Ma and Pa Kettle: Difference between revisions

'''Ma and Pa Kettle''' are comic film characters of the successful film series of the same name, produced by [[Universal Studios]], in the late 1940s and 1950s. The“The hillbilly duo have their hands full with a ramshackle farm and a brood of rambunctious children. When the future comes a-callin' in the form of modern houses, exotic locales, and newfangled ideas, Ma and Pa must learn how to make the best of it with luck, pluck, and a little country charm.”<ref>{{Citation|title=Ma & Pa Kettle Complete Comedy Collection|url=https://www.amazon.com/Ma-Kettle-Complete-Comedy-Collection/dp/B005DDN51A|access-date=2021-07-18}}</ref>

Originally based on real-life farming neighbors in [[Washington (state)|Washington state]] state, United States,<ref name="Fitzgerald67">{{citation

}}</ref> Ma and Pa Kettle were composite characters created by [[Betty MacDonald]] in whose 1945 best-selling, semi-fictional novelmemoir, ''[[The Egg and I]]'', they appeared. The success of the novel spawned the 1947 film ''[[The Egg and I (film)|The Egg and I]]'' starring [[Claudette Colbert]] and [[Fred MacMurray]], also co-starring [[Marjorie Main]] and [[Percy Kilbride]] as Ma and Pa Kettle. Main was nominated for an [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]] for her role.<ref name="main nomination">{{cite web |title=Awards for The Egg and I |publisher=Internet Movie Database |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039349/awards|access-date=11 November 2011}}</ref>

*'''Phoebe "Ma" Kettle''' (played by [[Marjorie Main]] in all ten10 films) is a raucous, hardworking country woman with a robust figure. She is more ambitious and smarter than Pa, but not by much, and can easily be fooled. (In the book, she is earthier and more profane. When she was a newly emigratedimmigrated Baltic teenager, she married Pa under the impression that, since he owned a farm, he was a solid prospect.) Ma is content with her role as mother to fifteen15 rambunctious, mischievous children on their ramshackle farm in rural Cape Flattery, Washington. Because she has so many children, Ma sometimes gets their names confused. A misspelled sign ''"Be-ware of childrun''" is posted in front of the farmhouse to warn unwanted visitors of hurled rocks, projectiles from slingshots and pea shooters, and other missiles launched by the rowdy and unpredictable Kettle brood.

*'''Franklin "Pa" Kettle''' (played by [[Percy Kilbride]] in the first eight films and by [[Parker Fennelly]] in the tenth and last film) is a gentle, slow-speaking, slow-thinking, and lazy man. His only talents appear to be avoiding work and winning contests. In the second film of the series, the family moves into a modern home with numerous electronic gadgets thatwon by Pa has won in a tobacco slogan-writing contest.<ref name="Fitzgerald67" /> As the series continued, various reasons were devised to have the family relocate to the "old place", sometimes for extended periods of time. Much of the comedy is cornball humor arising from preposterous situations, such as Pa masquerading as a wealthy industrialist ("P.A. Kettle" in ''Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki'', 1955)<ref name="Fitzgerald69">Fitzgerald, p. 69</ref> or being jailed after he accidentally causes racehorses to eat feed laced with concrete (''Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair'', 1952).<ref name="Fitzgerald69" /> He has a younger brother, Sedgewick Kettle (played by [[Arthur Hunnicutt]] in the ninth film), who owns their parents' farm in Mournful Hollow, Arkansas.

*'''Thomas "Tom" Kettle''' is the eldest of the Kettle children and is portrayed by [[Richard Long (actor)|Richard Long]] in the first four films. Tom works hard and goes to college at Washington State University, studying Animalanimal Husbandryhusbandry. He designs an improved chicken incubator. He meets his future wife, Kim, in a train ride back to Cape Flattery, but due to work issues, the two relocate to [[New York City]].

*'''Birdie Hicks''' is the Kettles' aging, cantankerous [[archenemy]] and is portrayed by [[Esther Dale]] in four films. She usually rides around in either her [[Model T]] car or her horse-drawn buggy with her elderly mother, lamenting Pa's laziness and the family's lack of organization. Birdie frequently competes with Ma whenever there is a quiltquilting or jam contest at the county fair. In a rare act of kindness, she gives Ma and Pa the prize money she won at a horse race so Rosie can go to college. Apparently, her mother, '''Mrs. Hicks''' or '''Mother Hicks''' (played by Isabel O'Madigan in two films and by Hallene Hill in one), sympathizes with the Kettles.

*'''Billy Reed''' is the town's efficaciouslocal salesmanmerchant, portrayed by [[Billy House]] in the first film (1947), and then by [[Emory Parnell]] in four films (1949–1954). Billy has a general store in downtown Cape Flattery where his motto is written: "If there's anything you need, just come in and see Billy Reed." He often stops at the Kettle place to sellvisit or to pay a visit todeliver themmerchandise.

*'''Rosie Kettle''' is the Kettles' second-eldest daughter portrayed by Gloria Moore in one and [[Lori Nelson]] in two films. She desires to go to Sheraton College, but is unable to do so because of the family's economic instability. ItShe is later learned thatto shebe worksworking in Seattle. Rosie travels to [[Waikiki]] with Ma and Pa to help with cousin Rodney's pineapple enterprise.

*'''Jonathan''' and '''Elizabeth Parker''' are Kim Kettle's parents portrayed by [[Ray Collins (actor)|Ray Collins]] and [[Barbara Brown (American actress)|Barbara Brown]] in two films. They travel from [[Boston]] to see Tom's and Kim's newborn baby in the fourth film. Elizabeth doesn'tdoes not get along with the Kettles at first, but over time, realizes her mistake; Jonathan enjoys being with them from the start. The Parkers invite Ma and Pa to a trip to [[Paris]] in the sixth film.

*'''Geoduck''' (Oliver Blake) and '''Crowbar''' (Oliver Blake and Teddy Hart, respectivelyor Stan Ross) are Pa's Native American friends and usually act as his handymen, doing various tasks around the house under Pa's "supervision." Geoduck, pronounced "jaw-duck" in ''The Egg and I'' and then standardized as "gear-duck", is the chief of their tribe.

In ''Ma and Pa Kettle'' and ''Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town'' it mentions there aremention 15 kids (including Thomas and Rosie above), although thereinconsistency is inconsistencyarises in the names

'''Bossie''': Bossie is the Kettles' red and white [[Dairy cattle|milk cow]], whowhich provides Ma, Pa, and their family of fifteen children with plenty of milk. Most of the time, it is the older Kettle boys or even Pa's [[Indian people|Indian]] friends, Geoduck and Crowbar, who milk her. In "Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town" (1950), Pa is seen milking Bossie while listening to the [[music]] playing on the [[radio]].{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

'''The Chickenschickens''': The Kettles keepare a flock of nearly a hundred100 [[chicken]]s kept by the Kettles on their broken-down [[farm]], whowhich provide them with many [[egg as food|eggs]] each day. Sometimes, one or two of the hens cause mischief towards the Kettles or other characters in the films. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Home"'' (1954), Ma Kettle's prized [[Sussex chicken|speckled hen]] is seen a few times laying eggs on Mannering's head or in his [[bowler hat]].{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

'''Pa Kettle's team''': Pa Kettle's team includes an old, retired trotting [[horse]], named Emma, and a white [[donkey]] wearing a straw hat, whowhich together pull Pa's wagon around the county. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Thethe Fair"'' (1952), Pa buys Emma originally to win a horse race at the county fair.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

'''Nick''': Nick is the Kettles' prized black [[bull]]. He spends most of his time living on the Kettles' farm, which is his main home, but in "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Home" (1954)'', he sneaks out of the farm and lumbers towards the Maddocks' farm to visit one of John Maddocks' prize cows, Bessie. He is often seen wearing a [[derby hat]] on his head, similar to the samehat typeworn of hat thatby Pa Kettle wears.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

'''The Goatsgoats''': Aare herd of four white [[Saanen goat|Saanen]] [[goat]]s that live on the Kettles' farm. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Home" (1954)'', their original owner, John Maddocks, sells them to Pa Kettle for $100 ({{Inflation|US|100|1954|fmt=eq}}). The goats spend most of their time grazing around the farm, but the largest of them, a large buckbilly with massive, curved horns, often causes everyone trouble. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Home" (1954)'', he butts Ma, then Mannering, and lastly Pa, after they turn their backs to him. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Back Onon Thethe Farm" (1951)'', he starts chewing on several sticks of [[dynamite]] thatwhich Pa bought to make a new [[well]] for Ma, but Pa keeps snatching them from him.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

'''Agnes''': Agnes is the Kettles' family [[Bluetick Coonhound]], whowhich also lives on the farm. She is often seen wearing a [[sweater]] that Ma Kettle made for her. In "''Ma and Pa Kettle Atat Home" (1954)'', she produces a litter of [[puppies]] for the Kettles and their friends at their [[Christmas Eve]] party.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

| caption = The set as it appears in the film ''[[Ma and Pa Kettle Back on the Farm]]'' (1951).

The '''Kettle Farm''' (also known as '''Gausman Ranch''', playfully named for set decorator [[Russell A. Gausman]]) was a [[movie ranch]] in [[Universal Studios]], where most of the ''Ma and Pa Kettle'' features were filmed.<ref>{{cite book | last=Gennawey | first=S. | title=Universal versus Disney: The Unofficial Guide to American Theme Parks' Greatest Rivalry | publisher=Unofficial Guides | year=2014 | isbn=978-1-62809-015-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tjMrDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA32 | access-date=April 28, 2018 | page=32}}</ref> The set was redressed several times to resemble a cluttered farmhouse with dilapidating farm buildings.<ref>{{cite book | last=Vogel | first=M. | title=Marjorie Main: The Life and Films of Hollywood's "Ma Kettle" | publisher=McFarland | year=2013 | isbn=978-1-4766-0426-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J-NXUr1_IDQC&pg=PA68 | access-date=April 28, 2018 | page=68}}</ref> The Kettles' farmhouse did not appear in ''Ma and Pa Kettle on Vacation'' and ''Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki''. The farm buildings were restored and painted for ''Ma and Pa Kettle at Home''. The entire farm set was modified for ''The Kettles in the Ozarks'', where it was reused as Uncle Sedge's farm in Arkansas. The remodeled farmhouse was also used for ''The Kettles on Old MacDonald's Farm''. Prior to the Kettle Farm area being demolished in 1969 to begin construction on the Gibson Amphitheatre, it was significantly altered for the filming of ''[[Spartacus (film)|Spartacus]]''. Today, this site is [[The Wizarding World of Harry Potter]].

#''[[Ma and Pa Kettle (film)|Ma and Pa Kettle]]'' (1949) a.k.a.or ''The Further Adventures of Ma and Pa Kettle''

Ma and Pa Kettle first appeared in supporting roles as neighbors in ''[[The Egg and I (film)]]'', starring [[Fred MacMurray]] and [[Claudette Colbert]] as a refined city couple who move to a rural chicken farm. Marjorie Main, a veteran [[character actress]], played a hardy country woman in dozens of films, and so was a natural for the role of Ma Kettle. Main was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress]].<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039349/awards ''The Egg and I'', Awards] at [[Internet Movie Database]]</ref>

After the success of ''The Egg and I'', sheMarjorie Main and Percy Kilbride starred in their own series of Ma and Pa Kettle movies, which became box-office bonanzas for [[Universal Pictures]], having earned an estimated $35 million for the entire series.<ref name=maandpainfo /><ref>Main and Kilbride also appeared together in the 1948 [[Universal Studios|Universal]] film "[[Feudin', Fussin' Andand A-Fightin]]", costarring [[Donald O'Connor]] and [[Joe Besser]]. Many have mistaken this movie to be a Kettle film. Main played Maribel Matthews and Kilbride played Billy Caswell.</ref>

KilbrideUniversal retiredinsisted afteron makingreleasing only one Kettle picture annually, during the spring months. Consequently there was a backlog of completed but unreleased films. ''Ma and Pa Kettle atGo to Paris'' was ultimately released as ''[[Ma and Pa Kettle on Vacation]]''; ''Ma and Pa Kettle Hit the Road Home'' (althoughbecame ''Waikiki[[Ma and Pa Kettle at Home]]''. wasKilbride releasedretired last)after the latter film in 1953, primarily due tofrom boredom with the character, as well as health concerns.<ref name="'Pa Kettle To Quit Family Film Series">{{cite news |last=Thomas |first=Bob |title='Pa Kettle To Quit Family Film Series |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1798&dat=19530408&id=vAAdAAAAIBAJ&pg=5511,749071 |access-date=2014-05-11 |newspaper=[[Sarasota Journal]] |date=1953-04-08}}</ref> Kilbride's farewell film was ''[[Ma and Pa Kettle at Waikiki]]'', filmed in February 1952 but finally released in 1955.

*1951 - Marjorie Main alone 15th -most popular star

*1952 - Main and Kilbride 25th -most popular

*1953 - Main and Kilbride 13th -most popular

*1954 - Main and Kilbride 15th -most popular

*1955 - Main and Kilbride 25th -most popular

| isbn= 0-14-024916-8}}</ref> Each episode was only 15 minutes long. Ma Kettle was played by Doris Rich and Pa Kettle was played by Frank Twedell. [[Betty Lynn]] (better known as [[Barney Fife]]'s girlfriend Thelma Lou from ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'') played Betty MacDonald in some episodes, including "Pa Turns Over Aa New Leaf" (which aired on May 21, 1952). The role was usually played by [[Pat Kirkland]]. Another episode, "The Purloined Jacket", starred Mary Perry as Cammy, Richard Carlyle as Joe Kettle, and William A. Lee as Ed Peabody.{{citation needed|date=March 2020}}

Animator [[Walter Lantz]] produced a short-lived cartoon series for [[Universal Pictures]] called "[[Maw & Paw|Maw and Paw]]", although only four cartoons were released between 1953 and 1955. The characters Maw and Paw (voiced by [[Grace Stafford]] and [[Dal McKennon]], respectively) were based on the characters of Ma and Pa Kettle. The spellings of Maw and Paw Kettle appeared in the book ''The Egg and I'' (1945). Another Walter Lantz cartoon, "The Ostrich Egg And I" (1956), from the [[Maggie & Sam]] series, was a spoof of ''The Egg and I'', with Maggie voiced by [[Grace Stafford]] and Sam voiced by [[Daws Butler]].{{citation needed|date=March 2020}}

In ''[[The Munsters]]'' season 1-one episode "[[List of The Munsters episodes#Season 1 (1964–65)|Family Portrait]]" (S01 E13, 1964-12-17), a magazine writer makes a reference to the Kettles when he sees the Munster home, which he implies resembles the Kettle farmhouse: "Let's see if Ma and Pa Kettle are home."<ref>"[[List of The Munsters episodes|Family Portrait]]" episode - ''[[The Munsters]]'' 1964, Kayro-Vue Universal Studios.</ref>

In several WarnersWarner BrothersBros. cartoons of the 1950s and 1960s, prolific voice artist [[June Foray]] imitates Marjorie Main's voice whenever a big, aggressive female character appears in the cartoon. Many boomer kids became familiar with Foray's version of Main's voice before they discovered Marjorie Main as the source of Foray's imitation.{{clarify|date=March 2020}}{{citation needed|date=March 2020}}

*''Ma and Pa Kettle Back on the Farm''.

as the second part of [[Universal Studios|Universal]]'s ''Franchise Collection'' series.

as a [[Turner Classic Movies|TCM]] Vault Collection presented by [[Universal Studios]].:

as a [[Turner Classic Movies|TCM]] Vault Collection presented by [[Universal Studios]].:

* {{tcmdbTCMDb title|241083|Ma and Pa Kettle}}