Pardners (1956)

A rich momma's boy returns west with the son of his murdered father's partner to foil a gang trying to gain control of his family ranch.

Director:

Norman Taurog

Writers:

Sidney Sheldon (screenplay), Jerry Davis (screen story)

Stars:

Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Lori Nelson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dean Martin	...	Slim Moseley Jr. / Slim Moseley Sr.
Jerry Lewis	...	Wade Kingsley Jr. / Wade Kingsley Sr.
Lori Nelson	...	Carol Kingsley
Jeff Morrow	...	Pete Rio
Jackie Loughery	...	Dolly Riley
John Baragrey	...	Dan Hollis / Sam Hollis
Agnes Moorehead	...	Mrs. Matilda Kingsley
Lon Chaney Jr.	...	Whitey (as Lon Chaney)
Milton Frome	...	Hawkins, the Butler
Richard Aherne	...	Chauffeur
Lee Van Cleef	...	Gus
Stuart Randall	...	Carol's Cowhand
Scott Douglas	...	Salvin
Jack Elam	...	Pete
Bob Steele	...	Shorty

Storyline

Martin and Lewis are sons of former ranch partners. Lewis, raised by his millionaire mother, follows visiting Martin back to the old West to learn how to be a cowboy. The ranch where Martin is foreman is in financial trouble, and with Lewis's unorthodox help, the good guys win out.

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Plot Keywords:

singing | 1910s | slapstick comedy | cattle ranch | remake | 

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Taglines:

All hilarity breaks loose 'neath that old western sky in the biggest fun round-up since "Paleface"! (original poster)

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Music | Romance | Western

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 August 1956 (USA)

Also Known As:

Where Men Are Men?

Filming Locations:

Old Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$7,920,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

York Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Perspecta Sound encoding) (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Remake of the 1936 Bing Crosby/Martha Raye musical Rhythm on the Range.

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Goofs

As Dean rescues Jerry in the doorway of the train after it leaves New York, cars from the 1950s, not 1910, are visible in the rail yard in the stock footage background.

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Quotes

Slim Mosely Jr.: [waiting with Carol to meet Mrs. Kingsley] Oh, don't worry - I'll make a good impression.
Slim Mosely Jr.: [he sits on an old chair and in collapses just as Matilda comes into the room screaming in horror] My antique chair!
Slim Mosely Jr.: [relieved] Well, I'm glad it was only an old one.

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Connections

Referenced in Martin and Lewis (2002)

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Soundtracks

Pardners
Music by Jimmy Van Heusen (as James Van Heusen)
Lyrics by Sammy Cahn
Sung by Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis

User Reviews

Fun Martin & Lewis Film

Pardners (1956)

*** (out of 4)

Our film starts off with Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis playing Slim Moseley and Wade Kingsley who die protecting their ranch. Moseley, Jr. (Martin) stays out West where he eventually tries to save the ranch and he goes out East to track down Wade, Jr. (Lewis) who he discovers is quite the weak nerd. Wade, wanting to become a cowboy, follows Moseley out West and soon they are going up against a crooked gang who wants their land.

I really wasn't sure what to expect from PARDNERS but it turned out to be one of the better Martin & Lewis movies even if it does borrow quite heavily from their film THAT'S MY BOY. This film here benefits greatly from the beautiful Technicolor plus the fact that the two leads are surrounding by a very good supporting cast. Plus, you can't help but enjoy seeing Martin in his first Western and especially when you consider the great things he did for the genre after the duo's split.

As far as this film goes, Martin & Lewis were just built for the Western setting and both of them do a very good job here. I really liked Lewis' character here because he wasn't nearly as whiny or as annoying as the actor would sometime go. This character seemed like a legit one and I thought Lewis did a very good job. One of his highlights deals with him trying to roll a cigarette without much luck. Martin was perfect here as he gets some very good numbers throughout the picture including the title track, which is done with Lewis on a good Western set.

The supporting cast includes fun performances from Lori Nelson, Jackie Loughery, Agnes Moorehead, Jeff Morrow, Lee Van Cleef and Lon Chaney in a small role. You also have Jack Elam and Bob Steele appearing in small roles. The film has a lot of funny moments here including one very good sequence where Martin is having to fill in for Lewis during a fight while making sure the weak one gets the credit for it. As I said, the Technicolor here looks terrific and I liked how the film played well as not only a comedy but also a Western.