''The Caddy'' is a 1953 American semi-

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

sports film A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the spor ...

starring the comedy team of

Martin and Lewis Martin and Lewis were an American comedy duo, comprising singer Dean Martin and comedian Jerry Lewis. They met in 1945 and debuted at Atlantic City's 500 Club on July 25, 1946; the team lasted ten years to the day. Before they teamed up, Martin w ...

. It is noteworthy for

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

introducing the hit song "

That's Amore "That's Amore" is a 1953 song by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Jack Brooks, and became a major hit and signature song for Dean Martin, who first recorded and released it that year. ''Amore'' () means "love" in Italian. History The song ...

Plot

Harvey Miller, whose father was a famous golf pro, is expected to follow in his footsteps, but Harvey is afraid of crowds. Instead, at the advice of his fiancée Lisa, Harvey becomes a golf instructor. Lisa's brother Joe becomes Harvey's first client and becomes good enough to start playing in tournaments, with Harvey tagging along as his

caddie In golf, a caddie (or caddy) is the person who carries a player's bag and clubs, and gives the player advice and moral support. Description A good caddie is aware of the challenges and obstacles of the golf course being played, along with the ...

. They encounter a wealthy

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

who Joe wins over. Joe's success goes to his head and he begins to treat Harvey poorly. They begin to quarrel and cause a disruption at a tournament, so Joe is disqualified. However, a

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds jobs for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, and other professionals in various entertainment or sport ...

witnesses the comical spectacle and advises that they go into show business. Harvey conquers his fear and they become successful entertainers. At the end, Harvey and Joe meet up with another comedy team who look just like them:

Cast

as Joe Anthony *

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...

as Harvey Miller Jr. *

Donna Reed Donna Reed (born Donna Belle Mullenger; January 27, 1921 – January 14, 1986) was an American actress. Her career spanned more than 40 years, with performances in more than 40 films. She is well known for her portrayal of Mary Hatch Bailey in ...

as Kathy Taylor *

Barbara Bates Barbara Jane Bates (August 6, 1925 – March 18, 1969) was an American singer and actress, best known for her portrayal of Phoebe in the 1950 drama film ''All About Eve''. and as Katy Morgan on '' It's a Great Life'' (1954–1956). Early life ...

as Lisa Anthony *

Joseph Calleia Joseph Calleia ( ; born Joseph Alexander Caesar Herstall Vincent Calleja, August 4, 1897 – October 31, 1975) was a Maltese-born American actor and singer on the stage and in films, radio and television. After serving in the British Transport ...

as Papa Anthony *

Fred Clark Frederick Leonard Clark (March 19, 1914 – December 5, 1968) was an American film and television character actor. Early years Born in Lincoln, California, Clark was the son of Fred Clark Sr. He attended Stanford University with plans to becom ...

as Mr. Baxter aka Old Skinhead *

Clinton Sundberg Clinton Charles Sundberg (December 7, 1903 (some sources say 1906) – December 14, 1987) was an American character actor in film and stage. Early years Sundberg was born in Appleton, Minnesota. He graduated from Hamline University in St. Pau ...

as Charles, Butler * Howard Smith as Golf Official *

Marshall Thompson James Marshall Thompson (November 27, 1925 – May 18, 1992) was an American film and television actor. Early years Thompson was born in Peoria, Illinois. He and his parents, Dr. and Mrs. Laurence B. Thompson, moved to California when he was a ...

as Bruce Reeber *

Marjorie Gateson Marjorie Augusta Gateson (January 17, 1891 – April 17, 1977) was an American stage and film actress. Biography Gateson was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Augusta and Daniel Gateson. Her maternal grandfather and brother were clergymen; So ...

as Mrs. Grace Taylor *

Frank Puglia Francesco Giuseppe "Frank" Puglia (9 March 1892 – 25 October 1975) was an Italian-American film actor. He had small, but memorable roles in films including ''Casablanca'' (a Moroccan rug merchant), ''Now, Voyager'' and ''The Jungle Book''. ...

as Mr. Spezzato * Lewis Martin as Mr. Taylor *

Argentina Brunetti Argentina Brunetti (born Argentina Ferraù; August 31, 1907 – December 20, 2005) was an Argentinian stage and film actress and writer. Biography Brunetti was born Argentina Ferraù in Buenos Aires, Argentina to Italian parents; her moth ...

as Mama Anthony *

John Gallaudet John Beury Gallaudet (August 23, 1903 – November 5, 1983) was an American film and television actor. Career Gallaudet was born in Philadelphia and attended Williams College. His Broadway credits included ''Good Men and True'' (1935), ''Lost ...

as Jonathan Bell * William Edmunds as Caminello * Henry Brandon as Mr. Preen *

Tom Harmon Thomas Dudley Harmon (September 28, 1919 – March 15, 1990), known as Tom Harmon, as well as by the nickname "Old 98", was an American football player, military pilot, actor, and sports broadcaster. Harmon grew up in Gary, Indiana, and playe ...

as Himself (Golf Announcer) *

Nancy Kulp Nancy Jane Kulp (August 28, 1921 – February 3, 1991) was an American character actress and comedienne best known as Miss Jane Hathaway on the CBS television series ''The Beverly Hillbillies''. Early life Kulp was born to Robert Tilden and Mar ...

as Emma, Drunk's Wife This movie is notable for

cameo appearances A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

by some of the leading professional golfers of the era (all playing themselves), including

Ben Hogan William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer who is generally considered to be one of the greatest players in the history of the game. He is notable for his profound influence on golf swing theory and ...

Sam Snead Samuel Jackson Snead (pronounced English_phonology">sni:d.html" ;"title="English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d">English_phonology.html" ;"title="nowiki/>English phonology">sni:d May 27, 1912 – May 23, 2002) was an ...

Byron Nelson John Byron Nelson Jr. (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American professional golfer between 1935 and 1946, widely considered one of the greatest golfers of all time. Nelson and two other legendary champions of the time, Ben Hog ...

, and

Julius Boros Julius Nicholas Boros (March 3, 1920 – May 28, 1994) was an American professional golfer noted for his effortless-looking swing and strong record on difficult golf courses, particularly at the U.S. Open. Early years Born in Fairfield, Connecti ...

Production

Filming

It was filmed from November 24, 1952 through February 23, 1953 and was released by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

on August 10, 1953. It was later re-released in 1964 on a

double bill The double feature is a motion picture industry phenomenon in which theatres would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which one feature film and various short subject reels would be shown. Opera use Opera ho ...

with another

and

picture, ''

You're Never Too Young ''You’re Never Too Young'' is a 1955 American semi- musical comedy film directed by Norman Taurog and starring the team of Martin and Lewis and co-starring Diana Lynn, Nina Foch, and Raymond Burr. It was released on August 25, 1955 by Paramoun ...

'' (1955). This was the team's first film since ''

At War with the Army ''At War with the Army'' is a 1950 American musical comedy film directed by Hal Walker, released by Paramount, starring the comedy team of Martin and Lewis and introducing Polly Bergen. Filmed from July through August 1949, the film premiered in ...

'' (1950) to be produced by their own production company, York Pictures Corporation. During shooting, on January 8, 1953 production was suspended for 23 days when Lewis entered

Cedars of Lebanon Hospital Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...

with a fever. The movie became Martin and Lewis' most expensive to date.

Music

The score for the film includes the hit "

", sung by Dean Martin. It was nominated for an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

for

Best Original Song This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, but lost to " Secret Love" from ''

Calamity Jane Martha Jane Cannary (May 1, 1852 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits she was known for being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok. Late ...

''.

Promotion

The team made a promotional radio message for the movie. Several outtakes, available on ''The Golden Age of Comedy: Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis'' CD, feature Dean and Jerry trying to get through five lines of dialogue. When either one of them messed up a line, they exchanged several lines of profanity.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film holds an 83% rating from six reviews, with an average score of 5.8/10.

Home media

The film was included on an eight-film DVD set, the ''Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis Collection: Volume One'', released on October 31, 2006.

Impact

The career of Donna Reed began a huge upswing following the release of ''The Caddy''. Five days prior to the film's release,

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

released ''

From Here to Eternity ''From Here to Eternity'' is a 1953 American drama romance war film directed by Fred Zinnemann, and written by Daniel Taradash, based on the 1951 novel of the same name by James Jones. The picture deals with the tribulations of three U.S. Arm ...

'', starring Reed. Reed went on to win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for ''From Here to Eternity''. Both films were shown in theaters during the same time period and both were hugely successful.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Caddy, The 1953 films 1950s sports comedy films American sports comedy films American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films Films directed by Norman Taurog Golf films Paramount Pictures films 1953 comedy films 1950s American films