Still image from the 1952 film Jack and the Beanstalk.

Jack and the Beanstalk

Directed by Jean Yarbrough

A baby-sitter dreams himself and his best friend into the famous fairy tale.

1952 1h 27m Comedy TV-G

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CAST
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Jean Yarbrough, Director
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Jean Yarbrough
Director

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[bud] Abbott, Mr. Dinkel/Dinkelpuss
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[bud] Abbott
Mr. Dinkel/Dinkelpuss..

2

[lou] Costello, Jack
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[lou] Costello
Jack

3

Buddy Baer, Sgt. Riley/Giant
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Buddy Baer
Sgt. Riley/Giant

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Dorothy Ford, Polly
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Dorothy Ford
Polly

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Barbara Brown, Jack's mother
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Barbara Brown
Jack's mother

FULL SYNOPSIS

Lovebirds Eloise Larkin and Arthur Royal, who are performing in an amateur theatrical production, have a dress rehearsal to attend, but Eloise must first find a baby-sitter for her siblings, a baby sister and a precocious eight-year-old brother, Donald. As no baby-sitter will watch the mischievous Donald more than once, Eloise calls Polly, a very tall person who runs an employment agency. Before going on a date with her boyfriend, the colossal Sgt. Riley, Polly sends Jack and his "agent," Mr. Dinkel, to the Larkin house. When Jack and Dinkel arrive, Donald is ready to terrorize, but instead becomes fascinated by Jack's incompetence. After permitting Jack to read aloud Jack's favorite story, Donald soon takes over when the words get too tough. As Jack slips into drowsiness, he hears this story: A muddleheaded boy named Jack lives with his mother in a village that is terrorized by a giant. The giant has stolen the royal jewels, so Princess Eloise must marry Prince Arthur from a nearby kingdom, sight unseen, for the sake of the kingdom. On her way to be married, she stops for a drink of water at Jack's house. The giant has also stolen the village's food, making times so hard that Jack's mother orders him to sell their only cow, Henry, to the butcher, Mr. Dinkelpuss. On the way, Jack meets the prince, who confides that he is unimpressed with a princess who would marry for money. As they talk, they hear the giant nearby and when the rumbling settles, Jack realizes that the...


VIDEOS
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Ben Mankiewicz Intro...
Hosted Intro
Original Trailer
Trailer

ARTICLES
Jack and the Beanstalk (1952), Abbott and Costello's version of the children's story about a ne'er-do-well son of a farmer's widow who trades the family cow for a handful of magic beans, is probably their most uncharacteristic film. Although the movie remains faithful to the nursery tale's storyline, it doesn't offer the duo as many opportunities for their trademark vaudeville routines, which they showcased in every picture during their long tenure at Universal in the 40’s when they were major stars. Some observers blamed this for the picture's initial disappointing box office, but it quickly made back its roughly $700,000 cost and turned out to be Warner Brothers' biggest grosser in England in 1952. And Costello was proud that they had made a picture that no critic could say fell back on their usual schtick. Jack and the Beanstalk was the first of the independent films the comedy duo were permitted to produce by their contract with Universal. Each of the two formed his own company ¿Lou Costello's Exclusive Productions and Bud Abbott¿ Woodley Productions ¿with the intention of making films in color (a luxury denied them at their home studio). Lou's company would own the first project, Jack and the Beanstalk, with Bud working on salary, and Bud's company would own the second, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952), with Lou on salary. According to Bob Furmanek and Ron Palumbo in their book, Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (Perigee), Costello got the ide...

NOTES

The film's onscreen title card reads: "Abbott and Costello in Jack and the Beanstalk." In the opening credits, the character, "Patrick the Harp," is listed as a cast member. In the film, the character is represented by an elaborate carving of a face on top of the musical instrument. Arthur Shields provided the harp's voice. The film, which was produced by Lou Costello's company, was shot entirely at the Hal Roach Studios in Culver City, CA. The baby-sitting scene of the picture, which was filmed in sepia tone, was written by Lou Costello's brother Pat, who, according to Warner Bros. production notes, got the idea while reading to his four-year-old daughter.
       Brief animation sequences appear in the fantasy portion of the film, which was Abbott and Costello's first color production. The world premiere was held in Costello's home town, Patterson, NJ. Although the opening credits claim to "introduce" Shaye Cogan and James Alexander, Jack and the Beanstalk did not mark Cogan's film debut. She first appeared in the 1951 Universal-International production Comin' Round the Mountain, which also starred Abbott and Costello (see entry above). Modern sources include Hank Mann in the cast.

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