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Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) movie poster

Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff

Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer Boris  Karloff  starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Boris Karloff

Actually, despite the title of  Abbott and  Costello  Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, Boris Karloff  isn’t  the killer — €”but, he is quite funny in this movie.   In a nutshell, Lou Costello  plays a bellhop who is falsely accused of murder; His pal  Bud Abbott  tries to help, but only succeeds in getting Lou into more trouble.  

Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
Ride 'Em Cowboy movie poster - Bud Abbott, Lou Costello

Ride ’em Cowboy

Ride ’em Cowboy starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Dick Foran, Ella Fitzgerald, released February 20, 1942

Buy from Amazon.com Bud Abbott and  Lou Costello star as two peanut vendors at a rodeo show. Soon, they get in trouble with their boss and hide out on a railroad train. Which unexpectedly heads west with them still on it. Upon arriving, they get jobs on a dude ranch despite the fact that neither of them knows anything about cowboys, horses, or much else. The scene with Lou Costello attempting to milk a cow is a gem of comedy. Abbott and Costello follow the same formula here as in their previous films, with a romantic subplot and music, provided here by  Ella Fitzgerald.

Ride ’em Cowboy
The Wistful Widow of Widow's Gap movie poster - starring Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, with Marjorie Main

The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap

The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Marjorie Main

Buy from Amazon.com Abbott and Costello’s movie,  The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap is a spoof on the typical Western, with  Bud Abbott and  Lou Costello playing travelling salesmen who stop in the Old Wild West town of Wagon Gap, Montana on their way to California. Upon entering the town,  Lou shoots a pistol into the air, as the town drunk is murdered. The town then tries Lou for the murder.  Under an actual Montana law of the time, they sentence him to assume the debts and dependents of the dead man. Lou is now worked to death during the day by the Widow Hawkins  (played by Marjorie Main of the “Ma and Pa Kettle‘ movie series) and her seven children. And by the saloonkeeper at nights to pay off the dead man’s debts.

The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap
Rio Rita cast - Bud Abbott, Kathryn Grayson, John Carroll, Lou Costello

Rio Rita

Doc (Bud Abbott) and Wishy (Lou Costello) accidentally find their way to Vista Del Rio. In order to afford their way back to New York, they start working as hotel detectives for the lovely Rita (Kathryn Grayson), who’s in a romantic triangle with Ricardo (John Carroll) and Lucette (Patricia Dane)  – and in the way of Nazi saboteurs who plan to pass on a coded message during Ricardo’s nationwide broadcast during the three day festival there.

Rio Rita
In Society

In Society

In Society, starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello – released August 18, 1944

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Bud Abbott and Lou Costello play the part of inept plumbers, who are hired to repair a leaky faucet at a mansion, shortly before a costume ball. After a hilarious sequence destroying the bathroom through their incompetence, Abbott and Costello are (mistakenly) invited to a society weekend, where a villain tries to enlist their help in stealing a valuable painting, “The Plunger.” This leads into a comedic chase scene at the end, where all gets resolved.

In Society
The Little Giant, starring Lou Costello and Bud Abbott - movie poster

Little Giant (1946)

Little Giant (1946) starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello

Little Giant was an enormous change for both Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. It is different from most of their comedies in several respects – Abbott and Costello are not a team, indeed are not even friends. Rather than relying on gags and verbal humor, it is a situational comedy, with an accent on physical humor. Although a comedy, it is much deeper than their standard comedies, with Lou Costello playing a character who tugs at your heart strings – and tugs hard.

Little Giant (1946)