, soaking him. Yet as Ollie walks over to him, his suit is totally dry! Soon a soldier comes by demanding the chair, so Ollie has to carry Stan. It's only when they both fall out of Ollie's car that he realizes that Stan does have both legs.

Of course, this only a prelude to a series of disasters, including Stan dumping sand on Ollie's car, then destroying the car as he tries the automatic garage door opener, and helping Ollie to blow up Mrs. Hardy's kitchen. In the features, Stan is often given magical powers. He can make a fist, fill it with tobacco, light it, and smoke (real smoke comes out of his mouth). Walking up the stairs, he pulls down the shadow of a blind. Later, after running up and down thirteen flights, he takes a glass of water out of his pocket. Ollie is full of disdain. "Why don't you put some ice in it?" Naturally, Stan removes two cubes from his other pocket.

Billy Gilbert returns, with the same thick German accent and short fuse he displayed in The Music Box. Only this time he's a big game hunter. After the explosion in the kitchen, Mrs. Gilbert (Patricia Ellis), locked out of her apartment, goes across the hall and is shocked by what she sees. The only thing standing in the kitchen is a large bowl of punch, which Ollie brings in to serve. Of course, he trips and the entire contents of the bowl land on Mrs. Gilbert. The only thing she can find to wear is a pair of Ollie's pajamas. Things get quite hilarious as Stan and Ollie have to hide Mrs. Gilbert, first from Mrs. Hardy and later from the extremely jealous Mr. Gilbert.

One of Lauel and Hardy's most entertaining and fun features.