Thelma Hill
A compilation featuring comedic stars of the silent era including Laurel and Hardy, Buster Keaton, W.C. Fields and Harold Lloyd.
Oddly enough for a Roach comedy the premise of MIXED NUTS is grounded in topical political satire aimed at the New Deal, although the satire is of a very lightweight (and light-hearted) nature. The film begins at a city council meeting where an unidentified politician announces that the government has released $50,000 for the relief of unemployed plumbers. This prompts applause, but also a pointed question from an angry woman who wants to know what the government is going to do for the members of her profession: chorus girls. The politician glibly replies that the administration has set aside money—two million dollars, no less!—for the re-education of chorus girls, "to fit them for the better things in life."
This short subject was done by Paul Whiteman's Rhythm boys shortly after they finished The King of Jazz where lead singer Bing Crosby made his motion picture debut. Shortly afterwards the trio broke up and Bing went solo and the rest was history.
A coquettish socialite falls for a straight-laced associate in her father's law firm. But she must also fend off the advances of a greedy fortune-hunter and his sister.
Johnny Burke stumbles into a beautiful crook, played by Carmelita Geraghty, who used him to steal a pearl necklace.
Charlie Guest (Charlie Guest) wants to be a golfer. Bert Swor (Bert Swor) is a famous golfer. Thelma Hill (Thelma Hill) only loves the best golfer. Follow Charlie as he tries to become the world's greatest golfer and win Thelma's love.
The unhappily married couple head to divorce court where Toots tells a series of funny stories about Casper.
Casper is going on vacation with his wife and ugly baby (I'm sorry, but the kid IS really creepy looking) and after about five minutes of unfunny shenanigans, he arrives home and gets ready to take off for the country. However, unexpectedly, his rich uncle, his aunt and their destructive and stupid son arrive and invite themselves along for the trip. The trip is anything but relaxing.
Toots (Thelma Hill) and Casper (Bud Duncan) visit a college campus and get mistaken for freshmen.
Max mistakes his son's acting for reality. When the play calls for the son to commit a murder (on a mannequin), Max winds up trying to hide the body from the police.
Stanley and Oliver, two sailors on shore leave, rent a car and go on a drive with their dates, but soon get involved in a huge traffic jam with dozens of ill-tempered motorists. A minor collision sets off an escalating series of retaliations. This film is recognized as one of Laurel and Hardy's greatest.
Donald Drake, a deep sea gondolier ex soda jerk, arrives at the All Nation Cafe in Shanghai. The proprietor believes he's a penniless ne'er-do-well - which he is - but he unexpectedly comes into a small windfall. So the proprietor orders slightly rough around the edges Maud and Mollie, two of his American good time girls working their way around the world, to get him to spend all his money while there. As Donald ends up telling the two good time girls his life story - most specifically about the blonde he let slip through his fingers, she who was the love of his life - a few revelations and the errant coin he left at the roulette wheel betting table change his life.
Fire chief Amos McCarthy, a confirmed misogynist, counsels his nephew Harry Howells to avoid matrimony at all costs. Still, the lovestruck Harry is determined to marry his sweetheart Ethel. All that changes, though, when it turns out Ethel is a faithless gold-digger. Disillusioned, Harry spends the night in his uncle's fire house to try and forget his troubles... until the clamor of a fire alarm presents the bumbling Harry with a chance to be a hero.
Unlikely Lothario, the less-than-dashing crossed-eyed Ben Turoin, finds himself pursued by many beautiful ladies.
Marion go off to college where she joins the basketball team to be near the coach, Bob. She instantly makes a rival of Betty, who's also interested in Bob.
Millionaire film producer Gordon Bagley wants to marry Ethel St. John, the leading lady in his latest film. Ethel is in love with Arthur Young, the hero of Bagley's lastest movie. Work on the film starts, and at the preview screening is shown to be disasterous. Ethel then goes away with Arthur, while Gordon runs on a rotating movie set.
To make her boyfriend jealous a society girl starts dating a plumber but his sweetheart gets revenge.
Billy Judkins is a naturally gloomy Gus. His life changes when he is transferred from working in his company's Hoboken office to their Hollywood office. He is going to drive there with his wife and mother. Along the way, they encounter Mr. Pinkney and his new bride, who too are heading west. Their misadventures together and meeting up with a band of marauding Indians may prevent any of them from reaching their intended destination. If Billy and Mr. Pinkney ever make it to Hollywood, they're both in a for a big surprise.
Billy and Andy impersonate two ice-delivery men in a suburban town. Billy takes a fancy to a newly-wed bride and most of his loose cash is liquidated as he flirts with her. Her husband is not pleased at Billy's attentions to his new bride. There is a skating contest at the local ice-rink, and the bride, her mother and her husband are in attendance, as are Billy and Andy, the icemen.
Ben returns from the big city with his pockets full of cash. A hard-hearted, gold-digging vamp ensnares him. Ben enjoys being ensnared. In order to get rid of his faithful sweetheart, he schemes up a preposterous tale.
An eccentric inventor has thought of a way that automobiles can run on radio waves, without gasoline. His plans put him in conflict with the owner of an oil company, who is also pursuing the inventor's daughter. This rival begins to scheme against the inventor, and it is left up to the inventor's hired man to try to stop him.
In Highland Park, it's Agnes Fisher and Harold Hope's wedding day. Mishaps almost keep them from getting hitched: he goes to the wrong church, then, one of the guests, Professor McGlumm, convinces him that the bride only wants him to collect his life insurance. Finally they marry and her family moves in with them. Harold is now convinced that he'll be poisoned at dinner. When further mishaps give him stomach problems, McGlumm rushes him toward the hospital. On the trip, all is revealed.
It's 3:00 AM at the Firewater Club, and Stanley has had more than enough to drink. When he tries to take over leading the orchestra, the manager - a former boxer - lets him know that he needs to restrain himself. But it's not long before Stanley causes another disruption anyway, and when he then tries to dance with the manager's wife, the manager's patience finally runs out.
Sweethearts Jimmie Carter and Bessie Barnes work for Adolph Brock at the Acme Corporation. One day while he is out for a drive in his jalopy of a car, Jimmie spies a pretty young woman on horseback. He comes to her rescue after she falls off her horse and gets injured, he leading her to refuge in an abandoned cabin when it starts to rain heavily. Although she flirts with him, he, in turn attracted to her, wants to remain faithful to Bessie and resists his urges. When this woman mysteriously disappear on him, he can't stop thinking about her and follows her innuendo to meet with her at her apartment. All the while, he is unaware that she is Peggy Joyce, Brock's gold-digging fiancée. He is also unaware that Peggy has ulterior motives for coming on to him, which, in combination with her dangerous past, could lead to complications for all involved.
All the qualified men line up to be chosen, as an heiress advertises that she will marry the man with the most interesting mustache, that marriage which comes with a mansion. John Syrup Soother wins the marriage to who he believes is the heiress, Olive Palmer, a tank of a woman who has lost her beauty with age. But he learns that he his betrothed is not the heiress, Diana Palmer, but her mother. Howson Lotts, a shyster and one of Diana's other suitors, sells John a beach-front house for his new life, that house which is not all that it seems on the surface. In the meantime, others still will do anything to be Diana's betrothed, that choice in which John now has a different but still vested interest.
Harry Doolittle wakes up on the day he's to marry Betty Bright. He has a terrible hangover. A strange woman appears in his room saying that he married her the night before, and just then, his fiancée and her mother arrive. There's anger all around, leading to Harry's arrest. He's jailed while awaiting trial in front of Betty's father, a judge. She visits him in the clink. He escapes and disguises himself as a cabman. The police are looking for him, as are his fiancée and her mother. Will it get straightened out in time for wedding bells to ring?
There is no love lost between the Red Dog Garage and the Black Cat Garage, two auto repair shops on opposite sides of the street. A big cross-country auto race is announced, and it turns into a no-holds-barred contest as the rival garages go all out to win.
Returning to his hometown a fitness equipment salesman falls in love with the store keeper's daughter.
A series of sketches with a shoe clerk, his wife, and his extra-curricular activities. The shoe clerk steps out on his wife with one of his customers. Both his wife and the woman's husband catch them when they go to the beach and later watch a beauty and fashion contest. His wife enters it wearing a mask. Back at work on Monday, all has returned to normal, until the winner of the contest shows up for her prize - a complete wardrobe...
