Psychobabble’s 31 Favorite Universal Horrors: #14

Halloween season simply isn’t Halloween season without a regular dose of classic Universal horror (1923-1963). Every day this October, I’ll be giving you a steady IV drip of it by counting down Psychobabble’s 31 Favorite Universal Horrors!

#14. Hold That Ghost (1941- dir. Albert S. Rogell)

Is this reeeally a ghost story? Yes, it is. Allow me to refer you to the moving-candlestick gag. How’s that thing moving? Wires? Hardly! Now that your doubts are quelled, let’s just focus on the tremendous fun abounding in Abbott & Costello’s admittedly tentative first outing in the realm of the supernatural. The boys inherit an old dark house from a gangster and hilarity ensues. Much of that hilarity rises not from the team of Bud and Lou but the team of Lou and Joan Davis. She’s spectacular in this picture. More sparks fly during her dance routine with Costello than all of Evelyn Ankers and Richard Carlson’s forced romantic scenes put together.

366 Days at the Drive-In: Day 306

The Date: August 1

The Movie: Hold That Ghost (1941)

What Is It?: Despite its title Abbott and Costello’s first great feature is more of an “old dark house” spoof than a ghost story, although there is definitely something supernatural afoot during the famous candlestick routine. Joan Davis comes closer than anyone ever has to upstaging Lou as a goofy radio personality known solely for providing horror programs with her signature shriek. The Andrew Sisters heap on the nostalgia.

Why Today?: On this day in 1941, five days before the film’s release, Bud and Lou perform a live version of Hold That Ghost on Louella Parsons’ “Hollywood Premiere” radio show.