Francis Goes to the Races is a 1951 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International, produced by Leonard Goldstein, directed by Arthur Lubin, that stars Donald O'Connor, Piper Laurie, and Cecil Kellaway. The distinctive voice of Francis is a voice-over by actor Chill Wills.
| Francis Goes to the Races | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Arthur Lubin |
| Written by | Robert Arthur (story) Oscar Brodney (screenplay) David Stern (screenplay and characters) |
| Produced by | Leonard Goldstein |
| Starring | Donald O'Connor Piper Laurie Cecil Kellaway |
| Cinematography | Irving Glassberg |
| Music by | Frank Skinner |
Production company | Universal Pictures |
| Distributed by | Universal-International |
Release date |
|
Running time | 88 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $2.3 million (US rentals)[1] |
This is a sequel to Universal-International's 1950 film Francis.[2]
Plot
editFrancis the Talking Mule and his sidekick Peter Sterling visit Colonel Travers and his granddaughter on their family horse farm. Peter soon finds himself involved in the world of horse racing and a crime boss and his men trying to "fix" races involving the Travers' horses.
Cast
edit- Donald O'Connor as Peter Stirling
- Piper Laurie as Frances Travers
- Cecil Kellaway as Colonel Travers
- Jesse White as Frank Damer
- Barry Kelley as 'Square Deal' Mallory
- Hayden Rorke as Rogers
- Vaughn Taylor as Harrington
- Larry Keating as Head Steward
Production
editFrancis had been a success, and in May 1950 Universal announced they had bought the film rights to David Stern's character Francis. These included rights to his 1948 novel Francis Goes to Washington and to any other Francis books that he may write. Universal could make an unlimited number of film sequels and use the character for TV, radio, and commercials. For these rights Stern was paid a reported $60,000.
Francis Goes to Washington was meant to be the first sequel.[3][4] However, the filming of Washington was postponed as there were "too many complications" for the film "to be made as things stand at the present."[5] As a result, the film was never made.
The production of Francis Goes to the Races was then announced in October 1950.[6] Production started November 1950.[7] The film was shot at Santa Anita racecourse. Hill Prince, Coaltown, and Moonrush were among the real-life horses who appeared in the film.[8]
Reception
editThe Washington Post called the film "smooth and cheery".[9]
Home media
editThe original film, Francis (1950), was released in 1978 as one of the first-ever titles in the new LaserDisc format, DiscoVision Catalog #22-003.[10] It was then re-issued on LaserDisc in May 1994 by MCA/Universal Home Video (Catalog #: 42024) as part of an Encore Edition Double Feature with Francis Goes to the Races (1951).
The first two Francis films were released again in 2004 by Universal Pictures on Region 1 and Region 4 DVD, along with the next two in the series, as The Adventures of Francis the Talking Mule Vol. 1. Several years later, Universal released all 7 Francis films as a set on three Region 1 and Region 4 DVDs, Francis The Talking Mule: The Complete Collection.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "The Top Box Office Hits of 1951". Variety. January 2, 1952. p. 70.
- ^ Vagg, Stephen (14 September 2019). "The Cinema of Arthur Lubin". Diabolique Magazine.
- ^ Hopper, Hedda (Mar 13, 1950). "LOOKING AT HOLLYWOOD: Bette Davis in Joyous Mood Over Work on New Picture". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. b14.
- ^ THOMAS F. BRADY (May 17, 1950). "'FRANCIS' STORIES ARE BOUGHT BY U.-I.: Studio Acquires All Rights to David Stern's Future Yarns About the Army Mule". New York Times. p. 35.
- ^ Schallert, Edwin (May 29, 1951). "Drama: Hugh Marlowe Romantic Rival of Milland; Wald, Krasna to Seek Talent". Los Angeles Times. p. A7.
- ^ THOMAS F. BRADY (Oct 30, 1950). "KATZ AND KRAMER SET UP FILM FIRM: Former Metro Executive Puts Up $2,000,000 in Venture With Independent Producer Movie About "Dizzy" Dean". New York Times. p. 23.
- ^ THOMAS F. BRADY (Oct 30, 1950). "KATZ AND KRAMER SET UP FILM FIRM: Former Metro Executive Puts Up $2,000,000 in Venture With Independent Producer Movie About "Dizzy" Dean". New York Times. p. 23.
- ^ "Santa Anita Film Locale". Los Angeles Times. Aug 28, 1951. p. B7.
- ^ Orval Hopkins (5 July 1951). "Mule Francis Now Training Race Horses". The Washington Post. p. 13.
- ^ [1] (The DiscoVision Library)