The Barber Shop (Short 1933)

The Barber Shop: Directed by Arthur Ripley. With W.C. Fields, Elise Cavanna, Harry Watson, Dagmar Oakland. An inept barber maintains his good-humored optimism in his small town shop despite having a hen-pecking harridan for a wife and a total lack of tonsorial skill.

“THE BARBER SHOP (Paramount, 1933), directed by Arthur Ripley, marks the fourth and final Mack Sennett Star Comedy short to feature W.C. Fields (who also scripted), following THE DENTIST (1932), THE FATAL GLASS OF BEER (1933) and THE PHARMACIST (1933). Not quite as famous as the initial two, THE BARBER SHOP does bear a strong resemblance to THE PHARMACIST, that of Fields wearing a straw hat with an open top; his encounter with a bank robber; and having Elsie Cavanna (famous as the drill patient in THE DENTIST) in the role of his wife. As with THE DENTIST, however, the customers in THE BARBER SHOP are more victims than patrons. For Fieldsu0026#39; final short (lasting 21 minutes), much of it falls into familiar territory in true Fields-comedic style, with touches of originality, especially his chosen character name, pun intended.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSet in Felton City, u0026quot;Population 873, Elevation two feet below sea level,u0026quot; the story revolves around the day in the life of Cornelius Ou0026#39;Hare (W.C. Fields), a small town barber with a nagging wife (Elsie Cavanna) and a young son, Ronald (Harry Watson). Ou0026#39;Hareu0026#39;s morning starts off peacefully as he sits in front of his place of business (with his home in back of the barber shop), greeting the passing residents while sharpening his razor, then playing his huge bass fiddle he names u0026quot;Lena.u0026quot; After dining at the breakfast table with his family, Ou0026#39;Hareu0026#39;s work day, shared by his manicurist (Dagmar Oakland), soon comes to a series of mishaps as he shaves off a mole from a manu0026#39;s chin, places an ultra hot towel over that same customeru0026#39;s (John St. Clair) face by holding a pair of tongs, and unwittingly locking a fat man (u0026quot;Fattyu0026quot; Alexander) in a steam room before Ou0026#39;Hareu0026#39;s day is complete as he finds himself face to face with an armed bank robber (Cyril Ring).u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWith Fields being best known playing one with a strong dislike for children and animals, THE BARBER SHOP shows his compassion towards his offspring, listening attentively listening to his riddles, rather than being short-tempered towards his annoyance. In fact, thereu0026#39;s even a brief scene where he happily throws a ball over to the neighborhood street kids, only to have it landing on top of a manu0026#39;s noggin. So not to be a total loss, the plot does include Fieldsu0026#39; encounter with a baby in a stroller hitting him over the head with a milk bottle, as well as his involvement with Mrs. Broadbottomu0026#39;s (Fay Holderness) bratty daughter, Gloria, wearing an assortment of party hats. A dog takes part sitting by the barberu0026#39;s chair awaiting for another chance for Ou0026#39;Hare to accidentally cut off an ear while shaving a customer, but all the dog can do is witness some u0026quot;close shaves.u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlthough the brief climatic chase and its closing fail to recapture some rather amusing scenes earlier in the story, THE BARBER SHOP does recapture classic routines originated on stage by Fields himself, some for which he reprized to better advantage in his later feature film comedies. With Alison Skipworth and Kathleen Howard making the grade as Fieldsu0026#39; most notable co-stars during his years (1932-38) at Paramount, Elsie Cavanna shouldnu0026#39;t go unnoticed with her participation in three of Fields four comedy shorts, with THE DENTIST as their most famous and revived.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTHE BARBER SHOP, along with other Fieldsu0026#39; shorts, has turned up occasionally on television over the years, notably cable stations (American Movie Classics in the 1990s, and Turner Classic Movies a decade later), and distribution on video and DVD formats, with best possible prints from the Criterion Collection. For some amusements, watch Cornelius Ou0026#39;Hareu0026#39;s barber shop methods. For a good haircut and a shave, try someplace else. (***)”