Hook a Crook (1955)

Director:

Jules White

Writers:

Felix Adler (story)
Jack White (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 November 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Comedy

Plot:

Joe Besser and Jim Hawthorne are detectives trying to recover stolen jewels. They see a necklace on a furry arm, and deduce that a man wearing a fur coat was the thief. They, instead, encounter a gorilla. |

Plot Keywords:

Two Reeler | Remake

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Joe Besser	...	Joe
Jim Hawthorne	...	Jim
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Barbara Bartay
Lela Bliss
Dan Blocker
Steve Calvert
Tom Kennedy
Joe Palma

Also Known As:

Daffy Detectives (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

16 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

First film role of Dan Blocker.

Movie Connections:

Edited from Dizzy Detectives (1943)

Joe Besser and Jim Hawthorne try to breathe new life into an old script.

This short takes it's storyline from an old Three Stooges film and re-does it with the new comedy duo of Joe Besser and Jim Hawthorne. Director Jules White tries to give it the old stooge treatment, but it just doesn't quite work. Joe Besser does his usual shtick, but the real treat (for me anyway, a diehard Hawthorne fan) is seeing a young Jim Hawthorne at the height of his fame in the 50's. Hawthorne was a popular Los Angeles radio and TV personality in the 40's and 50's, and these shorts are just a hint of what he could have achieved had Columbia not stopped all production of short subjects in the mid 50's. Teaming Besser with Hawthorne was an odd choice, but they work well together by each doing his own style of zany physical comedy to compensate for the flimsy plot. Hawthorne's pop-eyed double takes alone make it worth a look. Sadly since no footage exists of Hawthorne from his TV shows, these shorts are all we have to give a glimpse of him from his era. I recommend this and all the Besser-Hawthorne shorts for that alone.