Traditions

If you’re like me, growing up in the northeast during the wintertime, you prayed for a snow day. And you had your traditions. Before the advanced weather models and superstitious rituals of flushing ice down the toilet or sleeping with a spoon under your pillow, you’d wake up earlier than normal just to watch the ticker at the bottom of the local news channel. BUT, if you got lucky enough, they’d announce it, albeit in the same news ticker fashion, the night before during reruns of Mork and Mindy.

If you’re not like me… well you are probably tall, thin, have a full head of hair, and possibly an even temperament.

The nightly announcement was clutch though. You see… you can’t undo that call. There were no yellow flags or sideline rewinds. It meant all bets were off, you could stay up late—during the week—and engage in your favorite snow day traditions. for me this meant watching the most epic road trip comedy ever committed to the silver screen. One that is virtually unknown today. A tradition that I continued through high school with friends and even with my children till this day.

It’ a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World ran from anywhere between 159 to 202 minutes depending on the release version you watched. To this I say suck it Snyder Cut, directors were splicing and dicing well before you came onto the scene. Coming in at a conservative three hours on average, not including intermission, this was a huge deal for a 6-year-old me–as well as my 8-year-old counterpart. Sitting on the floor, on the same physical plane, far too close, the hardwood cabinet, like monstrosity, was a CRT television at the time glowed like a failing supernova. Snowflakes falling, visible only in the amber halos of streetlights and lampposts, this incorporated all the things an odd 6-year-old loved at the time.

Old movies, old cars, slapstick comedy, not going to school, Pepsi, Doritos and so, so much more.

So virtually unknown is a bit of a misnomer, there are still influences of this movie seen today. Most know the early ought comedy Rat Race —a spiritually successor to Mad World—with its cartoonish stylized introduction and ad campaign a direct lift. Even Donut Media’s first long form series The Big Trip has advertisement references to Rat Race and therefore Mad World.

You might be saying, “You are 400 words in, get to the cars” to which I’d retort, “chill out jagoff!” Just like the premise of the move… we’ll get there. But you need to understand how this became a tradition for all of that to matter. Like most mid-80’s to mid-90’s families, VHS was life. And like most, we’d visit our local video store to gear up for the weekend. ANNNND like most kids of our generation, it meant that our parents would often expose us to movies we’d deem inappropriate for children today. Now this wasn’t out of malice or some devious plan to make us, well, deviants. #80sSatanicPanic

If you didn’t hear me before, VHS was life. Going to Pizza Hut (which no one apparently out-pizzas), ordering a pitcher (yes, a full pitcher) of Pepsi, and slamming some pan-style pizza pie was the suburban ritual of all American families on a Friday night. Well, unless you were a Domino’s family like my cousins. Afterwards, you’d hit the local video rental store, pick out three or four movies as a family, and head home. Why? Because buying a VHS at the time meant shelling out close to $80 bucks at your local K-Mart. That’s close to $215 dollars today kiddos. A three-hour movie, well that meant even more moneys. Movies on VHS rested solely in the “Christmas present” territory with Nintendo Games, Big Wheels, and the demonic Teddy Ruxpen.

Before our generational parents–trying not to say Boomers–were hooked on NCIS, NCIS Los Angeles, NCIS Hawaii, CSI, CSI Miami, CSI Vegas, NCIS Sydney, CSI Saskatoon, other acronym/locations combinations, and Everybody Loves Raymond… they liked raunchy comedy movies and action epics. I’d watched as much of Animal House and Terminator on fast-forward as I’d watched at normal speed. VHS was life, if you rented it, you watched it. But It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World that’s one of the coveted VHS’s we owned. Right there along with Back to the Future and Ghostbusters. Like parents of today, mine had “must watch” movies. Movies that helped you appreciate the history of film. Movies they loved. Movies that contributed to their character. Movies that made them, them.

For my mom, that was Pollyanna and for my dad, it was It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. If there is one sentence that can place my parent’s dynamic to a T, it is probably that one. Now I’m not saying Pollyanna isn’t a decent film. It introduced me to steak and ice cream, and with an equally audacious runtime of over 2 hours, it has some moments. Albeit light on cars and comedy with its 1910 setting.

So, what makes this film so much better than Pollyanna?

Cars! I already said that…

Mad World has a butt load of vehicles (note butt load is an official imperial measurement, look it up). While the cars aren’t as explicitly featured as say, the Fast and Furious movies, this is at its heart a road trip movie. Therefore, each character or group of characters has their car, or sometimes, multiple cars. Now there is so much lore behind this film. The ensemble cast of 15+ A-List actors and/or comedians. Over 40 notable cameos, both credited and uncredited. It was originally going to take place in Scottland. Director Stanley Kramer was renowned for really dramatically dramatic dramas and had never made a comedy before. Multiple director, studio, and fan cuts or versions exist. You could write an anthology about the development alone.

The plot is simple. A group of motorists encounter an erratic driver, Smiler Grogan (played by Jimmy Durante of Frosty the Snowman fame), who “sailed right out there” off a cliff. Upon checking on him he regales the motorists that a treasure of $350,000 ($3.5 million in today’s money) is buried under a “big wubyah” in Santa Rosita State Park. Obviously, this is not former President George W. Bush, but a vague explanation that the motorists argue about. After he literally and figuratively “kicks the bucket” the motorists return to their vehicles.

A big shout out to the Internet Movie Car Database and Curbside Classics. Their research helped catalogue all the vehicles for this article.

Even though his appearance, and by extension his cars, the Smiler is the overall antagonist for the film. His aggressive piloting of a 1957 Ford Fairlane 500 around the Palms to Pines Scenic Byway in the San Bernadino National Forest rightly pisses off his fellow drivers. J. Russell Finch–played by Milton Berle whose last appearance was Uncle Leo in Kenan & Kel–narrowly avoids an accident in his 1962 Chrysler Imperial Convertible. Curbside Classics points out this is one of only 554 built making it the rarest vehicle in the lineup. Melville Crump–played by Sid Caesar known for hosting SNL and Sesame Street–escapes a similar encounter in his 1962 Plymouth Fury Wagon. 1953 Ford C-600 Trucker Lennie Pike—played by Jonathan Winters of Frosty Returns fame—holds it together followed by Benjy (pre-Herbie the Love Bug Buddy Hackett) and Ding Bell (Mickey Rooney, prominent voice of Santa Claus in four stop motion animation movies) in a 1954 Volkswagen Cabriolet.

These four vehicles are the initial cadre of hero cars. But they aren’t the last. This three-hour epic has more swapping than a Diddy Freak Off, including planes and bicycles. The travelers and their companions, Monica Crump (Melville’s wife played by Edie Adams), Emeline Finch (Russell’s wife played by Dorthy Provine), and Mrs. Marcus (Emeline’s loud overbearing mother played by Ethel Merman) all agree to work together and split the treasure. That comprise lasts about as long as a toddler’s attention span and a rat race ensues.

Meanwhile, Captain T.G. Culpeper (portrayed by Spencer Tracy in his second to last role) has been following the Smiler and the stolen loot for years. Between running gags of arguing with his wife and daughter on the phone or misplacing his hat, Culpeper tracks Smiler and then the others. On their quest the VW, Imperial, Fury, and C-600 race across southern California, all looking for an edge. The Crumps along with Benjy and Ding Bell come up with the idea of chartering a plane. The Fury Wagon bests the little Beetle when the carburetor gets clogged netting the Crumps passage on a World War I era Standard J-1 biplane. With the wagon now out of the race the couple move on with a plane that’s held together with more hopes and dreams than the Crumps want for $350k.

Benjy and Bell continue to a second airport where they ditch the Beetle and rouse the owner of a Beechcraft AT-11 Kansan from an alcoholic stupor. Once airborne the owner/pilot hands the controls off to Benjy so he can fix himself an old fashion. Before he can mix up the drink, though, Benjy’s erratic flying throws him around the cabin and knocks him out. In now “airplane movie trope” fashion, the duo must be talked down by an air traffic control tower.

Meanwhile the Finch’s and Mrs. Marcus wreck their rare and expensive Imperial into Pike’s C-600. To get help, and at the behest of Pike, they open the moving van to discover a little girl’s bike. Finch convinces Pike to pedal back to a service station for help while they wait with the vehicles. In the meantime, Lt Col J Algernon Hawthorne (played by Terry-Thomas, who inspired Dick Dastardly in Wacky Races) of Her Majesty’s Army arrives in a 1950’s Jeep Wagon. Perhaps a Land Rover was out of the budget? Mrs. Marcus, meanwhile, is trying to contact her son Sylvester who lives close to the big wubyah. After a large dust-up Finch decides to leave his wife and mother-in-law behind and continue with Hawthorne.

Pike, on the other hand, flags down a 1947 Ford Super De Luxe piloted by Otto Meyer (Phil Silvers aka Sgt Bilko, the original… not Stever Martin). In an attempt to secure a ride Pike spills the beans on the whole situation only for Meyer to leave him behind. Pike, meanwhile, continues to a service station where one of the most over the top scenes of the film takes place. The workers subdue him as he reencounters Meyer. only for him to come to and destroy the entire building like a human wrecking ball… Miley Cyrus style. With the keys to their 1951 Dodge M-37, he’s off.

Meyer gets sidetracked by a stranded motorist whose Willys CJ-2A had broken down while bringing emergency medicine to his wife. Begrudgingly, he takes the man to his house in the middle of nowhere where his car gets stuck. The man’s son convinces him he knows a shortcut back to the highway leading him further into the desert landscape. Once upon a river the boy convinces him to ford. You can gather after all those hours logged on Oregon Trail, how well that goes.

At this point the movie cuts to intermission. While not the norm at present, this was typical then. A splash screen overscored by music from the film allows viewers grab some candy, hit urination station (or worse) and stretch their legs… yes, in that specific order.

While it may be too late to NOT go in-depth, I wholeheartedly recognize this has gone on for quite some time. Possibly, far too long. Definitely, far too long. In the interest of my sanity and yours I’m going to forego any more plot points… hopefully the previous convinces you to stream this gem. As a wee lad, my favorite car was naturally the Beetle, being that I am a VW guy. But as I got older, I came to appreciate many of the other cars, specifically the ’47 Ford Super De Luxe. I’m not sure why. Perhaps because Phil Silvers is just a comedic great? Or the shot of it sinking into the river with his character behind the wheel is classic? Either way I’d rock it.

The vehicles chosen by the production team represent a good cross section of automobiles on the road at the time. But I do believe they were all chosen specifically to suit their characters. From the obvious C-600 moving truck to the more sedate but lavish Imperial, each vehicle exhibits their respective characters personality and traits. Well, at least, initially. Visit the Mad World’s Internet Movie Car Database page for the complete list and screen captures.

I honestly hope this “short” introduction to both the movie and a bit about my snow day traditions as a child inspires you to check out the full movie regardless of the cut.