''Alibi Ike'' is a 1935 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...

film directed by Ray Enright and starring Joe E. Brown,

Olivia de Havilland Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British-American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her time. ...

and

William Frawley William Clement Frawley (February 26, 1887 – March 3, 1966) was an American vaudevillian and actor best remembered for playing landlord Fred Mertz in the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', "Bub" O'Casey in the television comedy ser ...

. Based on the short story of the same name by

Ring Lardner Ringgold Wilmer Lardner (March 6, 1885 – September 25, 1933) was an American sports columnist and short story writer best known for his satirical writings on sports, marriage, and the theatre. His contemporaries Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Wo ...

, first published in the '' Saturday Evening Post'' on July 31, 1915, the film is about an ace baseball player nicknamed "Alibi Ike" for his penchant for making up excuses. Lardner is said to have patterned the character after baseball player King Cole. ''Alibi Ike'' was the most successful of Joe E. Brown's "baseball trilogy" of films, which also included ''

Elmer, the Great ''Elmer, the Great'' is a 1933 American pre-Code comedy film directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Joe E. Brown and Patricia Ellis. Plot Elmer Kane ( Joe E. Brown) is a rookie ballplayer with the Chicago Cubs whose ego is matched only by his appe ...

'' and '' Fireman, Save My Child''. It is considered one of the best baseball comedies of all time. ''Alibi Ike'' was the first feature film released starring Olivia de Havilland, although she made two previous films that were released later that year—''

The Irish in Us ''The Irish in Us'' is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Lloyd Bacon and starring James Cagney, Pat O'Brien, and Olivia de Havilland. Written by Earl Baldwin based on a story by Frank Orsatti, the film is about an Irish family consisting ...

'' and the all-star Shakespeare epic '' A Midsummer Night's Dream'', which also starred Joe E. Brown in a key role. A print of the film is held by the Library of Congress.

Plot

Frank X. Farrell ( Joe E. Brown) is an ace baseball player whose insistence on making excuses earns him the nickname "Alibi Ike." In the course of his first season with the Chicago Cubs, Farrell falls in love with Dolly Stevens (

), sister-in-law of the team's manager. Farrell's "alibi" habit prompts Dolly to walk out on him, after which he goes into a slump—which coincides with attempts by gamblers to get Farrell to throw the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the World ...

Cast

* Joe E. Brown as Frank X. Farrell *

as Dolly Stevens *

as Cap *

Ruth Donnelly Ruth Donnelly (May 17, 1896 – November 17, 1982) was an American film and stage actress. Early years and family Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Donnelly was the daughter of Harry Augustus and Bessie B. Donnelly. Her uncle, Freder ...

as Bess *

Roscoe Karns Roscoe, also spelled Rosco or Roscow, may refer to: People * Roscoe (name) Places United States * Roscoe, California (disambiguation) * Roscoe Township (disambiguation) * Roscoe, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Roscoe, Illinois, a villag ...

as Carey * Eddie Shubert as Jack Mack *

Paul Harvey Paul Harvey Aurandt (September 4, 1918 – February 28, 2009) was an American radio broadcaster for ABC News Radio. He broadcast ''News and Comment'' on mornings and mid-days on weekdays and at noon on Saturdays and also his famous '' The Rest ...

as Lefty Crawford * Joe King as Johnson, the owner * G. Pat Collins as Lieutenant *

Spencer Charters Spencer Charters (March 25, 1875 – January 25, 1943) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 220 films between 1920 and 1943, mostly in small supporting roles. Biography Charters was born in Duncannon, Pennsylvania. Until ...

as Minister *

Gene Morgan Gene Morgan (March 12, 1893 – August 13, 1940) was an American actor. He appeared in 111 films between 1926 and 1941. He was born in Racine, Wisconsin, United States, and died in Santa Monica, California. Selected filmography * ''Rogu ...

as Smitty Cast notes: *Several popular

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

players make

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

s in the film, including Guy Cantrell, Dick Cox, Cedric Durst,

Mike Gazella Michael Gazella (October 13, 1895 – September 11, 1978) was an American major league baseball player who played for the New York Yankees on several championship teams in the 1920s. Born in Olyphant, Pennsylvania, Gazella played football as we ...

, Wally Hood, Don Hurst, Smead Jolley, Lou Koupal, Bob Meusel, Wally Rehg, and

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Nativ ...

References

External links

* * * *
"Alibi Ike" by Ring Lardner
{{Ray Enright 1935 films 1935 romantic comedy films 1930s sports comedy films American baseball films American romantic comedy films American sports comedy films American black-and-white films 1930s English-language films Films based on short fiction Films directed by Ray Enright Short stories by Ring Lardner Warner Bros. films 1930s American films