It Ain't Hay (1943)

Adaptation of the Damon Runyon story 'Princess O'Hara', in which the horse of a street vendor is replaced by a racehorse.

Director:

Erle C. Kenton

Writers:

Damon Runyon (story "Princess O'Hara"), Allen Boretz (screenplay)

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Grace McDonald

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bud Abbott	...	Grover Mockridge
Lou Costello	...	Wilbur Hoolihan
Grace McDonald	...	Kitty McGloin
Cecil Kellaway	...	King O'Hara
Eugene Pallette	...	Gregory Warner
Patsy O'Connor	...	Peggy / Princess O'Hara
Leighton Noble	...	Private Joe Collins
Shemp Howard	...	Umbrella Sam
Samuel S. Hinds	...	Colonel Brainard
Eddie Quillan	...	Harry the Horse
Richard Lane	...	Slicker
David Hacker	...	Chauncey the Eye
Andrew Tombes	...	Big-Hearted Charlie
Wade Boteler	...	Reilly
Selmer Jackson	...	Grant

Storyline

King O'Hara (Cecil Kellaway) uses his horse-drawn, handsome Hansom Cab to drive the guys and dolls of Broadway around and about Central Park, and all is well and good until O'Hara's ailing horse comes up more than a little bit ill and, in fact, ups and dies after King's friend, taxicab driver Wilbur Hoolihan (Lou Costello), inadvertently but effectively by administering candy to the ailing animal. Some of the guys and dolls are more than somewhat upset, especially those citizens, who carry rods and get a lot of pointed questions from police officers, and who aren't among those most admired as upright citizens. So, Wilbur sets out to acquire a new horse to pull King's Hansom Cab through Central Park. Wilbur rescues a lost horse and gives it to KIng. But the new horse , unknown to all, is a famous race-hose named Tea Biscuit, and it is soon noticed that the horse has a lot more spirit and giddy-up than the horse he replaced. And it is not long before Tea Biscuit is entered in a famous ...

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Plot Keywords:

racetrack | fixed horse race | police detective | damsel in distress | deception | 

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Taglines:

Those Super-Sleuths Go Saddle-Silly...IN A HORSEY AND BUGGY DAZE! Their NEWEST and FUNNIEST Joy-Ride!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Music

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

When filming the scene where he was in bed with a horse, Lou Costello was slightly injured when the horse rolled over on top of him.

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Goofs

When Grover places his $100 bet, he places it on Tea Biscuit's entered number. However, the horse with that number didn't win, so the ticket is worthless. Never mind that Tea Biscuit won the race; bets at the track are on numbers, not on names.

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Quotes

Grover Mockridge: Go answer the door. It might be Warner.
Wilbur Hoolihan: It won't do no good. We're all signed up with Universal.

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Connections

Referenced in Guys and Dolls (1955)

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Soundtracks

Hang Your Troubles on a Rainbow
Music by Harry Revel
Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster
Sung by Leighton Noble
Danced by The Four Step Brothers

User Reviews

It Ain't Hay (1943) ***

Abbott and Costello are at their very best in this agreeable comedy. They play a couple of Manhattan taxi drivers with a fondness for a sweet young girl and her horse. Costello means well in trying to be nice to the animal, but his feeding it candy ultimately causes the horse to get sick - and die. So he and Abbott set out to make things right by getting a new horse for the girl, whose dad (Cecil Kellaway) runs a horse and carriage ride in the city. I know that synopsis sounds rather dramatic, but there is a lot of well-staged comedy between the serious moments. And Bud and Lou are as sharp in ever performing them. Some routines include: their classic "the horse eats his fodder", the boys getting swindled at a phony horse race outfit, Lou getting into trouble at a restaurant for not being able to pay his check, and other assorted gags. Third Stooge Shemp Howard also has a part, but the real fun comes courtesy of fat man Eugene Palette, who is the perfect foil for Costello's antics. As with almost all of A&C's movie of this period, there is some singing and dance numbers here; however, I find them to be rather entertaining and endurable this time out. *** out of ****

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 March 1943 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hold Your Horses

Filming Locations:

Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1