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Did You Ever See a Dream Talking?

Will Hay's 'silly ass' sidekick Claude Hulbert is excellent in this ingenious wartime savings propaganda comedy short.

Comedy 1943 6 mins

Overview

Claude Hulbert is in splendid form here as a bumbling 'silly ass', too selfish to invest in war savings, in this wonderfully entertaining Ealing Studios short. Hulbert's Home Guard volunteer fritters his money on whisky, a new shaving mirror and a hat for his wife, until his good and bad guardian angels (both brilliantly played by Hulbert) invade his dreams and wage battle for his conscience.

Around the time this film was made, Hulbert was becoming familiar as a dithering foil for fellow clown Will Hay, and together they did their bit for the war effort. Hulbert joined Hay on the trail of a Nazi spy in the Ealing feature The Ghost of St. Michael's (1941) and on stage in patriotic revue, where the duo played inept air raid wardens. In this short, though, Claude gets a chance to showcase his often overlooked talent as a solo performer.

Featuring

Claude Hulbert and Enid Trevor

Genres

Comedy

Country

United Kingdom

Language

English

Subjects

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