''The Ghost and the Guest'' is a 1943 American black-and-white

comedy-mystery film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

William Nigh William Nigh (October 12, 1881 – November 27, 1955) was an American film director, writer, and actor. His film work sometimes lists him as either "Will Nigh" or "William Nye". Biography Nigh was born Emil Kreuske''Silent Film Necrology'', ...

and starring James Dunn,

Florence Rice Florence Davenport Rice (February 14, 1907 – February 23, 1974) was an American film actress. Early years Florence Davenport Rice was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the only child of the noted sportswriter Grantland Rice and Fannie Katherine ...

, Robert Dudley, and

Sam McDaniel Samuel Rufus McDaniel (January 28, 1886September 24, 1962)Tanner, Beccy (November 7, 1991)"McDaniel Opened Doors; 'Gone With the Wind' Was Actress' Most Famous Film" ''The Wichita Eagle''. Retrieved January 3, 2021. was an American actor who ap ...

. The plot finds a newlywed couple honeymooning in a house they think is haunted but which is really overrun by a gang of criminals trying to recover stolen loot. Based on an original story by American animator

Milt Gross Milt Gross (; March 4, 1895 – November 29, 1953) was an American cartoonist and animator. His work is noted for its exaggerated cartoon style and Yiddish-inflected English dialogue. He originated the non-sequitur "Banana Oil!" as a phrase defla ...

, the screenplay was the first film script by comedian

Morey Amsterdam Moritz "Morey" Amsterdam (December 14, 1908 – October 28, 1996) was an American actor, comedian, writer and producer. He played Buddy Sorrell on CBS's ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' from 1961 to 1966. Early life Amsterdam was born in Chicago ...

Plot

Webster Frye is looking forward to honeymooning with his new wife Jackie in California, but Jackie has her own ideas. She cancels their airplane tickets and arranges for Harmony, their chauffeur, to drive them to an old house in the country which her father has purchased for her. Outside the rundown property they meet Ben Bowron, a professional hangman who says the last criminal he executed, a jewel thief named Honeyboy, willed this house to him. Jackie ignores him and goes inside to investigate the house, which is dusty and unkempt. Meanwhile, the coffin of Honeyboy is brought to the house and Webster, feeling frazzled by the situation and his wife's inability to obey his wishes, calls the police to get rid of it. Behind the couple's backs, an escaped convict named Killer Blake sneaks out of the coffin and hides in a secret niche. A police chief who fancies himself a crime novelist and his deputy arrive on the scene, followed by a gang of criminals posing as Honeyboy's bereaved relatives and lawyer, whose real purpose is to locate Honeyboy's stolen jewels. Discovering the empty coffin, the police take everyone down to the cellar to search for the missing body, while Killer Blake sneaks around upstairs looking for Honeyboy's loot. A frustrated Webster and Jackie have no privacy on their wedding night as the police order everyone to stay inside the house. Jackie, pretending she is Webster's

gun moll A gun moll or gangster moll or gangster's moll is the female companion of a male professional criminal. "Gun" was British slang for thief, derived from Yiddish ''ganef'', from the Hebrew ''gannāb'' ( גנב). "Moll" is also used as a euphemism for ...

, convinces Smoothie Lewis that Webster is really a tough gangster and deserves 75 percent of the haul. Webster discovers a hidden passageway and revolving wall in his bedroom closet, and takes Jackie with him down a secret stairway to search the cellar. Harmony also sees men "disappear" into a wall where he is sleeping. The group discovers a dummy on which Bowden practices his hanging technique, and a previously-dead man is found dangling from a noose. While Jackie is alone in her room, Killer Blake enters and threatens her, but Webster rescues her. Jackie discovers the stolen diamonds that Honeyboy hid in a Polynesian bust. After Blake and the gang of criminals are taken away to the police station, a real estate agent appears at the door explaining that this is not the house Jackie's father bought them, but the right one is a few miles down the road; however, that house has burned down. The agent offers to show them other properties for sale, but Webster pushes him away and decides they will honeymoon in California instead.

Cast

* James Dunn as Webster Frye *

as Jacqueline "Jackie" DeLong Frye * Robert Dudley as Ben Bowron * Mabel Todd as Little Sister Mabel *

as Harmony Jones *Jim Toney as Police Chief Bagwell *

Eddy Chandler Eddy Chandler (March 12, 1894 – March 23, 1948) was an American actor who appeared, mostly uncredited, in more than 350 films. Three of these films won the Academy Award for Best Picture: ''It Happened One Night'' (1934), '' You Can't T ...

as Policeman Herbie *

Robert Bice Robert Bice (March 14, 1914 – January 8, 1968), was an American television and film actor. Biography He was born on March 14, 1914, in Dallas, Texas. He died on January 8, 1968, in Los Angeles, California. Career Bice appeared in 199 films an ...

as Smoothie Lewis *Renee Carson as Big Sister Josie *

Anthony Warde Anthony Warde (born Benjamin Schwartz; January 1, 1909 – January 8, 1975) was a noted American actor who appeared in over 150 films between 1937 and 1964. Early years Born as Benjamin Schwartz in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on New Year' ...

as Killer Blake * Anthony Caruso as Henchman Ted *Eddie Foster as Henchman Harold

Production

Development

''The Ghost and the Guest'' is based on an original story by

. The screenplay is the first film script by

, who previously wrote lyrics for the 1936 film ''

With Love and Kisses ''With Love and Kisses'' is a 1936 American musical comedy film directed by Leslie Goodwins and starring Pinky Tomlin, Toby Wing and Kane Richmond. It was produced on Poverty Row as a second feature for release by Ambassador Pictures.Pitts p.32 ...

''. The film was produced by Alexander-Stern Productions Inc., with Leon Fromkess credited as production supervisor.

Casting

James Dunn was making his first film appearance in two years after co-starring in the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production of ''

Panama Hattie ''Panama Hattie'' is a 1940 American musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and book by Herbert Fields and B. G. DeSylva. The musical is about a nightclub owner, Hattie Maloney, who lives in the Panama Canal Zone and ends up dealing with ...

'' with

Ethel Merman Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann, January 16, 1908 – February 15, 1984) was an American actress and singer, known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and for leading roles in musical theatre.Obituary ''Variety'', February 22, 1984. ...

. ''The Ghost and the Guest'' would be

's last film role. Mabel Todd, who plays her typical

dumb blonde Blonde stereotypes are stereotypes of blonde-haired people. Sub-types of this stereotype include the " blonde bombshell" and the "dumb blonde". Blondes are stereotyped as more desirable, but less intelligent than brunettes. There are many blo ...

role as Little Sister Mabel, was at the time the real-life wife of screenwriter Amsterdam.

Filming

Production began on February 1, 1943.

Release

''The Ghost and the Guest'' was released on April 19, 1943.

Critical reception

Contemporary reviews were uncomplimentary. The New York ''Daily News'' panned the film, writing:

With so little of the dialogue really good, so many of the players downright bad, and so much time wasted in burlesqueing such appurtenances of mystery as sliding panels, secret passageways, prowling strangers and coffins without corpses, the film hasn't much to offer as a comedy or a thriller.

Lansing State Journal The ''Lansing State Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Lansing, Michigan, owned by Gannett. Overview The ''Lansing State Journal'' is the sole daily newspaper published in Greater Lansing. The newspaper had an average Monday through ...

'' summed up the production as "another Milt Gross nightmare". The ''Harrisburg Telegraph'' termed Gross's original story "on the nut side in the usual Grossian manner". ''

The Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, alth ...

'' gave the film a "D" on its report-card rating system. Modern-day reviews were more positive. Price called the film a "believable farce", crediting the director, screenwriter, and lead actors for pulling off a comedic tale a la

James Thurber James Grover Thurber (December 8, 1894 – November 2, 1961) was an American cartoonist, writer, humorist, journalist and playwright. He was best known for his cartoons and short stories, published mainly in ''The New Yorker'' and collected in ...

. Price commends director

for "treat ngthe haunted-house gimmicks as the laughable clichés they had long since become", but also maintaining cinematic tension when it comes to "the genuine dangers that confront his characters". He calls Dunn's performance a "delight" and Rice's portrayal "engaging", and lauds cinematographer Robert E. Cline for his "richly composed photography" that adds polish to the production. The 1998 ''Blockbuster Entertainment Guide to Movies and Videos'' gave the film three stars, calling it an " joyable B-comedy tingle". ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' also gave it a three-star rating, writing: "Secret passages and hidden panels make for some zany hocus-pocus". ''Bowkers Complete Video Directory 2003'' writes: "James Dunn is at his wisecracking best in this lightning-paced laugh-a-minute haunted house farce". ''

Halliwell's Film Guide Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fil ...

'' calls the film a "predictable, mildly amusing second feature comedy-thriller". According to Edwards, ''The Ghost and the Guest'' is one in a long line of Hollywood films that validate skepticism about

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Nota ...

activity by depicting "a haunted house that is not truly haunted".

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ghost And The Guest 1943 films American comedy mystery films American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films Films directed by William Nigh Producers Releasing Corporation films 1940s comedy mystery films 1943 comedy films 1940s American films