The Naughty Nineties (1945)

78% of users liked it
(565 ratings)

Abbott and Costello's The Naughty Nineties offers a million laughs and a nickel's worth of plot. Most of the film takes place aboard a 19th century showboat, owned by kindly Captain Sam (Henry Travers). Bud Abbott plays the showboat's leading man Dexter Broadhurst, while Lou Costello is handyman… More Abbott and Costello's The Naughty Nineties offers a million laughs and a nickel's worth of plot. Most of the film takes place aboard a 19th century showboat, owned by kindly Captain Sam (Henry Travers). Bud Abbott plays the showboat's leading man Dexter Broadhurst, while Lou Costello is handyman Sebastian Dinwiddie. A group of slick gamblers (Alan Curtis, Rita Johnson and Joe Sawyer) cheat Captain Sam out of his boat, turning the place into a floating gambling palace, but Dexter and Sebastian foil the villains and save the day. The film is a virtual encyclopedia of wheezy but still hilarious comedy routines, many of them devised by veteran Laurel & Hardy and Three Stooges gagman Felix Adler. The film's highlight is a full-length performance of Abbott and Costello's verbal classic "Who's on First?"-and if one listens very closely, one can hear the cameramen and crew members laughing! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 12 min.
Directed By: Jean Yarbrough
Written By: Edmund L. Hartmann, John Grant, Edmund Joseph, Hal Fimberg
Genres: Drama, Classics, Comedy

In Theaters: Jun 1, 1945 Wide
Studio: Universal Pictures

Critic Reviews

Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Pretty dismal, but containing the 'Who's on first?' routine.

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Cast

            Bud Abbott as Dexter Broadhurst

            Lou Costello as Sebastian Dinwiddle

            Alan Curtis as Crawford

            Rita Johnson as Bonita Farrell

            Henry Travers as Capt. Sam Jackson

            Lois Collier as Caroline Jackson

            Joe Sawyer as Bailey

            Joe Kirk as Cropier

            Gladys Blake
            
            Jack Chefe as Waiter

            William Desmond
            
            Tom Fadden
            
            Sid Fields
            
            Edward Gargan as Baxter the Bartender

            Billy M. Greene as Minstrel

            John Hamilton as Sheriff

            John Indrisano
            
            Ben Johnson
            
            Donald Kerr
            
            Rex Lease
            
            Ruth Lee
            
            Arthur Loft
            
            Sam McDaniel as Matt

            Jack Norton as Drunk

            Jack Overman
            
            Barbara Pepper as Woman in Gilded Case

            Jack Rice
            
            Cyril Ring
            
            Sarah Selby
            
            Emmett Vogan as Citizen

            Bud Wolfe
            
            Lillian Yarbo as Effie

            Carolyn Hughes
            
            Milt Bronson as Gambler

            Jack Worth as Croupier
See full cast

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