In the Navy (1941)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Arthur Lubin

Writers:

Arthur T. Horman (story)
Arthur T. Horman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

30 May 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Tagline:

You'll Boogie-Woogie to: "We're In The Navy" - "Hula-Ba-Luau" - "Gimme Some Skin"...and sing and sway to other songsations!

Plot:

Russ Raymond, America's number one crooner, disappears and joins the Navy under the name Tommy Halstead...

Plot Keywords:

Electrician | Pastry | Hawaii | Abbott And Costello | Crooner

Cast

Bud Abbott	...	Smokey Adams
Lou Costello	...	Seaman Pomeroy Watson
Dick Powell	...	Thomas Halstead, aka Russ Raymond
Claire Dodd	...	Dorothy 'Dot' Roberts
Patty Andrews	...	Herself (as The Andrews Sisters)
Maxene Andrews	...	Herself (as The Andrews Sisters)
Laverne Andrews	...	Herself (as The Andrews Sisters)
Dick Foran	...	CPO Dynamite Dugan
Billy Lenhart	...	Butch - Commander's Nephew (as Butch)
Kenneth Brown	...	Buddy - Commander's Nephew (as Buddy)
Shemp Howard	...	Dizzy
Frank Condos	...	Tap-Dancing Sailor #1 (as The Condos Brothers)
Harry Condos	...	Tap-Dancing Sailor #2 (as The Condos Brothers)

Also Known As:

Hello, Sailor (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

86 min | Argentina:90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

USA:Not Rated (video & dvd release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (PCA #7376)

Filming Locations:

Naval Training Center, San Diego, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

When the picture was sent to the U.S. Navy for approval, the Navy refused to have its name associated with it because of the sequence at the end when Watson takes over a ship and does some decidedly un-military manoeuvres with it. The producers came up with the idea of having Watson accidentally taking a sleeping potion and dreaming the entire sequence. When this scene was shot and edited in, the Navy lent its backing to the picture.

Quotes:

Smokey Adams: Did you ever go to school, stupid?
Seaman Pomeroy Watson: Yeah, and I come out the same way.

Movie Connections:

References Buck Privates (1941)

Soundtrack:

The Oceana Roll

The least successful of the boys' WW2 service movies

Having recently laughed my way through 'Buck Privates' and 'Keep 'em Flying', I was largely disappointed by this navy tribute. 'Hold that Ghost' was literally put on hold in order to speed up the release of 'In the Navy', and it showed, most noticeably in the less than special effects for the final sequence.

Dick Powell was a welcome addition to the cast but he really wasn't given much of a chance to show his talents. The songs overall lacked the punch so evident in 'Buck Privates', and later on, in 'Keep 'em Flying'. A fatal error was the so-called romance between Lou and Patty. The lead singer of the Andrews Sisters may have been a great vocalist but she was a woeful actress. Where were you, Martha Raye?

My favourite Bud and Lou gag was the 'Sons of Neptune'. With the boys ad-libbing all the way through, it seemed evident that they and the rest of the cast and crew had a great time getting through the sequence. Director Arthur Lubin, according to author Jim Mulholland, began to laugh uncontrollably during this take. An interesting point from the same source - the censor requested the director not show the actual spitting of water into anyone's face.