Writing

Oscar Brodney

Born — Died

1907-02-18 — 2008-02-12

Known for

Writing

Credits

40 titles

Known for

Harvey poster
7.7

The story of Elwood P. Dowd who makes friends with a spirit taking the form of a human-sized rabbit named Harvey that only he sees (and a few privileged others on occasion also.) After his sister tries to commit him to a mental institution, a comedy of errors ensues. Elwood and Harvey become the catalysts for a family mending its wounds and for romance blossoming in unexpected places.

Harvey

1950

Tammy and the Bachelor poster
7.0

An unsophisticated young woman from the Mississippi swamps falls in love with an unconventional southern gentleman.

Tammy and the Bachelor

1957

The Glenn Miller Story poster
7.0

A vibrant tribute to one of America's legendary bandleaders, charting Glenn Miller's rise from obscurity and poverty to fame and wealth in the early 1940s.

The Glenn Miller Story

1954

The Black Shield of Falworth poster
6.4

In the days of King Henry IV, stalwart young Myles and his sister Meg have been raised as peasants, without any knowledge of who their father really was. But one day, they journey to Macworth Castle. There, Myles falls in love with Lady Anne Macworth, makes friends and enemies, and learns to be a knight.

The Black Shield of Falworth

1954

Fun and Games poster
4.8

The daughter of a British prison governor returns from an American finishing school, and chases after the inmates of her Dad's prison.

Fun and Games

1971

Sign of the Pagan poster
6.0

Roman centurion Marcian is captured by Attila the Hun en route to Constantinople, but escapes. On arrival, he finds the eastern Roman emperor Theodosius plotting with Attila to look the other way while the latter marches against Rome. But Marcian gains the favor of Pulcheria, lovely sister of Theodosius, who favors a united Empire.

Sign of the Pagan

1954

Behind the camera

Harvey poster
7.7

The story of Elwood P. Dowd who makes friends with a spirit taking the form of a human-sized rabbit named Harvey that only he sees (and a few privileged others on occasion also.) After his sister tries to commit him to a mental institution, a comedy of errors ensues. Elwood and Harvey become the catalysts for a family mending its wounds and for romance blossoming in unexpected places.

Harvey

1950

Tammy and the Bachelor poster
7.0

An unsophisticated young woman from the Mississippi swamps falls in love with an unconventional southern gentleman.

Tammy and the Bachelor

1957

The Glenn Miller Story poster
7.0

A vibrant tribute to one of America's legendary bandleaders, charting Glenn Miller's rise from obscurity and poverty to fame and wealth in the early 1940s.

The Glenn Miller Story

1954

The Black Shield of Falworth poster
6.4

In the days of King Henry IV, stalwart young Myles and his sister Meg have been raised as peasants, without any knowledge of who their father really was. But one day, they journey to Macworth Castle. There, Myles falls in love with Lady Anne Macworth, makes friends and enemies, and learns to be a knight.

The Black Shield of Falworth

1954

Fun and Games poster
4.8

The daughter of a British prison governor returns from an American finishing school, and chases after the inmates of her Dad's prison.

Fun and Games

1971

Sign of the Pagan poster
6.0

Roman centurion Marcian is captured by Attila the Hun en route to Constantinople, but escapes. On arrival, he finds the eastern Roman emperor Theodosius plotting with Attila to look the other way while the latter marches against Rome. But Marcian gains the favor of Pulcheria, lovely sister of Theodosius, who favors a united Empire.

Sign of the Pagan

1954

Mexican Hayride poster
6.1

Two con men selling phony stock flee to Mexico ahead of the law, where they run into a woman friend from their earlier days, who is now a bullfighter.

Mexican Hayride

1948

Lady Godiva of Coventry poster
5.7

Fictionalized account of events leading up the famous nude ride (alas, her hair covers everything) of the militant Saxon lady.

Lady Godiva of Coventry

1955

Captain Lightfoot poster
6.4

In 1815, Michael Martin, member of an Irish revolutionary society, turns highwayman to support it, and soon becomes an outlaw. In Dublin, he meets famous rebel "Captain Thunderbolt" and becomes his second-in-command, under the name "Lightfoot."

Captain Lightfoot

1955

The Spoilers poster
5.1

In 1899 Alaska, miners have to protect themselves from a phony legal team trying to steal their gold claims.

The Spoilers

1955

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff poster
6.6

Lost Caverns Resort Hotel bellhop Freddie Phillips gives an empty threat to one attorney Amos Strickland, and is shortly fired. When Freddie visits his guest's suite to apologize, he finds Strickland dead of a gunshot wound. As the investigators file in, Freddie becomes the scapegoat of the guests in the hotel, who all had a bone to pick with Strickland. It's now up to Freddie and Detective Casey Edwards to find out who the real killer is, all the while avoiding the many vigorous and violent villains staying at the resort.

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff

1949

The Purple Mask poster
5.8

France, 1803: 11 years after the Revolution, a royalist underground is led by a new 'Scarlet Pimpernel', the Purple Mask, who rescues nobles in distress and kidnaps Napoleon's officials for ransom, aided by the spy services of a group of lovely models headed by Laurette (really the Duc de Latour's daughter). But even she doesn't know the Purple Mask's real identity as foppish dancing master Rene...

The Purple Mask

1955

Frenchie poster
6.0

Frenchie Fontaine sells her successful business in New Orleans to come West. Her reason? Find the men who killed her father, Frank Dawson. But she only knows one of the two who did and she's determined to find out the other.

Frenchie

1950

Double Crossbones poster
6.0

Falsely accused by the corrupt Governor Elden of Charleston of fencing stolen pirate booty, young Davey Crandall and friend Tom Botts buy passage on the ship of local buccaneer Bloodthirsty Ben. They avoid being killed by faking a case of the pox, which causes the panicked captain and crew to desert the ship. The two find themselves alone, and when a lucky cannon shot hits a mast on a British ship, they find themselves mistaken for pirates. They sail to Tortuga, where they recruit such notorious corsairs as Henry Morgan, Captain Kidd, Anne Bonney, and Blackbeard to lay siege to Chaleston and expose the villain Elden.

Double Crossbones

1951

Francis Goes to the Races poster
6.5

In this funny sequel to the popular Francis the Talking Mule, the talkative Mule and his pal Peter get a job working on a horse-breeder's ranch. They end up saving it from financial ruin when Francis, who has the inside track with the racehorses, provides Peter with names of the winners before the races are run. Sure enough Peter finds himself with a fistful of cash and uses it to buy a racehorse for the farm. Unfortunately, the horse he chooses is suffering from a debilitating lack of confidence. When not dealing with the mare, Peter finds time to court the horse breeder's niece and trying to avoid the gangsters who want in on the winnings.

Francis Goes to the Races

1951

Walking My Baby Back Home poster
9.0

A young man from a wealthy New York family pursues a career as the leader of a dance band.

Walking My Baby Back Home

1953

Comanche Territory poster
5.0

White settlers plan to defy the agreement between the government and the Comanche to mine for silver on Comanche lands, while scout Jim Bowie tries to keep the peace in the territory.

Comanche Territory

1950

Star in the Dust poster
5.1

The sheriff of Gunlock is planning to hang Sam Hall, who shot three farmers found on cattle land, at sundown. At the casino, betting is 8 to 3 he won't make it. The cattlemen are set to rescue Sam; the farmers hope to lynch him before he can be rescued; and Hall schemes for escape with his girl Nellie. But Sheriff Jorden is most concerned with finding out who hired Hall: a leading suspect is the sheriff's future brother-in-law.

Star in the Dust

1956

The Gal Who Took the West poster
6.0

In order to gain passage to the West, a woman poses as an opera singer, and causes a feud between two cousins.

The Gal Who Took the West

1949

I'd Rather Be Rich poster
6.6

An updated remake of It Started With Eve (1941). A young heiress is summoned to the bedside of her dying grandfather. The man's last wish is to meet her fiance, but problems arise when the fiance is delayed and a young chemical engineer is persuaded to take his place. When the grandfather suddenly (and secretly) recovers, he uses the situation to his advantage - playing matchmaker in an attempt to ensure his granddaughter's happiness.

I'd Rather Be Rich

1964

Back at the Front poster
10.0

Further misadventures of comic soldiers Willie and Joe, now in Japan.

Back at the Front

1952

Tammy and the Doctor poster
5.4

Tammy becomes a nurse's aide, works in a hospital, cares for an old rich woman, and causes romantic commotion in the life of Dr. Mark Cheswick.

Tammy and the Doctor

1963

A Day of Fury poster
5.9

Town marshal Alan Burnett life is saved by a stranger he meets on the trail. His rescuer turns out to be Jagade, a gunslinger just returned after years away, who finds when he gets into town that he can't abide the peace that has been settled between "his" people (i.e. the saloon-keepers, gamblers, etc.) and the righteous, "respectable" folk.

A Day of Fury

1956

When Hell Broke Loose poster
5.4

Near the end of the war in Germany, GI Steve Boland, a self-described "sharp-operator", meets a German girl, Ilsa, and they fall in love. Ilsa's brother Karl, whom she has not seen in three years, and his fellow Nazi Ludwig visit Ilsa. Karl proudly informs her that he and Ludwig are "Werewolves", a group of Nazi assassins parachuted behind Allied lines for the purpose of killing Allied High Command officers. She and Steve go to Army Intelligence with their information, where Steve is immediately arrested for being A.W.O.L. Captain Melton of Army G-2 intervenes on Steve's behalf, as G-2 has had a suspicion about the existence of the "Werewolves" but no concrete info before now.

When Hell Broke Loose

1958

When Hell Broke Loose poster
5.4

Near the end of the war in Germany, GI Steve Boland, a self-described "sharp-operator", meets a German girl, Ilsa, and they fall in love. Ilsa's brother Karl, whom she has not seen in three years, and his fellow Nazi Ludwig visit Ilsa. Karl proudly informs her that he and Ludwig are "Werewolves", a group of Nazi assassins parachuted behind Allied lines for the purpose of killing Allied High Command officers. She and Steve go to Army Intelligence with their information, where Steve is immediately arrested for being A.W.O.L. Captain Melton of Army G-2 intervenes on Steve's behalf, as G-2 has had a suspicion about the existence of the "Werewolves" but no concrete info before now.

When Hell Broke Loose

1958

Ghost Fever poster
2.8

Two policeman are sent on a routine assignment to serve an eviction notice. It becomes anything but run-of-the-mill when they become involved in the ghostly happenings.

Ghost Fever

1987

Bobbikins poster
6.0

This adventure follows the story of a young navy man, his wife and their baby son, Bobby, also known as Bobbikins. To his surprise, Dad discovers his son talks, not baby-talk or gibberish but has adult conversations with his father only. Bobbikins learns stock market tips and passes them to his Dad. After making a killing on the stock market, problems really begin. The dad is presumed mad, the government is after him, and the breakdown of relations between the young couple ensues. But there is hope.

Bobbikins

1959

Bobbikins poster
6.0

This adventure follows the story of a young navy man, his wife and their baby son, Bobby, also known as Bobbikins. To his surprise, Dad discovers his son talks, not baby-talk or gibberish but has adult conversations with his father only. Bobbikins learns stock market tips and passes them to his Dad. After making a killing on the stock market, problems really begin. The dad is presumed mad, the government is after him, and the breakdown of relations between the young couple ensues. But there is hope.

Bobbikins

1959

Little Egypt poster
8.0

A belly dancer causes a scandal with her suggestive dancing at a Worlds Fair exhibition at the turn of the 20th century.

Little Egypt

1951

Are You With It? poster
4.5

Milton Haskins, a math genius known for his infallibility with numbers, quits his job with an insurance company when he discovers he made a mistake, and hooks up with a traveling carnival. His knowledge of mathematics makes him a natural as an assistant at the wheel of fortune. His fiancée begs him to return to his job but he refuses, so she joins the carnival and becomes a striptease artist. When Milton attempts to drag her off the stage, a brawling mêlée breaks out and the entire troupe is arrested by the local police. The carnival is sold but Milton reveals that the new owner has conspired to defraud the insurance company. The insurance company has to accept the carnival in lieu of the money owed, and they allow Milton and his fiancée, Vivian, to stay with and help run the carnival.

Are You With It?

1948

Rhythm of the Islands poster
5.5

Rhythm of the Islands is set in the South Seas, presumably far away from the shooting war. The nonsensical plotline finds hero Tommy (Allan Jones) posing as a native chief. Joan Holton (Jane Frazee), daughter of a millionaire (Ernest Truex), falls in love with Tommy, unaware that he's a charlatan.

Rhythm of the Islands

1943

She Wrote the Book poster
6.5

A plain-Jane math professor (Joan Davis) at a small midwestern college is talked into journeying to New York on behalf of a colleague who has written a steamy bestseller under an assumed name. When she arrives she gets a bump on the head which brings on a form of amnesia and she begins to believe she is the author of the book. Hijinks and adventures follow.

She Wrote the Book

1946

Scarlet Angel poster
6.1

After robbing a sea captain in New Orleans, a beautiful saloon girl flees and assumes a dead woman's identity.

Scarlet Angel

1952

Francis Covers the Big Town poster
5.2

A man who has a talking mule gets a job on a newspaper, and both get mixed up in a murder trial.

Francis Covers the Big Town

1953

When Johnny Comes Marching Home poster
7.0

By popular consensus, Allan Jones' best Universal mini-musical of the 1940s was the timely When Johnny Comes Marching Home. Jones is cast as war hero Johnny Kovacs, who wearies of the adulation heaped upon him and takes refuge under an assumed name in a theatrical boarding house. Here he befriends orchestra leader Phil Spitalny and his all-girl aggregation, including the inimitable Evelyn and Her Magic Violin. When Army officials trace Johnny to the boarding house, his new friends assume that he's a deserter and try to convince him to return to duty.

When Johnny Comes Marching Home

1942

Francis Goes to West Point poster
5.7

Francis the talking mule gets his owner in and out of trouble while he is taking basic training at West Point.

Francis Goes to West Point

1952

Katie Did It poster
7.2

Katherine Standish, who has been brought up in a strict manner in a prudish New England town, falls in love with a city slicker commercial artist, Peter Van Arden. The romance blossoms until Katie falls victim of some false information, and becomes convinced that Peter is already married and the father of two children.

Katie Did It

1950

Tammy Tell Me True poster
6.3

Tammy leaves the river in Mississippi to attend college, developing a relationship with Tom Freeman (John Gavin). Sandra Dee replaces Debbie Reynolds in this and the third Tammy movie. This film introduces both a new theme song, "Tammy Tell Me True", and the character of Mrs. Annie Call, played by veteran Beulah Bondi. Mrs. Call ultimately moves in with Tammy at the Ellen B. and would be the catalyst for the events in the following film, "Tammy and The Doctor".

Tammy Tell Me True

1961

The Brass Bottle poster
6.3

A genie tends to get his master into more predicaments than he gets him out of.

The Brass Bottle

1964

For the Love of Mary poster
6.2

Young girl gets a job at the White House as a switchboard operator and gets mixed up in politics.

For the Love of Mary

1948