PALEFACE (DVD) FULL FRAME 1.33:1/DOLYB DIGITAL 2.0 MONO/SPANISH/FRENCH DVD

The Paleface
Bob Hope's Technicolor western spoof The Paleface was one of the comedian's biggest box-office hits. Hope plays Painless Potter, a hopelessly inept dentist who heads west to seek his fortune. Meanwhile, buxom female outlaw Calamity Jane (Jane Russell) is engaged in undercover work on behalf of the government, in the hopes of earning a pardon for her past crimes. Jane is on the lookout for notorious gun-runner Robert Armstrong. To put up an innocent front, Jane marries the befuddled Potter, then keeps the criminals at bay by convincing everyone that Potter is a rootin'-tootin' gunslinger (actually, it's Jane who's been doing all the shooting). Armstrong, who has been selling guns to the Indians, arranges for Jane to be captured by the scalp-hungry tribesmen, but Potter comes to the rescue. Somewhere along the way, Bob Hope and Jane Russell get to sing the Oscar-winning Jay Livingston/Ray Evans tune "Buttons and Bows". There are many hilarious moments in The Paleface, but screenwriter Frank Tashlin felt that director Norman Z. McLeod failed to get the full comic value out of his material. To prove his point, Tashlin directed the side-splitting sequel, Son of Paleface (1952), which once more teamed Hope and Russell. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Bob Hope as Painless Peter Potter Jane Russell as Calamity Jane Robert Armstrong as Terris Iris Adrian as Pepper Robert "Bobby" Watson as Toby Preston Jackie Searl as Jasper Martin Joseph Vitale as Indian Scout Charles Trowbridge as Gov.Johnson Clem Bevans as Hank Billings Jeff York as Big Joe Stanley Andrews as Commissioner Emerson Wade Crosby as Jeb Iron Eyes Cody as Chief Iron Eyes John Maxwell as Village Gossip Tom Kennedy as Bartender Henry Brandon as Wapato, Medicine Man Francis McDonald as Lance Frank S. Hagney as Greg Skelton Knaggs as Pete Olin Howland as Undertaker George Chandler as First Patient Nestor Paiva as Patient

Crew Earl Hedrick - Art Director Hans Dreier - Art Director Billy Daniel - Choreography Mary Kay Dodson - Costume Designer Norman Z. McLeod - Director Ellsworth Hoagland - Editor Jay Livingston - Composer (Music Score) Victor Young - Composer (Music Score) Ray Evans - Composer (Music Score) Bertram Granger - Production Designer Ray Rennahan - Cinematographer Robert L. Welch - Producer Bertram Granger - Set Designer Sam Comer - Set Designer Farciot Edouart - Special Effects Gordon Jennings - Special Effects Edmund L. Hartmann - Screenwriter Frank Tashlin - Screenwriter Jack Rose - Screenwriter

The Paleface
The great civic historian Otto Friedrich, in his study of Los Angeles in the 1940's, made a stunningly accurate analysis on the films of Bob Hope. All of Hope's movies, he wrote, revolve around the same three basic gags: the size of his nose, his innate cowardliness, and his complete ineptitude with women. With the exception of the ski beak, these truths are self-evident in The Paleface. Featuring an extremely attractive Jane Russell as Calamity Jane, the thin plot revolves around an undercover operation to discover who is selling guns to Indians. Jane agrees to pose as the wife of a government agent in exchange for a pardon, but through a series of mishaps must dupe Hope's eastern dentist into marrying her so she can secretly prop him up as an agent. All that is really besides the point, since the plot allows Hope to essentially play his typical role and provides all sorts of instances where he can be a coward and a frustrated lover. The major plot points are as predictable as they come, but it doesn't really matter. The jokes are for the most part typically funny material, especially the climax in the Indian camp where Hope disguises himself as the medicine man, and Russell has probably not looked better on screen with perhaps one or two exceptions. The script was co-written by Frank Tashlin, who would go on to become a well-known director and, in fact, directed the sequel Son of Paleface when he felt the director Norman Z. McLeod had not handled the original to his liking. ~ Dan Friedman, All Movie Guide
 

Jay Livingston: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Song (winner) Ray Evans: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Song (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: 5.1: 5 full-range channels. Includes 3 for the front speakers, 2 surround channels for rear speakers, & 1 low-frequency effects (LFE) channel to carry deep bass effects 1: PCM mono Additional Features: Entertaining the Troops Command Performance 1945 "Button & Bows" singalong Photography gallery Theatrical trailer Production notes Cast and filmmakers DVD-ROM features DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 91 min Part of Series: Bob Hope - The Tribute Collection   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 0. Scenes 1. Main Titles [1:41] 2. A Job for Jane [4:14] 3. Complications [:13] 4. Painless Peter Potter [2:33] 5. Bullets in the Bath [5:52] 6. The New Mrs. Potter [1:14] 7. The Wagon Train [1:25] 8. Buttons & Bows [3:58] 9. The Blushing Bride [4:49] 10. Our Hero [4:48] 11. The Kiss-Off [4:28] 12. The Local Celebrity [:09] 13. Showdown [9:22] 14. Painless Rides Again [1:24] 15. Captured [3:52] 16. To the Rescue [5:34] 17. Gunpowder Getaway [2:15] 18. Happy Honeymoon [5:56]