The Inspector General (1949)

A town's corrupt officials think a fool is actually an investigator in disguise.

Director:

Henry Koster

Writers:

Philip Rapp (screenplay), Harry Kurnitz (screenplay)

Stars:

Danny Kaye, Walter Slezak, Barbara Bates

Won 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Danny Kaye	...	Georgi
Walter Slezak	...	Yakov
Barbara Bates	...	Leza
Elsa Lanchester	...	Maria
Gene Lockhart	...	The Mayor
Alan Hale	...	Kovatch
Walter Catlett	...	Col. Castine
Rhys Williams	...	Inspector General

Storyline

An illiterate stooge in a traveling medicine show wanders into a strange town and is picked up on a vagrancy charge. The town's corrupt officials mistake him for the inspector general whom they think is traveling in disguise. Fearing he will discover they've been pocketing tax money, they make several bungled attempts to kill him.

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Plot Keywords:

screwball comedy | snake oil | corruption | medicine show | redheaded man | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 December 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Happy Times

Filming Locations:

Corriganville, Ray Corrigan Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The song "Happy Times", written for this film, was a recording hit for numerous artists during the late 1940s and early 1950s.

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Goofs

When Yakov first reads the note from Leza we can see it says "They are trying to kill you. Don't go near the barn." Later, when the woodchopper reads it he says "Don't go near the barn. They are trying to kill you."

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Quotes

Yakov: You'll regret this, you fat-faced village idiot!
The Mayor: What! You... you... How dare you!
Yakov: Keep your dirty hands off me, you misbegotten peasants!
The Mayor: Tie him up!
Yakov: The Emperor will tear this stinking village down over your ears, you thieving lard-bucket! Heads will roll here like marbles - yours first, and then this flea-ridden sack of nothing you call the Inspector General!
Inspector General: Oh! Why, he's insane! Take him away! Take him away!
Yakov: This isn't the Inspector General! Don't make me laugh! The great Emperor wouldn't ...

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Connections

Version of Der Revisor (1955)

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Soundtracks

The Medicine Show
(1949) (uncredited)
(aka "Yakov's Elixir")
Music and Lyrics by Sylvia Fine
Played by Musicians at the Medicine Show
Sung by Danny Kaye
Variations played in the score

User Reviews

Pleasant Farce With a Fine Cast

A pleasant farce with a fine cast, "The Inspector General" gives Danny Kaye a chance to show off his many talents, and also tells a story that is quite humorous as long as you do not take it too seriously.

Kaye plays Georgi, an illiterate traveling huckster who helps his boss Yakov (Walter Slezak) sell useless medicines to gullible peasants. (The sequence where they try to sell their "elixir" is one of the movie's best scenes.) Georgi visits a small town, where through a series of coincidences, he is mistaken by the town's leaders for the Inspector General, an important official with sweeping powers to punish and reform. Half of the town fawns on him, while the other half panics over what he will discover in his "inspection". Kaye just wants to leave town before they figure out who he really is, but plenty of complications arise that keep things going for quite a while.

Kaye gets to sing, dance, and generally entertain the audience. The supporting cast is filled with fine character actors like Gene Lockhart, Elsa Lanchester, and Alan Hale, who add to the humor. Not a lot of big laughs, but a steady stream of good-natured comedy all the way through.

This is an enjoyable movie recommended for anyone who likes musical comedy.