W.C. Fields invented 'leave me alone' comedy in 1926 and it's still perfect.
Druggist Elmer Prettywillie is sleeping. A woman rings the night bell only to buy a two-cent stamp. Then garbage collectors waken him. Next it's firemen on a false alarm. And then a real fire.
Acting
Fields' eye-rolls could power a city.
Practical Effects
Every fire gag done with 1926 technology.
Costume
The nightshirt. Iconic. Devastating.
Director
A. Edward Sutherland
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Fields adapted this from his own stage sketch 'The Druggist,' which he'd been refining for years. The nightshirt was his signature costume.
This captures peak Prohibition absurdity: a drugstore as community hub, where everything EXCEPT drugs caused chaos. Fields' bitterness hit different in 1926.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
US
