Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Joe E. Brown is Wellington Holmes, an Easterner determined to bring horticultural beauty to the West.

He assures his assistant Ogletorphe that the West has been tamed. Of course, no sooner has he uttered those words than a gang of outlaws descend on the stagecoach in which they’re traveling.

Wellington winds up knocking out gang leader Buckskin Bill and two of the other outlaws as a result of his clumsiness.

Then, frightened by a gun a posse member has drawn, Wellington accidentally helps shoot a fleeing outlaw right out of his saddle.

Town leaders proclaim him a hero. Then they name him the new marshal of Big Bluff, where there are daily funerals whenever Buckskin Bill is around and keeping lawman upright .. well, it’s been challenging.

Soon, Wellington learns that Buckskin Bill wants to plan another funeral. For none other than Wellington Holmes.

But he also learns the outlaw has a fondness for the ladies. So Wellington dons a dress, pretends to be Oglethorpe’s wife Henrietta and tries to sneak out of town that way.

That’s when he encounters pretty Elena Conchita Montoya, who’s about to have a $50,000 problem. That’s the amount of ransom Buckskin Bill is demanding to release her father, alive and unharmed.

Joe E. Brown as Wellington Holmes, an accidental marshal acting braver than he is again in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Adele Mara as Elena Conchita Montoya, trying to convince Henrietta that a mouse is nothing to fear in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Review:

You’d best be in the mood for silliness when you settle in to watch this comedy Western, because that’s what you’re in for. Joe E. Brown spends nearly half the film disguised as a woman.

Some of the gags land better than others. Encountering a band of Indians, Wellington wins them over by scalping himself. In truth, he’s slicing off part of the wig he used for his Henrietta ruse.

And a running joke is one of the flowers Wellington drags everywhere. It wilts when there’s danger. It blooms to full blossom when he’s kissing Elena.

Soon-to-be Western fixtures Forrest Tucker and Lloyd Bridges have small roles as members of Bucksin’s gang. This marked one of the first credited roles for Adele Mara, just 18 when the film was released.

As for Brown, he’d been making comedies by the dozens since 1928 and, at age 50, was nearing the end of his time as a leading man.

Victor Jory as Buckskin Bill, scheming to get out of jail and lure Wellington into a trap in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Fritz Field as Robert Oglethorpe, getting a threatening letter from Buckskin Bill in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Directed by:
Charles Barton

Cast:
Joe E. Brown … Wellington Holmes
Adele Mara … Elena Conchita Montoya
Victor Jory … Buckskin Bill
Fritz Field …. Robert Oglethorpe
Don Beddoe … Hill
Will Wright … Long
Russell Simpson … Mayor Potter
Joan Woodbury … Maria
Lloyd Bridges … Skinny
Ralph Peters … Butch
Joe McGuinn … Hank
Forrest Tucker … Red
Pedro de Cordoba … Don Carlos Montoya
Noble Johnson … Chief Standing Bull
Chief Thundercloud … Indian Interpretor

Runtime: 71 min.

Joe E. Brown as Henrietta Oglethorpe, frightened by a mouse in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Joan Woodbury as Maria, trying to frighten Henrietta with the Romanian evil eye in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Memorable lines:

Wellington Holmes: “You’ve got to stop believing all that trash you read in Western stories. All the bandits are tame by now. All the Indians are standing in front of cigar stores.”
Robert Oglethorpe: “How do you know, sir?”
Holmes: “It stands to reason. People aren’t shooting each other any more. You’ll probably find Big Bluff so quiet, you’ll be bored.”

Wellington Holmes: “I demand a free hand with this Buckskin Bill. I want carte blache for my coup de grace.”
Townsman: “Sure, if we can get any. Personally, I’d use a .45.”

Don Carlos Montoya: “Remarkable woman, Mrs. Oglethorpe. In a rugged sort of way.”

Victor Jory as Buckskin Bill, demanding a $50,000 ransom from Don Carlos Montoya (Pedro de Cordoba) and daughter Elena (Adele Mara) in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Noble Johnson as Chief Standing Bull, amazed as Wellington Holmes scalps himself in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Chief Thundercloud as the Indian interpretor, trying to come up with an Indian name for Wellington Holmes in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Russell Simpson as Mayor Potter, Don Beddoe as Hill and Adele Mara as Elena, wondering what Wellington is going to do about her father in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Joe E. Brown as Henrietta Oglethorpe, drawing Elena Conchita Montoya (Adele Mara) close as bandits attack in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)

Joe E. Brown as Wellington Holmes, realizing his celebration of the demise of Buckskin Bill (Victor Jory) was a bit premature in Shut My Big Mouth (1942)