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	...	Police Sgt. Riley / The Giant
Dorothy Ford	...	Receptionist / Polly
Barbara Brown	...	Mrs. Strong
David Stollery	...	Donald Larkin
William Farnum	...	The King
Johnny Conrad	...	Dancer
Shaye Cogan	...	Eloise Larkin / Princess Eloise (Darlene)
James Alexander	...	Arthur / Prince Arthur

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:

Their first picture in color!

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the first of only two color movies that Bud Abbott and Lou Costello made (the other being "Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952)"). It begins in sepiatone and then changes to color.

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Goofs

When Jack mistakes the Giant's shadow for his own, the shadow is directly in front of him. When the camera angle shifts to a side view of Jack and the Giant, their shadows are off to their right sides and cast much smaller.

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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

References The Wizard of Oz (1939)

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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

Surprisingly entertaining movie for kids of all ages.

Having read so much negative press on this movie over the years, I'd always avoided it, but the advent of the cheap public domain DVD encouraged me to finally give it a viewing.

Unfortunately, it's been transferred from a poor copy. The modern prequel, shot on tinted stock, is blurry and the contrast, non-existent. Faces are occasionally difficult to make out. Having said that, the actual story is entertaining and Lou comes across as an accomplished actor, more so than in many of the boys' movies.

Once the movie switches to the 'Jack' story, the film switches to 'colour' and I use that term loosely. Most hues are orange or brown. The greens look particularly bad.

Dorothy Ford as 'Polly', the giant's maid, was a big plus for me as I enjoyed her in an early 'Andy Hardy' appearance.

With so many negative comments put down to the actual quality of the print, I'm still happy to give this movie a 7. It gave me a lot of laughs and that's more than the greater majority of comedies I've watched over the decades can manage.

One to watch if you get the chance.

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