Series: Charley Chase Director: Edgar Kennedy Producer: Hal Roach Dialogue: H.M. Walker Photography: Art Lloyd Editor: Richard C. Currier Sound: Elmer Raguse Stars: Charley Chase, Thelma Todd, Tenen Holtz, Dell Henderson, Carl Stockdale, Edgar Kennedy Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Released: 19 April 1930 Length: 2 reels Production No.: C-28 Filming dates: January 3 - February 1, 1930 Rating: 6/10

All Teed Up

Available on DVD:

• See also Le Joueur de Golf and El Jugador de Golf

Charley has just bought himself a set of golf clubs before going into a cafe and sitting himself down next to Thelma. He orders a banana split and pays the soda jerk who gives him his change and tells Thelma that "her boyfriend" has just paid for her drink. Slightly embarrassed, Thelma offers to pay Charley for the drink but he insists she doesn't need to (but eventually he takes her money). The soda jerk has a conversation with a couple of barstool drinkers about Charley and Thelma whilst Thelma asks Charley about his golfing. She tells him that her father is the President of the Lakeside golf club, which so happens to be the club Charley wants to join. She proposes he goes along to the club that afternoon to make a good impression so as to have his membership approved. Charley arrives at the club and is introduced to three fellow golfers who accompany him for a game. Judge Quirt, Senator Brown and Doctor Pickett spend a while with Charley taking the piss out of their names before Charley finally confesses he hasn't a clue how to play golf. The judge explains the basic rules to Charley and off we go. Charley's first shot is amazingly accurate and lands on the green not too far from the hole. The judge follows but fluffs his shot, partly due to Charley distracting him with incessant chatting. The President of the club turns up at the club house and goes out on the course for some practice. Meanwhile some cheating is going on with the game with the doctor moving his ball on the green a little closer to the flag, whilst the senator tries to casually move his ball out of a sand trap with his club. With the judge looking over him and Charley blowing his nose in fantastic fashion, it's no wonder the senator misses his shot.

On the green Charley encounters a problem whereby he cannot play his shot on account of the cheating doctor who has placed his own ball just in front of Charley's. No problem. Charley simply plays a smart trick shot which goes around his opponent's ball and into the hole (I wonder how many takes that took to film!) The next hole sees a similar problem where Charley is unable to putt his ball on account of another ball being in the way (complete disregard for the rules by the way). Charley makes the shot and wins the hole. Hole three and Charley doesn't waste any time. He gets a hole in one, though a bit fortuitously (the ball cannons off the head of the President before going into the hole). The next hole and Charley hits a dud shot which lands in the road under a fruit & veg truck. As the others tee up for their shots Charley's pocket watch suddenly comes to life and rings like an alarm bell. The doctor confiscates it and then promptly destroys it before realising the watch he has just broken is his own. The senator takes his shot but his ball hits Charley on the head just as he is preparing to move the truck so he can play his ball. The bump on the head causes Charley to involuntarily drive the truck through the fence and onto the course. Everybody scatters and tries to run away. One man falls into a ditch, others cling to trees. Judge Quirt, who is also the Chairman of the Board of Governors, calls the members of the club to a meeting in order to expel Charley from their group. Charley is thrown out into the road when Thelma drives past with her father and stops. They pick him up and exchange pleasantries until Charley enquires to the father on how he finds the stock market. Charley instantly regrets the question as the film ends with Edgar Kennedy strangling him!

Favourite bit Just as Senator Brown goes to play his shot from the sand bunker Charley decides to blow his nose.

Trivia • This was the sixth film that Charley Chase and Thelma Todd appeared in together. • Copyrighted April 7, 1930. • Also filmed in Spanish as El Jugador de Golf and in French as Le Joueur de Golf. Both versions were in four reels. The Spanish version was released in Mexico on May 8, 1930, and in Barcelona, Spain, on May 19, 1930. • The film went into production before Whispering Whoopee but was released one month after it. • Charley Chase sings the song over the opening titles. It's called "Golfer's Blues". • Shortly after Charley arrives at the golf club the desk clerk tells him "I've arranged a foursome for you". Wow, I'd love to be a member of that club!!! Oh wait, it's a golf term. Damn. I was way off with what I was thinking. • In the scene where Charley tries to sink his ball on the second green (around 13 minutes) you can clearly see the bright lights from the camera crew shining on the caddy who removes the flag, and then when Charley crouches down to observe his shot. • When Charley drives the truck through the fence there is a woman sitting up in the tree on the right-hand side of the screen. See here. • The scene where Charley is driving the truck across the golf course before crashing through the fence a second time to go out onto the road you can see the tire marks of the truck leading to the fence ahead of him which indicates previous takes of the shot were made. • As Charley is being expelled from the club he starts to break the golf clubs from his bag and utters the line, "you can take these shinny sticks...." But it clearly sounds like he says shitty sticks! • Some sources incorrectly state that the part of the club President Mr. Walker is played by Hal Roach's gag writer H.M. Walker. This is incorrect. Also, notice how when we first see him he has a big beard, yet at the end of the film his beard is neatly trimmed? • The title card on the DVD release has the Film Classics logo on it. I personally modified this and replaced it with the original MGM logo to show how it would have originally looked. My opinion • To be honest it's a nothing-special film but at the same time there is not a whole lot wrong with it either. As a keen golfer myself it is frustrating to see how many rules are being flouted by the players during the film but overall it's quite an average comedy. Thelma Todd is barely seen and Charley just seems to be having a lot of fun.

	Charley Chase Charley
	Thelma Todd Thelma
	Tenen Holtz Senator Brown
	Dell Henderson Judge Quirt
	Carl Stockdale Dr. Pickett
	Edgar Kennedy Thelma's father
	Harry Bowen Soda jerk
	Russell Custer Counter customer
	Jack Hill Chauffeur
	Frank Holliday Desk clerk
	Sammy Brooks Short golfer
	Clarence Wertz Golfer who is chased into ditch
	Lyle Tayo Spectator
	Gordon Douglas Spectator
	Bob Minford Spectator
	Cy Slocum Muddy spectator
	UNIDENTIFIED Mr. Walker, the club President [*this is NOT H.M. Walker]

UNIDENTIFIED CAST

CREDITS (click image to enlarge)

SHOT ON THE BACK LOT (click any image to enlarge)

SHOT ON LOCATION

Acknowledgements: Smile When The Raindrops Fall by Brian Anthony & Andy Edmonds (book) The Charley Chase Talkies 1929-1940 by James L. Neibaur (book) Brent Seguine (identification of Jack Hill) George R. Dey (help) Doug DiFranco (identification of Sammy Brooks) Jesse Brisson (identification of Clarence Wertz, Cy Slocum, Bob Minford, Gordon Douglas, Lyle Tayo, Russell Custer) Richard W. Bann confirmed to me that 'Mr. Walker' is not H.M. Walker, as some sources claim. This page was last updated on: 20 April 2024