Check and Double Check
| Check and Double Check | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Melville W. Brown |
| Produced by | William LeBaron |
| Written by |
Bert Kalmar J. Walter Ruben Harry Ruby |
| Starring |
Charles Correll Freeman Gosden |
| Cinematography | William Marshall |
| Edited by | Claude Berkeley |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | RKO Radio Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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77 mins. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $967,000 |
| Box office | 1,810,000 |
Check and Double Check is a 1930 comedy film made and released by RKO Radio Pictures based on the top-rated Amos 'n' Andy radio show. The title was derived from a catchphrase associated with the show. Directed by Melville W. Brown, from a screenplay by Bert Kalmar, J. Walter Ruben, and Harry Ruby, it starred Charles Correll and Freeman Gosden, in blackface, in the roles of Andy and Amos, respectively, which they had created for the radio show. The film also featured Duke Ellington and his "Cotton Club Band".
Amos and Andy run the "Fresh Air Taxicab Company, Incorporated", so named because their one taxi has no top. Their old vehicle has broken down, causing a traffic jam. Stuck in the traffic jam are John Blair and his wife, who were on their way to meet an old family friend at the train station, Richard Williams. When the Blairs do not show up, he makes his own way to their house, where he meets their daughter, Jean, who was also his childhood sweetheart. The two reignite their old flame, much to the chagrin of Ralph Crawford, who has been attempting to woo Jean himself.
That night, prior to attending a meeting at their lodge, the Mystic Knights of the Sea, they are hired to transport Duke Ellington and His Cotton Club band to a party being given at the Blair estate. While they are on their way, Richard is confiding to John Blair his feelings for his daughter, and also stating that he has no intention of pursuing Jean unless he can afford to start his own business to support them. After the death of his father, Richard's family lost all their money. He has come up to New York because his grandfather used to own a large home in Harlem, and he hopes to be able to find the deed to it, in order to sell it for the money needed to start his business. He thinks the deed must be hidden somewhere on the property itself. Unknown to Blair or Richard, is that Ralph is eavesdropping on their conversation.
After his discussion with Blair, Richard runs into Amos and Andy, who used to work for his father down south, and they are all happy to see one another. Having delivered their fare, the two cab drivers rush back to town to attend their lodge meeting. The lodge has an annual tradition where a pair of members must spend a night in a haunted house in Harlem, and find a document labeled, "Check and Double Check". Once they find it, they are to replace it, in a different location, with their own version, for the lodge members to find the following year. The haunted house in question in none other than the house previously owned by Richard's grandfather.
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Wikipedia