Best of Abbott and Costello, Vol. 3 [2 Discs] DVD

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
It seems that Count Dracula (Bela Lugosi), in league with a beautiful but diabolical lady scientist (Lenore Aubert), needs a "simple, pliable" brain with which to reactivate Frankenstein's creature (Glenn Strange). The "ideal" brain belongs to the hapless Lou Costello, whom the lady doctor woos to gain his confidence and lure him to the operating table. Lawrence Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr.), better known as the Wolf Man, arrives on the scene to warn Costello and his pal Bud Abbott of Dracula's nefarious schemes. Throughout the film, the timorous Costello witnesses the nocturnal rituals of Dracula and the Monster, but can't convince the ever-doubting Abbott--until the wild climax in Dracula's castle, where the comedians are pursued by all three of the film's monstrosities. As a bonus, the Invisible Man (voiced by an unbilled Vincent Price) shows up for "all the excitement." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Abbott and Costello Go to Mars
They don't really go to Mars, they go to Venus, but first they go to New Orleans. While working at a missile base, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello inadvertently launch a rocket ship with themselves aboard. After a wild ride around New York City (the Statue of Liberty ducks when the rocket heads her way), Bud and Lou land in the outskirts of New Orleans. The boys are convinced that they've reached Mars, and their faith in this supposition is affirmed when they come across several strangely costumed "creatures" (actually revellers at the Mardi Gras). Meanwhile, bank robbers Jack Kruschen and Horace McMahon stow away on A&C's rocketship. When Bud and Lou return, the crooks force them to make a quick getaway into outer space. After several days of weightlessness, the four space travellers land on Venus, a planet populated by the gorgeous winners of the Miss Universe contest (including Anita Ekberg). Venusian queen Mari Blanchard falls in love with Costello, only to order him and his companions to return to earth when Lou proves to be unfaithful. Reportedly, this bizarre melange of sci-fi and slapstick was based on a story by Charles Beaumont, who received no screen credit (it's worth noting that Beaumont's later Queen of Outer Space boasts a remarkably similar plotline). Long considered the team's worst film, Abbott and Costello Go to Mars ("and about time!" quipped the New York Times' TV-movie reviewer) is rather likeable in its own incoherent way. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man
The best of Universal-International's followups to Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein, Abbott & Costello Meet the Invisible Man casts Bud and Lou as mail-order private eyes. The boys champion the cause of boxer Arthur Franz, who has been framed for murder. Utilizing the formula created by Claude Rains in the original Invisible Man (1933), Franz vanishes before Dr. Gavin Muir's astonished eyes. Cloaked by invisibility, Franz talks Bud and Lou into helping him nab the real murderer, gangster Sheldon Leonard. A string of uproarious gags and comic setpieces is highlighted by a boxing-ring finale, wherein Lou, backed up by the invisible Franz, dukes it out with a behemoth prizefighter. A clever special-effects closing gag caps this delightful A&C vehicle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Abbott & Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
This Abbott & Costello vehicle was originally planned as a Bob Hope comedy titled Easy Does It. The Hope role is fairly evenly divided between Bud Abbott, as hotel house detective Casey Edwards, and Lou Costello, as bumbling bellhop Lou Costello. When a much-hated criminal attorney (Nicholas Joy) is murdered at a resort hotel, there's no shortage of suspects: in fact, practically every guest had an excellent motive for killing the victim. The suspects conspire to pin the killing on poor Freddie, but when he comes in possession of a valuable piece of evidence, he is slated for extermination himself. The more Freddie and his pal Casey try to stay out of trouble, the more trouble comes their way--especially when two more murders occur. The climax takes place in an underground cavern, where Freddie is nearly drowned by the hooded mystery killer. The film's title is one of the most misleading in movie history. Cast as a red-herring swami, Boris Karloff is not the killer (whose true identity is obvious from the outset, especially to veteran moviegoers). Though his footage is extremely limited, Karloff shares the film's funniest scene, in which he tries to hypnotize Costello into committing suicide ("You'll kill yourself if it's the last thing you do!). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Mexican Hayride
Cole Porter's Broadway musical Mexican Hayride was optioned by Universal in the mid-1940s, then remained in "development hell" until 1948. By the time the property made it to the screen, the entire Porter score had been removed, and the play's original star Bobby Clark was replaced by Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. The story takes place South of the Border, where American fugitive from justice Joe Bascom (Costello) searches for con man Harry Lambert (Abbott), for whom Bascom had been a fall guy. Also in Mexico is Joe's hometown-sweetheart Mary (Virginia Grey), now known as Montana, the country's foremost female bullfighter. Joe catches up with Harry at the bull arena, where Montana is about to choose the "Amigo Americano" in a publicity scheme cooked up by Harry. When she spots Joe in the crowd, Montana (angry at our tubby hero for bilking her out of her life savings -- it was actually Harry's doing), furiously throws her hat at him. When Joe catches the hat, he's elected Amigo Americano and extended every hospitality that Mexico can afford. Sensing yet another opportunity to make a dishonest dollar, Harry exploits Joe's newfound celebrity to promote a phony gold-mining scheme. The gorgeous Dagmar (Luba Malina), Harry's partner in crime, romances Joe to secure his cooperation. Somehow all of this ends up back in the bull ring, with poor Joe facing a very belligerent "el toro." A bit too plot-heavy for Abbott & Costello, Mexican Hayride still has several choice moments, including a priceless verbal exchange involving gold ore ("gold or what?") and a "Mother Lode." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Abbott & Costello in the Foreign Legion
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello play wrestling promoters whose star attraction, Wee Willie Davis, skips town to return to his home in Arabia. While scouring the desert in search of Davis, Bud and Lou inadvertently purchase slave girl Patricia Medina, and with equal inadvertence join the Foreign Legion. In their own bumbling, inept fashion, our heroes manage to foil a desert uprising fomented by shiek Douglas Dumbrille and traitorous Legion commandant Walter Slezak. The film's highlights include an opening-scene parody of pre-rehearsed wrestling matches, a "mirage" routine capped by one of the hoariest vaudeville punchlines in history, and a runaway-jeep climax. All in all, however, Abbott & Costello in the Foreign Legion is one of the team's lesser efforts. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Comin' Round the Mountain
In this Abbott & Costello vehicle set in rural Kentucky, a magician (Lou Costello), his agent (Bud Abbott) and his sister (Dorothy Shay) unwittingly become involved in a down-home feud. ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Lost in Alaska
One reviewer of Abbott & Costello's Lost in Alaska summed up the proceeding in three pithy words: "Lost is right." While not A&C's worst film, it's several miles removed from their best. Cast as firemen in turn-of-the-century San Francisco, Bud and Lou rescue would-be suicide Tom Ewell. It turns out that Ewell is mooning over his former girl friend, saloon chanteuse Mitzi Green. It also transpires that Ewell has just come from Alaska, where he's been searching for $2 million in gold. Abbott and Costello accompany their new friend back to Alaska, where they're forced to dodge the bullets of Ewell's old enemies; foremost among these is plug-ugly Bruce Cabot. They find the gold, only to lose it all over again. The film's best scene occurs at the beginning, when Abbott, Costello and Ewell take turns saving one another from drowning. Otherwise, Lost in Alaska looks like a 2-reel comedy, clumsily stretched into an 8-reel feature. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Bud Abbott as Chick Young Lou Costello as Wilbur Grey Lon Chaney Jr. as Lawrence Talbot/The Wolf Man Bela Lugosi as Dracula Glenn Strange as The Monster Lenore Aubert as Sandra Mornay Jane Randolph as Joan Raymond Frank Ferguson as McDougal Charles Bradstreet as Dr. Stevens Bud Abbott as Lester Lou Costello as Orville Mari Blanchard as Allura Robert Paige as Dr. Wilson Horace McMahon as Mugsy Martha Hyer as Janie Jack Kruschen as Harry Joe Kirk as Dr. Orvilla Anita Ekberg as Venusian Woman James Flavin as Policeman Jackie Loughery as Miss U.S.A. Bud Abbott as Bud Alexander Lou Costello as Lou Francis Nancy Guild as Helen Gray Arthur Franz as Tommy Nelson Adele Jergens as Boots Marsden Sheldon Leonard as Morgan William Frawley as Detective Roberts Gavin Muir as Dr. Philip Gray Sam Balter as Radio Announcer Bud Abbott as Casey Edwards Lou Costello as Freddie Phillips Boris Karloff as Swami Talpur Lenore Aubert as Angela Gordon Gar Moore as Jeff Wilson Donna Martell as Betty Crandall Alan Mowbray as Melton James Flavin as Inspector Wellman Roland Winters as T. Hanley Brooks Nicholas Joy as Amos Strickland Mikel Conrad as Sgt. Stone Morgan Farley as Gregory Milford Victoria Horne as Mrs. Hargreave Percy Helton as Abernathy Claire Du Brey as Mrs. Grimsby Harry Hayden as Lawrence Crandall Vincent Renno as Mike Relia Bud Abbott as Harry Lambert Lou Costello as Joe Bascom Virginia Grey as Montana Luba Malina as Dagmar John Hubbard as David Winthrop Pedro de Cordoba as Senor Martinez Fritz Feld as Prof. Ganzmeyer Tom Powers as Ed Mason Pat Costello as Tim Williams Frank Fenton as Gus Adamson Chris-Pin Martin as Mariachi Leader Sid Fields as Reporter Bud Abbott as Jonesy Lou Costello as Lou Hotchkiss Patricia Medina as Nicole Walter Slezak as Axmann Douglas Dumbrille as Hamud El Khalid Leon Belasco as Hassam Marc Lawrence as Frankie Wee Willie Davis as Abdullah Tor Johnson as Abou Ben Jack Raymond as Ali Ami Fred Nurney as Commandant Paul Fierro as Ibn Henry Corden as Ibrim Bud Abbott as Al Stewart Lou Costello as Wilbert Dorothy Shay as Dorothy McCoy Kirby Grant as Clark Winfield Joe Sawyer as Kalem McCoy Glenn Strange as Devil Dan Winfield Ida Moore as Granny McCoy Shaye Cogan as Matt Guy Wilkerson as Uncle Clem McCoy Bob Easton as Luke McCoy Margaret Hamilton as Aunt Huddy Russell Simpson as Judge Bud Abbott as Tom Watson Lou Costello as George Bell Mitzi Green as Rosette Tom Ewell as Nugget Joe McDermott Bruce Cabot as Jake Stillman Emory Parnell as Sherman Rex Lease as Old Timer

Crew Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter Robert F. Boyle - Art Director Bernard Herzbrun - Art Director Jean Yarbrough - Director Leonard Weiner - Editor Milton Rosen - Composer (Music Score) Henry Mancini - Composer (Music Score) Joseph E. Gershenson - Composer (Music Score) George Robinson - Cinematographer Howard Christie - Producer Ray Jeffers - Set Designer Russell A. Gausman - Set Designer Elwood Ullman - Screen Story Leonard B. Stern - Screenwriter Martin Ragaway - Screenwriter

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
(not reviewed)
 

Abbott and Costello Go to Mars
(not reviewed)
 

Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man
(not reviewed)
 

Abbott & Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
(not reviewed)
 

Mexican Hayride
The Cole Porter musical upon which Mexican Hayride is based was no great shakes, but it did have the benefit of Porter's witty lyrics and his sparkling music. As was so often the case with Hollywood in the 1940s, the film jettisoned the entire score -- leaving an absolutely nothing script upon which to build a picture. The result is a pretty mediocre affair, and a surprisingly dull one given the involvement of stars Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. Perhaps because the plot the writers inherited was so weak, they overcompensated by overfilling Hayride with pointless complications and detours -- none of them imaginatively conceived or capable of adding much to the proceedings. The stars do get a few chances to shine, such as in the "gold ore" sequence which plays up their verbal misunderstanding-based humor, and Costello's climactic bull fight sequence does deliver a lot of laughs, But there are also long stretches where the jokes fall flat on a consistent basis. Abbott and Costello get some comic assist from Fritz Feld and Sid Fields, but they're work is strictly supporting and can't add enough "oomph" to things. Charles Barton's direction is workmanlike, but much more is needed to make Hayride the riot it wants to be. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
 

Abbott & Costello in the Foreign Legion
(not reviewed)
 

Comin' Round the Mountain
(not reviewed)
 

Lost in Alaska
(not reviewed)
 

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein - Film Awards: Library of Congress, U.S. National Film Registry (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English Subtitle Options: French, Spanish Sound Processing: 2: PCM stereo Additional Features: none specified DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 2 DVD Sides: 4 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 635 min Part of Series: The Franchise Collection   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein/Mexican Hayride 1. Main Titles [1:32] 2. Full Moon Tonight [4:31] 3. House of Horrors [3:02] 4. Dracula's Legend [8:13] 5. Frankenstein's Monster [6:00] 6. Risky Business [3:15] 7. They're Alive [5:43] 8. Insurance Inspector [5:38] 9. The House of Dracula [5:09] 10. Search the Castle [5:01] 11. Young Blood and Brains [5:28] 12. We Meet Again [4:14] 13. Don't Be Afraid [4:34] 14. Gone Bats [2:33] 15. Brain Swap [4:27] 16. Under Control [4:38] 17. Begin Operating [8:17] 18. End Titles [:18] 1. Main Titles [1:08] 2. Wanted by Police [5:39] 3. "Amigo Americano" [5:40] 4. Ladies in Waiting [2:51] 5. Goodwill Ambassador [5:19] 6. Gifts for the American [6:05] 7. Eloquent Elocution [4:09] 8. Switched Speech [3:59] 9. Business Is Booming [2:33] 10. Stop the Music [5:20] 11. Looking for the Loot [6:02] 12. Take a Bow [3:42] 13. Hot Tamales [7:42] 14. Playing With the Band [3:36] 15. Rodeo Clown [5:51] 16. Bull Dancing [5:12] 17. Complete Restitution [1:35] 18. End Titles [:18] Side #2 -- Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff/Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion 1. Main Titles [1:20] 2. Freddie's Been Fired [3:50] 3. Strickland's Dead [5:41] 4. The Murder Weapon [4:52] 5. Under House Arrest [3:20] 6. Signed Confession [6:25] 7. Attempted Suicide [6:41] 8. Dead Men Can't Walk [6:39] 9. Playing With Stiffs [4:15] 10. Where's Freddie? [3:12] 11. Airtight Alibi [4:44] 12. Steamed [5:14] 13. Booby Trapped [4:40] 14. Hallucinations [5:55] 15. The Bottomless Pit [4:27] 16. Meet the Killer [7:25] 17. Who Done It? [5:05] 18. End Titles [:27] 1. Stand-In (Main Titles) [7:34] 2. Looking for Abdullah [5:18] 3. No Resting [5:40] 4. Good Buy [4:51] 5. Sworn In [5:06] 6. Long Live the Legion [4:32] 7. Under Fire [3:19] 8. Classified Deserters [4:38] 9. Gathering Evidence [5:18] 10. Ambushed [3:51] 11. How Dry I Am [6:02] 12. Fish Dinner [4:55] 13. Held Prisoner [3:08] 14. A Fine Reception [5:24] 15. Go After Them [3:20] 16. Hold Down the Fort [3:54] 17. Honorable Discharge [2:14] 18. End Titles [:18] Side #3 -- Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man/Comin' Round the Mountain 1. Main Titles [1:07] 2. Detective Graduation [5:08] 3. Escaped Killer [3:53] 4. Turning Invisible [5:41] 5. Under Hypnosis [3:55] 6. Secret Rendezvous [7:40] 7. "Louie the Looper" [6:59] 8. Craving for Action [6:04] 9. The Bubble Room [5:05] 10. Off the Record [5:09] 11. The Money Man [5:47] 12. All Tied Up [2:33] 13. The Payoff [4:47] 14. Main Event [4:37] 15. Round Two [3:04] 16. Down for the Count [2:53] 17. Forced Confession [7:15] 18. End Titles [:27] 1. Main Titles [1:11] 2. Manhattan Hillbilly [3:43] 3. The Great Wilbert [5:10] 4. A Real McCoy [1:59] 5. Winfield Territory [4:16] 6. Kinfolk [4:14] 7. "Sagebrush Sadie" [4:02] 8. "You Broke Your Promise" [5:58] 9. The Turkey Shoot [3:02] 10. Squeeze Over [3:15] 11. Kissin' Cousins [4:17] 12. Gettin' Hitched [4:52] 13. Witchcraft and Voodoo [7:03] 14. "Another Notch on Father's Shotgun" [4:22] 15. Love Potion [3:50] 16. Peaceful Feud [5:44] 17. Hold Your Fire! [5:05] 18. Shafted [4:35] Side #4 -- Lost in Alaska/Abbott and Costello Go to Mars 1. Main Titles [1:07] 2. Life Savers [3:40] 3. Nugget Joe [4:26] 4. Sleep in Shifts [5:38] 5. Wanted for Murder [5:35] 6. "Country Gal" [5:43] 7. Walking Target [3:47] 8. Love of Money [4:21] 9. Change the Will [4:14] 10. Move the Gold [2:45] 11. Silly Sled Ride [6:25] 12. Whiteout [3:34] 13. Jerk on the Line [4:16] 14. Whale of a Time [4:17] 15. "Hot Time in the Igloo Tonight" [3:27] 16. Melted Ice [3:00] 17. Flying Fish [6:10] 18. Save Yourself [3:43] 1. Caught Spying (Main Titles) [4:57] 2. Orville vs. Orvilla [4:28] 3. Ready to Fly [5:42] 4. Blastoff! [7:24] 5. Untimely Landing [4:16] 6. Heads Up [4:08] 7. Invaded [6:01] 8. Strong Atmosphere [4:59] 9. Space-Jacked [3:11] 10. Gravitational Pull [5:28] 11. The Queen of Venus [2:57] 12. A Poor Specimen [4:48] 13. Long Live the King [3:19] 14. In the Hot Seat [4:12] 15. Kicked Off the Planet [3:45] 16. The Queen's Curse [4:58] 17. Happy Landing [1:20] 18. End Titles [:29]