The Naughty Nineties (1945)

In the 1890s, a show boat that travels along the Mississippi river is taken over by some swindlers when the Captain (Henry Travers) loses complete ownership in a crooked card game. The show boat's leading man (Bud Abbott) and his sidekick (Lou Costello) attempt to restore ownership to the Captain. Plot-wise, this Abbott & Costello vehicle comes across as a rehash of the many riverboat movies that preceded it, most notably SHOW BOAT (the riverboat used in the film is from the 1936 James Whale film) and the film stops cold as Abbott & Costello do their shtick but who minds when they're doing some of their very best routines. The complete sketch of their legendary Who's On First? is performed here and it's as funny as ever. The film's other comedic gems includes the "feathers in the cake" sequence and a hilarious segment where Costello thinks he's eating a cooked cat! Some unmemorable songs are tossed in as filler. Directed by Jean Yarbrough. With Rita Johnson as the villainess, Alan Curtis, Lois Collier and Joe Sawyer.