Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953)

Lester and Orville accidentally launch a rocket which is supposed to fly to Mars. Instead it goes to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. They are then forced by bank robber Mugsy and his pal Harry ... See full summary »

Director:

Charles Lamont

Writers:

D.D. Beauchamp (story), Howard Christie (story),

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Mari Blanchard

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bud Abbott	...	Lester
Lou Costello	...	Orville
Mari Blanchard	...	Allura
Robert Paige	...	Dr. Wilson
Horace McMahon	...	Mugsy
Martha Hyer	...	Janie Howe
Jack Kruschen	...	Harry
Joe Kirk	...	Dr. Orvilla
Jean Willes	...	Capt. Olivia
Anita Ekberg	...	Venusian Guard
James Flavin	...	First Policeman in Bank
Jackie Loughery	...	Venusian Guard (Miss U.S.A.)
Ruth Hampton	...	Handmaiden (Miss New Jersey) (as Ruth June Hampton)
Valerie Jackson	...	Handmaiden (Miss Montana)
Renate Hoy	...	Handmaiden (Miss Germany) (as Renate Huy)

Storyline

Lester and Orville accidentally launch a rocket which is supposed to fly to Mars. Instead it goes to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. They are then forced by bank robber Mugsy and his pal Harry to fly to Venus where they find a civilization made up entirely of women, men having been banished.

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Plot Keywords:

mardi gras | telescope | chrysler building manhattan new york city | spaceship | venus the planet | 

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Taglines:

OUTER-SPACE FUN SPREE! (original print ad - all caps)

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Genres:

Comedy | Sci-Fi | Fantasy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 April 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

On to Mars

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$754,000 (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

A very young Harry Shearer appears as one of the boys seen near the beginning.

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Goofs

During the scene in which the rocket is flying in space, just before they land on Venus, when the rocket is flying by, you can see the string holding it.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Miss Frances Planey: Orville, after you've finished flying the jet ships for the children, bring them back to the orphanage. Then cut the lawn and water the plants.
Orville: All right, Miss Planey.

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Connections

Featured in Watch the Skies!: Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us (2005)

User Reviews

Slapstick sci-fi is vintage 50's fun.

Often cited as the team's worst film (which it's not!), this will likely fall in the `guilty pleasure' category for most fans. Vigorous juvenile slapstick merges with Freudian sci-fi in this late entry for the comedy duo (only a handful of movies remained on their Universal contract). Sci-fi elements are of the Saturday matinee variety, totally implausible and full of hokum (eg. CAT WOMEN OF THE MOON). Yet somehow, this provides the appropriate blend for A&C's `dumb and dumber' charades, in which camp elements become a part of the parody and the results are unbridled fantasy nonsense (populating the planet with Miss Universe contestants only adds to the fun). Universal would soon become a heavyweight contributer to the pulp sci-fi cycle of the 50's, yet surprisingly, this surreal spoof pre-dates them all! Thus far, this film has only been issued on VHS, the quality being overall quite good, in keeping with MCA's generally high standards for this format ... however a DVD would be most welcome.