Lyrics to Bongo, Bongo, Bongo (also known as Civilization) as sung by Danny Kaye and the Andrews Sisters — and now known to the current generation from the Fallout video game
The Fighting Sullivans (1944) starring Anne Baxter, Thomas Mitchell, Selena Royle
There are a great many positive things to say about The Fighting Sullivans. It’s set against the backdrop of World War II. But at it’s heart it’s the story of a loving Irish Catholic family. As they raise five young boys and a daughter. Five very energetic, healthy, American boys, whose childhood the audience gets to share. As well as when they become young men, and volunteer for service in the Navy shortly after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Synopsis of How to Commit Marriage (1969) starring Bob Hope, Jackie Gleason, Jane Wyman
In How to Commit Marriage, seemingly happily married couple Frank and Elaine Benson (played by Bob Hope and Jane Wyman) are on the verge of divorce. But they plan to wait until after their daughter’s marriage. The groom’s father, Oliver Poe (Jackie Gleason) opposes marriage in general. And he dislikes Bob Hope’s character in particular.
This is the film based on the true adventures of Izzy and Moe. They were two retired vaudeville performers who, being unemployed, decide to become prohibition enforcement agents. They are initially treated with scorn from fellow agents as old men pretending to be cops. That abuse soon stops when the pair refuse to use the standard but futile methods of the agency. Instead, they employ their theatrical experience to use an amazing variety of disguises and tricks. They become two of the most effective agents in the force. Eventually, their outstanding string of successful raids and arrests starts drawing the attention of the mob and their bought cops, who desperately plan to stop this pair.
The Hustler, starring Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott
Product Description
The Hustler – Blu-ray – Paul Newman heads a superb cast featuring Jackie Gleason, George C. Scott and Piper Laurie in the riveting film that received an Academy Award nomination as Best Picture of 1961 and brought all four of it’s Oscar nomination. Newman (Best Actor nominee) is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson, an arrogant, amoral hustler who haunts backstreet pool rooms fleecing anyone who’ll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best, Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats (Gleason, Supporting Actor nominee), who’s backed by Bert Gordon (Scott, Supporting Actor nominee), a predatory gambler.
Simply put, Gigot is one of the finest films I’ve ever seen. The phrase that keeps coming to my mind is “Chaplinesque” — it’s cliched, and it’s trite, but it’s absolutely accurate. In Gigot, Jackie Gleason plays the title role of Gigot, a mute man living in Paris around the turn of the twentieth century. He is loved by children and dogs, but picked upon by the various adults in the film. The first third of the film sets his character, as his landlady/employer gyps him of his wages as her janitor. “You lean too hard on the broom — you wore it out!” His ‘friends’ make him the butt of jokes, etc. In fact, the only adult who treats him with any kindness at all is the priest at the local Catholic church.
Gleason: The Jackie Gleason Story (2002) starring Brad Garrett
Gleason is a wonderfully done television biography of Jackie Gleason, starring Brad Garrett, best known for his television sitcoms Everybody Loves Raymond and Til Death. I was absolutely flabbergasted by Brad Garrett’s performance. Not only did he do a wonderful acting job, but he truly made the character of Jackie Gleason come to life. Given his size, I would never have believed that he could carry off the role of the pudgy comedian Jackie Gleason. I was totally wrong.
With parents who were actors, it comes as no surprise that the young Joe Yule Jr. made his debut on the stage at the age of only 15 months. He became part of the family… Mickey Rooney biography
Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962) starring Anthony Quinn, Jackie Gleason, Mickey Rooney, Julie Harris
Requiem for a Heavyweight is a very powerful, very hard-hitting movie about boxing. Rod Serling wrote a teleplay that shows the steamy underbelly of professional boxing — and it’s not a pretty picture. In short, Rocky it isn’t. The movie begins with Anthony Quinn, the ‘Heavyweight’ of the title, losing his final boxing match to (a very young) Cassius Clay. Anthony Quinn’s character, Louis ‘Mountain’ Rivera, has become punch-drunk and is on the verge of losing his eyesight in the boxing ring. His corrupt manager (played extremely well by Jackie Gleason, in a very serious role) needs to find a way to pay back the mob … and if that means ruining Rivera’s chance at happiness, then so be it.
