Set during Prohibition, Stan and Ollie are outside Malt and Hops, a store offering ingredients for brewing. Ollie announces his intention to brew 15 gallons of beer, prompting Stan's concern over their capacity to consume such a quantity. Ollie's retort reveals their plan to sell what they cannot drink. Subsequently, the scene shifts to the duo's arrival in handcuffs at prison, charged with concocting and distributing their own homebrew, marking their incarceration as prisoners 44633 and 44634.
Upon arrival, Stan's loose tooth inadvertently provokes the governor, drawing further attention to their predicament. Assigned to cell 14 alongside five other inmates, including the notorious "Tiger," the toughest prisoner, Stan's recurrent razzberry, caused by his loose tooth, earns him unexpected respect from the intimidating Tiger, fostering an unlikely friendship. Amidst shared bunk beds and prison school, their antics inadvertently land them in solitary confinement, amplifying the bleakness of prison life.
During a riot, Stan and Ollie seize the opportunity to escape, becoming fugitives with a bounty on their heads. Their flight leads them to a cotton plantation, where they hide in blackface to evade detection. A musical interlude sees Ollie serenading with "Lazy Moon" while Stan dances, only for his blackface to wash off, exposing their true identities. Their discovery, triggered by Stan's involuntary razzberry, leads to their prompt return to prison.
Subsequent events see Ollie inadvertently undergoing dental treatment intended for Stan, culminating in the extraction of the wrong tooth. Tricked into breaking a hunger strike promise with the false allure of a lavish feast, they confront disappointment and unrest in the mess hall. Amidst escalating tension and a plan for rebellion, Stan's accidental discharge of a Tommy gun prematurely triggers chaos, thwarting the planned riot.
Amidst the pandemonium, the warden's daughter becomes trapped in a burning building, prompting Stan and Ollie's valiant attempt at rescue. However, their comedic missteps, including an inadvertent discharge of the Tommy gun, inadvertently quell the riot, earning them a written pardon from the grateful warden. Despite their accidental antics and misinterpretations, they hastily exit the prison, marking the culmination of their tumultuous journey.
After the release of MGM's hit The Big House with Chester Morris and Wallace Beery, producer Hal Roach decided to feature Laurel and Hardy in a two-reeler spoofing the current prison drama. Roach felt that since his product was currently being released through MGM, he would be able to borrow existing sets used in The Big House to keep costs down. MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer agreed to the idea, on the proviso that the duo appear in a film for MGM in the near future. Infuriated, Roach turned down the offer, and hired set designer Frank Durloff to build an exact replica of the needed prison sets.[1]
Pardon Us began production as The Rap in June 1930. To Roach's dismay, shooting went over schedule, with enough surplus for two prison-themed films. As a result, it was decided that The Rap be released as a full-length feature film, Laurel and Hardy's first as stars. Previewed in August 1930, the film ran 70 minutes, and was subject to lukewarm reviews, in which critics stated that the movie needed a bit of tightening. Stan Laurel decided to withdraw Pardon Us from general distribution to add new scenes and delete unnecessary ones. Leroy Shield's musical score was added (many songs already appearing in Our Gang and Laurel and Hardy short films), and the film was eventually released on August 15, 1931, a year after its first preview.[1]
June Marlowe (who was simultaneously appearing as school marm Miss Crabtree in the Our Gang series) appears only briefly in the film despite her receiving billing after Laurel and Hardy. An elaborate deleted sequence was filmed, in which the convicts set the prison on fire as part of their escape plan and the warden's daughter is seen screaming from her second floor bedroom.[2]
Stan Laurel did not find this sequence satisfactory, and re-filmed the much simpler ending involving the boys holding the convicts at bay with a machine gun. In the released version, June Marlowe does not appear in this scene at all. However, she does appear in the Spanish version of Pardon Us, which was entitled De Bote en Bote ("From Cell to Cell"). This version still exists, with an alternate ending which shows Stan looking at their prison mugshots at the end, much to the disgust of Ollie, who rips them up. Pardon Us was released in the UK under the title Jailbirds.[2]
During the early era of sound cinema, Hollywood studios frequently produced foreign language versions of their films, utilizing the same sets, costumes, and production elements. While many of these adaptations have been lost, the Spanish-language rendition of Pardon Us stands as a notable exception, titled De Bote en Bote.
In addition to the Spanish version, counterparts were created in other languages, including Italian (Muraglie), German (Hinter Schloss und Riegel), and French (Sous Les Verrous). Regrettably, the French and Italian iterations have been lost, though fragments of the German version were unearthed in 1999 and are accessible on DVD.
These foreign-language adaptations were filmed concurrently with the English version, featuring actors who were fluent in the respective languages. American actors assumed major roles, while local talent took on supporting characters. To navigate linguistic challenges, language coaches assisted in reciting lines, while monolingual performers relied on phonetically transcribed cue cards positioned just outside the camera's view. This method, predating modern dubbing techniques, allowed for seamless dialogue delivery but proved costly and labor-intensive.
Laurel and Hardy's popularity rendered them indispensable, leading to foreign-language versions of Pardon Us and other productions such as Blotto, Chickens Come Home and Below Zero. The duo, along with other cast members, delivered their lines phonetically, with minor roles occasionally being recast, as exemplified by Boris Karloff portraying "The Tiger" in the French version prior to his iconic role in Frankenstein released in November 1931.
Availability
Three prints of different length are in circulation today. In the mid-1980s, 3M issued a series of L&H films on laserdisc and used the preview print of Pardon Us. It ran nine minutes longer than all previous prints, and contained additional scenes with the warden, solitary confinement, and second performance of "Hand Me Down My Silver Trumpet Gabriel". This version has been shown several times on the cable network American Movie Classics. The 64-minute version also aired on TCM's April Fools' Day salute to Laurel and Hardy.
In 2004, Universal Studios issued the complete 1930 preview version on DVD, which includes added scenes taken from preview copies. This version, running at 70 minutes, was also released in 2011 as part of Laurel and Hardy: The Essential Collection. Originally, a music score was not added to the lost segment. This was resolved by adding Shield's music cues recreated by The Beau Hunks, a Dutchrevivalist music ensemble, on their 1994 CD The Beau Hunks Play the Original Little Rascals Music.
Related Research Articles
Laurel and Hardy were a British-American comedy team during the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957). Starting their career as a duo in the silent film era, they later successfully transitioned to "talkies". From the late 1920s to the mid-1950s, they were internationally famous for their slapstick comedy, with Laurel playing the clumsy, childlike friend to Hardy's pompous bully. Their signature theme song, known as "The Cuckoo Song", "Ku-Ku", or "The Dance of the Cuckoos" was heard over their films' opening credits, and became as emblematic of them as their bowler hats.
The Music Box is a Laurel and Hardy short film comedy released in 1932. It was directed by James Parrott, produced by Hal Roach and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film, which depicts the pair attempting to move a piano up a long flight of steps, won the first Academy Award for Best Live Action Short (Comedy) in 1932. In 1997, it was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film is widely seen as the most iconic Laurel and Hardy short, with the featured stairs becoming a popular tourist attraction.
Beau Hunks is a 1931 American Pre-Code Laurel and Hardy film, directed by James W. Horne. The title is a reference to the Beau Geste trilogy ; to the line in Beau Sabreur where Buddy says '"Sure thing, Son Hank — if a gang of Touareg Bohunks couldn't, French troops couldn't.. .. I s'pose it is us he's after?"'; or to bohunk, a common ethnic slur of the time in the United States. At 37 minutes, it is the longest Laurel and Hardy short. The French Foreign Legion scenario was reused in The Flying Deuces with Charles B. Middleton again playing their commanding officer.
Thicker than Water is a short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by James W.Horne, produced by Hal Roach, and released in 1935 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The short also features James Finlayson and Daphne Pollard in supporting roles. It was the last two-reel comedy starring the comedy team, as Hal Roach decided to end Laurel and Hardy short films and move them solely into feature films.
A Chump at Oxford is a Hal Roach comedy film produced in 1939 and released in 1940 by United Artists. It was directed by Alfred J. Goulding and was the penultimate Laurel and Hardy film made at the Roach studio. The title echoes the film A Yank at Oxford (1938), of which it is a partial parody.
The Flying Deuces, also known as Flying Aces, is a 1939 buddy comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy, in which the duo join the French Foreign Legion. It is a partial remake of their short film Beau Hunks (1931).
Helpmates is a Laurel and Hardy Pre-Code short film comedy. It was directed by James Parrott, produced by Hal Roach and released by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer on January 23, 1932.
Unaccustomed As We Are is the first sound film comedy starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, released on May 4, 1929.
The Second Hundred Years is a 1927 American silent comedy short film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy prior to their official billing as the duo Laurel and Hardy. The team appeared in a total of 107 films between 1921 and 1951.
The Finishing Touch is a 1928 short comedy silent film produced by Hal Roach, directed by Clyde Bruckman and starring Laurel and Hardy. It was released February 25, 1928 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Leave 'Em Laughing is a 1928 two-reel silent film starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. Produced by the Hal Roach Studios, it was shot in October 1927 and released January 28, 1928 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Another Fine Mess is a 1930 short comedy film directed by James Parrott and starring Laurel and Hardy. It is based on the 1908 play Home from the Honeymoon by Arthur J. Jefferson, Stan Laurel's father, and is a remake of their earlier silent film Duck Soup.
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.
Be Big! is a Hal Roach three-reel comedy starring Laurel and Hardy. It was shot in November and December 1930, and released on February 7, 1931.
The Hoose-Gow is a 1929 short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by James Parrott and produced by Hal Roach.
Laughing Gravy is a 1931 short film comedy starring Laurel and Hardy. It was directed by James W. Horne, produced by Hal Roach and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Hog Wild is a 1930 American pre-Code Laurel and Hardy film, directed by James Parrott.
Come Clean is a 1931 American pre-Code short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by James W. Horne and produced by Hal Roach.
The Live Ghost is a 1934 American comedy short film starring Laurel and Hardy, directed by Charles Rogers, and produced by Hal Roach at his studios in Culver City, California.
Stan & Ollie is a 2018 biographical comedy-drama film directed by Jon S. Baird. The script, written by Jeff Pope, was inspired by Laurel and Hardy: The British Tours by A.J. Marriot which chronicled the later years of the comedy double act Laurel and Hardy; the film stars Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly as Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. The film focuses on details of the comedy duo's personal relationship while relating how they embarked on a gruelling music hall tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland during 1953 and struggled to get another film made.
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