Pardners
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Norman Taurog
Dean Martin
Jerry Lewis
Lori Nelson
Jeff Morrow
Jackie Loughery
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Though his brother has already been killed by Sam Hollis' gang of land rustlers, Wade Kingsley decides to stay and fight for the family cattle ranch. His wife Matilda, however, insists on returning to her hometown of New York, along with their infant son, Wade, Jr. Badly outnumbered, Kingsley and his faithful ranch foreman, Slim Mosely, manage to fight off the outlaws, but both are later murdered by Sam. Before they die, however, the two friends vow that their sons will someday avenge their deaths. Years later, Matilda has become a highly successful twentieth-century Eastern industrialist, though her son still dreams of returning to his roots on the range. One day, Carol, Matilda's niece, and Slim Mosely, Jr. appear at the Kingsley estate, having arrived in New York City to participate in a rodeo. The two tell Matilda that they plan to use Slim's rodeo winnings to purchase Cuddles, a prize bull, with whom they hope to rebuild the stock of the family ranch, which is once again under attack by rustlers. Wade appears at the rodeo, however, and his bumbling destroys Slim's chances for any prize money. Feeling guilty, Wade purchases Cuddles for the K ranch, then becomes trapped in the westward-bound train car with the bull. Despite Wade's generosity, Slim has little use for the city-slicker and insists that he leave the train at its first stop. After reading Wade's letter to his mother, in which the young man praises the cowboy, however, Slim has a change of heart and offers to become "pardners" with Wade. After arriving at the K Ranch, Slim gives Wade the alias of "Killer Jones," in order to protect the young tenderfoot from the local bandits. Despite his new name, Wade soon runs afoul of Pete Rio, one of Slim's ranchhands, who is secretly working for Dan Hollis, the local banker. A cowardly crook like his father, Dan is trying to drive the ranchers off their lands so that he can sell the entire valley to the federal government for use in a dam project. Wade makes a much better impression on a beautiful dance hall girl, Dolly Riley, when, with Slim's help, he rescues her from a runaway carriage. The townspeople mistake Wade's ineptitude on a horse for skill and bravery, and he is quickly elected sheriff of Carson Valley. Soon after, Wade gets into a fistfight with Rio, and manages to "win" despite being knocked unconscious, as once again Slim comes to his aid. Even with his newfound confidence, Wade fails miserably when leading a posse to the K Ranch, where a masked raiders attack is underway, going so far as to mistake Slim for one of the bandits. After the attack, Dan proposes to Carol, but when she turns him down, he tells her that he plans to foreclose on the K Ranch. Overhearing this, Wade goes to the bank to pay off the note, but Dan quickly arranges to have his own bank robbed in order to stop the payment. Seeing the bandits approaching, Wade knocks one unconscious, then assumes his identity. Upon returning to the outlaws' hideout, Wade's real identity is quickly discovered, and taking Wade's own suggestion, the bandits bind the young heir to a chair, along with two lit sticks of dynamite. Slim then attempts to rescue Wade, only to be knocked unconscious by Dan. The two narrowly escape the cabin, however, before the dynamite ignites. Thinking that his nemeses are dead, Dan holds a town meeting at the K Ranch, where he publicly denounces Slim and Wade as bandits. Meanwhile, Slim and Wade head back to town and capture the real bandit gang. Later, at the K Ranch, Dan and Rio get the drop on Slim, but this time Wade rescues the ranch foreman, shooting Dan and knocking out Rio. As the new sheriff, Wade then orders Dan and his gang sent to "the hoosegow." With law and order restored to Carson Valley, the two "pardners" prepare to settle down to peaceful homes on the range.
Director
Norman Taurog
Cast
Dean Martin
Jerry Lewis
Lori Nelson
Jeff Morrow
Jackie Loughery
John Baragrey
Agnes Moorehead
Lon Chaney [jr.]
Milton Frome
Richard Aherne
Lee Van Cleef
Stuart Randall
Scott Douglas
Jack Elam
Bob Steele
Mickey Finn
Douglas Spencer
Philip Tonge
Valerie Allen
Elaine Riley
Ann Mccrea
Dorothy E. Abbott
Emory Parnell
Eric Alden
Don House
Frank Cordell
Robert Garvey
Emily Belser
Keith Wilson
Stanley Blystone
Hank Mann
Bobby Barber
William T. Baldwin
Johnstone White
Gavin Gordon
Robert Brubaker
Tony Michaels
Dorothy Ford
Frances Mercer
William Forrest
James Parnell
Mary Newton
Charles Stevens
Matt Moore
Len Hendry
Bob Osgood
Crew
Roland Anderson
Claire Behnke
Dick Caffey
Sammy Cahn
Nick Castle
Sam Comer
Jerry Davis
Frank De Vol
Farciot Edouart
Daniel Fapp
Bud Fehlman
John P. Fulton
Gene Gavin
Edith Head
Mervin J. Houser
Clem Jones
Paul Jones
Wallace Kelley
Norman Luboff
Rudy Makoul
Archie Marshek
Gene Merritt
Curtis Mick
Jack Mintz
Michael D. Moore
Ray Moyer
Richard Mueller
Hal Pereira
Rodd Redwing
Sidney Sheldon
Jimmy Van Heusen
Wally Westmore
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was Where Men Are Men? At the conclusion of the film, the comedy team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis shoot up "The End" letters, then break out of character to thank the audience for attending the picture, stating how much they enjoyed making it and that they hope the audience will come to their next film. According to the file on the film in the MPAA/PCA Collection at the AMPAS Library, two additinal Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn songs were approved, but not used in Pardners: "Carry Me, Back to Laramie" and "The Test of Time." According to Hollywood Reporter, portions of the film were shot on location in Phoenix, AZ. Hollywood Reporter news items and production charts include Ellen Avery, Max Power, Dick Alexander, Fay Johnson, Robert Terhune, Dick Farnsworth, Henry Wills and Barbara Darrow in the cast, but their appearance in the released film has not been confirmed.
Norman Taurog directed an earlier adaptation of Mervin J. Houser's story entitled Rhythm on the Range. The 1936 Paramount production starred Bing Crosby and Frances Farmer (see AFI Catalog of Feature Films, 1931-40). Taurog also directed Martin and Lewis in three previous Paramount releases: 1952's Jumping Jacks, 1953's The Stooge and 1954's Living It Up (see entries above and below). Following the comedy team's breakup in 1956, Taurog directed Lewis for the last time in the 1960 Paramount release Visit to a Small Planet .
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States on Video July 20, 1994
Released in United States Summer August 1956
VistaVision
Released in United States on Video July 20, 1994
Released in United States Summer August 1956
