The Sin of Harold Diddlebock (1947)

Director:

Preston Sturges

Writer:

Preston Sturges (writer)

Release Date:

4 April 1947 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Yes Sir! Wednesday was WILD! Wednesday was RUGGED! THE WILDEST WACKIEST MOST HILARIOUS AND COMPLETELY BOLLIXED-UP DAY YOU EVER HEARD OF! (original print ad - mostly caps)

Plot:

Twenty years after his triumphs as a freshman on the football field, Harold is a mild-mannered clerk...

Plot Keywords:

Writer Director | Sequel | Actor Shares First Name With Character | Character Name In Title

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Harold Lloyd	...	Harold Diddlebock
Jimmy Conlin	...	Wormy
Raymond Walburn	...	E.J. Waggleberry
Rudy Vallee	...	Lynn Sargent
Edgar Kennedy	...	Jake
Arline Judge	...	Manicurist
Franklin Pangborn	...	Formfit Franklin
Lionel Stander	...	Max
Margaret Hamilton	...	Flora
Jack Norton	...	James R. Smoke
Robert Dudley	...	Robert McDuffy
Arthur Hoyt	...	J.P. Blackstone
Julius Tannen	...	Nearsighted Banker
Al Bridge	...	Wild Bill Hickock
Robert Greig	...	Algernon McNiff

Also Known As:

Mad Wednesday (USA) (reissue title)

Runtime:

89 min | USA:76 min (1950 re-release) | USA:90 min (2005 DVD release)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Canada:G (Ontario) | West Germany:12 (nf) | Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #11970, General Audience) | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Samuel Goldwyn/Warner Hollywood Studios - 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

California Pictures

Trivia:

Last appearance of Harold Lloyd in a film.

Quotes:

Harold Diddlebock: As soon as I have a minute, I'll thank you for hours.

Movie Connections:

Follows The Freshman (1925)

Soundtrack:

Auld Lang Syne

Seminal, Brilliant, Heartbreaking

This film drags in some parts, and Lloyd I think puts off some modern viewers. The first time I watched it I thought it was the film equivalent of seeing Ali vs. Andre the Giant. But Sturges' brilliance is in here, and the degree to which it is derived from Lloyd is paid homage to in a wonderful, dark, surreal way. How can you not love a film that starts with the last moments of Lloyd's The Freshman and then shows the hero turned into a mail room stooge who gets buried by the corporate system? The ending is wonderfully hypnotic, happy? Well as is always the case, the poor down trodden guy figures out how to operate the machine just enough to produce his own deus ex machina. Sturges and Lloyd look more brilliant and visionary than ever from the vantage point of post-Enron, MCI, etc.