A Chump at Oxford
Encyclopedia
A Chump at Oxford, directed by Alfred J. Goulding
and released in 1940 by United Artists
, was the penultimate Laurel and Hardy
film made at the Hal Roach
studios. Originally released as a streamliner
featurette
at forty minutes long, twenty minutes of footage largely unrelated to the main plot were later added for the European distribution. The longer version is the one most often seen today.
and butler
to help at a dinner party she is holding that night. Ollie
tells the receptionist
they can fill the post and to leave it to them. They arrive and Stan is dressed in drag
, pretending to be the maid 'Agnes'. Stan curtsies to Mrs. Vandeveer and his underwear rips loudly. As he walks off they are around his ankles.
At the dinner party Stan eats the nibbles he's supposed to be giving to the guests and tips the rest into Mrs. Vandeveer's lap. Ollie calls the guests to the meal with a hand held xylophone
. He says "there is everything From Soup To Nuts
folks, come and get it". Stan is told to take the cocktails and instead of clearing them away he drinks them and becomes drunk. Ollie gets the guests to sit down with the men on one side and the women on the other side of the table. Mr. Vandeveer tells Ollie to change the seating arrangement and Ollie begins to move the guests around for a while until Mr. Vandeveer gets impatient and tells them to sit anywhere they like at the table. Mr. Vandeveer then tells the drunken Stan to "serve up the salad without dressing" so Stan serves the salad in his underwear. Seeing this, Mr. Vandeveer angrily storms into another room to take a rifle
. Mrs. Vandeveer arrives, having changed her dress, and faints at the sight of Stan. Mr Vandeveer returns, rifle in hand, and chases Stan and Ollie out of the house. A single gunshot is heard and Mr. Vandeveer returns, followed by a policeman, who tells him, "why don't you be more careful, you almost blew my brains out". When the cop turns to leave, the seat of his pants have a large jagged hole ripped in them, revealing smouldering undershorts.
Stan and Ollie then become road sweepers and wonder why they are always in the gutter. They decide to get an education because in Stan's words "we're not illiterative enough". They are sitting outside the Farmers & Merchants Bank of Commerce building eating a packed lunch, while a robbery is taking place inside. They inadvertently catch the robber when he slips on a banana peel tossed on the street by Stan. A grateful bank manager offers them a reward
by suggesting that they could have a job in his bank. When Oliver mentions they wouldn't be much use since he and Stan don't have an education, the bank president expands on their goal to attend night school by saying, "If it's an education you want, you shall have the finest education money can buy." He enrolls Stan and Ollie at Oxford University in England
, and they depart the U.S. towards Oxford by steamship.
When Stan and Ollie arrive at the university, the snobby undergraduate students, led by the mischievous Johnson (Peter Cushing
) decide to give them the "royal initiation," which involves a number of pranks. They are sent off into a maze in order to get a pass to see the dean and quickly became lost. One of the students (Henry Borden) dresses as a ghost in order to frighten Stan and Ollie, and while they sit on a bench to sleep, the ghost's hand comes through the hedge to help Stan smoke his pipe and cigar (substituting for Stan's actual hand).
They spend all night in the maze and exit the next morning. Johnson poses as the dean
and gives Stan and Ollie the real dean's quarters
to live in. They make themselves at home only to be confronted by the dean. The prank is uncovered and Johnson is due to expelled
. Before this happens the students decide to run Stan and Ollie out so they can't give evidence against Johnson. The boys are taken to their real quarters where Meredith the valet
recognises Stan as Lord Paddington, the "greatest athlete and scholar the university ever had". He says that Lord Paddington had lost his memory when the window fell on his head and wandered from campus. Stan and Ollie dismiss his story as a "dizzy spell".
The students arrive and decide to throw Stan and Ollie out of the window. Stan and Ollie decide to escape through the window and in doing so the window falls on Stan's head, which transforms him back into Lord Paddington. When the students accuse him of "squealing", he becomes angry and his ears wiggle - something that occurs whenever Lord Paddington becomes angry, according to Meredith's story - after which he throws all of the students out of the window. However, Stan doesn't remember Ollie any longer so he becomes furious when Ollie tells him of his former life and throws Ollie out the window as well.
Lord Paddington takes pity on Ollie and employs him to be his personal valet. He calls Ollie by the nickname "fatty" and criticises him which makes Ollie so angry he quits his job. Stan hears students come to cheer him outside and as he looks out of the window it falls on him once again, returning him back to his usual self. Stan and Ollie make up. The film has a happy ending rather than the more usual unfortunate ending.
Alfred J. Goulding
Alfred John "Alf" Goulding was an Australian-born American film director and screenwriter. He directed 182 films between 1917 and 1959....
and released in 1940 by United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
, was the penultimate Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
film made at the Hal Roach
Hal Roach
Harold Eugene "Hal" Roach, Sr. was an American film and television producer and director, and from the 1910s to the 1990s.- Early life and career :Hal Roach was born in Elmira, New York...
studios. Originally released as a streamliner
Hal Roach's Streamliners
Hal Roach's Streamliners were a series of short comedy films created by Hal Roach that were longer than a short subject and less than a feature film not exceeding 50 minutes in length. Twenty of the twenty-nine features that Roach produced for United Artists were in the streamliner format...
featurette
Featurette
Featurette is a term used in the American film industry to designate a film whose length is approximately three quarters of a reel, or about 20–44 minutes in running time - thus midway between a short subject and a feature film; thus it is a "small feature"...
at forty minutes long, twenty minutes of footage largely unrelated to the main plot were later added for the European distribution. The longer version is the one most often seen today.
Plot
Stan and Ollie are down to their last six bucks and call a lift to a job agency to find work. A City Water Dept. truck driver offers them a lift and drenches them with water as a joke and leaves them behind. They finally arrive in a badly damaged car that has been towed away. At the job agency a call comes from Mrs. Vandeveer looking for a maidMaid
A maidservant or in current usage housemaid or maid is a female employed in domestic service.-Description:Once part of an elaborate hierarchy in great houses, today a single maid may be the only domestic worker that upper and even middle-income households can afford, as was historically the case...
and butler
Butler
A butler is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some also have charge of the entire parlour floor, and housekeepers caring for the entire house and its...
to help at a dinner party she is holding that night. Ollie
tells the receptionist
Receptionist
A receptionist is an employee taking an office/administrative support position. The work is usually performed in a waiting area such as a lobby or front office desk of an organization or business...
they can fill the post and to leave it to them. They arrive and Stan is dressed in drag
Drag (clothing)
Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...
, pretending to be the maid 'Agnes'. Stan curtsies to Mrs. Vandeveer and his underwear rips loudly. As he walks off they are around his ankles.
At the dinner party Stan eats the nibbles he's supposed to be giving to the guests and tips the rest into Mrs. Vandeveer's lap. Ollie calls the guests to the meal with a hand held xylophone
Xylophone
The xylophone is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets...
. He says "there is everything From Soup To Nuts
From Soup to Nuts (1928 film)
From Soup to Nuts is a 1928 short comedy film starring Laurel and Hardy as butlers hired for a high society dinner party. When Stan is asked to serve the salad undressed he serves it in his underwear....
folks, come and get it". Stan is told to take the cocktails and instead of clearing them away he drinks them and becomes drunk. Ollie gets the guests to sit down with the men on one side and the women on the other side of the table. Mr. Vandeveer tells Ollie to change the seating arrangement and Ollie begins to move the guests around for a while until Mr. Vandeveer gets impatient and tells them to sit anywhere they like at the table. Mr. Vandeveer then tells the drunken Stan to "serve up the salad without dressing" so Stan serves the salad in his underwear. Seeing this, Mr. Vandeveer angrily storms into another room to take a rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
. Mrs. Vandeveer arrives, having changed her dress, and faints at the sight of Stan. Mr Vandeveer returns, rifle in hand, and chases Stan and Ollie out of the house. A single gunshot is heard and Mr. Vandeveer returns, followed by a policeman, who tells him, "why don't you be more careful, you almost blew my brains out". When the cop turns to leave, the seat of his pants have a large jagged hole ripped in them, revealing smouldering undershorts.
Stan and Ollie then become road sweepers and wonder why they are always in the gutter. They decide to get an education because in Stan's words "we're not illiterative enough". They are sitting outside the Farmers & Merchants Bank of Commerce building eating a packed lunch, while a robbery is taking place inside. They inadvertently catch the robber when he slips on a banana peel tossed on the street by Stan. A grateful bank manager offers them a reward
Bounty (reward)
A bounty is a payment or reward often offered by a group as an incentive for the accomplishment of a task by someone usually not associated with the group. Bounties are most commonly issued for the capture or retrieval of a person or object. They are typically in the form of money...
by suggesting that they could have a job in his bank. When Oliver mentions they wouldn't be much use since he and Stan don't have an education, the bank president expands on their goal to attend night school by saying, "If it's an education you want, you shall have the finest education money can buy." He enrolls Stan and Ollie at Oxford University in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and they depart the U.S. towards Oxford by steamship.
When Stan and Ollie arrive at the university, the snobby undergraduate students, led by the mischievous Johnson (Peter Cushing
Peter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
) decide to give them the "royal initiation," which involves a number of pranks. They are sent off into a maze in order to get a pass to see the dean and quickly became lost. One of the students (Henry Borden) dresses as a ghost in order to frighten Stan and Ollie, and while they sit on a bench to sleep, the ghost's hand comes through the hedge to help Stan smoke his pipe and cigar (substituting for Stan's actual hand).
They spend all night in the maze and exit the next morning. Johnson poses as the dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
and gives Stan and Ollie the real dean's quarters
Quarters
Quarters is a popular drinking game which involves players bouncing a quarter off a table in an attempt to have the quarter land in a certain place, usually into a shotglass on that table. The game is popular at parties, especially in colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, as...
to live in. They make themselves at home only to be confronted by the dean. The prank is uncovered and Johnson is due to expelled
Expulsion (academia)
Expulsion or exclusion refers to the permanent removal of a student from a school system or university for violating that institution's rules. Laws and procedures regarding expulsion vary between countries and states.-State sector:...
. Before this happens the students decide to run Stan and Ollie out so they can't give evidence against Johnson. The boys are taken to their real quarters where Meredith the valet
Valet
Valet and varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.- Word origins :In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men...
recognises Stan as Lord Paddington, the "greatest athlete and scholar the university ever had". He says that Lord Paddington had lost his memory when the window fell on his head and wandered from campus. Stan and Ollie dismiss his story as a "dizzy spell".
The students arrive and decide to throw Stan and Ollie out of the window. Stan and Ollie decide to escape through the window and in doing so the window falls on Stan's head, which transforms him back into Lord Paddington. When the students accuse him of "squealing", he becomes angry and his ears wiggle - something that occurs whenever Lord Paddington becomes angry, according to Meredith's story - after which he throws all of the students out of the window. However, Stan doesn't remember Ollie any longer so he becomes furious when Ollie tells him of his former life and throws Ollie out the window as well.
Lord Paddington takes pity on Ollie and employs him to be his personal valet. He calls Ollie by the nickname "fatty" and criticises him which makes Ollie so angry he quits his job. Stan hears students come to cheer him outside and as he looks out of the window it falls on him once again, returning him back to his usual self. Stan and Ollie make up. The film has a happy ending rather than the more usual unfortunate ending.
Film production details
- The dinner party scenes are those omitted from the original American release and are a partial remake of their 1928 silent film From Soup to Nuts.
- The dinner party ends in the same way as in their 1927 film Slipping WivesSlipping WivesSlipping Wives is a 1927 silent comedy short film starring Priscilla Dean, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.- Plot :Priscilla is married to an artist called Leon. However Leon isn't showing much interest in his wife so she hatches a plot to win back his affections. Ollie plays the butler. Stan arrives...
. - As Lord Paddington, Stan Laurel employs an upper-class received pronunciationReceived PronunciationReceived Pronunciation , also called the Queen's English, Oxford English or BBC English, is the accent of Standard English in England, with a relationship to regional accents similar to the relationship in other European languages between their standard varieties and their regional forms...
accent, the only time he affected a voice different from "Stan" on film.
Cast
- Stan LaurelStan LaurelArthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...
as Stan Laurel/Lord Paddington - Oliver HardyOliver HardyOliver Hardy was an American comic actor famous as one half of Laurel and Hardy, the classic double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted nearly 30 years, from 1927 to 1955.-Early life:...
as Oliver Hardy - James FinlaysonJimmy FinlaysonJames Henderson "Jimmy" Finlayson was a Scottish actor who worked in both silent and sound comedies. Bald, with a fake moustache, Finlayson had many trademark comic mannerisms and is famous for his squinting, outraged, "double take and fade away" head reaction, and characteristic expression...
as Mr. Vanderveer - Anita GarvinAnita GarvinAnita Garvin was an American actress and comedienne who appeared in both silent and sound films. She is best known for her work with comedians Laurel and Hardy and Charley Chase....
as Mrs. Vanderveer. This was her last film with Laurel and Hardy. - Forbes Murray as Banker
- Wilfred LucasWilfred LucasWilfred Lucas was a Canadian stage and film actor, film director, and screenwriter.-Career:A native of Ontario, Canada, Lucas headed to New York City to work in the theater, making his Broadway acting debut in 1904 at the Savoy Theater in the production of The Superstition of Sue...
as Dean Williams - Forrester HarveyForrester HarveyForrester Harvey was an Irish-born film actor. He appeared in 117 films between 1922 and 1946, including two films directed by Alfred Hitchcock.He was born in County Cork, Ireland and died in Laguna Beach, California....
as Meredith - Peter CushingPeter CushingPeter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
as Student Johnson. He would later star in Hammer Films and Star WarsStar WarsStar Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
. - Gerald Rogers as Student
- Charlie Hall as Student
- Victor Kendall as Student
- Gerald FieldingGerald Fielding-Selected filmography:* The Three Passions * Goodbye Love * The Scarlet Empress * The Price of a Song * The Man Behind the Mask * A Chump at Oxford * They Met in Bombay -External links:...
as Student - Eddie BordenEddie BordenEddie Bordon May 1, 1888 – July 1, 1955) was an American film actor who started in vaudeville and began appearing in films from 1921-1955.-Selected filmography:* Hold Everything * Battling Butler * Rough Romance...
as Student Ghost - Frank Baker as Dean's Servant
- Herbert EvansHerbert Evans (actor)Herbert Evans was a British-born American film actor. He appeared in over 180 films between 1916 and 1952.Modern viewers will remember Evans as the Earl of Glenheather Castle in The Three Stooges comedy The Hot Scots and its remake Scotched in Scotland. He also excelled as the well-meaning but...
- Evelyn Barlow
- Louise Bates
- Harry BernardHarry BernardHarry Bernard was a movie comedian who worked for Mack Sennett and with Laurel & Hardy, usually typecast as a policeman.Bernard was born in San Francisco, California, and died in Hollywood.-Selected filmography:...
- Stanley BlystoneStanley BlystoneStanley Blystone was an American film actor who made over 500 films appearances between 1924 and 1956.-Career:Born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, Blystone's full name was William Stanley Blystone...
- Tom Costello
- Richard CramerRichard CramerRichard Cramer , was an American actor in films from the late 1920s. Burly, menacing and gravel-voiced, Cramer specialized in villainous roles in many low-budget westerns, but is today best remembered for his several appearances with Laurel and Hardy. He also appeared with W. C...
- Jean De BriacJean De BriacJean De Briac was a French film actor. He appeared in 122 films between 1920 and 1962.He was born in France and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:*Around the World in Eighteen Days...
- Mildred Gaye
- Alec Harford
- Jack Heasley
- Jewel Jordan
- Robert KentRobert Kent (actor)Robert Kent , born Douglas Blackley, Jr, was an American film actor. His career included starring roles in several film serials of the 1940s, including The Phantom Creeps, Who's Guilty?, and The Phantom Rider....
- Rex LeaseRex LeaseRex Lloyd Lease was an American actor. He appeared in over 300 films, mainly in westerns. Lease was accused in 1930 by Vivian Duncan of the Duncan Sisters for assault...
- Lois Lindsay
- Sam LufkinSam LufkinSamuel "Sam" William Lufkin was an American actor who usually appeared in small or bit roles in short comedy films.-Career:Born in Utah, Lufkin spent most of his career at the Hal Roach Studios where he made over 60 films...
- George MagrillGeorge MagrillGeorge Magrill , was an American film actor. He appeared in 326 films between 1923 and 1952.He was born in Brooklyn, New York, was married to Ramona Oliver, and had a daughter named Marilynn...
- James MillicanJames MillicanJames Millican was an American actor with over 200 film appearances mostly in western movies.-External links:*...
- Edmund MortimerEdmund Mortimer (actor)Edmund Mortimer was an American actor and film director. He appeared in 251 films between 1913 and 1945. He also directed 23 films between 1918 and 1928....
- Doris Morton
- Edgar Norton
- Vivien OaklandVivien OaklandVivien Oakland , was an American actress best known for her work in comedies in Hollywood in the 1920s and 1930s, most notably with the Hal Roach Studios...
- Jack RichardsonJack Richardson (actor)Jack Howard Richardson was an American actor.Born in New York, New York, he was signed to a contract in silent films in 1911 by the Thanhouser Company, where he worked for several years....
- Ronald R. Rondell
- Elmer Serrano
- Al ThompsonAl ThompsonAl Thompson was an American film actor. He appeared in 176 films between 1916 and 1958.He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:* Dull Care...
- Bobby Tracy