Bud & Lou & The Noose

THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH-1948-Two inept window washers Ted (Bud Abbott) and Tubby (Lou Costello) visit a dentist to take care of Tubby's bad tooth. The nearsighted dentist (Murray Leonard) gives Tubby a pretty hard time but does pull the tooth and manages to crash Tubby  through the ceiling where his head winds up in the floor of a psychiatrist (Fritz Feld) who faints.

A mobster named Nick Craig (Joseph Calleia) mistakes the duo for messengers and dispatches them to pick up 50 thousand dollars from bookie Mr. Stewart (Ben Weldon) who plans to double cross them but Tubby hears them talking on an inter-com. To escape the two thugs sent after them Tubby comes up with a plan to have the money sent by mail but he gets the envelopes mixed up. They have to stay over night at Craig's office which leads to a variation on the team's "pack/un-pack" routine and also to hoodwink a dumb thug (Mike Mazurki) out of some money. Craig needs the 50 thousand dollars to pay off a debt to the mysterious Mr. McBride (Leon Errol). The money falls into the hands of Carol (Cathy Downs) the beleaguered assistant to a complaining old bag Mrs. Van Buren (Isabel Randolph).

The "boys" steal the mailing list and comb the city for the person who got the money. They find Carol but unfortunately she's spend most of loot. Carol suggests they bet what little money they have on a horse she  heard McBride is betting on (it's said he never loses). However unbeknown to them McBride changes his bet. Later Tubby meets McBride which leads to some funny moments together (including the "mudder-fodder" routine). The duo then figure the best place to be is in jail so they try to get arrested but no matter what they do they can't. They then decide to order a huge meal at an expensive restaurant and when they can't pay for it they'll go to jail. The "mustard" routine shows up. Fortunately McBride comes to their rescue just before Craig gives them "cement galoshes".

THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH is sometimes overlooked in the Abbott and Costello filmography. It was the team's first foray into independent production. They throw in several funny routines and having Leon Errol (who was also busy making his own short films at RKO) in the cast doesn't hurt. Luckily they hired Charles Barton to direct and having worked with A & C more than anyother director, he keeps everything tight and together. The team made two pictures for Universal the same year: the  so-so MEXICAN HAYRIDE and their classic ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN (both directd by Barton!).

There's a whole slew of writers credited with the screenplay and story (not surprising on an A & C production) including their usual collaborator John Grant and Daniel Taradash who later wrote the screenplay for FROM HERE TO ENTERNITY. Female lead Cathy Downs years later played Mrs. Glen Manning in THE AMAZING COLOSSAL MAN.

There's small un-credited bits by many familair character actors: Elvia Allman, Ellen Corby, Jimmie Dodd (future composer of "The Mickey Mouse March"), James Flavin, Bess Flowers, Joe Kirk (Costello's brother in law), Minerva Urecal, Herb Vigran.

Thanks for reading!