Jail Busters
Encyclopedia
Jail Busters is a 1955 film starring the comedy team of The Bowery Boys
. The film was released on September 18, 1955 by Allied Artists and is the thirty-ninth film in the series.
, who played the warden in this film, was one of the choices for taking the place of Gorcey's character, Louie Dumbrowski. Two years later he would play the character of Mike Clancy, a character similar to Louie, in the film Spook Chasers
.
The Bowery Boys
The Bowery Boys were fictional New York City characters who were the subject of feature films released by Monogram Pictures from 1946 through 1958....
. The film was released on September 18, 1955 by Allied Artists and is the thirty-ninth film in the series.
Plot
Chuck gets a job working for a newspaper. When promoted, he has to go under cover in the state prison to dig up some information on some of the inmates. When one of the inmates beats Chuck up and lands him in the hospital, it's up to Slip, Sach, and Butch to finish Chuck's job. Slip decides that he and the boys should commit a crime so that they can be sent to jail. Another reporter, Cy Bowman, agrees to tell inform the penitentiary that the boys are actually working under cover for the newspaper once they get arrested. However, Bowman does not actually keep his promise. Now the trio are forced to spend what they think is a short sentence in jail. While there, the boys dig up some information on Percival P. Lannigan and some other inmates who have been living it up in jail, unknown to the warden. Lannigan soon gets word that Slip and his pals are under cover for Chuck (whom Lannigan had beaten up earlier), and intends to have Chuck and Louie killed. The boys eventually expose the inmates scam and turn them over to the warden, who pardons them and arranges for their release.Production
Jail Busters was filmed under the working title of Doing Time and is the only film in the series with no females in the cast.The Bowery Boys
- Leo GorceyLeo GorceyLeo Bernard Gorcey was an American stage and movie actor who became famous for portraying on film the leader of the group of young hooligans known variously as the Dead End Kids, The East Side Kids and The Bowery Boys. Always the most pugnacious member of the gangs he participated in, young Leo...
as Terence Aloysius 'Slip' Mahoney - Huntz HallHuntz HallHenry Richard "Huntz" Hall was an American radio, theatrical, and motion picture performer noted primarily for his roles in the "Dead End Kids" movies, such as Angels with Dirty Faces , which gave way to the "The Bowery Boys" movie franchise, a prolific and highly successful series of comedies in...
as Horace Debussy 'Sach' Jones - David GorceyDavid GorceyDavid Gorcey was an American actor and comedian best known as being a member of the comedy team of The Bowery Boys. He was the younger brother of Dead End Kids member Leo Gorcey.-Career:...
as Charles 'Chuck' Anderson (Credited as David Condon) - Bennie Bartlett as Butch Williams
Remaining cast
- Bernard Gorcey as Louie Dumbrowski
- Barton MacLaneBarton MacLaneBarton MacLane was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. Although he has appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, he was known for his role as Gen...
as Captain Jenkins, head guard - Anthony CarusoAnthony Caruso (actor)Anthony Caruso was an American character actor in over 100 American films, usually playing villains, including the First Season of Walt Disney's Zorro as Don Juan Ortega...
as Percival P. Lannigan - Percy HeltonPercy HeltonPercy Helton was an American film and television actor.One of his most memorable supporting roles was playing a drunken Santa Claus in Miracle on 34th Street. He also appeared in small but memorable roles in Criss Cross , The Set-Up , Kiss Me Deadly and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...
as Warden B.W. Oswald - Lyle TalbotLyle TalbotLyle Talbot , born Lisle Henderson, was an American actor on stage and screen, best known for his long career in movies from 1931 to 1960 and for his frequent appearances on TV in the 1950s and '60s, including his decade-long role as Joe Randolph on television's The Adventures of Ozzie and...
as Cy Bowman - Michael Ross as Big Greenie
- Joahn HarmonJohn Harmon (actor)John Harmon was an American actor.Harmon was a very prolific bit actor. His career spanned over six decades and almost 300 movie and television roles in a wide variety of genres. Many of his earlier appearances are uncredited. His first major screen credit was in I was framed...
as Tomcyk - Murray AlperMurray AlperMurray Alper was an American actor.Alper's earliest screen credit was 1930's The Royal Family of Broadway, and for the following thirty-five years, he appeared in a number of films, usually playing cab drivers, bookies, cops and GIs.Frequently seen in comedies, Alper was featured in the Three...
as Gus
Cast notes
After the death of Bernard Gorcey, just seven days before this film was released, Percy HeltonPercy Helton
Percy Helton was an American film and television actor.One of his most memorable supporting roles was playing a drunken Santa Claus in Miracle on 34th Street. He also appeared in small but memorable roles in Criss Cross , The Set-Up , Kiss Me Deadly and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...
, who played the warden in this film, was one of the choices for taking the place of Gorcey's character, Louie Dumbrowski. Two years later he would play the character of Mike Clancy, a character similar to Louie, in the film Spook Chasers
Spook Chasers
Spook Chasers is a 1957 film starring the comedy team of The Bowery Boys. The film was released on June 2, 1957 by Allied Artists and is the forty-fifth film in the series.-Plot:...
.