Kentucky Moonshine (1938)

Tony Martin goes to Kentucky to find talent to boost radio ratings. There it is learned that the Ritz brothers are really from New York and only pretending to be hillbillies to get on Martin's show.

Director:

David Butler

Writers:

M.M. Musselman (original story and screenplay), Jack Lait Jr. (story),

Stars:

Harry Ritz, Jimmy Ritz, Al Ritz

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harry Ritz	...	Harry Ritz (as Ritz Brothers)
Jimmy Ritz	...	Jimmy Ritz (as Ritz Brothers)
Al Ritz	...	Al Ritz (as Ritz Brothers)
Tony Martin	...	Jerry Wade
Marjorie Weaver	...	Caroline
Slim Summerville	...	Hank Hatfield
John Carradine	...	Reef Hatfield
Wally Vernon	...	Gus Bryce
Berton Churchill	...	J.B
Eddie Collins	...	'Spats' Swanson
Cecil Cunningham	...	Landlady
Paul Stanton	...	Mortimer Hilton
Mary Treen	...	'Sugar' Hatfield
Francis Ford	...	Grandpa Hatfield
Gwen Brian	...	Member of Vocal Specialty Trio (as The Brian Sisters)

Storyline

Radio star Jerry Wade's program ratings are falling and he suggests to his sponsors a show that is different and he goes to Kentucky to find an idea. Caroline, a Kentucky girl in New York trying to crash into radio, learns of Wade's quest and takes her three friends, Harry, Jimmy and Al Ritz, also aspiring to show-business fame, to Kentucky with her, where Wade discovers them in beards, guns, feuds, moonshine and every cliché that fits hillbillies. He stages a broadcast from the hills, which is not heard because of technical difficulties. He takes the whole troupe back to New York with him.

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Plot Keywords:

kentucky | hillbilly | show business | feud | star | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 May 1938 (USA)

Also Known As:

Caipiras da Fuzarca

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

87 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Reels three and four were originally tinted in sepia and blue.

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Connections

Featured in M*A*S*H: Mail Call Three (1978)

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Soundtracks

"Comedy Songs"
Written by Ray Golden and Sid Kuller
Performed by The Ritz Brothers

User Reviews

Some Good Ritz Action Here

As is often the case with comedies of the 30s and 40s, the filmmakers don't trust the comedians to carry the picture, so they add a romantic subplot and boring song or two to "help things out". It doesn't help here, as Tony Martin is not much of a leading man and has some boring songs to sing, however the madcap magic of the Ritz boys does win out in the end.

This movie starts with an interminably long Martin song, then you finally meet the Ritz Brothers, three guys trying to make it in showbusiness just when the hillbilly music craze is breaking. They catch wind of a talent search down south and decide to go down and pose as bumpkins to jumpstart their careers. This kind of thing probably happened in real life during the folk music boom of the 60s!

Great Harry Ritz line: (acting dumb as someone tries to explain the concept of a broadcast to him) "You mean they can take our voices on that there raddy-o and fling 'em all over tarnation?"

So, as usual, not ENOUGH Ritz Brothers in this, but they do get some good moments, the best (perhaps one of their finest sequences captured on film), is their routine at the end. Worth the wait. Phenomenal dancing. Just hilarious and entirely Ritz-ian.