So You Want to Be a Gladiator

SO WE SEE yet another attempt at expanding the MC DOAKESIAN reach into yet another realm. Without any fanfare, publicity or explanation, we open to find that Joe (George O'Hanlon) and Alice (Jane Frazee) have been transported back to Ancient Rome.

THE TREATMENT OF the subject matter is much in the same vein as was that of the Hanna-Barbera rendering of the animated series, THE FLINTSTONES, some 5 years later. The personalities remain the same, but the setting and time period are changed.

IN THE MIX as well is what one would expect from a Columbia Pictures THREE STOOGES Two Reeler. The time proved custom of having the modern institutions transported in anachronistic entireties was observed as we are treated to a Gladiators' Union Organizer (Phil Van Zandt( seeking sign-ups in the dressing room backstage at the Roman Coliseum.

AS HAS BEEN the practice, this entry did a bang-up job in the casting; this time with the additional burden of assigning Roman roles to those who usually took other parts. Joe, Alice and Homer (Jackson Wheeler) were pretty much the same. Rodney Bell (usually neighbor Marvin) was cast as the Emperor 'Nero'(????) and did a great job of hamming it up; with his characterization being sort of between a Charles Laughton impersonation and Victor Buono's "King Tut" on the BATMAN TV Series about 11 years later.

ADDITIONALLY, THE CAST had semi-regulars Creighton Hale, Fred Kelsey, Jack Mower and Murray Pollack.

WE MUST MAKE mention of the presence of all around fine general purpose actor John Doucette's portrayal as the master of gladiators. Mr. Doucette is to be found in almost every film type and on television. perhaps his biggest and most visible role was that of General Lucien Truscott in PATTON (20th Century-Fox, 1970).

AS FOR THE Verdict: Both Schultz and I think we've had funnier entries, but none so set in such widely removed an era or locale. ** 1/2 Stars.

Joe McDoakes (George O'Hanlon) is in ancient Rome. He's a musician trying to get closer to Emperor Nero. After breaking a string, Nero sends him to the lions. In the Colosseum, his idiot friend Homer plan to dress as the lion, but he gets detoured. Joe is getting the real thing.

This is fine. The premise is good. I have some better joke ideas, but these are fine. I would maybe do something else with Alice. I would definitely have Joe running around fast forward style. As for Nero fiddling, he should have his violin at all times. The joke is him ready to fiddle whenever he smells smoke. This is fine, but there are jokes left on the table.

Oddly, this installment of the Joe McDoakes series is set in ancient Rome. Joe is a minstrel playing for Emperor Nero, but after he makes a discordant note, he's sentenced to fight the lion in the arena. But have no fear, his buddy is going to wear a lion suit and fool everyone(?).

The story is weird...but also quite dumb. Any time ANYONE dresses up and pretends to be a gorilla or a lion or whatever, it's sure that the comedy is going to be a dud. Unfunny and rather stupid...I was really disappointed in this one.

So You Want to Be a Gladiator (1955)

** (out of 4)

Lesser entry in the Joe McDoakes (George O'Hanlon) series finds our lovable loser back in the gladiator days and working as a servant for Nero. When he messes up a musical arrangement the great Nero forces him to fight a lion. Joe thinks that his buddy is actually in a lion suit but it turns out he must fight the real thing. This certainly isn't a highlight of the series but it does go to show that even a weak entry is still not that bad and is at least worth viewing once if you're a fan. I thought the first four or five minutes were the weakest parts as we get some rather lame jokes about the "house hold" back in the days as Joe and Alice do their usual fighting. The scene where Joe messes up isn't all that funny either but thankfully things pick up in the second half. The sequence where Joe fights the lion is poorly edited and there's one sequence where we see an obvious stunt man but I still managed to laugh a couple times. O'Hanlon's comic timing is top-notch and he really sells the scene with some nice delivery of the dialogue. The ending with the "slave girl" also gets a nice laugh.

When Joe MacDoakes is sentenced by Nero to be thrown to the lions for bad lyre-playing, he thinks it's his pal in a lion costume. It's not. Worse Than A Lion, However, is Joe's Wife when she gets her dander up.

Usually the series stuck to the MacDoakes' middle-class existence, but here's a case where series writer/producer/director Richard Bare decided to roam far afield. As a result, it's far more slapstick a production that unusual, While undoubtedly amusing, its absurd set-up makes the usual silliness of the series less amusing.