The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. (1953)

Bart has only one enemy in the world: his piano teacher Dr. Terwilliker. Dr. T has a mad plan to force 500 young boys to practice at his magnificent piano 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. ... See full summary »

Director:

Roy Rowland

Writers:

Dr. Seuss (screenplay), Allan Scott (screenplay),

Stars:

Peter Lind Hayes, Mary Healy, Hans Conried

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Peter Lind Hayes	...	August Zabladowski
Mary Healy	...	Heloise Collins
Hans Conried	...	Dr. Terwilliker
Tommy Rettig	...	Bartholomew Collins
Jack Heasley	...	Uncle Whitney (as John Heasley)
Robert Heasley	...	Uncle Judson
Noel Cravat	...	Sgt. Lunk
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Chakiris	...	Dancer (as George Kerris)

Storyline

Bart has only one enemy in the world: his piano teacher Dr. Terwilliker. Dr. T has a mad plan to force 500 young boys to practice at his magnificent piano 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Bart is the only hope to save these boys from being enslaved. Fantastic sets, screenplay, and even song lyrics were provided by Dr. Seuss. Features the only piano academy ever known to be equipped with cells and surrounded by an electric fence.

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Plot Keywords:

piano | dr seuss | recital | baseball glove | title ends with period | 

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Taglines:

The Wonder Musical of the Future!

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Genres:

Family | Fantasy | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 July 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Crazy Music

Box Office

Budget:

$1,600,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Stanley Kramer Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the boys are checking into Dr. T's piano prison, the kid immediately behind Bart identifies himself as Kim Charney, same name he used during brief career as child/teen actor.

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Goofs

Various times through the movie, Heloise Collins's pink scarf alternates from her shoulder/arm, changing positions occasionally.

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Quotes

Mrs. Collins: The work for the happy finger method must go on.

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Connections

Referenced in Superjail!: Dream Machine (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Get-Together Weather"
Music by Friedrich Hollaender (as Frederick Hollander)
Lyrics by Dr. Seuss
Performed by Hans Conried, Peter Lind Hayes, and Mary Healy

User Reviews

Odds Bodkins.

Well I never. I have just had the pleasure of watching this film on Channel 4 in the UK. Its a damp and dreary Friday afternoon and this wacky exercise in surrealism has just been broadcast and has certainly put a smile on my face. What a storyline. What a set. What acting. This is a gem of a film which I had never heard of till today. It is a real departure from your average 1950s family film. Through the whole duration the film swings between brilliance and total whack. The madness of Dr Seuss comes across so well, especially when you jack up the colour a few notches :-) I am led to believe that Dali had a hand in the design of the sets. That in itself is enough to get me watching. I was surprised at the amount of reference to this movie I have actually experienced without realising it. For example, the Uk is presently showing an add for "frank" which is a recreational drug use/misuse information service available to the public. It uses a character who is undoubtedly based on Bart to do so. As a fan of surrealism I totally enjoyed the spooky weirdness of this mindbending musical. Just sad I didn't record it as I see it isn't available in European pal DVD format. Doh.