Introduction
Welcome to my corner! Last week, I shared my thoughts on the film Father of the Bride. This week, I'm sharing my thoughts on the film It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. The TCM television channel played It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World as part of their 'Weekend Features' lineup on June 14. Enjoy!
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World is a 1963 American Technicolor epic comedy film in Ultra Panavision 70 produced and directed by Stanley Kramer, from a screenplay by William and Tania Rose. The film, starring Spencer Tracy with an all-star cast composed largely of comedians, is about the madcap pursuit of a suitcase full of stolen cash by a colorful group of strangers. The principal cast features Edie Adams, Milton Perle, Sid Caesar, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Dorothy Provine, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, Phil Silvers, Terry-Thomas, and Jonathan Winters.
The film marked the first time Kramer directed a comedy, though he had produced the comedy So This Is New York in 1948. He is best known for producing and directing, in his own words, "heavy drama" about social problems. His first attempt at directing a comedy film paid off immensely as It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World became a critical and commercial success and was nominated for six Academy Awards, winning for Best Sound Editing, and two Golden Globe Awards.
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World premiered on November 7, 1963 at the Cinerama Dome with a running time of 192 minutes. However, against Kramer's wishes, the film was cut by its distributor United Artists to reduce the film's running time to 163 minutes for its general release. In 2014, the Criterion Collection released a restored version that is closer to the original 202-minutes cut envisioned by Kramer. The film featured at number 40 in the American Film Institute's list 100 Years...100 Laughs.
Plot: The story begins during a massive traffic jam, caused by reckless driver Smiler Grogan (Jimmy Durante), who, before kicking the bucket, cryptically tells the assembled drivers that he's buried a fortune in stolen loot, under the Big W. All of the motorists set out to find the fortune.
Acting: Spencer Tracy played Captain T.G. Culpeper. One of my favorite characters in the film! My regular readers should remember Spencer Tracy from earlier columns, the most recent being Father of the Bride about a few weeks ago. His four most notable movies are: Judgement at Nuremberg, Father of the Bride, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and Inherit the Wind. My favorite Tracy movie hasn't changed since then, it's still Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941). I can see why he was such a popular actor. I like watching him on the screen too!
Jonathan Winters played Lennie Pike. My favorite character in the film! (Mostly because I love Winters). The four films he's most known for are: The Smurfs (2011), The Smurfs 2 (2013), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and The Shadow. He voices Papa Smurf in The Smurfs movies, both of which I've seen. He's also the Narrator of Frosty Returns. I just love his voice, perfect for cartoons! My favorite of his appearances is from The New Scooby-Doo Movies cartoon show, where he was a special celebrity guest star.
Milton Berle played J. Russell Finch. His four movies he is known most for are: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, The Milton Berle Show, The Oscar, and The Muppet Movie. He had a long list of roles! My favorite is The Muppet Movie.
Sid Caesar played Melville Crump. His four most notable films are: Grease, Airport 1975, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and History of the World: Part I. I haven't seen any of his movies, but I've watched him on The Carol Burnett Show.
Buddy Hackett played "Benjy" Benjamin. If you haven't heard this name, then you have to at least heard his voice. The four films he's most known for are: The Little Mermaid (1989), It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, The Love Bug, and The Music Man. My favorite is The Little Mermaid (1989).
Mickey Rooney played Ding Bell. Another actor everybody probably knows, or should know. I love him. I've seen a lot of his work. His four most notable films are: Babes in Arms, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Strike Up the Band, and Breakfast at Tiffany's. He had nearly 350 roles in his list! Santa Claus is Comin' to Town is my top pick!
Ethel Merman played Mrs. Marcus. I only included her in here because of everyone's agreed hatred of her. Her four most notable titles are: Call Me Madam, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Airplane!, and Anything Goes. She voices Lilly Lorraine in Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July. That's the only title I recognize.
Technical aspects: In the early 1960s, screenwriter William Rose, then living in the United Kingdom, conceived the idea for a film (provisionally titled So Many Thieves, and later Something a Little Less Serious) about a comedic chase through Scotland. He send an outline Kramer, who agreed to produce and direct the film. The setting was shifted to America, and the working title changed to Where, but in America? then One Damn Thing After Another and then It's a Mad world, with Rose and Kramer adding additional "Mads" to the title as time progressed. Kramer considered adding a fifth "mad" to the title before deciding it was redundant but noted in interviews that he later regretted it.
The film followed a Hollywood trend in the 1960s of producing "epic" films as a way of wooing audiences away from television and back to movie theaters. The film's theme music was written by Ernest Gold with lyrics by Mack David.
The last reported showing of the film on major network television in America was on ABC on July 16, 1979, and before that, on CBS on May 16, 1978.
In the Orange County scene, stuntman Frank Tallman flew a Beech model C-18S through a highway billboard advertising Coca-Cola. A communications mix-up resulted in the use of linen graphic sheets on the sign rather than paper, as planned. Linen, much tougher than paper, damaged the plane on impact. Tallman managed to fly it back to the airstrip, discovering that the leading edges of the wings had been smashed all the way back to the wing spars. Tallman considered that the incident the closest he ever came to dying on film.
The fire escape and ladder miniature used in the final chase sequence is on display at the Hollywood Museum in Hollywood. Also, the Santa Rosita Fire Department's ladder truck was a 1960s Seagrave Fire Apparatus open-cab Mid-Mount Aerial Ladder.
Production began on April 26, 1962, and expected to to end by December 7, 1962, but took longer, apparently conflicting with the notion that Tracy's trip down the zip line into the pet store on December 6, 1962, was the last scene filmed. Veteran stuntman Carey Loftin was featured in the documentary, explaining some of the complexity as well as simplicity of stunts, such as the day he "kicked the bucket" as a stand-in for Durante.
Kramer's comedy was accentuated by many things, including the opening animated credits designed by Saul Bass. One of the animators who helped with the sequence was future Peanuts animator Bill Melendez.
Final Thoughts: Three hours is a LONG time. I can see why the television networks would have wanted to cut it down. Even though it was super long, it was a great movie! Full of laughs, and not forced ones either, which I appreciated. If you have the time, I'd certainly recommend you to sit down and watch this comedy.
Where to watch it: According to Google, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World is currently available to watch on Tubi and Pluto TV for free, or Amazon Prime Video and YouTube with premium subscriptions. Or, you can purchase or rent a digital copy for a few dollars. I've also donated a DVD copy of the film to the Emil M. Larson Library in Clark for you all to enjoy if you choose to.
That's it for this week! What were your thoughts? Feel free to share them with us! You can call us, email us, visit us at the office, leave us a comment or message on Facebook, or even mail us something. Keep the comments, suggestions, questions, submissions, etc. coming our way! We'd love to hear from you!
