The Ghost and Mr. Chicken

When full time typesetter and wannabe reporter, Luther Heggs (Don Knotts) spends the night in the town "haunted" house, he finds far more than a ghost story to write about.

THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN is arguably the best movie Knotts ever appeared in. Featuring a supporting cast of characters that seem as though they actually hail from Mayberry, and blessed with incredible music by Vic "THE ADDAMS FAMILY" Mizzy, this is a comedic gem! A perfect Halloween film for the whole family!

Be sure to watch for Luther's "magic" flashlight that throws a 1000 watt spot on the walls! It also shines on his back at one point!

Also, do not miss the wedding scene!

P.S.- Check out Mizzy's brilliant, spooky organ music on YT!...

The movie trailers refer to Don Knotts' character, Luther Heggs, as the bravest coward and I think that is an accurate description. Although scared to death, Luther agrees to spend the night in the old Simmons house and stands up to the surly nephew Nicholas Simmons. As usual Don Knotts is hilarious. Several times it looks as if his eyes are going to pop out of their sockets. There is an excellent supporting cast with many very recognizable character actors, among them Dick Sargent (Miles Beckett, Luther's Editor), Reta Shaw (Mrs. Maxwell), Lurene Tuttle (Mrs. Miller), Charles Lane (Mr. Witlow, Nick Simmons' attorney), and of course Ellen Corby (Miss Tremaine). Although they were not credited for their roles there were Hope Summer and Hal Smith, two of Don Knotts' "Andy Griffith Show" co-stars made guest appearances. I saw this film in the when it came out in 1966. I suppose, like me, it's a little dated, but still worth watching. I have it on VHS and watch it when I need a good chuckle. More video rental places should keep classics like this on their shelves.

The first film Don Knotts made after leaving Mayberry to sign a multi-film contract with Universal, I first saw "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" as a tiny tot when it played in support of "Munsters, Go Home" at the drive-in, and it was so funny I forgot all about the severe sunburn I had acquired at the beach earlier in the day. And now, 37 years later, it's still hilarious. An adult, especially a college graduate who majored in English, isn't supposed to admit that "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" is one of his favorite films, at least not without embarrassment at his lack of "sophistication," but I admit it with pride. Knotts may not have had a film career on a par with Laurel and Hardy, but he's their equal in my book and this is his best film. It even manages to be genuinely spooky at times (that organ music-yikes!). This is a comedy classic, and a family film in the best sense of the word.

Don Knotts must have carefully chosen the script and story that would be his first starring film role. He certainly was taking a chance after leaving the Andy Griffith Show. Fortunately he chose well and in addition to a character that suited him perfectly he was surrounded by a cast of familiar and tried and true character players, including a few familiar faces from the Andy Griffith Show.

The Ghost And Mr. Chicken finds Knotts as a typesetter on his local small town paper with aspirations to be a reporter. But his first attempt at a big scoop which I won't go into make him a laughingstock not unlike Barney Fife at times. The girl he desires Joan Staley is disappointed and his rival Skip Homeier is having a great old time at Don's expense.

Another opportunity presents itself however. The owner of an old abandoned mansion Philip Ober returns to town wanting to demolish said mansion just take the wrecking ball and bulldozer to it. There's a lot of opposition because it is reputed to be haunted primarily by the ghost of Ober's wife who was murdered there 20 years earlier.

But it's a town landmark of sorts and Knotts goes to investigate and comes up short the first time, but eventually solves a 20 year old murder.

Which is more than Barney Fife ever did. The part that Don plays here set a pattern for his film career playing the lovable, bumbling schlep who gets it right in the end and gets the girl besides. Of course that was while he was a lead. Later on played various character roles, partnered with Tim Conway and those two were hilarious and is best known to today's audience as the mysterious TV repairman in Pleasantville.

The Ghost And Mr. Chicken was a fine beginning for Don Knotts as a big screen leading movie comedian.

This was Don Knotts first film after leaving the Andy Griffith show. Here he is Luther Heggs, mild mannered typesetter for a small town newspaper. 20 years before, an unsolved murder occurred, and the editor of the newspaper decides to do a follow-up article on it. Guess who they get to do it. He spends the night in the house where the murder took place. After a wild night in the house, he is a hero. Then he gets sued by the owner of the house. I'll tell no more, except that if you have not seen this film, you should. It is a good example of 1960's comedy that stars many TV stars of the period. It's a real winner!