Li'l Abner

Starring:Peter Palmer (III), Leslie Parrish, Stubby Kaye, Howard St. John, Julie Newmar, Stella Stevens, Billie Hayes, Joe E. Marks, Bern Hoffman, Al Nesor, Robert Strauss, William Lanteau, Ted Thurston, Carmen Ãlvarez, Alan Carney, Stanley Simmonds, Diki Lerner, Joe Ploski, Donna Douglas, Jerry Lewis
Director: Melvin Frank
Studio: Paramount
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

This is one movie musical that doesn't bother adapting its stage presentation for the big screen: Li'l Abner cheerfully uses brightly colored, patently fake backdrops and stage sets for its mythical setting. And why not? A movie musical based on a cartoon strip is about as far from reality as you can get. Al Capp's legendary comic about the hillbilly denizens of Dogpatch was brought to Broadway by the estimable comedy team Melvin Frank and Norman Panama, who also produced the movie. Along with sampling Capp's world (the pursuit of noncommittal Abner by Daisy Mae on Sadie Hawkins Day is a major plot device), the movie is a goofy record of 1950s attitudes and concerns--in fact, Dogpatch is threatened with destruction when the government wants to use it as an atomic test site. The actors' Broadway delivery has a deadening effect after a while, and some of the makeup is downright weird (think the Whos in the live-action Grinch). Gene de Paul's music is unmemorable, but Johnny Mercer's lyrics provide considerable fun, and the athletic dances are based on Michael Kidd's stage choreography. Plus, the movie honors Capp's eye for impossibly bodacious women by casting Julie Newmar as Stupefyin' Jones and Stella Stevens (her first movie role) as Appassionata Von Climax. --Robert Horton

Description

LI'L ABNER, the beloved cartoon strip from Al Capp, takes place in the hillbilly town of Dogpatch, which is deemed the most useless community in America. When the city is chosen as a test site for A-bombs, its colorful citizens take up the good fight, with lots of fun and merriment.

Customer Reviews:

Must See for Li'l Abner Fans.......2007-05-03

This is great because it is so unpretentious-- a crowd pleasing musical farce based on Al Capp's popular comic strip. The gorgeous 50's pin-up style women are especially true to their source (and Julie Newmar really earns the name "Stupefyin' Jones"). Leslie Parish makes a luminous Daisy May, and Peter Palmer is the biggest, brawniest baritone Abner you could imagine. Mammy and Pappy are also great, but the weirdest impersonation has got to be Eagle-Eye Fleagle-- that guy moves like a cartoon! The plot is as kooky as one of Capp's Sunday half-page strips. Kind of corny but lively, with very athletic dancing by various hillbilly-clad young Broadway performers. The only flaw is its stagey-ness and flat lighting with multiple shadows on the studio floor. Still, with Gen. Bullmoose, Marryin' Sam (Stubby Kaye), Mooshine McSine, the Scraggs and a lot of plot convolutions, it is a very satisfying fable.

excellent seller and product.......2007-02-13

Item as described and received in a timely manner... an excellent buying experience!

Billie Hayes steals the show as Abner's Mom........2007-02-12

I'd heard of this show over the years and have been very curious to see what it was like. Fortunately, a friend gave me a copy as a gift, and I finally saw what Lil Abner is about. A very strange story about a secret formula that turns ordinary men into asexual musclemen is one of the stranger plot threads. I guess the word for it is camp. The scenery is very cartoony (which works well with the feel of this film), and the cast is full of terrific performers (Stubby Kaye is a brilliant performer as always), but the one that really blew me away is the very young Billie Hayes recreating her stage performance as Abner's elderly mother. According to my estimate, Hayes had not yet hit 30 when she played this character, and she is nothing short of wonderful. I couldn't help be think that Paul Henning based his Beverly Hillbillies television series on this film and stage musical, so many of the characters are echoed in that series. The character of Granny is so much like Billie Hayes' portrayal in this film, that I am surprised that Henning didn't just hire Hayes when he was casting his "Granny." The film is a bit slow in places, and the musical numbers are just not as good as in some other Broadway scores, but the movies is enjoyable and obviously not meant to be taken seriously.

Andy Capp again.......2007-02-12

A musical version of the original. Very well done and funny! Some great stars and the sets are visual of the original cartoons!

Great Family Movie .......2007-01-11

This movie is a favorite of our family. We love musical theatre and the songs are alot of fun. My children who were 8 and 11 yrs. old once watched this over and over on a 8 hour car trip.

Average customer rating:

What To Do If A Skunk Gets in Your Woodshed
Comic page characters come to life
A 1940 Hit , well worth watching!
BRINGS A SMILE OR TWO.
Nice to have back!

Li'l Abner
Starring: Jeff York , Martha O'Driscoll , Mona Ray , Johnnie Morris , and Buster Keaton
Director: Albert S. Rogell
Manufacturer: Allied Artists Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Comedies | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $14.99 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

Li'l Abner
Li'l Abner (1956 Original Broadway Cast)
L'il Abner (Digitally Remastered)
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ASIN: B0000E6FMI
Release Date: 2003-10-16

Customer Reviews:

What To Do If A Skunk Gets in Your Woodshed.......2007-01-08

Buster Keaton should have known better. This is one of the most insufferable films in history. I may donate my copy to the CIA to assist with interrogation of especially hardened suspects. It's that bad. The film immortalizes the unfunny antics of L'il Abner (Jeff York) along with other characters from Dogpatch (and neighboring Skunk Hollow) like the villain Earthquake McGoon (Charles Post,) and the most embarrassing "Indian" in screen history, Lonesome Polecat (Buster Keaton,) whose performance ranks as perhaps the worst ever.

The plot concerns the hilarious events of life with one brain cell: entrapment into marriage; the awkwardness of kissing; fistfights; sharing an annual bath with a pig; eating mustard and wondering if that leads to death or merely indigestion, etc. In the physical deformity department Exhibit A is the nose. Most of the cast has on idiotic round nose appliances making them appear more inbred than you might even expect. This was all a bit irritating, but perhaps most annoying of all was the theme song (which we get to hear twice, and was co-written by Milton Berle, who should also have known better) which goes on an on about how all the girls want L'il Abner, and then concludes with a line (about how L'il Abner just wants a porkchop) that fits neither the rhyme or meter of the song.

I may not be from a generation that really "gets" the comedic genius of L'il Abner, but this movie was given to me by a friend (I will be avenged), who, in turn, was given this film by his mother who is advanced enough in age to be in the subset of the population who should be able to appreciate this film. She is a very smart and wise woman, and has increased in stature in my eyes for her extremely concise and accurate review of this film, which I think stands as an excellent summary. She said "This is the worst movie I have ever seen."

Heed this sage advice and do not watch this if you value your time or sanity. If you are given this as a gift, I recommend a strategy differing from the one that I used (which was acceptance and a troubled "thank you"). Instead I recommend that you momentarily hand it back to the giver, point behind you and exclaim "Look! A bear with the head of Sandra Day O'Connor!" When the giver turns to look for the bear, run in the opposite direction as fast as you can, abandon all your belongings in place, move to Bolivia, and do not reveal your identity for at least ten years.

Yes, the movie is that bad.

Comic page characters come to life.......2006-12-10

Buster Keaton DOES NOT play Li'l Abner-- as some "sage" reviewers think!

This early movie version of Lil Abner (1940), brought Al Capp's Dogpatch characters vividly to life. Although the Broadway musical was filmed two decades later, this original Abner film is superior by far.

This was Hollywood's first ever attempt at precisely recreating a newspaper comic strip, and the actors chosen, after much makeup, were dead ringers for the characters they portrayed. In particular, Buster Keaton as Lonesome Polecat deserves mention. He is perfect and hilarious as the strange little Indian that brews Kickapoo Joy Juice. Besides Keaton, the cast includes such old-time comedy actors as Edgar Kennedy, Chester Conklin and Al St. John.

The plot is somewhat average, but fans of Capp's work will definitely NOT be disappointed seeing the denizens of Dogpatch come to life. This movie is as yummy as "poke chops fo' brekfiss, poke chops fo' lunch, and fo' suppah....MO' poke chops!!"

A 1940 Hit , well worth watching!.......2005-05-03

This 1940 version of Li'l Abner is and will remain a classic (but not to all). I think it really captures Al Capp's Characters to a T. All the girls chasing Abner were great. Jeff York could of used about 30 more pounds of muscle to really look like Abner(those skinny arms just didn't cut it). At least he wasn't sloppy and overweight as he was in the 1950's when he appeared in "Old Yeller". This movie is now being sold on DVD at stores like Walmart for $1.00, what a shame as some of this high budget trash they make today and sell for 20 bucks isn't even worth a nickel! This is a movie that reaches down into the town of "Dog Patch" and carries a great story to the end of the show. Some of the folks in the movie like Mammy Yokem look like they escaped from the set of the "Wizard of Oz" that was made a year earlier in'39(she would of made a Great munchkin). Bottom line get this movie classic, you will really get a kick out of it,
"Enjoy"

BRINGS A SMILE OR TWO........2005-01-16

When LI'L ABNER was made, in 1940, Al Capp's comic strip of the same name was one of the U.S.'s favorites, with his hayseed creation finding himself in one jam after the other, without trying at all. A story by Capp is the foundation for this film, which holds a unique spot in cinema history, as it is the only attempt to precisely recreate comic illustration, utilizing makeup, costumes and exact phrasing (without interpretation). The plot and subplots generally revolve about the annual Sadie Hawkins Day celebration in Dogpatch, which presents area females with just about their only opportunity to catch a husband, by literally running down and snaring one of the town's fleeing bachelors. For those who remember the silent film era, this effort provides small roles for many pre-talkie stalwarts, including Buster Keaton, Edgar Kennedy, Chester Conklin, Al St. John, Lucien Littlefield, Hank Mann and Edward Brady. At times very reminiscent of Capp's drawing, the very tall Jeff York, billed as Granville Owen, is effective as Abner. Martha O'Driscoll, Kay Sutton and Billie Seward, as the three women most vigorously seeking marriage with Abner, do their hearty best with the thin scenario. More silly than cute, this picture is not marked by outstanding work from cast and crew, its significance coming only from the mentioned verisimilitude.

Nice to have back!.......2004-12-13

Lord, I spent some time the last few years trying to track down an old VHS version of this. I'd seen it ages ago and was wowed by the weird and wonderful ambience of the flick. Hardly a masterpiece but definitely worth owning and watching regularly--especially if you care at all for the way folks back then were able to generate real magic with a shoestring budget. I shudder to think what a low-budget version of this would have looked like if it had been produced in the, say, Seventies. I'm one of the few people I know who gets a little uncomfortable with the sleezy cheapness of "Willie Wonka."

Recommended if you like funky old films and REALLY recommended if you're a Guy Maddin fan. I'd find it impossible to believe that that wonderful contemporary director (Careful, Archangel, Saddest Music in the World) is not aware of this film.

Average customer rating:

Brings A Smile Or Two,
Beware of cover art!
Fraud
Dismissable
DIGIVIEW UPC # 872322001351 DVD INSERT MISTAKE.

L'il Abner (Digitally Remastered)

Manufacturer: Digiview Productions
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Classics | Genres | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Li'l Abner
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ASIN: B0006JCLX4

Product Description

Digitally Remastered - Interactive Menus - Al Capp's characters come vividly to life, with all the strip's most notable personalities on board.

Customer Reviews:

Brings A Smile Or Two,.......2006-04-25

Beware of cover art!.......2005-11-19

This is the 1940 RKO production (the print is an Astor Pictures reissue) starring Granville Owen as Abner and Martha O'Driscoll as Daisy Mae. But the cover art identifies the stars as Peter Palmer and Leslie Parrish, who actually headlined the superior 1959 musical adaptation. The back cover gets the cast right, but they list the running time as 114 minutes (!) instead of the correct 73. This oddball movie is peppered with a host of silent screen comedians: Buster Keaton, Edgar Kennedy, Bud Jamison (unrecognizable behind makeup), Al St. John, Hank Mann, Chester Conklin, Mickey Daniels...which makes the whole enterprise seem even more disappointing. Still, it's a novelty for film buffs...what the heck, I already have BELA LUGOSI MEETS A BROOKLYN GORILLA, which is also available in nice shape from Digiview.

Fraud.......2005-05-21

The heading for this film says:

Starring: Peter Palmer, Leslie Parrish

It is also on the cover, showing their names.

But it is a B/W copy of a much older version with Jeff York and Martha Driscoll.

Dismissable.......2005-04-16

Al Capp's cartoon strip was so satirically acidic that he was constantly being threatened with suit by the public figures he parodied--and at least one, Joan Baez, actually took him to court. But viewers needn't expect much of Capp's celebrated wit in this 1940 cinematic take on the much celebrated residents of Dogpatch, USA; more silly than clever and more embarassing than entertaining, L'IL ABNER has been justly neglected for more than a half a century.

Still, it does have a few charms, and most of these are among the cast. Director Albert S. Rogell was a workhorse of the silent era, and the film is crammed to overflowing with a host of silent actors taking one more shot at fame--with the great Buster Keaton the most celebrated name on the roster. Sad to say, they are largely wasted, but we're at least given a chance to see them once more, a decade after their stars faded.

The most successful members of the cast are actually the younger players, with Jeff York (billed as Granville Owen) unexpectedly effective in actually looking the part of L'il Abner himself. Martha O'Driscoll is merely acceptable as Daisy Mae, but Billie Seward strikes all the right notes as the man-hungry Cousin Delightful. And now and then a moment "pops" enough for you to see a little of what made Capp's concepts so wickedly funny.

The plot is standard Capp, but it lacks Capp's bite: Daisy Mae loves Abner, Cousin Delightful wants him for herself, and Abner prefers porkchops. In terms of production values, the film was very obviously done on the cheap, and Rogell's direction is hardly inspired: not only is the camera static, the pace is positively leaden. The Digiview DVD release states that it has been "digitally remastered," but if so, you'd hardly know it; the elements are at absolute best merely tolerable. Fans of the original strip will probably find it a guilty pleasure, but even they will likely admit that this is Al Capp with both fangs pulled.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer
In Memory of Bob Zeidler, Amazon Reviewer
Greatly Missed and Not Forgotten

DIGIVIEW UPC # 872322001351 DVD INSERT MISTAKE........2005-01-17

HERE'S THE DEAL, THE FRONT COLOR LISTS THE COLOR VERSION STARS WHILE THE BACK OF THE INSERT LISTS THE B/W 1940'S VERSION STARS. THE DVD IS THE BLACK & WHITE 1940'S VERSION WITH JEFF YORK, BILLED AS GRANVILLE OWEN AND MARTHA O'DRISCOLL. TRANSFER QUALITY IS VERY GOOD NEAR EXCELLENT.

Average customer rating:

College/Li'l Abner

Manufacturer: Genius Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

( C ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

4-for-3 Comedy | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

4-for-3 All DVDs | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video
ASIN: B0006GANVO
Release Date: 2004-01-01

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