Saps at Sea

Saps at Sea
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Gordon Douglas
Produced by	Hal Roach
Written by	Felix Adler Harry Langdon Gilbert Pratt (as Gil Pratt) Charley Rogers (as Charles Rogers)
Starring	Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy Jimmy Finlayson Ben Turpin Richard Cramer Charlie Hall
Music by	Marvin Hatley Leroy Shield (uncredited)
Cinematography	Art Lloyd
Editing by	William H. Ziegler (as William Ziegler)
Distributed by	United Artists
Release date(s)	May 3, 1940 (1940-05-03)
Running time	57 min.
Language	English

Saps at Sea is a 1940 American film directed by Gordon Douglas, distributed by United Artists, and Laurel and Hardy's last film produced by Hal Roach Studio.

Plot

Stan and Ollie work in a horn factory. Ollie develops 'hornophobia' and starts going crazy each time he hears horns or horn-based musical instruments. Stan and Ollie are sent home so that Ollie can recuperate. A doctor played by James Finlayson in his last Laurel and Hardy film is called to treat Ollie and, warning Ollie that he could develop a more serious condition, "hornomania," he prescribes a relaxing boat trip and goat's milk. Ollie dismisses the idea because he is afraid to sail on the ocean, but Stan prescribes an alternative: they'll simply rent a boat and keep it attached to the dock, getting all the sea air they can while never actually going out to sea. Ollie thinks this might be a good idea, Then when Stan's trombone teacher arrives and Ollie hears the music and throws the teacher out, he knows he should take that advice. Stan and Ollie rent an unseaworthy boat called 'Prickly Heat' that is supposed to stay moored to the dock. An escaped murderer named Nick Grainger stows away on the boat to avoid being caught by the police. The goat which they have brought to provide milk chews away at the docking line and overnight the boat drifts out to sea. Nick confronts Stan and Ollie with a gun (which he affectionately names "Nick Jr") and tells them to make him breakfast. They have no food on board, so they decide to prepare Nick a "synthetic" breakfast made up of string, soap and whatever else they can find. Nick spies on them and realizes what they are up to. He then makes them eat the fake food. Stan becomes inspired and starts to play his trombone. Ollie starts to go crazy and overcomes the criminal. The Coast Guard arrives. Stan and Ollie are in line for a reward for capturing Nick. Stan shows the Coast Guard captain what happened by playing the trombone again, and Ollie goes crazy once more, blindly attacking the Coast Guard captain. The boys are arrested and put in a cell with Nick.

Notes

• This was Laurel and Hardy's last film with Charlie Hall, James Finlayson.
• This film marked the last on-screen appearance of Ben Turpin.
• This film also stars Mary Gordon who played Mrs. Hudson opposite Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes.
• This film was shown aboard HMS Prince of Wales during the voyage to Newfoundland, where Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston Churchill met to establish the Atlantic Charter. It was a favorite film of Prime Minister Churchill, who called it 'A gay but inconsequent entertainment', according to H.V. Morton in his book Atlantic Meeting (Methuen: 1943, p. 125).
• The title is a spoof of the 1937 film, Souls at Sea, starring Gary Cooper and George Raft.

External links

• Saps at Sea at the Internet Movie Database
• Saps at Sea at Rotten Tomatoes