Jack and the Beanstalk (1952)

Abbott & Costello's version of the famous fairy tale, about a young boy who trades the family cow for magic beans.

Director:

Jean Yarbrough

Writers:

Nathaniel Curtis (screenplay) (as Nat Curtis), Pat Costello (story)

Stars:

Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Buddy Baer

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bud Abbott	...	Mr. Dinkel / Mr. Dinkelpuss (as Abbott)
Lou Costello	...	Jack / Jack Strong (as Costello)
Buddy Baer	...	Sgt. Riley / The Giant
Dorothy Ford	...	Receptionist / Polly
Barbara Brown	...	Mrs. Strong
David Stollery	...	Donald Larkin
William Farnum	...	The King
Arthur Shields	...	Patrick the Harp (voice)
Shaye Cogan	...	Eloise Larkin / Princess Eloise (Darlene)
James Alexander	...	Arthur / Prince Arthur
Johnny Conrad	...	Dancer

Storyline

Abbott & Costello's version of the famous fairy tale, about a young boy who trades the family cow for magic beans.

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Plot Keywords:

song | singer | singing | dancer | dancing | 

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Taglines:

A comic twist to a classic tale!

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello made an independent, two-picture deal in which they agreed that this was to be "Lou's film" and the next to be "Bud's". They retained individual ownership of the respective films.

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Goofs

The makeup and lipstick on Henrietta the cow disappears between shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Donald: Come in. Oh, it's you. I'm sorry, Arthur, I thought it was the babysitter.
Arthur: Just what do you have against babysitters?

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Crazy Credits

Instead of the usual "The characters and events depicted are fictitious, etc." disclaimer, are these four simple words, "This is a fable".

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Alternate Versions

Original press screenings featured a print that ran 83 minutes and 45 seconds. An uncut 35mm preview print survives in a private archive, but has not been released on DVD. The deleted sequences include some dialogue between Jack and his mother about how to bid while selling the cow and his strange choice to give a male name to a cow; an extra section of 'Dreamer's Cloth' sung by the Princess and the complete song 'Darlene'. Some video versions have parts of the missing scenes, but not all missing sequences.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Malice/Cool Runnings/Short Cuts/M. Butterfly/For Love or Money (1993)

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Soundtracks

He Never Looked Better In His Life
Written by Lester Lee and Bob Russell
Sung by the Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, James Alexander, Shaye Cogan and Villagers
Danced by Johnny Conrad and The Johnny Conrad Dancers

User Reviews

"He Shinnied Up The Stalk To Slay A Giant In His Den"

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello always had a good following among children, but in their careers I think you could say that they only made one film that could be designated for kids. Jack and the Beanstalk was that one film.

It was part of a two picture independent deal from Warner Brothers, the second film being Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd. These were the only two films the boys made in color.

The two of them, out of work as usual, take a job for a very precocious and obnoxious young David Stollery as a babysitter. Although it starts out with Costello wanting to read the kid, Jack and the Beanstalk as a bedtime story, the young lad winds up reading it to Costello. Lou falls asleep and in his dreams he fantasizes he's indeed Jack the Giant Killer.

Buddy Baer who menaced the boys in Africa Screams plays the giant and he's got a giant size Dorothy Ford as his housekeeper. Dorothy was a big girl, 6'2", and you can imagine she had some difficulty being cast except when her height was used as a joke. One of the only players who ever looked down at her was John Wayne in Three Godfathers at 6'4". Henry Fonda and James Stewart in On Our Merry Way also stood barely above her, but again her height was part of a gag.

Shaye Cogan and James Alexander were the princess and prince of the fantasy and they sang beautifully, but couldn't act worth anything. This was the last film of William Farnum who's career dated from the early silent screen days and even to the turn of the last century on stage. He played princess Shaye's father the king.

Some not terribly memorable musical numbers came from Jack and the Beanstalk, save the title song. I well remember as a kid having the 78 record of Bud and Lou singing the song and reciting the story. I was in my early single digit years, but became a lifelong fan of their's through that and their television series.

Jack and the Beanstalk is still a good children's picture for the very young, though I would warn parents to warn their little urchins not to imitate young master Stollery.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 April 1952 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jack and the Beanstalk

Filming Locations:

Hal Roach Studios - 8822 Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$683,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Exclusive Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min 78 min (TCM print) 82 min (restored)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone) Color (Supercinecolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1