Lost in Alaska (1952)

Two volunteer firemen rescue a gold prospector from suicide. However, once they discover that the police mistakenly want them for murder, they travel with the prospector to Alaska to help ... See full summary »

Director:

Jean Yarbrough

Writers:

Elwood Ullman (story), Martin Ragaway,

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Mitzi Green

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bud Abbott	...	Tom Watson
Lou Costello	...	George Bell
Mitzi Green	...	Rosette
Tom Ewell	...	Nugget Joe McDermott
Bruce Cabot	...	Jake Stillman
Emory Parnell	...	Sherman
Jack Ingram	...	Henchman
Rex Lease	...	Old-Timer
Joe Kirk	...	Henchman (as Joseph Kirk)
Minerva Urecal	...	Mrs. McGillicuddy

Storyline

Two volunteer firemen rescue a gold prospector from suicide. However, once they discover that the police mistakenly want them for murder, they travel with the prospector to Alaska to help chase his girl. Once they arrive, the men discover that most of the town wants the prospector dead. It's up to Abbot and Costello to keep him alive, or else San Francisco is ready to hang them for the murder.

---

Plot Keywords:

gold | alaska | greed | steamship | snow | 

---

Taglines:

It's ALL NEW and a RIOT TOO!

---

Genres:

Comedy | Adventure

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

August 1952 (USA)

Also Known As:

Abbott & Costello Alaskassa

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$672,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

In the scene where Bud and Lou are ice fishing, an off-camera seal barks and Costello ad libs: "Somebody got a car up here, driving?" But the film is set in the 1890s, before the automotive era.

---

Connections

Featured in The World of Abbott and Costello (1965)

User Reviews

They forgot to make it funny...

I saw that one reviewer felt like the studio and Abbott and Costello just didn't care when they made this film and I am inclined to agree. The problem is that the film was painfully unfunny--and had one of the limpest endings I've ever seen. Maybe I was expecting too much, but a comedy should make you laugh and be entertaining.

In the only funny moments in the film, Bud and Lou rescue a man who is bent on killing himself (Tom Ewell). It seems that his lady love has rejected him and so he has no reason to live. In addition, when Bud and Lou take this guy back to Alaska, everyone seems to be trying to kill their new friend to get his gold. This humor was pretty dark and I liked it, but it really didn't go far enough and probably wouldn't appeal to most people. Sadly, however, this is about as funny as it got. Once the plot was established, too much time was spent running about an obvious fake set in obviously fake snow doing things that, frankly, make no sense and weren't funny. Fake looking crabs, a guy in a polar bear suit and the like made this a film where it was obvious that no one particularly cared if any of this mess makes sense. To make things worse, the ending is just horrible--unfunny, illogical and unsatisfying.

While this is not the worst Abbott and Costello film, it is close. You can do better.