The Adventures of a Rookie (1943)

User Rating:

4.9/10   

Director:

Leslie Goodwins

Writers:

William Bowers (original story and adaptation) and
M. Coates Webster (original story and adaptation) ...

Release Date:

August 1943 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Drafted for Laughter!

Plot:

Two bumbling GIs manage to get themselves invited to a dinner party at a boarding house "for women only"...

Plot Keywords:

Party | Scarlet Fever | Quarantine | Cook | Absent Without Leave

Cast

Wally Brown	...	Jerry Miles
Alan Carney	...	Mike Strager
Richard Martin	...	Bob Prescott
Erford Gage	...	Sgt. Burke
Margaret Landry	...	Peggy Linden
Patti Brill	...	Patsy - Party Guest
Rita Corday	...	Ruth - Party Guest
Robert Anderson	...	Sgt. Wilson (as Robert Andersen)

Runtime:

USA:64 min (Turner library print) | 66 min (copyright length)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #9431) | USA:TV-G (TV rating)

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Quotes:

Jerry Miles: And she's pretty, too.
Mike Strager: Yeah. So is my peanut.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Rookies in Burma (1943)

Soundtrack:

We'll Give Our Yanks More Tanks

RKO's A&C

Following fine supporting roles in "Step Lively", RKO decided to push Wally Brown and Alan Carney as their answer to Abbott and Costello. Brown and Carney were a comedy team created by RKO. Their success together is pure luck. Brown was to be the "Abbott" character, with Carney as "Costello". But Brown and Carney have personalities of their own. Wally Brown is an unsuccessful con man who can sing a little. Carney, who uses the catch phrase "You don't like me", is a rubber faced impressionist. Brown is high energy, while Carney is lethargic. However, Brown does not try to take advantage of Carney. They are on the same side doing battle with the rest of the world. "Adventures of a Rookie" and its sequal "Rookies in Burma" are "Buck Privates" rip offs. RKO was not the only studio trying to cash in on the success of "Buck Privates". Fox attempted to do this by redefining Laurel and Hardy in "Great Guns" and Warners put together the unlikely team of Phil Silvers and Jimmy Durante for "You're in the Army Now". I can't blame the studios. "Buck Privates" was a huge hit. Why not cash in on that? The "Rookies" pictures are only for die hard comedy fans who wish to see another turn on Abbott and Costello.