Africa Screams (1949)

Abbott & Costello search for diamonds in Africa, along the way meeting a visually-impaired gunner, a hungry lion, and a tribe of cannibals...

Director:

Charles Barton

Writer:

Earl Baldwin (original story and screenplay)

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Clyde Beatty

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bud Abbott	...	Buzz Johnson
Lou Costello	...	Stanley Livington
Clyde Beatty	...	Clyde Beatty
Frank Buck	...	Frank Buck
Max Baer	...	Grappler McCoy
Buddy Baer	...	Boots Wilson
Hillary Brooke	...	Diana Emerson
Shemp Howard	...	Gunner
Joe Besser	...	Harry
Burt Wenland	...	Bobo (as Burton Wenland)

Storyline

When bookseller Buzz cons Diana into thinking fellow bookseller Stanley knows a great deal about Africa they are abducted and ordered to lead Diana and her henchmen to an African tribe. After encounters with lion tamers, giant apes and a wild river, Buzz returns to America. Stanley finds diamonds and buys the store they once worked for, hiring Buzz as its elevator operator.

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Plot Keywords:

africa | safari | abbott and costello | psychotronic film | gray tabby kitten | 

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Taglines:

A Three Ring Circus of African Thrills and Laughs!

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 May 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Don't Bring 'Em Back Alive

Filming Locations:

Nassour Studios - 5746 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nassour Studios Inc., Huntington Hartford Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original script had a lovestruck female gorilla pursuing Lou Costello. However, the Breen Office censors that enforced the Production Code objected to any hint of the possibility of a sexual encounter--even an unwilling one--between a man and a female gorilla. The writers changed it from a female gorilla to a male one, and the Breen Office approved it, apparently they saw that man/gorilla straight relationship would involve marriage and sex, but man/gorilla same sex relationship wouldn't rise above mere friendship.

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Goofs

Stanley's real eyebrows are visible and obviously covered with makeup during the high eyebrow raise scene.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Stanley Livington: Stay right where you are. Don't move, stay there now. Steady. Now sit up. Sit up. Sit up you. Up you fool. Up. Sit up I said. Sit up. Up.

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Crazy Credits

End Credit - The Gorilla spells out The End from some lettered blocks.

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Alternate Versions

Also available in a computer-colorized version.

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Connections

Featured in Hail to the King - A King named Kong (2014)

User Reviews

Pardon Me, Are You a Gorilla or Just a Little Bit Hairy?

Wow! The usually frumpy Costello looks positively dapper in his snazzy salesman's suit at movie's start. Superior A&C comedy with good routines, productive premise, and unusual cast. The boys get to chase around the wilds of a Hollywood sound stage pretending (not very hard) to be adventuring in darkest Africa. Of course, Lou gets to do his slow-to-catch- on routine as crocodiles, gorillas, and other assorted man-eating critters nuzzle up in humorously menacing fashion. I love it, though, when that savage-looking kitten scares the be-Jesus out of him in a downtown department store, no less.

And whose great idea was it to load up the cast with some real characters. Take the giant Baer brothers, Max and Buddy, for example. Together they look like they could tear down the Empire State building without a wreaking ball. Not exactly, your usual movie types, and when they start scuffling, you can almost feel the ground shake. Then too, what an inspiration to stick coke-bottle glasses on Shemp Howard of Three Stooges fame and turn him into a nearly blind big-game hunter! So, better hide the house pets. But I really am curious how little, fat comedian Joe Besser snuck on set when the movie already had a little, fat comedian who's a lot funnier. Add real life adventurers Clyde Beatty and Frank Buck, along with the always regal Hillary Brooke who glitters, as usual, but never gets in on the fun, and it all adds up to a lively and entertaining bunch of characters.

Perhaps best of all, A&C are still looking fresh in their roles, and if some of the routines wheeze a bit, the boys are still able to give them the needed lift, something they did not do in the last few years before the final 1956 break-up. Sure, this kind of nonsense is not everyone's cup of tea. But I defy even the sourest sour-puss not to surrender a few chuckles as the boys bumble along Africa-style.