Joe Palooka, Champ (1946)

Manager Knobby Walsh discovers young hunk Joe Palooka and trains him to fight the champ. Mobsters try to make life tough for Joe and his socialite girlfriend Anne. Cameos by several boxing stars.

Director:

Reginald Le Borg

Writers:

Cy Endfield (screenplay), Albert DePina (screenplay),

Stars:

Leon Errol, Joe Kirkwood Jr., Elyse Knox

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leon Errol	...	Knobby Walsh
Joe Kirkwood Jr.	...	Joe Palooka
Elyse Knox	...	Anne Howe
Eduardo Ciannelli	...	Florini
Joe Sawyer	...	Lefty
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Eugene
Warren Hymer	...	Ira Eyler
Robert Kent	...	Ronnie Brewster
Sam McDaniel	...	Smoky
Sarah Padden	...	Mom Palooka
Michael Mark	...	Herman (Pop) Palooka
Dave Willock	...	Mr. Rodney (as Dave 'Tugwell' Willock)
Lou Nova	...	Al Costa
Eddie Gribbon	...	Louie, the Louisiana Lion
J. Farrell MacDonald	...	Long-Count Bowman

Storyline

In this first entry of the Monogram features based on the comic-strip character created by Ham Fisher (while not the first use of the character on the screen), fight manager and promoter Knobby Walsh trains Al Costa to fight for the heavyweight championship, but gangster Florini, with the help of his henchmen, Lefty and Curly, takes the budding champion away from him. Knobby begins the search for a new fighter by taking four fighters and handler Smoky on a tour of tank towns. He finds Joe Palooka, a natural boxer, in a small town. Anne Howe, a society girl passing through town, helps persuade the shy-and-gentle farm boy to sign a contract with Knobby. Joe wins a string of sensational matches and, while training for the championship match with the recently-crowned champion Costa, Anne invites him to a party where her snobby society friend Ronnie Brewster makes a fool of Joe. The latter's training suffers as a result of this and estrangements from Knobby and Anne, but he rebuffs the ...

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Plot Keywords:

training | champion | manager | fighter | gangster | 

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Taglines:

OUT OF THE COMICS...INTO YOUR HEART! Everybody's Favorites Brought To Life In A Rousing Action-Romance!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Sport

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 May 1946 (USA)

Also Known As:

Joe Palooka, champion

Company Credits

Production Co:

Monogram Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Follows Palooka (1934)

User Reviews

Interesting cast in "tried and true" boxing yarn with humorous overtones

"Joe Palooka, Champ" is the first in a series of 11 black and white movies cranked out by Monogram Pictures (from 1946 through 1951) based on comic strip characters created by Ham Fisher.

Producer Hal E. Chester (formerly a "Dead End Kid" in in films) corralled a far better-than-average cast (for a Monogram production ) which included Leon Errol, Elyse Knox, Eduardo Cianelli, Joe Sawyer, Elisha Cook, Jr., Warren Hymer, Robert Kent, Sarah Padden, Dave Willock, J. Farrell McDonald, Phillip Van Zandt, Betty Blythe, Carol Hughes and Jeff Corey! 6'1" blonde haired golfer Joe Kirkwood, Jr. was selected to play Joe Palooka. He essayed an easy-going charm which was quite ingratiating.

Walk-on cameos by boxing greats Joe Louis, Henry Armstrong and Manuel Ortiz provided added allure to veteran director Reginald LeBorg's 70 minute "B" comedy/drama.

The "tried and true" premise of this yarn involved fight manager Knobby Walsh discovering hick Joe Palooka and developing him into a prize-winning contender.

Enjoyable, but immediately forgettable, opener for a popular series from a poverty row studio.