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Skidoo

  • 1968
  • R
  • 1h 38m
IMDb RATING
4.7/10
2K
YOUR RATING
Skidoo (1968)
Infamous psychedelic all-star comedy about ex-gangster Tony Banks, who's called out of retirement by mob kingpin God to carry out a hit on fellow mobster "Blue Chips" Packard. When Banks demurs, God kidnaps his daughter Darlene on his luxury yacht.
Play trailer2:36
1 Video
23 Photos
Dark ComedySatireComedy

A retired gangster must return to work when mob boss God kidnaps his daughter Darlene to force him into killing rival Blue Chips Packard.A retired gangster must return to work when mob boss God kidnaps his daughter Darlene to force him into killing rival Blue Chips Packard.A retired gangster must return to work when mob boss God kidnaps his daughter Darlene to force him into killing rival Blue Chips Packard.

  • Director
    • Otto Preminger
  • Writer
    • Doran William Cannon
  • Stars
    • Jackie Gleason
    • Carol Channing
    • Frankie Avalon
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    4.7/10
    2K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Otto Preminger
    • Writer
      • Doran William Cannon
    • Stars
      • Jackie Gleason
      • Carol Channing
      • Frankie Avalon
    • 80User reviews
    • 51Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:36
    Trailer

    Photos23

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    Top cast52

    Edit
    Jackie Gleason
    Jackie Gleason
    • Tony Banks
    Carol Channing
    Carol Channing
    • Flo
    Frankie Avalon
    Frankie Avalon
    • Angie
    Fred Clark
    Fred Clark
    • A Tower Guard
    Michael Constantine
    Michael Constantine
    • Leech
    Frank Gorshin
    Frank Gorshin
    • The Man
    John Phillip Law
    John Phillip Law
    • Stash
    Peter Lawford
    Peter Lawford
    • The Senator
    Burgess Meredith
    Burgess Meredith
    • The Warden
    George Raft
    George Raft
    • The Skipper
    Cesar Romero
    Cesar Romero
    • Hechy
    Mickey Rooney
    Mickey Rooney
    • 'Blue Chips' Packard
    Groucho Marx
    Groucho Marx
    • 'God'
    Arnold Stang
    Arnold Stang
    • Harry
    Doro Merande
    Doro Merande
    • The Mayor
    Phil Arnold
    Phil Arnold
    • Her Husband
    Slim Pickens
    Slim Pickens
    • The Switchboard Operator
    Robert Donner
    Robert Donner
    • Another Switchboard Operator
    • Director
      • Otto Preminger
    • Writer
      • Doran William Cannon
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews80

    4.71.9K
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    Featured reviews

    4AlsExGal

    Spectacularly strange, mostly unfunny mess of a film.

    Ex-gangster Tony Banks (Gleason) is contacted to do one more hit by mob leader god (Marx), or Banks' wife (Channing) and daughter (Alexandra Hay) will be hurt. Thus the film is a series of skits tied to that idea.

    The few highlights: a series of commercial and television parodies that open the film, followed by Gleason and Channing's dueling remote controls. Frank Gorshin's explanation of how one is supposed to talk in prison. Channing ruining one of gangster Avalon's planned dates, and the malfunctioning of Avalon's remote.

    Channing is in there trying to make her scenes work and actually getting her laughs. Gorshin is funny in his one-joke role. Slim Summerville is amusing in a bit part. Peter Lawford underplays his role as a corrupt politician, and gets laughs. The rest of the cast sinks with the script.

    "Skidoo" is the only film I've seen where the entire end credits are sung. If my ear is correct, that's Preminger's voice introducing the end credits. Ironically because it is trying so hard to be unique it seems like so many 60s films - It is a weird time capsule.

    This is actually about a 4.5 out of 10 - not quite mediocre.
    boris-26

    One of the prizes of my rare video collection

    It's very hard to describe SKIDOO. It starts as a spoof of gangster movies. Jackie Gleason plays a hoodlum who is forced into prison so he can bump off a possible informant (Mickey Rooney) In prison, Gleason accidently helps himself to a dose of cell mate's (Austin Pendleton) acid laced stationary, and has an LSD trip hi-lighted with cruddy special effects, dancing co-stars, etc. In the meantime, Gleason's adoring wife (Carol Channing) allows their hippie daughter to bring over about a hundred of her hippie friends. Throw in a tired looking, unfunny Groucho Marx as "God", an actually funny Frankie Avalon, a trip-out scene where Hollywood old-timers like Peter Lawford, Burgess Meredith, Fred Clark, and Slim Pickens get embarassingly stoned. Channing is down right frightening when she leads the finale musical number. It's also impossible to fathom Otto Preminger behind this hoo-hah!
    googlemorf

    Skidoo, Skidoo, and world will be a better place for you

    Finally saw this thing in Washington DC at a special showing. What a mind blower! Director Preminger and company really took risks here; a counterculter comedy with an all star middle aged to senior citizen cast! The story has gangster Jackie Gleason being hired by Groucho Marx to kill Mickey Rooney in prison where Gleason takes LSD and his wife Carol Channing does a strip tease and sings the theme song.. it's enough to make your head spin! It must be said that this film made motion picture history: It's the only movie ever made where the end credits are actually SUNG, by the films composer Nilsson! Can't wait for this to be on DVD!
    mark-506

    Embarrassing

    I like a good bad movie. I can go on and on about how wonderful "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-Up Zombies" is - and I have. And I don't need those MST3K idiots adding lame improv chatter to make a bad film more enjoyable! So I had been looking forward to "Skidoo" for years. I finally watched it last night, after procuring a copy on eBay (pretty much the only place where you can find this film, currently).

    My reaction, in a nutshell: Blah. Yuck. Ho hum.

    It's pointless to say more, especially when so many "Skidoo" fans have already weighed in - quite eloquently, I might add - within these comments pages. But I will say this: Usually on the IMDb, when you see so many well-written praises for a famous train wreck of a film, you get the feeling that this is something to see. Don't be snowed as I was! What most of these folks are not telling you is that "Skidoo" is meant to be a wacky comedy. But it's simply a deadening, painful-to-watch document of the twilight of many a great performer's career, where, before either dying or retreating to the safety of TV movies, the cast - some game, some barely even trying (I'm looking at you, Groucho Marx) - flounder in this pathetic attempt by the dinosaurs of 1950's Hollywood to try to stay relevant by making a "hippie movie."

    This film is flat, boring, pretentious and hopelessly uncampy. It has the distinctively ugly look of late 60's studio cinema, and like many of those other strident, unfunny all-star comedies of the era ("The Great Race," "The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!" et al), it's just plain awful.
    lustron1

    Do you smell something?

    This film is unbelievable... Big stars, a big Hollywood director... and what they came up with is the movie equivalent of a car wreck!

    You don't want to look, but you find yourself unable not to.

    Don't get me wrong, I've seen this film a dozen times and it still blows my mind how this ever got put on film. You won't believe your eyes or ears!

    And Groucho Marx and half of the cast never looked more worse for wear.

    By far, this is one of my favorite "bad" films. Watch it... and then blame the dog!

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Otto Preminger originally wanted Bob Dylan to score the movie. He invited Dylan and his wife to a screening of a rough cut of the movie in Preminger's Hollywood mansion. After the screening Dylan surprised everybody from his entourage, who thought the film was a disaster, by requesting a second screening but at one condition: he wanted to be left alone with his wife in the house during it. Preminger happily obliged, convinced that Dylan would accept the job. However, Dylan showed no further interest in the movie. He acknowledged later that he and his wife weren't interested at all by the film but they loved the mansion's style so much that they requested this second screening to freely explore it, write down what they liked and take inspiration for their own house.
    • Quotes

      Stash: Violence is the sign language of the inarticulate.

      Tony Banks: What is he talkin' about? Do you know what he's talkin' about?

    • Crazy credits
      At the end of the film, Harry Nilsson sings all the credits that appear onscreen, with occasional side notes (e.g. "a good friend", or "thanks").
    • Connections
      Featured in Inside the Marx Brothers (2003)
    • Soundtracks
      Skidoo
      Performed by Carol Channing and Company

      Written by Harry Nilsson

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    FAQ15

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • December 19, 1968 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Skidoo - Ein Happening in Love
    • Filming locations
      • Alcatraz Prison, Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California, USA(aerial shots of prison)
    • Production company
      • Otto Preminger Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 38 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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