Diplomaniacs is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film starring Wheeler and Woolsey. The film in noted for its absurdist political satire, somewhat in the manner of Million Dollar Legs or Duck Soup, both of which were released within a year of Diplomaniacs.
| Diplomaniacs | |
|---|---|
_poster.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | William A. Seiter |
| Written by | Joseph L. Mankiewicz (screenplay and story) Henry Myers (screenplay) |
| Produced by | Merian C. Cooper (executive producer) Sam Jaffe (associate producer) |
| Starring | Bert Wheeler Robert Woolsey Marjorie White Phyllis Barry Louis Calhern Edgar Kennedy |
| Cinematography | Edward Cronjager |
| Edited by | William Hamilton |
| Music by | Uncredited: Max Steiner Roy Webb Songs: Harry Akst (music and lyrics) Edward Eliscu (music and lyrics) Others: Bernhard Kaun (orchestration) Eddie Sharpe (orchestration) |
| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 61 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $242,000[2] |
| Box office | $461,000[2] |
Plot
editWilly Nilly (Bert Wheeler) and Hercules Glub (Robert Woolsey) are barbers with almost no customers: their shop is on an Indian reservation. The tribe pays them to represent the Indian Nation at a peace conference in Switzerland. Unbeknownst to them, several armaments manufacturers want to ensure that the peace conference is a failure, and do everything they can to sabotage it. Ringleader Winkelreid (Louis Calhern) hires Dolores and Fifi (Marjorie White and Phyllis Barry) to distract Willy and Hercules, and steal their secret documents. Willy and Hercules, unaware of the intrigue surrounding them, persist in carrying out their mission.
Cast
edit- Bert Wheeler as Willy Nilly
- Robert Woolsey as Hercules Glub
- Marjorie White as Dolores
- Phyllis Barry as Fifi
- Louis Calhern as Winkelreid
- Hugh Herbert as Wise Gai Chow-Chow, the Chinaman
- Edgar Kennedy as Chairman of the Peace Conference
- Richard Carle as Ship's Captain
- William Irving as Schmerzenpuppen
- Neely Edwards as Puppenschmerzen
- Billy Bletcher as Schmerzenschmerzen
- Teddy Hart as Puppenpuppen
- Edward Cooper as Indian Chief
- Dewey Robinson as Luke the Hermit
- Charles Coleman as Marie, Parisian butler
- Grace Hayle as Countess
- Charlie Hall as Shaffner, Winkelreid's valet
- Richard Alexander as Peace Conference Sergeant-at-Arms
Box office
editDiplomaniacs was the first Wheeler & Woolsey comedy under the supervision of studio head Merian C. Cooper, who resolved to cut costs during the troubled Depression era. The team's recent comedies Hold 'Em Jail and Girl Crazy had cost $408,000 and $502,000, respectively, under previous studio head David O. Selznick; Cooper slashed the budget for Diplomaniacs to $242,000.[3] According to studio records, the film made a profit of $65,000.[2]
References
edit- ^ "Diplomaniacs: Technical Details". theiapolis.com. Archived from the original on April 9, 2014. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
- ^ a b c Richard B. Jewell, "RKO Film Grosses: 1931-1951", Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol. 14, No. 1, 1994, p. 56.
- ^ Richard B. Jewell with Vernon Harbin, The RKO Story, New York: Arlington House/Crown, 1982, pp. 60, 62.
External links
edit
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