Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man
Encyclopedia
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (also known as Bud Abbott Lou Costello Meet the Invisible Man (full screen title)) is a 1951 comedy
horror film
directed
by Charles Lamont
and starring the team of Abbott and Costello
alongside Nancy Guild
.
The film depicts the misadventures of Lou Francis and Bud Alexander, two private detectives investigating the murder of a boxing promoter. The film was part of a series in which the duo meet classic characters from Universal's stable, including Frankenstein
, the Mummy
and the Keystone Kops
.
) and Bud Alexander (Bud Abbott
) have just graduated from a private detective school. Tommy Nelson (Arthur Franz
), a middleweight boxer, comes to them with their first case. Tommy recently escaped from jail, after being accused of murdering his manager, and asks the duo to accompany him on a visit to his fiancée, Helen Gray (Nancy Guild
). He wants her uncle, Dr. Philip Gray (Gavin Muir), to inject him with a special serum he has developed which will render Tommy invisible, and hopes to use the newfound invisibility to investigate his manager's murder and proved his innocence. Dr. Gray adamantly refuses, arguing that the serum is still unstable, but as the police arrive Tommy injects himself with it. Detective Roberts (William Frawley
) questions Dr. Gray and Helen while Bud and Lou search for Tommy.
Helen and Tommy convince Bud and Lou to help them seek the real killer, after Tommy explains that the motive for the murder occurred after he refused to "throw" a fight, knocking his opponent out. Morgan (Sheldon Leonard
), the promoter who fixed the fight, ordered Tommy's manager beaten to death while framing Tommy for the crime. In order to investigate undercover, Lou poses as a boxer, with Bud as his manager. They go to Stillwell's gym where Lou gets in the ring with Rocky Hanlon (John Day), the boxer who Tommy knocked out. Tommy, still invisible, gets into the ring with them and again knocks out Hanlon with the illusion that Lou did it, and an official match is arranged. Morgan urges Lou to throw the fight, but when the match occurs (with the aid of an invisible Tommy), Hanlon is knocked out yet again. Morgan plans Bud's murder which is thwarted by Tommy, who unfortunately is wounded in the battle. The protagonists rush to the hospital where a blood transfusion is arranged between Lou and Tommy. During the transfusion, Tommy becomes visible again. Unfortunately, some of Tommy's blood has apparently entered Lou,who briefly turns invisible, only to reappear with his legs on backwards.
are Bud and Lou's real first and middle names.
The special effects, which depicted invisibility and other optical illusions, were created by David S. Horsley, who also did the special effects for The Invisible Man Returns, The Invisible Woman
and Invisible Agent
.
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Charles Lamont
Charles Lamont
Charles Lamont was a prolific film director of over 200 titles, and the producer and writer of many others. He was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and died in Los Angeles, California, USA.-Career:...
and starring the team of Abbott and Costello
Abbott and Costello
William "Bud" Abbott and Lou Costello performed together as Abbott and Costello, an American comedy duo whose work on stage, radio, film and television made them the most popular comedy team during the 1940s and 1950s...
alongside Nancy Guild
Nancy Guild
Nancy Guild was an American film actress of the 1940s and 1950s. The actress appeared in Somewhere in the Night ; The Brasher Doubloon and the comedy Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man...
.
The film depicts the misadventures of Lou Francis and Bud Alexander, two private detectives investigating the murder of a boxing promoter. The film was part of a series in which the duo meet classic characters from Universal's stable, including Frankenstein
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is a 1948 American comedy horror film directed by Charles Barton and starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It is the first of several films where the comedy duo meets classic characters from Universal's horror film stable...
, the Mummy
Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy
Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy is a 1955 film directed by Charles Lamont and starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It is also the 28th and final Abbott and Costello film produced by Universal Pictures.-Plot:...
and the Keystone Kops
Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops
Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops is a 1955 film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello.After the film was completed, Universal wanted to rename it Abbott and Costello in the Stunt Men, because they did not consider the "Keystone Kops" to be relevant anymore...
.
Plot
Lou Francis (Lou CostelloLou Costello
Louis Francis "Lou" Costello was an American actor and comedian best known as half of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, with Bud Abbott...
) and Bud Alexander (Bud Abbott
Bud Abbott
William Alexander "Bud" Abbott was an American actor, producer and comedian. He is best remembered as the straight man of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, with Lou Costello.-Early life:...
) have just graduated from a private detective school. Tommy Nelson (Arthur Franz
Arthur Franz
Arthur Franz was a B-movie actor whose most notable role was as Lieutenant, Junior Grade H. Paynter, Jr. in The Caine Mutiny. He also appeared in Roseanna McCoy , Invaders from Mars , Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man and The Unholy Wife , among others...
), a middleweight boxer, comes to them with their first case. Tommy recently escaped from jail, after being accused of murdering his manager, and asks the duo to accompany him on a visit to his fiancée, Helen Gray (Nancy Guild
Nancy Guild
Nancy Guild was an American film actress of the 1940s and 1950s. The actress appeared in Somewhere in the Night ; The Brasher Doubloon and the comedy Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man...
). He wants her uncle, Dr. Philip Gray (Gavin Muir), to inject him with a special serum he has developed which will render Tommy invisible, and hopes to use the newfound invisibility to investigate his manager's murder and proved his innocence. Dr. Gray adamantly refuses, arguing that the serum is still unstable, but as the police arrive Tommy injects himself with it. Detective Roberts (William Frawley
William Frawley
William Clement "Bill" Frawley was an American stage entertainer, screen and television actor. Although Frawley acted in over 100 films, he achieved his greatest fame playing landlord Fred Mertz for the situation comedy I Love Lucy.-Early life:William was born to Michael A. Frawley and Mary E....
) questions Dr. Gray and Helen while Bud and Lou search for Tommy.
Helen and Tommy convince Bud and Lou to help them seek the real killer, after Tommy explains that the motive for the murder occurred after he refused to "throw" a fight, knocking his opponent out. Morgan (Sheldon Leonard
Sheldon Leonard
Sheldon Leonard was a pioneering American film and television producer, director, writer, and actor.-Biography:...
), the promoter who fixed the fight, ordered Tommy's manager beaten to death while framing Tommy for the crime. In order to investigate undercover, Lou poses as a boxer, with Bud as his manager. They go to Stillwell's gym where Lou gets in the ring with Rocky Hanlon (John Day), the boxer who Tommy knocked out. Tommy, still invisible, gets into the ring with them and again knocks out Hanlon with the illusion that Lou did it, and an official match is arranged. Morgan urges Lou to throw the fight, but when the match occurs (with the aid of an invisible Tommy), Hanlon is knocked out yet again. Morgan plans Bud's murder which is thwarted by Tommy, who unfortunately is wounded in the battle. The protagonists rush to the hospital where a blood transfusion is arranged between Lou and Tommy. During the transfusion, Tommy becomes visible again. Unfortunately, some of Tommy's blood has apparently entered Lou,who briefly turns invisible, only to reappear with his legs on backwards.
Production
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man was filmed between October 3 and November 6, 1950 and is a modified remake of the 1940 film The Invisible Man Returns. The character names of Abbott and CostelloAbbott and Costello
William "Bud" Abbott and Lou Costello performed together as Abbott and Costello, an American comedy duo whose work on stage, radio, film and television made them the most popular comedy team during the 1940s and 1950s...
are Bud and Lou's real first and middle names.
The special effects, which depicted invisibility and other optical illusions, were created by David S. Horsley, who also did the special effects for The Invisible Man Returns, The Invisible Woman
The Invisible Woman
The Invisible Woman is a science fiction, comedy film that was released near the end of 1940 by Universal. It is the third film follow Invisible Man and The Invisible Man Returns which had been released earlier in the year. The comedic writers Robert Lees and Fred Rinaldo wrote the screenplay in...
and Invisible Agent
Invisible Agent
Invisible Agent is a 1942 science fiction film from Universal. This movie was a war-time propaganda production that was part of a Hollywood effort to boost morale at the home front. It loosely echoed a series of formula war-horror films produced during this period that typically featured a mad...
.
Cast
- Bud AbbottBud AbbottWilliam Alexander "Bud" Abbott was an American actor, producer and comedian. He is best remembered as the straight man of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, with Lou Costello.-Early life:...
as Bud Alexander - Lou CostelloLou CostelloLouis Francis "Lou" Costello was an American actor and comedian best known as half of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, with Bud Abbott...
as Lou Francis - Nancy GuildNancy GuildNancy Guild was an American film actress of the 1940s and 1950s. The actress appeared in Somewhere in the Night ; The Brasher Doubloon and the comedy Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man...
as Helen Gray - Arthur FranzArthur FranzArthur Franz was a B-movie actor whose most notable role was as Lieutenant, Junior Grade H. Paynter, Jr. in The Caine Mutiny. He also appeared in Roseanna McCoy , Invaders from Mars , Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man and The Unholy Wife , among others...
as Tommy Nelson - Adele JergensAdele JergensAdele Jergens was an American actress.Born in Brooklyn, New York, Jergen's birth date is sometimes listed as 1922. Jergens first rose to prominence in the late 1930s, when she was named "Miss World's Fairest" at the 1939 New York World's Fair...
as Boots Marsden - Sheldon LeonardSheldon LeonardSheldon Leonard was a pioneering American film and television producer, director, writer, and actor.-Biography:...
as Morgan - William FrawleyWilliam FrawleyWilliam Clement "Bill" Frawley was an American stage entertainer, screen and television actor. Although Frawley acted in over 100 films, he achieved his greatest fame playing landlord Fred Mertz for the situation comedy I Love Lucy.-Early life:William was born to Michael A. Frawley and Mary E....
as Detective Roberts - Gavin MuirGavin MuirGavin Muir , was a British actor and musician probably best known for his role in the 1983 Television version of Accidental Death of an Anarchist. Muir had small parts in various television programmes including The Bill, Thieftakers, Cracker, Jo Brand and Our Friends in the North...
as Dr. Philip Gray - Sam BalterSam BalterSamuel "Sam" Balter, Jr. was an American basketball player.-Career:He competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics...
as Radio announcer - John Daheim as Rocky Hanlon
- Paul Maxey as Dr. James C. Turner
- James BestJames BestJames Best is an American actor best known for his role as bumbling Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane in the CBS television series The Dukes of Hazzard. He has also worked as an acting coach, artist, and musician.-Early years:...
as Tommy Nelson (Franz's stand-in)