HOLD THAT GHOST
(New Universal)
HEN we saw Messrs. Abbott an@ Costello in Buck ’Privates (our first introduction to them) and, a little later, In the
‘Vavy, we were inclined to hail them as heralds of a new birth of comedy, or at least as two cuckoos (Continued on next page)
(Continued from previous page) marking a second spring of slapstick. Having seen them in the army and the navy, we promised ourselves that when they transferred to the Air Force we would be among those present to see them bail out. But instead of completing the obvious trilogy, they have gone off on a wild ghost chase and rather missed the bus. Hold That Ghost is not nearly so funny as its predecessors. It’s still good for a laugh, but one is left with the feeling that the stock of old jokes with which the pair embarked on their
screen career is running out. In this latest effort the pair even try to crack a few new jokes though as comedians they should know that the old ones are always best. Indeed, half the fun of Buck Privates and In the Navy-and it was fun-arose from the skill with which one ancient gag was dovetailed into another. The plot of Hold That Ghost, if it could be said to possess one is faintly
reminiscent of some of the old Wheeler and Woolsey comedies. Abbott and’ Costello, together with the romantic interest and a spare girl, find themselves dumped in a deserted road-house in the middle of a thunderstorm. There are secret doors, corpses, clutching hands, cobwebs and cetera, and Mr. Costello spends most of the time screaming for help. In fact, we had quite a headache when we got out.
Next time we hope they'll do the decent thing and join the Air Forceand give our nerves a rest. We almost forgot to mention that the cast includes Mischa Auer, the Andrews Sisters, and Ted Lewis and his Orchestra, but Mischa Auer hardly appears at all and as for the others, well it was Freud who said one forgot the things one didn’t want to remember, wasn’t it?
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/NZLIST19420313.2.32.1.3
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New Zealand Listener, Volume 6, Issue 142, 13 March 1942, Page 14
Word count
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359HOLD THAT GHOST New Zealand Listener, Volume 6, Issue 142, 13 March 1942, Page 14
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Copyright in the work University Entrance by Janet Frame (credited as J.F., 22 March 1946, page 18), is owned by the Janet Frame Literary Trust. The National Library has been granted permission to digitise this article and make it available online as part of this digitised version of the New Zealand Listener. You can search, browse, and print this article for research and personal study only. Permission must be obtained from the Janet Frame Literary Trust for any other use.
Copyright in the Denis Glover serial Hot Water Sailor published in 1959 is owned by Pia Glover. The National Library has been granted permission to digitise this serial and make it available online as part of this digitised version of the Listener. You can search, browse, and print this serial for research and personal study only. Permission must be obtained from Pia Glover for any other use.
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