The Horn Blows at Midnight
| The Horn Blows at Midnight | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | Raoul Walsh |
| Produced by | Mark Hellinger |
| Written by |
Sam Hellman James V. Kern Aubrey Wisberg |
| Starring |
Jack Benny Alexis Smith |
| Music by | Franz Waxman |
| Cinematography | Sidney Hickox |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
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Release date
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Running time
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78 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945) is a comedy fantasy film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Jack Benny.
Its biggest claim to fame, apart from its star, is its failure at the box office. In the two decades following its release, Benny often exploited the film's failure for laughs in his popular radio and television comedy series The Jack Benny Program, making the film a well-known entity to his wide audience, even if they had never seen it. The Horn Blows At Midnight would prove to be Benny's final starring feature, although he would continue as a radio and TV star (as well as making cameo appearances in films) for years afterwards.
The Horn Blows At Midnight had the misfortune to be released only eight days after the death of U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This may have contributed to its poor reception, although the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel, also dealing with the afterlife, opened on Broadway at roughly the same time and became a hit.
Athanael (Jack Benny), the third trumpet player in the orchestra of a late night radio show sponsored by Paradise Coffee (motto: "It's Heavenly"), falls asleep listening to the announcer, who is doing his best to prove it is "the coffee that makes you sleep." Athanael dreams he is an angel (junior grade) and a trumpeter in the orchestra of Heaven. Due to the praise of his girlfriend Elizabeth (Alexis Smith), the assistant of the deputy chief of the department of small planet management (Guy Kibbee), he is given the mission of destroying planet 339001 (Earth) and its troublesome inhabitants by blowing the "Last Trumpet" at exactly midnight, signaling the end of the world.
When he is deposited at the Hotel Universe via the building's elevator, he accidentally foils a robbery attempt by suave guest Archie Dexter (Reginald Gardiner) and his girlfriend accomplice, Fran Blackstone (Dolores Moran). Dexter blames Fran and breaks off their relationship. When Athanael prevents her attempt at suicide from the hotel's roof, he misses the deadline. Fortunately, Elizabeth persuades her boss to give him a second chance. She travels to Earth to inform him.
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Wikipedia