Can Benny & Sheridan Wake Up ‘George Washington Slept Here’? 1942

No, Jack Benny & Ann Sheridan aren't being shown the script here!

  

A classic ‘fish out of water’ comedy plot is when uppity city slickers flounder down on the farm. Broadway’s legendary George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart may have written the first, George Washington Slept Here, which ran a modest 147 performances. Compare that to their The Man Who Came to Dinner, which played 739 shows in its Broadway run. Still, WB snapped up both, with Washington as a vehicle in their try to make Jack Benny a movie star. Paired with Benny was Warner’s ‘Oomph Girl,’ Ann Sheridan, who appeared in both movie versions. WB studio director William Keighley directed both film adaptations competently, but without much comedic flair.

Despite the poster's claims, there's not much fun in this film!

Despite Jack and Annie’s natural comedic talents, there isn’t much oomph—or laughs—in the movie version of George Washington Slept Here. While the plot has been reinvented many times since—Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House, Green Acres, The Money Pit, to name a few—George Washington is filled with slapstick, but lacking any true wit or laugh lines. If your idea of a knee slapper is watching Jack Benny fall through floors, dry wells, or loose boards walloping him in the face, you’re in for a treat.

Jack and Annie are Big Apple folks about to move to the country. With Hattie McDaniel.

What sets the plot in motion is so inane, that it’s a red flag for the rest of the film’s pinhead plotting. Jack and Ann, as New Yorkers Bill and Connie, have moved three times in the last year because of their misbehaving dog. I love dogs, but come on. After the last incident with the rug chewing pooch, they’re out. Connie also harbors a yen to buy a country home. So, she buys a fixer upper in Pennsylvania, without telling fuss budget, cheap skate Bill. Like that happens, either! When chipper Connie brings humbug Bill out to the country, she tries to sell him on the place. But the house tour is a total disaster. Then the wife has to break the news. The rest of the movie is literally non-stop bad news about the ramshackle house. The city slickers almost lose the home to a greedy neighbor, but luck and an old document from the father of our country save the day.

Along with the comedy, the sets and situations are totally over the top.

George S. Kauffman was famed for his wit, but it’s not on display here. I didn’t even smile once, much less laugh, until near the movie’s end, where the couple break open the ‘cider’ handyman Percy Kilbride brings over. Obviously, the humor is dated, but I still laugh watching I Love Lucy or The Carol Burnett Show. The humor here reminded me of Bob Hope’s later, tired TV specials.

Jack Benny insisted that Percy Kilbride (L) recreate his stage role as the deadpan handyman.

The main reason for watching George Washington Slept Here is for the comedic charisma of Jack Benny and Ann Sheridan, plus the talented cast that tries to put this tired humor over. I don’t know if Jack had what it took to become a movie star. After all, Bob Hope started in radio and made a huge splash in movies. While Bob was the wisecracking coward, Jack was the comedic cheapskate/complainer. Benny plays the part expertly, but it’s hard to critique his performance as the wisecracks he’s given are so unfunny. As for Ann Sheridan, she’s so likable that you can almost overlook that she’s playing a nitwit. Sheridan’s hallmark was sassy common sense. Here, as Connie, her character is nonsense, buying this ruin of a house, no questions asked. Even in such a preposterous premise, there has to be some basic believability. There’s not one drop, just like the couple’s well. Still, it’s fun to listen to Benny’s classic intonations and watch Sheridan, lovely and warm, as always. They make a good team, too bad the material lets them down.

Comic pros Jack Benny & Ann Sheridan make an appealing film couple.
But this script would drive anyone to drink!

A great supporting cast, from the WB repertory, milks what few laughs there are from this rural comedy. Hattie McDonald is Hester, the exasperated maid who gets dragged to the dump of a farm, is reliably funny. Percy Kilbride was brought out to WB to recreate his role of the local handyman, Mr. Kimber, who continually gives the new homeowners bad news and a bill. He was such a scene stealer that he later played Pa Kettle in another rural comedy, The Egg and I, which set off his career. Charles Coburn, always great as crusty codgers, plays one again—but this time with a twist. Lee Patrick has a small part as the daft theater actress. Rommy, the rascal of a terrier, was immortalized as Toto in The Wizard of Oz!

Charles Coburn gets to put a clever spin on his irascible persona as the uncle.

WB was never my favorite studio when it came to comedies. Even the Broadway hits they snapped up all seem the same: frantic instead of funny, slapstick instead of witty, and usually flat film versions of theatrical hits. George Washington Slept Here is worthwhile for star watching, but as a comedy, it’s a snooze.

FYI: I put all the movie overflow on my public FB  movie page.

Check it out & join!  https://www.facebook.com/groups/178488909366865/ 

Allegedly, this is the same dog who played Toto in 'The Wizard of Oz.'
Apparently, he got a dye job with his makeover in Oz!