At Amazon:
Golf Mania! Rare DVD Film Collection
Grade: A+
Teachers’ Comments: Highly entertaining, especially if you’re a fellow fan of classic movies.
Golf Mania! is a wonderful collection of golf related film clips from the Golden Age of Hollywood. If you’re a fellow fan of classic movies, you will love this collection.
As you might expect, there’s plenty of Bing and Bob. The two were absolutely central to American golf in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. There’s a reason the two are listed in the Golf Hall of Fame.
Other notable stars include my favorite cowboy, Randolph Scott, W.C. Fields, Oliver Hardy, Red Skelton, Don Ameche and Jack Benny. Golden era golfers on the list include Sam Snead, Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson. The “mysterious” John Montague, gambler extraordinaire and golf trick shot artist also makes an appearance. He does the original version of the Tin Cup “garden implements in lieu of clubs” routine.
Here are the contents of the dvd:
Goof Golfers Newsreel (14 min). Original newsreel of wacky, whimsical clips from classic comedy shorts, sports reels and cartoons featuring Jean Harlow, Bing Crosby, Felix The Cat, W.C. Fields and more!
Golf Magic (9 min): Magical mix of vintage vignettes, including a baby learning to golf, snow golfing, Indian golfers, Jack Redmond’s trick golf clubs and John Montague’s bag of tricks.
Follow Through (10 min): Veteran golf pros Jimmy Thompson, Dick Metz, and Horton Smith demonstrate winning techniques in this entertaining sports reel.
Rough But Hopeful (10 min): Rare novelty newsreel with over 20 Hollywood stars on the golf course—Jack Benny, Red Skelton, Randolph Scott, Dennis O’Keefe, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and many others.
Golf (19 min): Famed silent comedian Larry Semon matches wits with villain Oliver Hardy in this rare slapstick golf short.
Golfing with Bing and Bob (8 min): An original film montage of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope clowning around with their professional golf buddies during the 1930s to 1950s.
Don’t Hook Now (19 min): Bing Crosby’s 6th annual pro-am golf tournament at beautiful Ranch Sante Fe. Bob and Bing share laughs and putts with golf greats Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Jimmy Hines, Byron Nelson and many more.
The Golf Specialist (20 min): At at Florida hotel, the great W.C. Fields goes golfing with the house detective’s flirtatious wife and an incompetent caddy.
Faith, Hope and Hogan (25 min) Ben Hogan quips with Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Phil Harris while he discusses his faith and near-death experience on an episode of The Chrstophers tv show.
I particularly enjoyed the silent slapstick of Larry Semon. I had not seen him in action before, and he’s quite funny. The piece also features a bit that looks like the precursor of the Caddyshack gopher.
Recommended.
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