Francis in the Haunted House | |
---|---|
Directed by | Charles Lamont |
Written by | Herbert H. Margolis William Raynor |
Produced by | Robert Arthur |
Starring | Mickey Rooney Virginia Welles |
Cinematography | George Robinson |
Edited by | Milton Carruth |
Color process | Black and white |
Production company | Universal International Pictures |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $1.2 million (US) [1] |
Francis in the Haunted House is a 1956 American comedy horror film from Universal-International, produced by Robert Arthur, directed by Charles Lamont, that stars Mickey Rooney and Virginia Welles.
This is the seventh and final film in the Universal-International Francis the Talking Mule series, notably without series director Arthur Lubin, star Donald O'Connor, or Francis' voice actor Chill Wills.
Francis witnesses a murder and then befriends bumbling reporter David Prescott (Mickey Rooney), who may be next in line. With Francis' help and guidance, Prescott uncovers a mystery involving murder, an inheritance, and a spooky old mansion on the edge of town.
This seventh and final entry in the Francis the Talking Mule series was made without most of the key creative personnel from the earlier films. Leonard Maltin, in his Movie Guide , quotes Donald O'Connor on quitting the series: "When you've made six pictures and the mule still gets more fan mail than you do...." Director Lubin and Chill Wills were also absent, replaced respectively by Charles Lamont and voice actor Paul Frees, who did a close approximation of Wills' voice as Francis.
Mickey Rooney replaced Donald O'Connor as a new but similar character, David Prescott. According to his autobiography, Rooney was originally considered for a United Artists Francis feature film with his company Rooney Inc optioning and then turning down the property [2] before Universal acquired the rights.
Rooney's casting was announced in January 1956. [3]
Charles Lamont was announced as the film's director some weeks later. [4]
Chill Wills, who voiced Francis in the six previous films asked for a salary increase which Universal was unwilling to pay, so the studio auditioned various voice actor replacements, including Mel Blanc, [5] before settling on Paul Frees. [6]
No explanation was given in the film as to why Francis left his original sidekick, Peter Stirling. In the script, Francis says he decided to befriend reporter Prescott because "I once lived on a farm owned by Prescott's uncle and wanted to protect his nephew out of respect for the deceased." With the original elements missing, the film, a standard tale of fake ghosts and gangsters, was poorly received; it was widely reviewed as the weakest entry in the series. [7] [8]
The original film, Francis (1950), was released in 1978 as one of the first-ever titles in the new LaserDisc format, DiscoVision Catalog #22-003. [9] 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.
Mickey Rooney was an American actor. In a career spanning nearly nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the silent-film era. He was the top box-office attraction from 1939 to 1941, and one of the best-paid actors of that era. At the height of a career marked by declines and comebacks, Rooney performed the role of Andy Hardy in a series of 16 films in the 1930s and 1940s that epitomized the mainstream United States self-image.
Mister Ed is an American television sitcom produced by Filmways that aired in syndication from January 5 to July 2, 1961, and then on CBS from October 1, 1961, to February 6, 1966. The show's title character is a talking horse which originally appeared in short stories by Walter R. Brooks.
Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor was an American dancer, singer and actor. He came to fame in a series of films in which he co-starred, in succession, with Gloria Jean, Peggy Ryan, and Francis the Talking Mule.
Francis may refer to:
Theodore Childress "Chill" Wills was an American actor and a singer in the Avalon Boys quartet.
Francis the Talking Mule is a fictional mule who first appeared in three short stories written for Esquire by David Stern, which he later combined into the 1946 novel Francis. This was the basis of a series of seven Universal-International comedy films released from 1950 to 1956.
Robert Arthur was an American screenwriter and producer best known for his long association with Universal Studios.
Francis Matthews was an English actor, best known for playing Paul Temple in the BBC television series of the same name and for voicing Captain Scarlet in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons.
Charles Lamont was a prolific filmmaker, directing over 200 titles and producing and writing many others. He directed nine Abbott and Costello comedies and many Ma and Pa Kettle films.
The World of Abbott and Costello is a 1965 American compilation film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello.
Arthur Lubin was an American film director and producer who directed several Abbott & Costello films, Phantom of the Opera (1943), the Francis the Talking Mule series and created the talking-horse TV series Mister Ed. A prominent director for Universal Pictures in the 1940s and 1950s, he is perhaps best known today as the man who gave Clint Eastwood his first contract in film.
Francis in the Navy is a 1955 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International, produced by Stanley Rubin and directed by Arthur Lubin. The film stars Donald O'Connor and Martha Hyer, and marked the first credited film role of Clint Eastwood. The distinctive voice of Francis is a voice-over by actor Chill Wills.
Rhubarb is a 1951 film adapted from the 1946 novel Rhubarb by humorist H. Allen Smith. Directed by Arthur Lubin, the screwball noir comedy stars the cat Orangey along with Jan Sterling and Ray Milland. Cinematography was by Lionel Lindon. The supporting cast features William Frawley and Gene Lockhart.
Francis is a 1950 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International that launched the Francis the Talking Mule film series. Francis is produced by Robert Arthur, directed by Arthur Lubin, and stars Donald O'Connor and Patricia Medina. The distinctive voice of Francis is a voice-over by actor Chill Wills.
Footsteps in the Fog is a 1955 British Technicolor Victorian-era crime thriller starring Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons, with a screenplay co-written by Lenore Coffee and Dorothy Davenport, and released by Columbia Pictures. Directed by Arthur Lubin, the film is based on the W. W. Jacobs short story "The Interruption".
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 West Point is a 1952 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International, produced by Leonard Goldstein, directed by Arthur Lubin, and starring Donald O'Connor, Lori Nelson, Alice Kelley, and Gregg Palmer. The distinctive voice of Francis is a voice-over by actor Chill Wills.
Francis Covers the Big Town is a 1953 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International, produced by Leonard Goldstein, directed by Arthur Lubin, that stars Donald O'Connor, Yvette Duguay, and Gene Lockhart. The distinctive voice of Francis is a voice-over by actor Chill Wills.
Francis Joins the WACS is a 1954 American black-and-white comedy film from Universal-International, produced by Ted Richmond, directed by Arthur Lubin and starring Donald O'Connor, Julie Adams, ZaSu Pitts, Mamie Van Doren and Chill Wills in two roles, including that of the distinctive voice of Francis in voice-over.
Queen for a Day is a 1951 American comedy film directed by Arthur Lubin and written by Seton I. Miller. The film stars Jack Bailey, Jim Morgan, Fort Pearson, Melanie York, Cynthia Corley, Kay Wiley and Helen Mowery. The film was released on July 7, 1951 by United Artists.