Mexican Hayride (1948)

Two con men selling phony stock flee to Mexico ahead of the law, where they run into a woman friend from their earlier days, who is now a bullfighter.

Director:

Charles Barton

Writers:

Herbert Fields (play), Dorothy Fields (play),

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Virginia Grey

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bud Abbott	...	Harry Lambert
Lou Costello	...	Joe Bascom / Humphrey Fish
Virginia Grey	...	Montana the Bullfighter / Mary
Luba Malina	...	Dagmar
John Hubbard	...	David Winthrop, American Embassy
Pedro de Cordoba	...	Señor Martinez
Fritz Feld	...	Professor Ganzmeyer
Tom Powers	...	Plainclothesman Ed Mason
Pat Costello	...	Plainclothesman Tim Williams
Frank Fenton	...	Gus Adamson
Chris-Pin Martin	...	Mariachi Leader (as Chris Pin Martin)
Sid Fields	...	AP reporter (as Sidney Fields)
Flores Brothers Trio	...	Musicians Playing 'Is It Yes, or Is It No?'

Storyline

Two con men selling phony stock flee to Mexico ahead of the law, where they run into a woman friend from their earlier days, who is now a bullfighter.

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Plot Keywords:

stock | mexico | tamale | mariachi band | fugitive | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

December 1948 (USA)

Also Known As:

Abbott und Costello im Lande der Kakteen

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,032,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The play opened in New York City, New York, USA on 28 January 1944 and ran for 481 performances, closing 17 May 1945. The stars were June Havoc and Bobby Clark, and included Luba Malina, who is also in this movie. Because Bud Abbott and Lou Costello fans expressed annoyance about so many musical numbers in their films, none of Cole Porter's music was used in this picture.

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Goofs

When Joe/Humphrey throws the exploding enchilada at the escaping Harry, it can be seen bouncing on the ground to the left of the explosion.

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Quotes

Joe Bascom: Couldn't Jones make it?
Harry Lambert: Oh, sure, but he'd still be a smith.
Joe Bascom: How can a Jones be a Smith?

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Connections

Featured in The World of Abbott and Costello (1965)

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Soundtracks

"Kiss Me Kate"
(uncredited)
Written by Cole Porter

User Reviews

A mildly interesting diversion

This film is a bit unusual for an Abbott and Costello film in that Bud and Lou work against each other. In other words, they are not friends in the film and Lou is hiding out in Mexico. It seems that Bud is a swindler and has made it look like Lou is guilty. Naturally, Lou's goal is to get the money back so that he can pay off everyone back home and get the police to drop the case against him. Again and again throughout the film, Bud promises to give Lou all the money...in a few days.

Complicating things is that the police have just spotted Lou and are hot on his trail. But, they aren't positive it's the right guy and they are forced to back off when Lou is designated the "Guest of the People of Mexico". In other words, he was supposedly randomly chosen to be wined and dined as a sign of good will between the US and Mexico. In a very ironic scene, just when the Mexicans are set to honor Lou, the American police are ready to arrest him. What stops them is that one of the cops also matches this vague description! And, in reality, this part is played by Pat Costello--Lou's older brother in real life! Low points in the film include Luba Malina's performance. At times, she speaks with a typical American accent and in others she tries (in vain) to approximate a Mexican accent...and fails miserably. Why the director didn't bother to fix these scenes or notice is beyond me. Apparently, Malina was Russian-born and lived all around the world and if you listen, you can clearly hear this in her voice! Another is the scene late in the film where Lou is hiding out as an old lady with a tortilla wagon. His fake Spanish is really, really lame and sounds like Spanish only to someone with severe brain damage--and it's not really very funny--though the scene otherwise isn't bad at all. Could audiences back in 1948 have actually thought this was an approximation of Spanish?! High points are the lack of musical numbers and irrelevant secondary characters in the film. There is no handsome couple (unless you count Lou and Luba) and the film tends to focus exclusively on Bud and Lou.

Unfortunately, though, there aren't a ton of laughs in the film and it is a rather bland affair compared to the rest of the comedy team's work. An mildly interesting diversion and that is all.