Olsen and Johnson, a pair of stage comedians, try to turn their play into a movie and bring together a young couple in love, while breaking the fourth wall every step of the way.
Sextuplets star Marlon Wayans takes cues from Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor to transform into an entire fictional family.
Related News
-
The 25 greatest movies about making movies
03 May 2017 | Den of Geek -
The Second Civil War
23 April 2016 | Trailers from Hell -
Off-Broadway Babble-on
09 October 2011 | CultureCatch
User Lists
Related lists from IMDb users
Share this Rating
Title: Hellzapoppin' (1941)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
Nominated for
1
Oscar.
See more awards »
Learn more
More Like This
Ghost Catchers
(1944)
Comedy
|
Horror
|
Music
Director:
Edward F. Cline
Stars:
Ole Olsen,
Chic Johnson,
Gloria Jean
Phantom Lady
(1944)
Crime
|
Drama
|
Film-Noir
Director:
Robert Siodmak
Stars:
Franchot Tone,
Ella Raines,
Alan Curtis
Humanity and Paper Balloons
(1937)
Drama
Director:
Sadao Yamanaka
Stars:
Chôjûrô Kawarasaki,
Kan'emon Nakamura,
Tsuruzô Nakamura
Cobra Woman
(1944)
Adventure
|
Drama
|
Romance
Director:
Robert Siodmak
Stars:
Maria Montez,
Jon Hall,
Sabu
A Diary for Timothy
(1945)
Short
|
Documentary
Director:
Humphrey Jennings
Stars:
Michael Redgrave,
Myra Hess,
John Gielgud
Crazy House
(1943)
Comedy
|
Music
Director:
Edward F. Cline
Stars:
Ole Olsen,
Chic Johnson,
Cass Daley
Louisiana Story
(1948)
Adventure
|
Drama
Director:
Robert J. Flaherty
Stars:
Joseph Boudreaux,
Lionel Le Blanc,
E. Bienvenu
Keep 'Em Flying
(1941)
Certificate: Passed
Comedy
|
Music
|
War
Directors:
Arthur Lubin,
Ralph Ceder
Stars:
Bud Abbott,
Lou Costello,
Martha Raye
Ruggles of Red Gap
(1935)
Comedy
|
Romance
Director:
Leo McCarey
Stars:
Charles Laughton,
Mary Boland,
Charles Ruggles
Pyaasa
(1957)
Drama
|
Musical
|
Romance
Director:
Guru Dutt
Stars:
Mala Sinha,
Guru Dutt,
Waheeda Rehman
Not Reconciled
(1965)
Drama
|
History
Director:
Jean-Marie Straub
Stars:
Heinrich Hargesheimer,
Carlheinz Hargesheimer,
Martha Staendner
Edit
Cast
| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Ole Olsen | ... | Ole Olsen | |
| Chic Johnson | ... | Chic Johnson | |
| Martha Raye | ... | Betty Johnson | |
| Hugh Herbert | ... | Quimby | |
| Jane Frazee | ... | Kitty Rand | |
| Robert Paige | ... | Jeff Hunter | |
| Mischa Auer | ... | Pepi | |
| Richard Lane | ... | Director | |
| Lewis Howard | ... | Woody Taylor | |
| Clarence Kolb | ... | Andrew Rand | |
| Nella Walker | ... | Mrs. Rand | |
| Shemp Howard | ... | Louie | |
| Elisha Cook Jr. | ... | Harry Selby | |
 |
Frank Darien | ... | Man Calling for Mrs. Jones |
|
|
Catherine Johnson | ... | Lena - Lady Looking for Oscar |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
See All (45) »
Storyline
Ole and Chick are making a movie, but the director is not satisfied. So he brings them to a young writer, who outlines them an absurd story. They have to support Jeff and Kitty in setting up a musical revue in their garden and want to bring it up on Broadway. If Jeff is successful he can marry Kitty. But there is his rich friend Woody, who also loves Kitty, Chick's sister Betty, who's in love with a false Russian count, and detective Quimby. They all make the thing very complicated for Ole and Chick. After some mistakes they think that Kitty isn't the right girl for Jeff and they start sabotaging the show, but the Broadway producer is impressed and signs the contract. That's the story the writer tells them. For this he's sued by the director. Written by Stephan Eichenberg <eichenbe@fak-cbg.tu-muenchen.de>
Plot Keywords:
cult film | screwball comedy | psychotronic film | breaking the fourth wall | frankenstein's monster |Taglines:
AT LAST IT'S ON THE SCREEN! Greater than the Stage Show! See more »Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parents »
Edit
See full technical specs »
Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
26 December 1941 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
De studio draait zot See more »Company Credits
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)Color:
Black and WhiteAspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1
Edit
Did You Know?
Trivia
The film's Best Song nomination for "Pig Foot Pete" is a mystery. The song does not appear in Hellzapoppin' (1941), but did appear in Keep 'Em Flying (1941), a Bud Abbott and Lou Costello film that was made the same year by the same production company and studio. See more »Goofs
Betty picks up a rifle with a bayonet attached, but in the next shot it's a double-barreled shotgun. See more »Crazy Credits
"......any similarity between HELLZAPOPPIN' and a motion picture is purely coincidental." See more »Frequently Asked Questions
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.Contribute to This Page
On IMDb TV, you can catch Hollywood hits and popular TV series at no cost. Select any poster below to play the movie, totally free!
Explore popular and recently added TV series available to stream now with Prime Video.
Hellzapoppin' is brilliant - fast, funny, visual, one-liners, dance numbers, romance - just pure and simple escapist entertainment - It is a feast of corny, surprising, surreal, slapstick, pratfall humor that will work until the end of time.
Moreover it uses tricks and ideas, like talking to the audience, that were way ahead of its time.
The show about a show plot works wonderfully, but it is the little surprises, the oddities, and the fun that make this one of the best laugh-out comedies of all time and should be seen by every comedy writer and actor - pure joy from beginning to end - and above all pure entertainment.
Huge fun and very much recommended.