Jitterbugs *** (1943, Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Vivian Blaine) – Classic Movie Review 8496

Director Malcolm [Mal] St Clair’s 1943 Jitterbugs is an excellent late-period Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy comedy, their best at 20th Century Fox after parting company with producer Hal Roach.

Ollie pretends to be a Southern colonel to assist pretty singer Susan Cowan (Vivian Blaine) in trying to recover her mother’s money from swindler crooks, while Stan masquerades first as his manservant and later, memorably, as Blaine’s aunt.

An on-form Laurel and Hardy are the main attraction of course, but Blaine’s performance and her pair of songs, and Lee Patrick as Dorcas, the gal from the South, are also considerable assets.

Also in the cast are Bob Bailey [Robert Bailey], Douglas Fowley, Noel Madison, Robert Emmett Keane and Charles Halton.

Jitterbugs is directed by Malcolm St Clair, runs 75 minutes, is made and released by 20th Century Fox, is written by Scott Darling, is shot in black and white by Lucien Andriot, is produced by Sol M Wurtzel, and is scored by Emil Newman, with music and lyrics by Charles Newman and Lew Pollack.

Jitterbugs was filmed before as Arizona to Broadway.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 8496

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