Eddie Bracken Movies
Comic character actor Eddie Bracken has worked steadily in full-length feature films and on-stage for decades, but was most popular during the '40s when he played leads and co-leads in several sprightly Paramount comedies and light musicals. He typically played shy, twitchy fellows with a constantly cracking voice and a tendency toward cluelessness and helplessness. Bracken began singing and acting on-stage and in vaudeville as a young child. He made his film debut in a quartet of Our Gang shorts and in six episodes of the New York Kiddie Troopers series. Later he began appearing on Broadway and performing in traveling shows. In 1938, Bracken played a bit part in Brother Rat, but did not win his first major role until the 1940 musical comedy Too Many Girls. Bracken is best remembered for his work in a pair of frothy, irreverent Preston Sturges comedies: The Miracle of Morgan's Creek and Hail the Conquering Hero (both 1944). These roles led to his being typecast as a chronically befuddled bumbler. Bracken's popularity continued through the decade, but by the early-'50s, musicals were on the wane and the style of comedy in which Bracken had been hopelessly typecast was out of style. By 1953, he had exchanged his film career for one on stage and television. In 1962, Bracken suddenly showed up in the Italian comedy Always on Sunday. In addition to live-action performances, he also voiced a few cartoon characters, notably in the animated feature Shinbone Alley (1970). In the early '70s, Bracken tried to establish a chain of stock theaters and ended up losing two million dollars. Bracken returned to making occasional film appearances in the early '80s, beginning with a cameo as a theme park owner in National Lampoon's Vacation (1983). He continued to work in films and on-stage through the '90s. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 2000
Shot on high-definition video, The Ryan Interview is adapted by Ira Simmons from a play by Pulitzer Prize winner Arthur Miller, originally commissioned by the Actors Theater of Louisville. Though she yearns to do "meaningful" work, budding journalist Frederika Rose (Ashley Judd) must satisfy herself with various human-interest stories and puff pieces. One of these requires her to interview farmer Bob Ryan (Eddie Bracken) on the occasion of his 100th birthday. The experience proves to be of the "life-changing" variety for Frederika, and also performs a curious brand of magic upon the centenarian Ryan. Filmed on a farm where director Guy Mendes once lived, The Ryan Interview made its American TV debut over PBS on August 25, 2000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ashley Judd, Eddie Bracken, (more)
- 1994
Bigotry and values are questioned when a Black West Point cadet is singled out and harassed by fellow cadets and senior officers. ~ All Movie Guide
John Hughes sticks to his seemingly fool-proof formula for success in Baby's Day Out, a cross-pollination of Home Alone and a Swee' Pea cartoon. The plot seems all-too familiar: posing as baby photographers, a group of three would-be kidnappers (led by the usually outstanding character actor Joe Pantoliano) enter an unsuspecting wealthy Chicago couple's home and make off with Baby Bink after leaving a ransom note. However, while waiting for the delivery of the ransom money, Baby Bink manages to escape and subsequently embarks on a series of cutesy-poo adventures in downtown Chicago (including a crawl through a skyscraper construction site), leaving the hapless crooks in hot pursuit. ~ Jeremy Beday, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Joe Mantegna, Lara Flynn Boyle, (more)
Rookie of the Year is a light-hearted comedy about a 12-year-old baseball fan who, despite his love for the sport, can't play the game at all. During one Little League contest, he breaks his arm. After it heals, it miraculously becomes a super-human arm that can out-pitch any player in the major leagues. The boy joins the Chicago Cubs and helps lead them to the World Series. Though the plot is silly and contrived, it's a pleasant film that is ideal for young sports fans. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Busey, Thomas Ian Nicholas, (more)
- 1993
This made-for-cable version of Arthur Miller's play The American Clock was adapted for television by Frank Galati. Inspired partly by Studs Terkel's oral history Hard Times, and partly by Miller's own recollections, the film is set at the beginning of the Depression. When the stock market crashes, the well-to-do Baumler family (John Rubinstein, Mary McDonnell, Loren Dean) loses everything. The Baumlers are forced to move from their plush penthouse apartment to the less-attractive Brooklyn digs of Mrs. Baumler's sister (Joanna Miles). Twelve-year-old Lee Baumler (Dean), the Arthur Miller counterpart, hits the road to find out how others are coping with the Long National Nightmare. The alternately depressing and uplifting storyline moves along briskly to a surprisingly abrupt climax. Kelly Preston, David Strathairn, Eddie Bracken, Darren McGavin, and Estelle Parson co-star in The American Clock, which premiered over the TNT Cable Network on August 23, 1993. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
- PG
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John Hughes and Chris Columbus repeat their best-selling formula from the first Home Alone film with this sequel. Once again Kevin McCallister's (Macaulay Culkin) family leave him behind, only now he gets on a flight to New York instead of going with his family to Miami. Kevin manages to hail a cab and is delivered to the doorsteps of the Plaza Hotel, where, using his father's credit card, he rents out a suite and has the time of his life -- although a smarmy hotel clerk (Tim Curry) and bellboy (Rob Schneider) eye him with suspicion. But ingenious Kevin keeps them at bay, using the same tomfoolery he applied to his uncle in the first picture. He takes time out from his consumer debauch to chat with a friendly old toy-store magnate (Eddie Bracken) and pontificate to a homeless Pigeon Lady (Brenda Fricker) on the meaning of Christmas. But then he runs into his old enemies Harry (Joe Pesci) and Marv (Daniel Stern).When he finds out that they plan on robbing the old man's toy store on Christmas Eve, he mans the battle stations once again, complete with electric prods, flames of fire, and sundry blunt instruments. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, (more)
Sylvester Stallone gives comedy another try in this farce set in the 1930s. Angelo "Snaps" Provelone (Stallone) is the wealthy and powerful head of the Chicago mob, but his ailing father (Kirk Douglas) doesn't approve of his life in crime, and on his deathbed, Dad makes Snaps promise to go straight. Determined to honor his late father's wishes, Snaps decides to go into banking -- just as his life has fallen into chaos. Anthony Russano (Vincent Spano) informs Snaps that he's hijacked $50,000 of his money and wants to marry his daughter. Snaps discovers that his daughter Lisa (Marisa Tomei) is actually involved with the chauffeur, Oscar (Jim Mulholland), but Anthony's girlfriend Theresa (Elizabeth Barondes) has convinced her beau that Snaps is her father. Snaps hopes to use this misunderstanding as a way of getting his money back, but in the meantime, he has to deal with a wary banking board, rival mob boss Vendetti (Richard Romanus), prissy elocution coach Thornton (Tim Curry), and Snaps' one-time girlfriend Roxanne (Linda Gray). Oscar's stellar supporting cast includes Don Ameche, Chazz Palminteri, Harry Shearer, Eddie Bracken, Yvonne DeCarlo, and Bruce Davison. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sylvester Stallone, Ornella Muti, (more)
- 1990
This documentary, made for PBS' American Masters series, explores the life and career of the renowned screenwriter and director Preston Sturges (1898-1959), whose few but very influential films managed to change the entire film industry. The documentary features clips from his films, and interviews with those who knew him well, including ex-wives. He was the first screenwriter to make the move to become a film director. He is best known for his unerringly light touch in dealing humorously with difficult topics, and directed one of the first widely successful spoofs of Hollywood, The Great McGinty. The director had a life as eventful and fraught with coincidences as anything in the movies, and this is recounted also. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Bracken, Thomas Quinn Curtiss, (more)
- 1987
Completed in 1985, Rankin/Bass' feature-length cartoon version of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows had its network debut delayed several times; the film finally premiered on July 5, 1987. This adaption of the 1908 Grahame story was more faithful to the source that the enjoyable but overly slick 1949 Disney version Ichabod and Mr. Toad (ironically, the Rankin/Bass version was shown in the timeslot normally occupied by ABC's Disney Sunday Movie). This lighthearted tale of the foolish Mr. Toad and the attempts by his anthropomorphic-animal friends to keep Toad from making a fool of himself was wonderfully brought to life by the whimsically epicene voicework of Charles Nelson Reilly (as Toad), Roddy McDowall, Jose Ferrer and Eddie Bracken. The film's character design and background art brilliantly evoke the spirit of Kenneth Grahame's original illustrations. Since its initial telecast, Wind in the Willows has become a fixture of virtually every video rental store in the nation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paul H. Frees, Charles Nelson Reilly, (more)
- 1985
Involved in a minor accident at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport, Jessica (Angela Lansbury) ends up with a fractured leg. Over her protests, she is whisked off to a nearby hospital for treatment. You guessed it: A murder occurs--the victim is the head of the hospital--and Jessica must spend most of her forced confinement doing her trademarked amateur sleuthing. 1940s film favorites Martha Raye and Eddie Bracken show up in featured roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The first film in the Vacation comedy franchise stars Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, an ad exec who becomes consumed with taking his family cross-country to Wally World, a California amusement park. Less a vacation than a descent into a peculiarly American kind of hell, the Griswolds suffer through an endless series of catastrophes, culminating in a run-in with the law. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, (more)
Based on a Broadway musical by Mel Brooks and Joe Darion, the animated feature Shinbone Alley is an adaptation of the Don Marquis stories. The film is about a love-struck cockroach named Archy (voiced by Eddie Bracken) and the object of his affections, a carefree cat named Mehitabel (Carol Channing). The movie is arranged as a series of episodic adventures and though it never quite gels into something cohesive, it has a number of fine moments, particularly when it sticks to the music. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Bracken, Carol Channing, (more)
- 1965
Eddie Bracken narrates this low-budget exploitation feature that caters to those curious about the strange and exotic. The bloody death of a bull at the hands of a matador and a cockfight in Manila are shown. The film mostly gives the viewer a chance to leer at several scantily clad dancing girls. Traditional Filipino dances are performed by the Bayanihan National Troupe. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- 1962
A light frolic at the beach with sun and sex both foremost on the scene, this standard comedy by director Giulio Petroni is that much better for the comic work of Ugo Tognazzi and Raimondo Vianello as Benito and Adolfo, two undertakers who enjoy a bit of fun at the beach before they have to go in and punch the clock. Also along for the ride are Jean-Pierre Aumont as Valerio and some very attractive women, involved in a series of episodic vignettes about classic situations -- such as mistaken identity. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna Maria Ferrero, Eddie Bracken, (more)
- 1953
"Slight" is right: this harmless comedy programmer is as inconsequential as it is enjoyable. It's the tale of two Army buddies: go-getter Geechy Cheevers (Mickey Rooney) and sedate family man Freddie Clopp (Eddie Bracken). Inveigling his way into Freddie's household, Geechy drives everyone bonkers with his get-rich-quick schemes. After convincing Freddie to quit his job and mortgage his home in order to set up a gas station, Geechy cooks up an underhanded scheme to tap the gas pipe of a rival station. Standing on the sidelines is Geechy's long-suffering girlfriend Beverly (Elaine Stewart) and Freddy's far-from-understanding wife Emily (Marilyn Erskine). An obligatory slapstick chase finale caps this exercise in lunacy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mickey Rooney, Eddie Bracken, (more)
- 1952
About Face is a musicalized remake of the old stage and film comedy Brother Rat. The basic story remains the same, as military-school cadet Boff Roberts (Eddie Bracken) tries to keep his forbidden marriage to Alice Wheatley (Phyllis Kirk) a secret. Meanwhile, Boff's roommates Tony Williams (Gordon MacRae) and Dave Crouse (Dick Wesson) do their best to woo and win lovely Betty Long (Virginia Gibson) and Lorna Carter (Ailene Stanley Jr.). Cliff Ferre co-stars as the much-hated Lt. Jones, who turns out to be an accomplished tap-dancer in the film's closing sequence (but that's only after he's been "humanized" when his hair is dyed blue!) Future Cabaret star Joel Grey has a few funny moments as a put-upon "plebe." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gordon MacRae, Eddie Bracken, (more)
Having supped full of success with the multi-storied O. Henry's Full House, 20th Century-Fox assembled another all-star "omnibus" film, We're Not Married. The unifying factor of this enjoyable seriocomedy is provided by justice-of-the-peace Melvin Bush (Victor Moore), who learns to his horror that his license is invalid. Bush and his wife (Jane Darwell) feverishly track down the five couples whom he has married "illegally" to inform them of the fact and invite them to renew their vows. Couple #1 is Fred Allen and Ginger Rogers, a husband-and-wife radio team whose huggy-kissy behavior on the air conceals the fact that they'd dearly love to cut each other's throats. Couple #2 consists of David Wayne and his contest-happy spouse Marilyn Monroe, who's just won the "Mrs. Mississippi" pageant. Couple #3, Paul Douglas and Eve Arden, ran out of things to say to each other long ago. Couple #4 is millionaire Louis Calhern and his avaricious young bride Eva Gabor, who intends to jilt the old coot and make off with his millions. And Couple #5 is young GI Eddie Bracken and his pregnant wife Mitzi Gaynor. When Bush delivers the news that these unions aren't legal in the eyes of the state, the results range from poignant to hilarious: particularly satisfying is Calhern's puckish revenge on his gold-digging wife. And yes, that is Lee Marvin as Eddie Bracken's army buddy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Fred Allen, (more)
- 1951
Personally supervised by Howard R. Hughes, the RKO Technicolor musical Two Tickets to Broadway stars Janet Leigh as a small-town girl who hopes to make it big in the Big Apple. Moving into a Manhattan boarding house populated by such showbiz hopefuls as Ann Miller, Tony Martin, Gloria De Haven and Barbara Lawrence, Leigh aspires to appear on the popular TV variety program hosted by bandleader Bob Crosby. Two-bit agent Eddie Bracken promises to make her dreams come true, even though he doesn't know Crosby from Adam. Along the way, Leigh falls for Martin, though the course of true love seldom runs smooth--in fact, at one point it threatens to run all the way back to Leigh's home town. Injecting their time-honored routines into the proceedings are veteran vaudevillians Joe Smith and Charlie Dale, playing a couple of stagestruck deli owners (their roles were originally slated for Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, but Laurel's illness precluded any film work). Despite the creative input of choreographer Busby Berkeley, the film's best number is the simplest: Let's Make Comparisons, wherein Bob Crosby explains why he's not his brother Bing. Seemingly a surefire box-office hit, Two Tickets to Broadway inexplicably posted a loss of $1,150,000. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Tony Martin, Janet Leigh, (more)
Summer Stock represented Judy Garland's swan song at MGM. Garland plays the owner of a New England farm which entrepreneur Gene Kelly hopes to convert into a summer theatre. Gloria DeHaven, a member of Kelly's troupe, also happens to be Garland's sister. Aware that the farm is having financial difficulties, DeHaven talks the recalcitrant Garland into allowing the troupe to set up shop in the barn. All sorts of romances wind their way through the summer air as Kelly mounts his production. In the long-anticipated finale, Garland herself steps into the leading-lady slot vacated by her petulant sister DeHaven, and of course the show is a smasheroo. To watch Garland joyfully perform such numbers as "Friendly Star," "If You Feel Like Singing, Sing," and her legendary "drag" specialty "Get Happy," you'd never suspect that she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown (the film opened while Garland was recovering from a suicide attempt). Adding to the overall exuberance of Summer Stock are such dependable supporting players as Eddie Bracken, Phil Silvers, Marjorie Main and Hans Conried (cast as the troupe's resident romantic baritone!) ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, (more)
- 1949
Ronald Reagan plays a George Petty-type magazine illustrator who creates a "perfect girl" from a composite of the features of several models. While relaxing at the beach, Reagan meets a lovely young schoolteacher (Virginia Mayo) who is the living image of his imaginary girl. Sensing a terrific promotional angle, Reagan ingratiates himself with the girl and attempts to secure her services for a series of cheesecake poses. The film leads to a courtroom conclusion wherein Mayo must strut around in a bathing suit to win her case. Girl from Jones Beach is worth the admission price alone just to hear Ronald Reagan pose as a Czechoslovakian immigrant--complete with accent. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ronald Reagan, Virginia Mayo, (more)
- 1947
No relation to the 1961 Jerry Lewis comedy of the same name, the 1947 musical Ladies' Man stars Eddie Bracken as the title character. It all begins when rural rube Henry Haskell (Bracken) inherits an oil fortune in Oklahoma. Enjoying his newfound wealth, Henry goes on a sightseeing tour of New York City, where he is quickly bamboozled into playing "Prince Charming" on a radio giveaway show (this plot device is a takeoff of the "Miss Hush" contest on radio's Truth or Consequences). The architect of this chicanery is ad agency exec Gladys Hayden (Virginia Field), who convinces Henry that she'll lose her job if he doesn't go along with the gag. Somewhere along the line, the plot is put on the back burner in favor of a steady stream of specialty numbers, performed by the likes of Cass Daley and Spike Jones & His City Slickers, the latter aggregation performing their classic Cocktails for Two." Eddie Bracken himself does a nice singing job with a pair of Jule Styne-Sammy Cahn numbers. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Bracken, Cass Daley, (more)
