Blotto (film)

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Blotto
Blottotitlecard.jpg
Directed by James Parrott
Written by Leo McCarey
H.M. Walker
Produced by Hal Roach
Starring Stan Laurel
Oliver Hardy
Cinematography George Stevens
Edited by Richard C. Currier
William H. Ziegler
Music by Nathaniel Shilkret
Leroy Shield (1937 reissue)
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • February 8, 1930 (1930-02-08)
Running time
26:06 (English)
39:30 (Spanish)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Blotto is a 1930 American pre-Code comedy film directed by James Parrott and starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. The short was produced by Hal Roach and originally distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Contents

Plot

During the Prohibition era, Laurel and Hardy plan an evening at the Rainbow Club, a lively venue. Stan, eager to escape his nagging wife, agrees to a scheme devised by Ollie to feign a business-related absence. However, their telephone conversation is overheard by Stan's wife, prompting her to enact her own plan.

Unbeknownst to Stan and Ollie, Mrs. Laurel replaces the hidden liquor in their home with tea spiked with various spices. At the club, the duo struggles to open their bottle quietly before resorting to enjoying the entertainment, including a Josephine Baker-style exotic dancer and a baritone singer whose melancholic performance moves Stan to tears.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Laurel, armed with a shotgun, arrives at the club and confronts the pair, revealing the contents of their bottle. Angered by their deception, she pursues them onto the street, where they flee in a taxi. In a fit of rage, Mrs. Laurel unleashes a single shot, obliterating the vehicle.

Cast

Production notes

The name of the film relates to the now archaic term "to be blotto" meaning to be very drunk. [1]

The initial release of Blotto did not incorporate a music score apart from the orchestral "Dance of the Cuckoos" tune played during the opening titles. [2] The original version of the film is no longer extant, with only a censored 1937 re-release print surviving. This re-release edition underwent alterations, including the removal of approximately one reel of material containing pre-Code sequences.

To address the absence of a music score in the original release, a background music track was integrated into the 1937 version. This musical accompaniment comprised a combination of Leroy Shield's jazzy compositions and other musical selections commonly featured in 1937 Hal Roach films. A distinctive feature of Blotto is that it represents the sole Laurel and Hardy production where Laurel's character is married while Hardy's remains unmarried.=

Although the original 1930 version is now considered a lost film, a Spanish language version produced by MGM, entitled La Vida Nocturna has survived which shows how the film was originally presented, including a gag involving an electric fan after Stan says he needs some "fresh air". This is not available in the English version due to negative damage.[ citation needed ]

International versions

The film was reshot and entitled La Vida Nocturna for the Spanish language market.

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References

  1. ↑ Oxford English Dictionary: Blotto
  2. ↑ Louvish, Simon. Stan and Ollie: The Roots of Comedy: The Double Life of Laurel and Hardy. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2002, p. 267. ISBN   0-3122-6651-0.
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