KILLER DILLER - "Kickeroonie" (1948)

 I've got a real killer Saturday Night Special for you this week!

It's an "All-American" film from 1948!

 "Killer Diller" is actually the most exciting film I'm seen lately, and right up there with "Hellzapoppin" in the sheer entertainment category!

 "Killer Diller" is an amazing musical variety show wrapped around a small unnecessary story line to try and make it cohesive! I'm not going to explain the short story line, but instead I'll just tell you that it was written by Hal Seeger, who went on to produce and direct hundreds of cartoons starring characters like Milton the Monster, Batfink, etc.

It's all happening at The Lincoln Theater in Los Angeles. The Lincoln was built in 1926, and was sometimes referred to as the "West Coast Apollo" because it featured popular African-American acts, many of whom also played at The Apollo in Harlem.

 Andy Kirk and his Orchestra are the house band on this fine night!

The first performance is by Andy's Orchestra and is called "Gator Serenade." It features saxophone solos by two killer players, Hank Abrams playing tenor sax on the left, and Shirley Green playing alto sax on the right.

"Gator Serenade" seriously rocks, and Hank Abrams delivers an awesome solo, so much, that he just doesn't want to quit!

When it's Shirley Greene's time to solo, Hank gets so excited that he tries three or four times to get involved again and Andy Kirk has to run him off each time. It's really quite funny!

I just love this shot of the Andy Kirk horn section!

Next up, Beverlee White serves up a couple of  tastee dishes, "It Ain't Nobody's Business What I Do," and "I Don't Want To Get Married."

Then it's "Two tons of Melody and Mirth" with Patterson and Jackson with "If I Didn't Care,"  "I Believe," and "Ain't Misbvehavin.'" Don't be fooled by these guys girth, because they've got some moves!

 A very young Moms Mabley was known as Jackie Mabley back then.

The phenomenal James and Steve Clark, performing as the tap dancing Clark Brothers are nothing but fun to watch. This was their first recorded performance, and they went to to be on all kinds of TV shows, like The Ed Sullivan's.

Most people only know Nat King Cole as being a soulful crooner, but he was a very talented jazz pianist. The other two members of the King Cole Trio are guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince. It's cool that Nat sits side saddle when he plays. The Trio performs three songs, "Breezy and the Bass," "Now He Tells Me," and  "Ooh, Kickeroonie." There's another funny sequence in this set when Nat and Wesley and playing notes together like crazy, and Nat stops, but Wesley just keeps on going.

This is a high energy show, and it doesn't stop here. The Congaroos do a couple of numbers where I'm not sure how nobody gets hurt. These folks are crazy, slinging each other around to a point that I can't even describe! This is a truly Mind boggling performance, it wore me out just watching so bad that I had to take a nap afterwards!

And as the man says himself, you can't have a show like this without some beautiful dancing girls, and they are lovely, no doubt

The Lincoln sat 2,100 people, and I'll tell you what, this crowd sure got their money's worth!

Today, the Lincoln Theater is the home of Iglesia de Jesucristo Ministerios Juda, a Spanish-speaking church.

Here's a Killer Diller early X-Mas present for you, Enjoy!

MURDER WITH MUSIC - "Mistaken Identity" (1941)

Tonight's feature is a tasty little morsel from 1941, and a great way for us to help celebrate "Black History Month" called "Murder With Music!" I bought my copy, but once again as I was writing this I found out you can download or watch it for free right "HERE" at the good old Internet Archive, so if you like music as much as I do, then head on over and check it out!

"Murder With Music" probably should have been called "Music With Murder" because it is approximately 85% music with just a thread of a plot to kind of tie it all together!

It starts off with this dude Milton (THE COOL WORLD) Williams as Ted Simmonds asking for a job as a reporter. The editor behind the desk is Bob (JUNCTION 88) Howard!  Bob is relating to Ted the story of the last reporter he hired, a loser named Hal!

Now Hal instead of being focused on his job, was more concerned with trying to make whoopee with this nightclub singer named Lola! Lovely Lola was played by a popular nightclub entertainer of the time named Nellie Hill! Nellie was only ever in one other movie called "Killer Diller," and in it she played a gal by the name of Lola! Hal was played by an actor named George Oliver!

Hal's lovemaking ideas get interrupted when Lola's attention is turned to this unnamed act on the televison doing a number by the name of "I'm A Cute Little Bangi From Ubangi" that really needs to be seen and heard to believed!! Lola must do pretty well, my parents never had a TV until the 50's!

That's the TV there in the flip-top box! The next thing you know Mike shows up but she thinks it's her boyfriend Lewis, and Hal has to hide in the closet! Mike has just escaped from a two year stint in prison and he thinks the smokes and drinks he sees are that of Lola and Lewis, he knows nothing about Hal!

If you ask my humble opinion, if they remade "Murder With Music," Mike's role would be perfect for Snoop Dogg as he's almost a dead ringer for Mike! Mike was played by Bill (HOUSE-RENT PARTY) Dillard! So Mike needs some new duds, so Lola suggests they go to the pad of the guy who owns the club she works at, a fellow named Bill Smith. She said Bill likes her so much, he'd gladly give Mike one of his suits!

There's only one problem, and that is that Bill Smith is at this party! Now why Bill and his wife who you can't see in this shot, are the only two people with masks on at the party is anybody's guess! As you can see, Bill Smith is quite popular with all the ladies! Bill Smith was played by Ken Renard and is one of the few characters in this film that had much of an acting career! Ken went on to be in "True Grit," Sparkle," "Exorcist II: The Herectic," and was even in an "Outer Limits" episode called "Corpus Earthling!" He was also in "Killer Diller" with Nellie Hill!

The band at the party is Nobel Sissle and His Orchestra, and they swing hard!

When Bill Smith and his wife return to their apartment, they have no idea that Hal the reporter is hiding behind a chair listening to their conversation!

Right about here it gets a little confusing! Bill Smith and his wife leave via the window, and then this police officer comes in through the window!

Lola and Mike show up at Bill's apartment, and tell the cop that they live there! Hal is still hiding behind the chair!

Meanwhile, back at the party the joint is still jumpin' with entertainment by  these tap dancers known as Alston and Young! Noble Sissle there in the middle keeps the music flowing! Noble Sissle wrote the song "I'm Just Wild About Harry" in 1921, and that song was used in like 27 different cartoons, movies and TV shows including "Harry And The Hendersons," and "The Muppet Show!"

Then it's time for the editor Bob Howard to join Noble's orchestra and sing "Too Late Baby!" The music refuses to stop!

Time for Nellie to break into her standout number called "Can't Help It" that was written by Skippy Williams. The uncredited policeman on the keys also does an outstanding job! 

Then there's this uncredited cat who breaks in on the editor 3 or 4 times talking in German, and then leaving post haste! A real honest to goodness case of WTF?! Weirdsville!!

The final moments include a stunner of an audition by Johnson and Johnson called "That's The Cheese you Got To Squeeze!" This piano and tap dancing boogie-woogie is so hot that it causes Bill Smith to say, "I'll buy that number!" The Skippy Williams Orchestra comes in on the end of the song to wrap it up tight!

Nellie reprises "Can't Help It" at the end of the film with Skippy's orchestra accompanying!

And then, just like the title suggests, somebody does indeed get murdered!! Best news of the year so far, I just found out that "Killer Diller" can also be downloaded for free at the Internet Archive! What a way to go!!

KILLER DILL - "Not Exactly A Gangster" (1947)

Despite the thousands of films we've written about, I always marvel at how much I still don't know, and that is the case with tonight's Whacked-Out Wednesday presentation!

This Danish poster is great! It takes at least three separate elements of the film, mixes them up and exaggerates them.

 

When I first saw the title "Killer Dill" I thought it was a misprint and that they actually meant "Killer Diller," because there is also a movie called "Killer Diller," that was released the year after "Killer Dill," but they really have nothing in common, except they are both fun to watch.

"Killer Dill" was made in 1947, but it is set in the 1930's during the Prohibition period. Here's a good shot of exactly why they used to call it 'Bathtub Gin.'

Stuart Erwin is Johnny Dill, a meek and timid lingerie salesman, and on the left is Anne Gwynne as Judy Parker, a woman he really likes a lot and would like to marry, but he just can't get around to asking her. 

I've noticed a lot of misinformation about this film on the internet, or more specifically IMDB, like they call Johnny a door-to-door salesman, and say that Johnny is "the exact double of a notorious gangster," which is not the case at all.

Stuart Erwin and Anne Gwynne are joined here by Johnny's longtime friend, a loser attorney named William T. Allen as played by Frank Albertson. William is the kind of friend that borrows money, and doesn't pay it back so he can take out the girl that Johnny himself desires. William is a real ass!

Stuart Erwin was a popular enough actor that he had his own TV show titled "The Stu Erwin Show," that ran for 130 episodes from 1950 to 1955. The always awesome Anne Gwynne graced the big screen in some amazing titles like "Weird Woman," "House Of Frankenstein," "Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome," and "Teenage Monster." Frank Albertson has 194 credits to his name as varied as "It's A Wonderful Life," and "Psycho."

 

After William T. Allen borrows money again from Johnny to take out Judy, Johnny takes his assistant to the movies instead to see a film called "Public Enemy # 21." Dorothy Granger is Johnny's assistant Millie. Dorothy Granger had an amazing 264 credits, many of them comedic shorts!

The movie they watch includes a scene that has a mock up of James Cagney in "The Public Enemy," and the infamous 'grapefruit to the kisser' shot.

Johnny learns from Millie that chicks dig tough guys, and he's so disgusted, he walks out on the movie!

Johnny decides that maybe that's the kind of guy he needs to be if he's ever going to win Judy Parker's heart, so he goes to a local speakeasy to try his luck with a new persona.

Johnny finds out in no time at all that indeed, women do like tough guys!

The real 'Public Enemy #21,' Big Nick Maronie comes into the joint with a couple of members of his posse. Big Nick was played by Ben Welden, another actor with an amazing 249 credits that included great stuff like Foo Yung on "Batman," eight episodes of "The Adventures Of Superman," in roles like Lefty, Blade, and Leftover Louie, and Sollum on "Space Patrol."

The girls that Johnny is talking to don't like Big Nick staring at them, so Johnny, totally full of himself, and not knowing who Big Nick is, decides he'll take care of it for them!

To show how tough he is, Johnny goes over and tweaks Big Nick's nose, an action he's going to regret in a hurry!

Now it's time for Johnny to learn a new game, a modern version of William Tell. On the right is Dungeon All-Time Hero Mike Mazurki as Little Joe, which is hilarious since Mike was actually six foot and 4 and a half inches tall. Former professional wrassler,  Mike Mazurki has played every type of thug in the world, guys with names like Rhino, Lunk, and Moose.

There is no loyalty in the crime world, and Little Joe decides to follow the money, and strangles his boss Big Nick for a rival gang member, Public Enemy # 24, a guy named Maboose, looking to move up in the ranks.

Little Joe now needs a place to stash the dead body of Big Nick.

Little Joe finds the door open to Johnny's place and stuffs the body into Johnny's case of lingerie samples, and the story is off and running. Johnny finds the body and tries to ditch it, but the case falls out of the back of a truck he rents, and opens up onto the street, and Johnny's goose is now cooked well done!

The newspaper headlines tell the whole story!

Johnny is in hiding, but William T. Allen convinces him to turn himself in. William tells Johnny he'll take the case, and easily get him off, even though he's lost all the previous twelve cases he's ever worked on!

Despite William's worthless defense, the jury decides to declare Johnny innocent, but the public still thinks that Johnny was guilty. At this point Johnny has to act like a tough guy again to try and impress Maboose, who now wants to recruit Johnny, and then dispose of him after he's through using him!

Johnny then gets Little Joe to sign a confession to the murder of Big Nick, but William T. Allen tears it up, telling Johnny that it would only hurt Judy!

William T. Allen had plans to marry Judy, but when she finally realizes what a heel he is, she decides to marry Johnny instead, and Will ends up in jail as one of Maboose's associates.

The "Top Review" on IMDB calls "Killer Dill" "Immediately Forgettable," but just like a lot of other information about this film, that person doesn't know what they're talking about, and I couldn't agree less! "Killer Dill" is able to do what many films fail at, it's both light-hearted and halfway serious at the same time, and is a fun little ride that I don't have a problem recommending!