- Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion
Infobox Film
name = Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion
caption = Theatrical Poster
director =Charles Lamont
producer =Robert Arthur
writer = John GrantMartin Ragaway Leonard Stern
starring =Bud Abbott Lou Costello Patricia Medina Walter Slezak
music =Joseph Gershenson
cinematography =
editing =Frank Gross
distributor =Universal Pictures
released =July 24 , 1950
runtime = 80 min.
language = English
budget = $736,000
preceded_by =Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949)
followed_by =Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951)
imdb_id = 0042179"Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion" is a 1950 film starring the comedy team of
Abbott and Costello .Plot
Bud Jones (
Bud Abbott ) and Lou Hotchkiss (Lou Costello ) are wrestling promoters. Their star, Abdullah (Wee Willie Davis), no longer wishes to follow the script for their crooked matches, especially since he is supposed to lose his next match. Abdullah leaves America to return to his homeland, Algeria. The promoters' financiers, a syndicate that has lent them $5,000 to bring Abdullah to the States, are now requiring them to return the money or face the consequences. The two men follow Abdullah to Algeria in hopes of bringing him back.Meanwhile, Abdullah's cousin, Sheik Hamud El Khalid (
Douglass Dumbrille ) and a crooked Foreign Legionnaire, Sergeant Axmann (Water Slezak), have been raiding a railroad construction site in order to extort "protection" money from the railroad company. When Bud and Lou arrive, they are mistaken for company spies, and the Sheik and Axmann attempt to murder them. As each attempt fails, the assassins' hatred for Bud and Lou intensifies, especially when Lou outbids the Sheik for six slave girls, one of whom, Nicole (Patricia Medina ), is actually a French spy assigned to gain entry into the Sheik's camp. The boys are then chased, only to wind up hiding at the Foreign Legion headquarters, where Axmann convinces them to join.Meanwhile, the Foreign Legion Commandant (Fred Nurney) suspects that there is a traitor among the Legionnaires, as the Sheik anticipates every one of the Legion's moves. The Commandant then grants Bud and Lou a pass into town where they meet up with Nicole. She informs them that they must search Axmann's room, but he catches them in the act. However, they are spared, only to end up at a Legionnaire desert camp. Just before the camp is ambushed by the Sheik's men, Bud and Lou wander off in search of a camel, and escape death. They are eventually captured, along with Nicole, who is put in Sheik Hamud's
harem . The Shiek orders that one of his wrestlers execute them. The wrestler turns out to be Abdullah, who helps them escape. They head to Fort Apar, where they lure the Sheik's men, and blow it up. They are given awards by the Commandant and discharged from the Legion.Production
Originally scheduled to begin in December 1949, filming was postponed when Costello had to undergo an operation for a gangrenous gall bladder in November 1949. Filming eventually began on
April 28 1950 , and ended onMay 29 ,1950 . Despite having a stunt double, Costello did his own wrestling in the film, only to be rewarded with a wrenched arm socket and a stretched tendon. [Furmanek, Bob and Ron Palumbo (1991). "Abbott and Costello in Hollywood". New York: Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-51605-0] .In 1948, Abbott and Costello fired their agent, Eddie Sherman. Just before the filming of this picture, they reconciled with Sherman and rehired him. [Furmanek, Bob and Ron Palumbo (1991). "Abbott and Costello in Hollywood". New York: Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-51605-0] .
David Gorcey , a member of the comedy teamThe Bowery Boys , has a cameo appearance in the film. The voice of the skeleton in the film was provided byCandy Candido , who briefly became Abbott's partner in the 1960s after Costello had died.DVD releases
References
External links
*imdb title|id=0042179|name=Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion
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