Ma and Pa Kettle at Home

Ma and Pa Kettle at Home is a 1954 American comedy film directed by Charles Lamont. It is the sixth, and also most successful, installment of Universal-International's Ma and Pa Kettle series starring Marjorie Main and Percy Kilbride.

Ma and Pa Kettle at Home
Directed byCharles Lamont
Written byKay Lenard
Based onThe Egg and I
1945 novel
by Betty MacDonald
Produced byRichard Wilson
StarringMarjorie Main
Percy Kilbride
Alan Mowbray
CinematographyCarl E. Guthrie
Edited byLeonard Weiner
Music byJoseph Gershenson
Production
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Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • March 10, 1954 (1954-03-10)
Running time
80 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1.75 million (US and Canada rental)[1][2]

Plot

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The Kettles' son Elwin enters a scholarship contest by submitting a report on farming techniques to a national magazine. The essay claims that his family's own farm is a model of modern efficiency. The magazine's editor, intrigued, insists on visiting the farm himself. Ma and Pa Kettle try to camouflage their ramshackle farm to reflect Elwin's visualization, while trying to keep the fastidious editor from inspecting the premises too closely.

Cast

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Production

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The role of the magazine's fussy editor was written for character comedian Edward Everett Horton, who agreed to make the film. A last-minute scheduling conflict forced Horton to withdraw, and the role was taken instead by Alan Mowbray.

Release

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Critical response

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Film critic Leonard Maltin considers Ma and Pa Kettle at Home as "the best entry in the Ma and Pa Kettle series."[3]

References

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  1. ^ "1954 Box Office Champs". Variety Weekly. January 5, 1955. p. 59. - figures are rentals in the US and Canada
  2. ^ "3 Majors Thrive on B Pix". Variety. 12 January 1955. p. 5.
  3. ^ "Ma and Pa Kettle at Home (1954) - Overview - TCM.com". TCM.com. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
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