In Mexican Hayride, Bud Abbott has sold phony stock to Lou Costello, leaving him holding the bag! They independently flee to Mexico ahead of the law, where they run into a lady from their earlier days. A lady who’s now a bullfighter!
Mexican Hayride (1948) starring Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Virginia Grey
Comedy routines
- Lou’s uncontrolable dancing fits
- Sid Fields interviews Lou
- Taking “J.B.” monograms of all clothing – ripping Lou’s clothing to shreds, and leaving him standing in his underwear!
- Silver Ore routine
- Oil of contentment
- Mr. Gonzales comes with the car
- Elocution lesson
- Lou trying to get dressed while dancing to the Samba
- Dagmar tearing up Lou’s room while searching for his money
- Lou pretending to be a tamales saleswoman
- the hot sauce eating through Bud’s handcuffs
- assaulting the poor police with dough so they can escape
- Lou trying to fit in with a mariachi band
- Bud and Lou, both in disguise, not recognizing each other – and using translation books to pretend to speak Spanish
- Lou fighting a bull
Review
Ed Mason: Keep your eyes open for a pudgy little guy who looks as if he’s always apologizing for something. Dark complexion about 5 feet 5 and fat.
Mexican Hayride – the cause of Lou’s dancing fits
Policeman at Ticket Seller’s Booth: That description fits many men. But even if I do see him how would I know him?
Tim Williams: Well that’s our trouble we don’t know him either.
Policeman at Ticket Seller’s Booth: Then how you know he’s down here?
Ed Mason: We traced him from El Paso. He won a dance marathon contest there and used the prize money to get down here. He dance the Samba for 68 hours strait and we understand he’s still a little goofy from it too.
In short, Mexican Hayride is a funny Abbott and Costello movie, with a few twists. First, Bud has conned Lou into thinking he had oil in his back yard, and Lou sold shares in the bogus oil well to his friends and neighbors. And he’s now on the lam, after Bud ran off with the money! So Lou’s fled to Mexico, to find him. In order to afford it, he entered — and won — a Samba dancing contest. Dancing for 68 consecutive hours! Now, whenever he hears the music, he starts dancing uncontrollably! A running gag throughout the movie.
Setting the stage in Mexican Hayride
Mexican Hayride begins in Mexico, where Joe Bascomb (Lou Costello) is on the run from the police in the USA. He was conned by Harry Lambert (Bud Abbott) into selling shares in a phony oil well to his friends. Including the lovely Mary, now working as Montana the bullfighter in Mexico. When she sees him, she’s so angry she throws her hat at him! Unfortunately, it’s at the moment she’s supposed to randomly choose someone to be the “Amigo Norte Americano” – a goodwill ambassador. This disrupts Harry’s schemes, causes Joe to use the “clever” alias of Humphrey Fish, and gets him into the unwanted spotlight.
Disguised Lou selling tamales to the police officers — and Bud!
Soon enough, Joe’s on the run. And he uses a variety of disguises to try and get out of trouble. At one point, he’s disguised himself as a woman, selling tamales from a food cart! At this point, Harry’s been arrested by the American police, and Joe tries to help him by giving the police very spicy tamales — which doesn’t work. But the spicy sauce literally eats through Harry’s handcuffs! And by more luck than skill, they manage to escape.
Lou Costello fighting the bull in the arena
Everything thing comes together back in the bull ring. Harry’s confederate, Dagmar, has fallen in love with Joe, and is trying to return the money from Harry’s latest swindle — to help Joe. Leading to Joe being in the bull ring with a very angry bull! In one scene, he’s trying to crawl away …. And the bull’s up on the wall divider, keeping an eye on him! The entire routine’s hilariously funny.
Happy ending in Mexican Hayride
Product Description
Cole Porter’s 1944 Broadway musical comedy was optioned by Universal-with the music score removed-and turned into a frenzied farce for stars Abbott and Costello. When a stock scheme sends con man Harry Lambert (Bud Abbott) and fall guy Joe Bascom (Costello) south of the border, money-making schemes, berserk bullfights, and beautiful señoritas are sure to follow. With Virginia Grey, Luba Malina, Fritz Feld. 77 min. Standard; Soundtrack: English. Region Free
Cast of characters
- Bud Abbott … Harry Lambert
- Lou Costello … Joe Bascom aka Humphrey Fish
- Virginia Grey (Another Thin Man; House of Horrors) … Mary aka Montana
- Luba Malina (Latin Rhythm) … Dagmar
- John Hubbard (Maisie; One Million B.C. 1940) … David Winthrop
- Pedro de Cordoba (Before I Hang) … Señor Martinez
- Fritz Feld (Bringing Up Baby) … Professor Ganzmeyer
- Tom Powers (Destination Moon) … Ed Mason
- Pat Costello … Tim Williams
- Frank Fenton … Gus Adamson
- Chris-Pin Martin (The Mark of Zorro) … Mariachi Leader
- Sid Fields (The Abbott and Costello Show) … Reporter
- Flores Brothers Trio … Trio
Songs
- Is It Yes, or Is It No?
- Music by Walter Scharf
- Lyrics by Jack Brooks
- Played during the opening and end credits
- Played by Flores Brothers Trio and sung by Luba Malina
- Played as background music often
- Cielito Lindo
- Written by Quirino Mendoza
- Played by the mariachi band led by Chris-Pin Martin
- Kiss Me Kate
- Written by Cole Porter