The Caddy

Plot synopsis:
The story centers around Harvey Miller (Jerry Lewis), whose father was a famous golf pro. He wanted Harvey to follow in his footsteps, but poor Harvey is afraid of crowds. Instead, at the advice of his fiancée Lisa (Barbara Bates), Harvey becomes a golf instructor. Lisa's brother Joe (Dean Martin) becomes Harvey's first client and becomes good enough to start playing in tournaments, with Harvey tagging along as his caddy. Donna Reed plays the wealthy socialite who Dean wins over.
Joe's success goes to his head and he begins to treat Harvey poorly. They begin to quarrel and cause a disruption at a tournament, so Joe is disqualified. However, a talent agent witnesses the comical spectacle and advises that they go into show business.
Harvey conquers his fear and they become successful entertainers. At the end, Harvey and Joe meet up with another comedy team who look just like them: Martin and Lewis!

Tags: flashback

Review:
When Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis split up in 1956, the consensus was that Jerry's comic talents would sustain his career, but that Dino would have a rough going.
Most critics did focus on Jerry's talents, Dean was the straight man who sang a nice song occasionally.
But of all their joint films, The Caddy is best remembered for Dean's singing of That's Amore.
It was nominated for an Oscar that year and until ten years or so later when Dino revived a song called Everybody Loves Somebody and made it his theme, That's Amore became the song most identified with the man from Steubenville, Ohio.Of course Jerry has his moments in The Caddy, clowning with the various golfers who made cameo appearances here, doing a comic obligato after Dean sings That's Amore and a number called The Gay Continental.
But That's Amore made this of all their films, Dean's triumph.In fact Dino had another great reason to enjoy this film.
If he wasn't involved in any of the scenes on a given day, you would find Martin on the links invariably.The plot such as it is involves Jerry Lewis as the son of a noted golf pro who also has an extreme case of stage fright.
Jerry is engaged to Barbara Bates who is Dean's sister.
Father Joseph Calleia is a commercial fisherman and mother Argentina Brunetti runs a restaurant, specializing in seafood and pasta.Jerry agrees to coach Dean and be his caddy.
I guess Joe and his brothers Vince and Dom must have been flattered because they didn't sue Paramount.Donna Reed plays the socialite sponsor of golf tournaments who falls big time for Dean.
And Jerry gets to have another straight man in this film in the person of Clinton Sundberg, Reed's snooty butler.
In fact Jerry gets even another substitute straight man in Fred Clark who is his and Bates's boss at the job they have at a department store.
Although to be fair, Lewis rehashed some material here the Marx Brothers originally used in The Big Store.The Caddy is one of the Martin-Lewis teams best and funniest comedies and if that don't get you, That's Amore will..
The Caddy is a Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis comedy film.
Also featured in the story are some leading professional golfers of the time.Middle tier Martin & Lewis movie that sticks rigidly to the formula that made them so popular.
Jerry causes mayhem but always endears in doing so, while Dean croons and catches the eye of the ladies.
Cue some goofing around on golf courses and chaos unbound as Jerry upsets the upper class toffs of society.
Cue carnage in a department store and chaos on the golf course.Dean sings the Oscar nominated "That's Amore," as well as "It's A Whistle In," "Kinda Mornin," "One Big Love" & "What Wouldcha Do Without Me?" Reed and Bates are pretty and adorable, and both play off of the boys with ease.
All of which builds to a fun double-take ending to seal the deal as The Caddy reaching its par on the course of Martin & Lewis movies.
How can you go wrong with Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Donna Reed and Ben Hogan all in the same film?!
The funniest of the Martin-Lewis pairings, with real-life players Sam Snead and Julius Boros adding to the goofy golf.
I have now re-watched all of the Martin & Lewis films and one thing I have noticed is how often Dean had to play characters who were complete louses.
This one finds Dean to be a bit of a jerk--though fortunately it's not nearly as bad in this one as in some of their other films and as a result it works a bit better.Jerry plays Harvey, the son of a pro golfer who is ALSO a heck of a player.
But when he meets his fiancée's brother, Joe (Dean), Harvey sees that Joe could be a pro himself--and with his help, Joe enters his first tournament.
"That's Amore" is the PERFECT tune for Dean's talents and you cannot help but love the song.
Pleasant viewing..
(Jerry Lewis) and Joe Anthony (Dean Martin) are two golfers and later Harvey becomes the caddy of Joe. But after causing a chaos at the big tournament their career as golfers is over and soon they find themselves from the world of entertainment.The Caddy (1953) is a great comedy from Norman Taurog.
It features the funny man and the king of comedy Jerry Lewis and the straight man Dean Martin.
Dean charmed the ladies and took care of singing and Jerry's job was to be the clown and make people laugh.
Those were the good times.In 1956 Lewis and Martin sadly broke up but they did just great on their own.
I've been a big fan of this comedian for five years, since they showed Lewis movies on TV in the summer of 1998.
Thanks for the laughs, Jerry Lewis!
The Caddy is a movie that offers you lots of laughs and also some great songs, like That's Amore.
It's been 50 years since this movie was made but Jerry Lewis movies don't age.
I love Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin, and this film had to be one of the funniest, aside from Sailor Beware.
Martin and Lewis have a great chemistry that is so much fun to watch.
The Caddy was another enjoyable, though uneven, Martin & Lewis film.
Before I review The Caddy proper, let me just say that as a big fan of It's a Wonderful Life, I like to mention whenever players of that movie are in others I review.
Next, there's Argentina Brunetti-Mrs. Martini there-who's Dean Martin's mother here.
Okay, with that out of the way, I'll just say that with Dean & Jerry playing entertainers who were once golfer and caddy, respectively, there's some hilarious scenes of Lewis wrecking havoc at a department store, of impersonating an Important Rich Man, and of disrupting some famous golfers' games.
And Martin has an iconic moment when he sings a song that would be permanently identified with him: "That's Amore".
And not just him but Jerry and the whole family sings along to one of the most entertaining numbers on film ever.
What I didn't like was the way they have Dean treating Jerry like dirt in the middle of the movie and how dramatic that becomes at the expense of the mostly funny business that came before that.
And the leading lady Jerry has here is played by the stunning Barbara Bates.
Dean Martin was sure lucky too have Jerry Lewis with him he's a Great singer but an O.K actor especially in comedies.
This was the first Jerry Lewis movie i've ever seen and I'm happy I saw it cause now I want to see every single one So far i've seen The Caddy, The Bellboy, Hollywood or bust, The Nutty Professor, Family Jewels and Boeing, Boeing.
The Best part I find is when Jerry gets drunk at the party to stop Dean from drinking.
What contrasting views.
Perhaps in light of the fact that I became obsessed with the movies from the tender age of seven and was easy to please,I loved Martin and Lewis from the outset.
The songs are great .Dean does a smooth job of 'That's Amore' and 'You're The Right One' and his duets with Jerry are among their best.
I just can't be critical of Jerry Lewis when he still makes me laugh out loud,especially while being chased around the store by Fred Clark or when he hands over a tray of cocktails to an indignant guest.
''The Caddy" and "Living It Up" are my pick of the Martin and Lewis vehicles,probably because they contain their very best songs and feature Donna Reed and Janet Leigh..
The Caddy (1953) *** (out of 4) Joe Anthony (Dean Martin) and Harvey Miller (Jerry Lewis) are big stars on the stage but it wasn't always like that.
Before doing so the two men decide to try and win money playing golf since Miller at one time was great but just couldn't play in front of people.
Soon they begin to take off but things take a turn when Anthony becomes interested in a woman (Donna Reed).THE CADDY is another successful teaming between Martin and Lewis.
The film is certainly one of the better ones that the duo made together as there are plenty of nice laughs, a good supporting cast and then there's the soundtrack, which includes Martin's greatest hit "That's Amore." Apparently both Martin and Lewis were very goof golfers so I'm sure both were jumping at the chance to play around on the golf course and this here leads to a lot of fun.Some of the film's highlights include real life golfers who are used in the film and of course Lewis' crazy antics are there to mess everything up.
Reed and the supporting cast are fun as well.THE CADDY certainly isn't a flawless movie but there's enough charm and laughs to make it worth watching..
this was the first film of the famed martin and lewis team that i've seen.
A Martin-Lewis silly farce about two losers who are great at golf.
Trouble is that one (Lewis) can't shoot well in front of crowds so he becomes Martin's caddy and suffers many indignities along the way.Jerry Lewis does his usual shtick with great competence.
His scene of destroying a department store is so similar to that of a Marx Brothers film.Donna Reed, an Oscar winner the same year for "From Here to Eternity," is along for the ride as Martin's newly-found girl friend.
She was far better off in dramatic performances.Martin's sister is played by Barbara Bates.
You remember her as that girl from Erasmus Hall High School who hides out in Anne Baxter's apartment at the end of "All About Eve." After being in this silly nonsense, Bates should have taken the closest plane back to Flatbush and Church Ave. and resume Erasmus attendance.Martin nicely sings "That's Amore," which was nominated as best song.
Argentina Brunetti, who died in Dec. 2005 at 98, plays his mother.Fred Clark, who always tried to be serious but would come off funny, is victimized in this flick as the Department Store head knocked for a loop by Lewis.No hole in one for this flick.
Jerry Lewis's recyclable schtick (this time as Harvey Miller) as a 20-something virgin and all-round annoyance (with a pigeon-toed run and a decidedly gay streak, to boot) was not my idea of a funny character.I cannot understand how Lewis (and his totally grate-on-the-nerves screen-persona) became such a phenomenally popular comedian of movies, TV and stage for well over 20 years (from the 1950s through to the 1970s).To me, Jerry Lewis was just plain dumb and totally unfunny.And, in The Caddy, if Lewis's asininity wasn't irritating enough all on its own, his co-star, Dean Martin, was one of the blandest, most boring, most talentless actors/singers to ever emerge out of Tinseltown's woodwork.I am stunned beyond belief that this less-than-dynamic-duo of Lewis & Martin were a mega-popular comedy pair, going strong for close to a solid decade in movies together.To me, when it comes to comedy, Lewis & Martin were the absolute bottom of the barrel for laughs.
Even the dimwit antics of Abbott & Costello faired a helluva lot better than anything that these 2 did.Anyways - The Caddy's story (what there is of one) is so simple-minded that it can only be described as being nothing but pure brain-dead nonsense.Lewis plays Harvey Miller, a total golf-nut with serious performance anxiety.
This, of course, prevents Harvey from competing on the professional golf circuit and so he teaches his bosom buddy, Joe Anthony, everything he knows about the game and together (with Harvey being Joe's caddy) they go and beat the pants off of every other golfer entered at the all-important Monterey Golf Tournament.
A Martin and Lewis Moviebut Don't Tell Jerry.
It May be Hard to Believe Revisiting Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis Today, as a Musical-Comedy Team They were Once Considered the Cream of 1950's Entertainment.
It is Possible that if Lewis could have just let Things Unfold Naturally with the Strengths of the Two, They could have been even More Respected Critically, Better Remembered, and Possibly the Act would have Stayed Together Much Longer.But Jerry Lewis could Not Help Himself.
The Fat Man Yucking it Up at Jerry in Every Turn is a Prime Example of the Self Congratulatory Lewis..
One of the best of the Martin & Lewis films.
This has always been my favorite of the Martin & Lewis films.
It just all comes together, and whether you prefer Dean (as I do) or Jerry, there's something for everyone.The film starts at the Paramount Theater in New York, where actual footage of the crowds outside the Paramount to see Martin & Lewis is used.
From there we see Dean as the young man who gets away from the fishing business his father runs in San Francisco.
A party ensues and Dean sings one of his signature songs -- "That's Amore".
Troubles begin when Dean enters a local golf tournament...and begins rubbing elbows with the upper class, while Jerry (as caddy) is relegated into the background.
Meanwhile, at a country club affair, Dean sings one of his best movie ballads to date -- "You're The Right One" -- to his love interest -- Donna Reed (surprisingly, this film followed her performance in "From Here To Eternity").
And then it comes down to the big golf tournament!
It's all great fun.Dean Martin is very comfortable here, and why not...he was Italian (as the role called for) and played golf.
Joseph Calleia as Dean's papa is fine, as are the rest of the supporting cast.Highly recommended as one of Martin & Lewis' early films..
Full of laughs for Martin and Lewis fans, also see golf legends.
Directed by Norman Taurog, with a story by Danny Arnold, who also wrote the screenplay with Edmund Hartmann, this Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin comedy is full of laughs especially if you like Lewis's antics: his many voices and physical humor.
The cast also includes Donna Reed, Barbara Bates, Joseph Calleia, Fred Clark, Clinton Sundberg, Marjorie Gateson, and Romo Vincent (among others).The story is pretty straightforward, and is aided by a plot device or two, to enable the headlining duo to show their stuff: Martin plays a suave character who's a natural golfer and terrific singer (in fact, this is the film in which he first sings his signature song, "That's Amore", which was nominated for an Academy Award); Lewis plays Martin's doormat and "brother-in-law to be", who always finds himself in odd, funny situations.
Reed plays Martin's country club gal, Bates plays Lewis's fiancée.
Clark plays the latest boss to fire Lewis's character.
Vincent plays the boys' agent, who discovers their real talent doesn't lie on the links.The film opens with Joe Anthony (Martin) and Harvey Miller Jr.
(Lewis) looking out their window to their adoring fans; apparently, they're a comedy pair much like Martin & Lewis.
Over the years he worked in various sport related jobs, but gets fired from his latest by Mr. Baxter (Clark), whom he's dubbed Old Skinhead, when he takes his fiancée Lisa (Bates) to see Ben Hogan play in a tournament.
Joe's Papa (Calleia) is a fisherman, but Joe gets seasick so he hits the road and does various odd jobs himself until he finally returns home to find his sister Lisa is engaged to Harvey, who's just started to work as a golf tutor.
After a couple of scenes during which each lead gets to exhibit their talents (Martin sings while Lewis does slapstick "gags", the latter attracting the attention of a laughing rotund Eddie), and Joe wins the tournament, he's invited to stay at Kathy's before the big $10,000 tournament while Harvey follows in a truck full of livestock with his golf clubs.
By this time, Joe has adjusted quite well to the good life, and treating Harvey as a servant.
But eventually he returns with great fanfare to the big tournament and mayhem abounds at the golf course ...
There's a brief mistaken identity gag at the end - Kathy and Lisa mistake (the real) Martin & Lewis for Joe and Harvey..
I am not a Martin and Lewis fan, but to my surprise I enjoyed watching the Paramount DVD of this entry.
Jerry does his best to upstage Dean not only at every opportunity, but you get the impression that he is actually making some of these opportunities himself, and knowing director Norman Taurog as well as I do, I would definitely say that Taurog would have certainly encouraged Lewis in this endeavor so long as it didn't delay production!
No wonder Dean decided that a little Jerry goes more than a long way.
Of course, if you're a golf fan you'll enjoy seeing some of the greats on the screen.
You'll love Jerry and Dean in The Caddy.
In some Martin/Lewis movies, Jerry is the one that is hard to take but in this one - it is Dean.
Dean Martin is a total schmuck through MOST of it.
*Spoiler* Jerry is his future brother-in-law and friend, acting as caddy.
He is supposed to help Dean win and then the winnings, when they appear, will benefit the whole family (Jerry then being a part) but Dean meets Donna Reed (AKA money).
He appears smitten by the 'good life' and doesn't want to admit to her that he isn't rich, like most of the golfer set, and admit to her too that Jerry is his friend.
And oh, the reviewer who complained about Jerry's horning in on Dean's songs ...
Their movies were, after all, made to make money and Jerry's shenanigans were very popular.
Jerry Lewis does have huge ego (to this very day and I am, by no means, a fan) but it really was Dean's idea to end the partnership and there are always two sides to every story.