The Wonderful World of TCM: Three Men on a Horse (1936)

I'm a big fan of old character actors--love 'em, love 'em, love 'em--and I have a certain roster of Golden Age stalwarts whose presence in a movie almost guarantees I'm gonna check it out. "Three Men on a Horse" features Allen Jenkins, Guy Kibbee, Edgar Kennedy, and a host of others in a stagy but lively little comedy about a man who picks horses--and picks them really well. It's not great cinema, but it's a lot of fun if you're interested in any of the actors.

There's really something for everyone, and the genius of the unassuming movie is that director Mervyn LeRoy--or whatever suit shepherded the production--just lets the guys come on and do their thing. So you get Jenkins playing a hood, Kibbee as a crotchety old coot, and Sam Levene (in his film debut), as a wise guy with a get-rich plan.

The star of the movie is Frank McHugh, here a greeting card writer with an uncanny ability to forecast horse races--only he doesn't bet on them. Well, it's Frank McHugh, and you know he's gonna get to do an extended "drunk" bit. Now, I will conceded that Eddie "Rochester" Anderson isn't exactly Rochester and Edgar Kennedy doesn't get to do many slow burns, but so what? It's just good to see them in the movie.

It's no surprise that "Three Men on a Horse" comes off as stagy today. It probably seemed that way then, too, as Warner Brothers basically just converted a stage play into this 1936 film. It looks a case of someone expending all their energy, if not money, on the casting, then kicking back with a Manhattan or two and watching the movie direct itself. The plot consists of a group of Levene's crew and some of their hangers-on trying to exploit McHugh's talent for big bucks. There are a few complications involving dames like Joan Blondell (as Levene's girl) and Carol Hughes (as McHugh's loyal wife), plus Kibbee and McHugh's brother-in law acting like total pills. However, it's essentially a bunch of guys standing around and talking.

The result could have been a little more dynamic, and there are a few scenes that could have been trimmed, but that cast keeps things from dragging. It's an amusing hour and a half, stagy or not, and it's well worth a look-see when Turner Classic runs it again. The business is different nowadays, of course, but you have to admire the way the studio system built up these character actors and then used them. Back then, it might have seemed like it was "over and over again," and I'm sure there are people today who cringe each time they see McHugh stagger and slur around, but I love seeing these guys pop up on cable and get the job done.