(1943)
2
Bruce Eder
The better part of a decade before Guys And Dolls went on the boards, Universal decided to musicalize Damon Runyon's work with It Ain't Hay, based on the author's story Princess O'Hara. Composer Harry Revel and lyricist Paul Francis Webster might not have been any real competition for Frank Loesser, but they did a pretty good job for a B-musical from what was almost a B-studio at the time -- Revel's melody for "Sunbeam Serenade" (used over footage of what looks like the real Central Park) is woven throughout the score, and "Glory Be" provides the basis for a nicely exuberant production number. And the final production number, built on "Hang Your Troubles On A Rainbow" -- and highlighted by the work of the Step Brothers (with Lou Costello) -- is a delightful patriotic piece with great comedic grace notes. And that brings us to the real reason that anyone watches a movie like this, for the comedy of Abbott & Costello. The duo's timing is so good throughout this picture that it's still fun to see across 50 years, even if it isn't the best script they ever had to work with -- it might be the best story, at least until Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. And as an added bonus, the Damon Runyon ambience, for an earthy, lusty New York that still existed in 1942 (and lasted for another four decades, in ever-receding corners), still comes through in the early scenes.
It Ain't Hay on AllMovie
It Ain't Hay (1943)
