Wheeler & Woolsey
Encyclopedia
Bert Wheeler and Robert Woolsey
(August 14, 1888; Oakland, California
– October 31, 1938; Malibu, California) were a famous American film comedy
team of the 1930s.
The former Broadway stars re-created their stage roles in the 1929 movie musical Rio Rita
.This established them as movie comedians, and they went on to make very popular comedy features through 1937, all for RKO Radio Pictures except the 1933 Columbia release So This Is Africa. Curly-haired Bert Wheeler played the ever-smiling innocent, and bespectacled Robert Woolsey played the genially leering “big idea” man that often got the pair in trouble. The vivacious Dorothy Lee
usually played Bert's romantic interest.
The Wheeler & Woolsey pictures are loaded with joke-book dialogue, original songs, puns, and sometimes racy double-entendre gags:
WOMAN (coyly indicating her legs): Were you looking at these?
WOOLSEY: Madam, I'm above that.
WOOLSEY (worried about a noblewoman): She's liable to have us beheaded.
WHEELER: Beheaded?! Can she do that?
WOOLSEY: Sure, she can be-head.
FLIRT: Sing to me!
WHEELER: How about One Hour with You?
FLIRT: Sure! But first, sing to me!
By 1931 Wheeler & Woolsey were so popular that RKO attempted to generate twice the Wheeler & Woolsey income by making two solo pictures—one with Wheeler and one with Woolsey. This experiment failed, and the team reunited as though nothing had happened. Among the team's better features: The Cuckoos (based on Clark and McCullough
's Broadway
show The Ramblers), Caught Plastered, Peach O'Reno, Diplomaniacs, and Hips Hips Hooray and Cockeyed Cavaliers (both 1934, both co-starring Thelma Todd
and Dorothy Lee, and both directed by Mark Sandrich
just before he was promoted to the Fred Astaire
-Ginger Rogers
musicals). Sandrich was replaced by George Stevens
for the team's 1935 film The Nitwits (remade in 1946 as a Brown and Carney
film, Genius at Work).
After Stevens left the series, the team faltered; the last five Wheeler & Woolsey pictures (1935–37) were weakened by the combination of bad scripts, lower budgets, and uninspired direction by lesser talents. In some of these later films Bert and Bob don't even appear as a team, but as strangers who encounter each other by chance. The films were still popular and the team might have continued indefinitely, but Woolsey died of kidney disease on October 31, 1938, ending the partnership.
Wheeler continued to work off and on through the 1960s. His later appearances were mostly on television
; his last theatrical films were two slapstick shorts for Columbia Pictures, filmed in 1950 and produced by Jules White
. In 1955 Wheeler co-starred with Keith Larsen
in the CBS western
series Brave Eagle
; Wheeler played the halfbreed Smokey Joe, known for his tall tales
and tribal wisdom.
Bert Wheeler continued to perform in summer stock theater and in nightclubs, either alone or with a partner (first writer-comedian Hank Ladd, later comedian-singer Tom Dillon). Information about Wheeler's last years of performing can be found in "Movie Comedy Teams" by Leonard Maltin. The duo, although largely forgotten now, were at the peak of their careers in the 1930s and were the biggest inspiration to the British team of Morecambe and Wise
.
Robert Woolsey
Robert Woolsey was an American stage and screen comedian and half of the 1930s comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey....
(August 14, 1888; Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
– October 31, 1938; Malibu, California) were a famous American film comedy
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...
team of the 1930s.
The former Broadway stars re-created their stage roles in the 1929 movie musical Rio Rita
Rio Rita (1929 film)
Rio Rita is a 1929 RKO Pictures musical comedy starring Bebe Daniels and John Boles along with the comedy team of Wheeler & Woolsey. The film is based on the 1927 stage musical produced by Florenz Ziegfeld, which originally united Wheeler and Woolsey as a team and made them famous...
.This established them as movie comedians, and they went on to make very popular comedy features through 1937, all for RKO Radio Pictures except the 1933 Columbia release So This Is Africa. Curly-haired Bert Wheeler played the ever-smiling innocent, and bespectacled Robert Woolsey played the genially leering “big idea” man that often got the pair in trouble. The vivacious Dorothy Lee
Dorothy Lee
Dorothy Lee was an American actress and comedian during the 1930s, usually appearing alongside the popular Wheeler & Woolsey comedy team....
usually played Bert's romantic interest.
The Wheeler & Woolsey pictures are loaded with joke-book dialogue, original songs, puns, and sometimes racy double-entendre gags:
WOMAN (coyly indicating her legs): Were you looking at these?
WOOLSEY: Madam, I'm above that.
WOOLSEY (worried about a noblewoman): She's liable to have us beheaded.
WHEELER: Beheaded?! Can she do that?
WOOLSEY: Sure, she can be-head.
FLIRT: Sing to me!
WHEELER: How about One Hour with You?
FLIRT: Sure! But first, sing to me!
By 1931 Wheeler & Woolsey were so popular that RKO attempted to generate twice the Wheeler & Woolsey income by making two solo pictures—one with Wheeler and one with Woolsey. This experiment failed, and the team reunited as though nothing had happened. Among the team's better features: The Cuckoos (based on Clark and McCullough
Clark and McCullough
Clark and McCullough were a comedy team consisting of comedians Bobby Clark and Paul McCullough. They starred in a series of short films during the 1920s and 1930s....
's Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
show The Ramblers), Caught Plastered, Peach O'Reno, Diplomaniacs, and Hips Hips Hooray and Cockeyed Cavaliers (both 1934, both co-starring Thelma Todd
Thelma Todd
Thelma Alice Todd was an American actress. Appearing in about 120 pictures between 1926 and 1935, she is best remembered for her comedic roles in films like Marx Brothers' Monkey Business and Horse Feathers, a number of Charley Chase's short comedies, and co-starring with Buster Keaton and Jimmy...
and Dorothy Lee, and both directed by Mark Sandrich
Mark Sandrich
Mark Sandrich was a Jewish American film director, writer and producer.Sandrich was an engineering student at Columbia University when he began in the film business by accident. While visiting a friend on a film set, he saw that the director had a problem in setting up a shot; Sandrich offered...
just before he was promoted to the Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
-Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
musicals). Sandrich was replaced by George Stevens
George Stevens
George Stevens was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer.Among his most notable films were Diary of Anne Frank , nominated for Best Director, Giant , winner of Oscar for Best Director, Shane , Oscar nominated, and A Place in the Sun , winner of Oscar for Best...
for the team's 1935 film The Nitwits (remade in 1946 as a Brown and Carney
Brown and Carney
Brown and Carney was a comedy duo consisting of Wally Brown and Alan Carney. The name "Brown and Carney" was rarely used in their era of comedy and still is rarely used today.-Notes:...
film, Genius at Work).
After Stevens left the series, the team faltered; the last five Wheeler & Woolsey pictures (1935–37) were weakened by the combination of bad scripts, lower budgets, and uninspired direction by lesser talents. In some of these later films Bert and Bob don't even appear as a team, but as strangers who encounter each other by chance. The films were still popular and the team might have continued indefinitely, but Woolsey died of kidney disease on October 31, 1938, ending the partnership.
Wheeler continued to work off and on through the 1960s. His later appearances were mostly on television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
; his last theatrical films were two slapstick shorts for Columbia Pictures, filmed in 1950 and produced by Jules White
Jules White
Jules White born Julius Weiss was a film director and producer best known for his short-subject comedies starring the Three Stooges.-Early years:...
. In 1955 Wheeler co-starred with Keith Larsen
Keith Larsen
Keith Larsen was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer who starred in three short-lived television series between 1955 and 1961.-Background:...
in the CBS western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
series Brave Eagle
Brave Eagle
Brave Eagle is a 26-episode half-hour western television series which aired on CBS from September 28, 1955, to March 14, 1956, with rebroadcasts continuing until June 6. Keith Larsen , who was of Norwegian descent, starred as Brave Eagle, a peaceful young Cheyenne chief...
; Wheeler played the halfbreed Smokey Joe, known for his tall tales
Tall Tales
Tall Tales may refer to:* Tall Tales , 2004* Tall Tales , by American band The Hot Club of Cowtown* "Tall Tales" , an episode of the television series Supernatural-See also:...
and tribal wisdom.
Bert Wheeler continued to perform in summer stock theater and in nightclubs, either alone or with a partner (first writer-comedian Hank Ladd, later comedian-singer Tom Dillon). Information about Wheeler's last years of performing can be found in "Movie Comedy Teams" by Leonard Maltin. The duo, although largely forgotten now, were at the peak of their careers in the 1930s and were the biggest inspiration to the British team of Morecambe and Wise
Morecambe and Wise
Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise, usually referred to as Morecambe and Wise, or Eric and Ernie, were a British comic double act, working in variety, radio, film and most successfully in television. Their partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's death in 1984...
.
Filmography
| Year | |Title | |Role | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bert Wheeler | |Robert Woolsey | ||
| 1929 | Small Timers | Himself | |
| Rio Rita Rio Rita (1929 film) Rio Rita is a 1929 RKO Pictures musical comedy starring Bebe Daniels and John Boles along with the comedy team of Wheeler & Woolsey. The film is based on the 1927 stage musical produced by Florenz Ziegfeld, which originally united Wheeler and Woolsey as a team and made them famous... |
Chick Bean | Ned Lovett | |
| 1930 | The Cuckoos The Cuckoos The Cuckoos is a musical comedy film, released by RKO Radio Pictures and partially filmed in two-strip Technicolor. It features the comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey.-Plot:... |
Sparrow | Professor Cunningham |
| Dixiana | Peewee | Ginger Dandy | |
| Half Shot at Sunrise Half Shot at Sunrise Half Shot at Sunrise is a 1930 slapstick comedy film starring the comedy duo Wheeler & Woolsey and Dorothy Lee. The film is about US army soldiers in Paris during World War I and their efforts to escape just about everything to do with the military.... |
Tommy Turner | Gilbert Simpkins | |
| Hook, Line and Sinker Hook, Line and Sinker (1930 film) Hook, Line and Sinker is a 1930 slapstick comedy film starring Wheeler & Woolsey with Dorothy Lee. It was directed by Edward F. Cline.-Plot summary:... |
Wilbur Boswell | J. Addington Ganzy | |
| 1931 | Everything's Rosie Everything's Rosie Everything's Rosie is a 1931 slapstick comedy film starring Robert Woolsey. It was one of the few films Woolsey made without comedy partner Bert Wheeler. It was directed by Clyde Bruckman.-Cast:*Robert Woolsey as Dr. J. Dockweiler Droop... |
Dr. J. Dockweiler Droop | |
| Too Many Cooks | Albert "Al" Bennett | ||
| Cracked Nuts Cracked Nuts Cracked Nuts is a 1931 comedy film directed by Edward F. Cline, starring Wheeler & Woolsey and featuring Boris Karloff.-Cast:* Bert Wheeler - Wendell Graham* Robert Woolsey - Zander Ulysses Parkhurst* Dorothy Lee - Betty Harrington... |
Wendell Graham | Zander Ulysses Parkhurst | |
| The Stolen Jools The Stolen Jools The Stolen Jools is a short comedy film produced by the Masquers Club of Hollywood, featuring many cameo appearances by the film stars of the day... |
Himself | Himself | |
| Caught Plastered Caught Plastered Caught Plastered is a musical comedy film, released by RKO Radio Pictures starring the comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey.-Plot:Tommy Tanner and Egbert G. Higginbotham are two vaudevillians who were kicked out of the last town they performed in. After fleeing to the town of Lockville, the duo befriend... |
Tommy Tanner | Egbert G. Higginbotham | |
| Oh! Oh! Cleopatra | Mark Antony | Julius Caesar | |
| Peach O'Reno | Wattles | Julius Swift | |
| 1932 | Girl Crazy Girl Crazy (1932 film) Girl Crazy is a 1932 musical film adaptation of the stage play of the same name. The film was very unlike the stage play except for its score. It was tailored for the comic talents of Wheeler & Woolsey, a popular comedy team... |
Jimmy Deegan | Slick Foster |
| The Hollywood Handicap | Himself | ||
| Hold 'Em Jail | Curley Harris | Spider Robbins | |
| 1933 | So This Is Africa So This Is Africa So This Is Africa is a 1933 comedy film starring Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Raquel Torres, and Esther Muir. It was Wheeler and Woolsey's only film for Columbia Pictures.-Plot:... |
Wilbur | Alexander |
| Diplomaniacs | Willy Nilly | Hercules Glub | |
| Signing 'Em Up | Himself | Himself | |
| 1934 | Hips, Hips, Hooray! Hips, Hips, Hooray! Hips, Hips, Hooray! is a 1934 slapstick comedy film starring Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Ruth Etting, Thelma Todd, and Dorothy Lee. During its initial theatrical run, it was preceded by the two-color Technicolor short Not Tonight, Josephine directed by Edward F. Cline.-Plot:Todd stars as Amelia... |
Andy Williams | Dr. Bob Dudley |
| Cockeyed Cavaliers | Bert Winstanley | | Bob Maltravers | |
| Kentucky Kernels | Willie | Elmer | |
| 1935 | The Nitwits | Johnnie | Newton |
| A Night at the Biltmore Bowl | Himself | ||
| The Rainmakers | Billy | Roscoe Horne, the Rainmaker | |
| 1936 | Silly Billies | Roy Banks | Prof. Philip "Painless" Pennington |
| Mummy's Boys | Stanley Wright | Aloysius C. Whittaker | |
| 1937 | On Again-Off Again On Again-Off Again On Again-Off Again is a musical comedy film, released by RKO Radio Pictures starring the comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey.-Plot:William Hobbs and Claude Horton are the owners of the drug manufacturing company "Horton and Hobbs' Pink Pills". Although the two couldn't have possibly started the business... |
William Hobbs | Claude Augustus Horton |
| High Flyers High Flyers High Flyers is a musical comedy film, released by RKO Radio Pictures starring the comedy team Wheeler & Woolsey. It would be the last film the duo made, as Robert Woolsey died a year later.-Plot:... |
Jeremiah "Jerry" Lane | Pierre Potkin | |
| 1939 | The Cowboy Quarterback | Harry Lynn | |
| 1942 | Las Vegas Nights | Stu Grant | |
| 1950 | Innocently Guilty | Hodkinson G. Pogglebrewer | |
| 1951 | The Awful Sleuth | Bert Wheeler |
External links
- Bert Wheeler at Internet Broadway DatabaseInternet Broadway DatabaseThe Internet Broadway Database is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade association for the North American commercial theatre community....
- Robert Woolsey at Internet Broadway DatabaseInternet Broadway DatabaseThe Internet Broadway Database is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade association for the North American commercial theatre community....
- Bert Wheeler at Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- Robert Woolsey at Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- The Official Dorothy Lee, Wheeler & Woolsey Tribute
- Wheeler and Woolsey
- Wheeler & Woolsey Fan Page