''Never a Dull Moment'' is a 1968 American heist

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

crime film Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

from

Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was founded on October 16 ...

starring

Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. Dick Van Dyke on screen and stage, His work spans screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Dick Van Dyke, his awards includ ...

and Edward G. Robinson and directed by

Jerry Paris William Gerald Paris (July 25, 1925 – March 31, 1986) was an American actor and director best known for playing Jerry Helper, the dentist and next-door neighbor of Rob and Laura Petrie, on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', and for directing the majo ...

. The script by A. J. Carothers was based on ''The Reluctant Assassin'' by John Godey. The supporting cast features Dorothy Provine, Henry Silva,

Slim Pickens Louis Burton Lindley Jr. (June 29, 1919 – December 8, 1983), better known by his stage name Slim Pickens, was an American actor and rodeo performer. Starting off in the rodeo, Pickens took up acting, and appeared in dozens of movies and TV sho ...

and

Jack Elam William Scott "Jack" Elam (November 13, 1920 – October 20, 2003) was an American film and television actor best known for his numerous roles as villains in Western films and, later in his career, comedies (sometimes spoofing his villaino ...

. Master cartoonist

Floyd Gottfredson Arthur Floyd Gottfredson (May 5, 1905July 22, 1986) was an American cartoonist best known for his defining work on the Mickey Mouse (comic strip), ''Mickey Mouse'' comic strip, which he worked on from 1930 until his retirement in 1975. His contri ...

created a comic strip, ''Astro Pooch'', to be used as a prop in the film. It was re-released theatrically on April 15, 1977, on a double bill with a re-edited version of ''

The Three Caballeros ''The Three Caballeros'' is a 1944 American live-action and animated musical propaganda anthology film produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. The film premiered in Mexico City on December 21, 1944. It was released in the ...

'' (1944) in

featurette In the American film industry, a featurette is a kind of film that is shorter than a full-length feature, but longer than a short film. The term may refer to either of two types of content: a shorter film or a companion film. Medium-length film ...

form.

Plot

Second-rate actor Jack Albany finds himself mistaken for fiendish killer Ace Williams and whisked off to master gangster Leo Smooth's fortified mansion. He is forced to continue with the charade, even when he finds he is to play a deadly role in the theft of the painting ''Field of Sunflowers'', a 40 foot long masterpiece. Sally, an art teacher, is a potential ally for Jack. Further complications ensue when the real Ace Williams shows up, making it even more difficult for Albany to keep up his false identity. Eventually, Albany outwits the gangsters and foils the robbery.

Cast

as Jack Albany * Edward G. Robinson as Leo Joseph Smooth * Dorothy Provine as Sally Inwood * Henry Silva as Frank Boley * Joanna Cook Moore as Melanie Smooth * Tony Bill as Florian *

as Cowboy Schaeffer *

as Ace Williams *

Ned Glass Nusyn "Ned" Glass (April 1, 1906 – June 15, 1984) was a Polish-born American character actor who appeared in more than eighty films and on television more than one hundred times, frequently playing nervous, cowardly, or deceitful characters. ...

as Rinzy Tobreski *

Richard Bakalyan Richard Bakalyan (January 29, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor who started his career playing juvenile delinquents in his first several films. Early life Richard Bakalyan was born on January 29, 1931, in Watertown, Massachuset ...

as Bobby Macoon *

Mickey Shaughnessy Joseph C. Shaughnessy (August 5, 1920 – July 23, 1985), better known as Mickey Shaughnessy, was an American actor and comedian. Early life Joseph C. Shaughnessy was born in New York City. He began in show business working as a singer at reso ...

as Francis *

Philip Coolidge Philip Coolidge (August 5, 1908 – May 23, 1967) was an American stage, film, and television actor, who performed predominantly in supporting roles during a career that spanned over three decades, from 1930 to the late 1960s. Early life Born in ...

as Fingers Felton *

James Millhollin Arthur James Millhollin (August 23, 1915 – May 23, 1993) was an American character actor. Early years Millhollin was born in Peoria, Illinois. He grew up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, performing in many school plays, graduated from Thomas Jeffers ...

as Museum Director *

Eleanor Audley Eleanor Audley ( Zellman; November 19, 1905 – November 25, 1991) was an American actress with a distinctive voice and a diverse body of work. She played Oliver Douglas's mom, Eunice Douglas, on the CBS sitcom '' Green Acres'' (1965–1969 ...

as Society Matron

Reception

Howard Thompson of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' gave ''Never a Dull Moment'' a largely negative review, calling it "good-natured" but claiming that "most of it seems mighty strenuous and over-worked". Thompson saved most of his praise for the cartoon that accompanied the film, a reissue of Disney's '' Three Little Pigs'' from 1933 (this short also accompanied releases of ''

The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' in some cities). Arthur D. Murphy of '' Variety'' called it "a very amusing crime comedy" if "a bit long and talky".

Charles Champlin Charles Davenport Champlin (March 23, 1926 – November 16, 2014) was an American film critic and writer. Life and career Champlin was born in Hammondsport, New York. He attended high school in Camden, New York, working as a columnist for the ...

of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' declared it "the breeziest and most likeable Disney comedy in some time, with a verve and (relative) sophistication which can engage the favoring interest of the grown-ups as well as the moppets". Clifford Terry of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' wrote that "the Disney studio comedy starts off amusingly enough, then loses its freshness after the first half hour. But the kids probably won't notice." ''

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' stated: "With no pretensions to being anything but a rollicking farce, this slight but intermittently amusing comedy largely succeeds on its own modest level." The ''

San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and has been published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst and the flagship of the He ...

s Jeanne Miller panned the film, writing that "all but the very young will probably take issue with the title of ''Never a Dull Moment'', which opened yesterday at the Fox-Warfield. For things get very dull indeed in this uninspired, cliche-ridden spoof about a band of zany gangsters who plan the heist of a Manhattan art museum. Of course, the movie was designed by the Walt Disney Studio for the kiddies' summer vacation. But all the wacky misadventures must surely be familiar to the moppets who have seen them over and over again on their TV sets."Miller, Jeanne (June 26, 1968).
Dick Van Dyke Brightens Disney's 'Dull Moment'
. ''

''. p. 30.

References

External links

* * * * * {{Jerry Paris 1968 films 1968 children's films 1960s crime comedy films 1960s heist films 1960s comedy mystery films American crime comedy films American heist films American comedy mystery films 1960s English-language films Films about actors Films based on American novels Films based on works by Morton Freedgood Films directed by Jerry Paris Films produced by Ron W. Miller Films set in art museums and galleries Films set in New York City Walt Disney Pictures films 1968 comedy films 1960s American films English-language crime comedy films English-language comedy mystery films

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links