| Lost in Alaska | |
|---|---|
 Lost in Alaska Theatrical Poster | |
| Directed by | Jean Yarbrough |
| Produced by | Howard Christie |
| Written by |
Martin Ragaway Leonard Stern |
| Starring |
Bud Abbott Lou Costello Mitzi Green Tom Ewell Iron Eyes Cody |
| Music by | Joseph Gershenson |
| Editing by | Leonard Weiner |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | July 28, 1952 |
| Running time | 76 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $672,000 |
Lost in Alaska is a 1952 film starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello.
Plot[]
The time is the 1890s, and the place is San Francisco. George Ball (Lou Costello) and Tom Watson (Bud Abbott) are firemen who rescue 'Nugget' Joe McDermott (Tom Ewell) from committing suicide by drowning. Joe wants to die because his girlfriend, Rosette (Mitzi Green) no longer loves him. He tells George and Tom about his fortune in gold that he has stashed in Alaska, and they decide to keep an eye on him. Joe receives a letter from Rosette claiming that she still loves him. He returns to Alaska, with George and Tom in tow. Once they arrive, it is learned that many people want to kill Joe, as he was once the local sheriff who had many people hanged.
Rosette works at a casino whose owner, Jake Stillman (Bruce Cabot), demands that she marry Joe, whom Jake plans to kill once he is married to Rosette, so that he can marry her and gain the fortune in gold.
Rosette reveals Jake's intent to George and Tom, who hide Joe and Rosette by sending them out of town. Jake is not happy about this turn of events and sends his gang to deal with George and Tom, who manage to outwit them. In the ensuing melee, the gold falls into a deep crevice in the ice, and is lost. Everyone manages to overcome their greed for the sake of friendship, and Joe and Rosette marry.
Production[]
Lost in Alaska was filmed from December 3 through December 31, 1951, under the working title The Sourdoughs.[1]
Legal Problems[]
Production on the film almost never began. One month before filming began, Abbott and Costello filed a lawsuit against Universal, which was selling 16mm clips (through Castle Films) taken from various Abbott and Costello films. They also sued Realart Pictures for re-releasing some of the team's older films without their consent.
However, they settled for $2 million and additional profits from several of their prior films. Two weeks after the settlement, they re-signed with Universal through 1955.[2]
DVD release[]
This film has been released twice on DVD. The first time, on The Best of Abbott and Costello Volume Three, on August 3, 2004, and again on October 28, 2008 as part of Abbott and Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection.
References[]
- ↑ Abbott & Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection
- ↑ Furmanek, Bob and Ron Palumbo (1991). Abbott and Costello in Hollywood. New York: Perigee Books. ISBN 0-399-51605-0