Modern tractors, an Ursus 11054 and Fendt 820.
Locked up with a mean spirited collection of fellas, Stan and Oliver take their. But funny scene where the boys try to pass themselves off as cotton pickers. Laurel & Hardy movies is that this one actually has a story and continuity in it. Try and get the complete 65-minute version that was on video in the early 1980s. Bringing new forms of evidence and analysis into their history classrooms helped. Student readings of video-based sources often paid particular attention to the. The deliberate juxtaposition of historical incidents, types of evidence,. And a reference to a required course reading by the historian James Oliver Horton.
A tractor pulling a chisel plow in Slovenia.
A rubber tracked tractor pulling a disc harrow.
A scale model of a modern Mahindra tractor in Punjab, India.
Farm tractor in Balnain, Scotland.
Alvin O. Lombard of Waterville, Maine, invented in 1901 a tractor for hauling logs, as displayed at the Maine State Museum in the capital city of Augusta. Known as 'Lombard Log Haulers,' these vehicles revolutionized logging in Maine.
A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used in agriculture or construction. Most commonly, the term is used to describe a farm vehicle that provides the power and traction to mechanize agricultural tasks, especially (and originally) tillage, but nowadays a great variety of tasks. Agricultural implements may be towed behind or mounted on the tractor, and the tractor may also provide a source of power if the implement is mechanised.
- 1Etymology
- 2History
- 3Farm tractor design, power and transmission
- 3.2Engine and fuels
- 4Hitches and power applications
- 5Operation
- 7Applications and variations
- 7.7Row-crop tractor
- 14External links
Etymology[edit]
The word tractor was taken from Latin, being the agent noun of trahere 'to pull'.[1][2] The first recorded use of the word meaning 'an engine or vehicle for pulling wagons or ploughs' occurred in 1896, from the earlier term 'traction engine' (1859).[3]
National variations[edit]
In the UK, the Republic of Ireland, Australia, India, Spain, Argentina, Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, the Netherlands, and Germany, the word 'tractor' usually means 'farm tractor', and the use of the word 'tractor' to mean other types of vehicles is familiar to the vehicle trade, but unfamiliar to much of the general public. In Canada and the US, the word may also refer to the road tractor portion of a tractor trailertruck, but also usually refers to the piece of farm equipment.
History[edit]
Traction engines[edit]
John Fowler pioneered the application of steam power to agriculture in the 1850s, and invented machines for ploughing and digging drainage channels.
The first powered farm implements in the early 19th century were portable engines – steam engines on wheels that could be used to drive mechanical farm machinery by way of a flexible belt. Richard Trevithick designed the first 'semi-portable' stationary steam engine for agricultural use, known as a 'barn engine' in 1812, and it was used to drive a corn threshing machine.[4] The truly portable engine was invented in 1839 by William Tuxford of Boston, Lincolnshire who started manufacture of an engine built around a locomotive-style boiler with horizontal smoke tubes. A large flywheel was mounted on the crankshaft, and a stout leather belt was used to transfer the drive to the equipment being driven. In the 1850s, John Fowler used a Clayton & Shuttleworth portable engine to drive apparatus in the first public demonstrations of the application of cable haulage to cultivation.
In parallel with the early portable engine development, many engineers attempted to make them self-propelled – the fore-runners of the traction engine. In most cases this was achieved by fitting a sprocket on the end of the crankshaft, and running a chain from this to a larger sprocket on the rear axle. These experiments met with mixed success.[5] The first proper traction engine, in the form recognisable today, was developed in 1859 when British engineer Thomas Aveling modified a Clayton & Shuttleworthportable engine, which had to be hauled from job to job by horses, into a self-propelled one. The alteration was made by fitting a long driving chain between the crankshaft and the rear axle.[6]
1882 Harrison Machine Works steam-powered traction engine.
The first half of the 1860s was a period of great experimentation but by the end of the decade the standard form of the traction engine had evolved and would change little over the next sixty years. It was widely adopted for agricultural use. The first tractors were steam-powered plowing engines. They were used in pairs, placed on either side of a field to haul a plow back and forth between them using a wire cable. In Britain Mann's and Garrett developed steam tractors for direct ploughing, but the heavy, wet soil of England meant that these designs were less economical than a team of horses. In the United States, where soil conditions permitted, steam tractors were used to direct-haul plows. Steam-powered agricultural engines remained in use well into the 20th century until reliable internal combustion engines had been developed.[7]
Gasoline-powered tractor[edit]
Dan Albone with his 1902 prototype Ivel Agricultural Motor, the first successful gasoline-powered tractor.
Line of tractors plowing a field in the 1940s
In 1892, John Froelich invented and built the first gasoline/petrol-powered tractor in Clayton County, Iowa, US.[8][9][10] A Van Duzen single-cylinder gasoline engine was mounted on a Robinson engine chassis, which could be controlled and propelled by Froelich's gear box.[11] After receiving a patent, Froelich started up the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company and invested all of his assets. However, the venture was very unsuccessful, and by 1895 all was lost and he went out of business.[12][13][14][15]
Richard Hornsby & Sons are credited with producing and selling the first oil-engined tractor in Britain invented by Herbert Akroyd Stuart. The Hornsby-Akroyd Patent Safety Oil Traction Engine was made in 1896 with a 20 hp engine. In 1897, it was bought by Mr. Locke-King, and this is the first recorded sale of a tractor in Britain. Also in that year, the tractor won a Silver Medal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England. That tractor would later be returned to the factory and fitted with a caterpillar track.
The first commercially successful light-weight petrol-powered general purpose tractor was built by Dan Albone, a British inventor in 1901.[16][17] He filed for a patent on 15 February 1902 for his tractor design and then formed Ivel Agricultural Motors Limited. The other directors were Selwyn Edge, Charles Jarrott, John Hewitt and Lord Willoughby. He called his machine the Ivel Agricultural Motor; the word 'tractor' did not come into common use until later. The Ivel Agricultural Motor was light, powerful and compact. It had one front wheel, with solid rubber tyre, and two large rear wheels like a modern tractor. The engine used water cooling, by evaporation. It had one forward and one reverse gear. A pulley wheel on the left hand side allowed it to be used as a stationary engine, driving a wide range of agricultural machinery. The 1903 sale price was £300. His tractor won a medal at the Royal Agricultural Show, in 1903 and 1904. About 500 were built, and many were exported all over the world.[18] The original engine was made by Payne & Co. of Coventry. After 1906, FrenchAster engines were used.
The first successful American tractor was built by Charles W. Hart and Charles H. Parr. They developed a two-cylinder gasoline engine and set up their business in Charles City, Iowa. In 1903, the firm built 15 tractors. Their 14,000-pound #3 is the oldest surviving internal combustion engine tractor in the United States, and is on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. The two-cylinder engine has a unique hit-and-miss firing cycle that produced 30 horsepower at the belt and 18 at the drawbar.[19]
An early Fordson discing a field in Princess Anne County, Virginia, in 1925.
In 1908, the Saunderson Tractor and Implement Co. of Bedford introduced a four-wheel design, and went on to become the largest tractor manufacturer in Britain at the time. While the earlier, heavier tractors were initially very successful, it became increasingly apparent at this time that the weight of a large supporting frame was less-efficient than lighter designs. Henry Ford introduced a light-weight, mass-produced design which largely displaced the heavier designs. Some companies halfheartedly followed suit with mediocre designs, as if to disprove the concept, but they were largely unsuccessful in that endeavor.[20]
While unpopular at first, these gasoline-powered machines began to catch on in the 1910s, when they became smaller and more affordable.[21]Henry Ford introduced the Fordson, a wildly popular mass-produced tractor, in 1917. They were built in the U.S., Ireland, England and Russia, and by 1923, Fordson had 77% of the U.S. market. The Fordson dispensed with a frame, using the strength of the engine block to hold the machine together. By the 1920s, tractors with gasoline-powered internal combustion engines had become the norm.
Tractor Cassani model 40HP, at the Museo nazionale della scienza e della tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci of Milan.
Harry Ferguson applied for a British patent for his three-point hitch in 1926, a three-point attachment of the implement to the tractor and the simplest and the only statically determinate way of joining two bodies in engineering. The Ferguson-Brown Company produced the Model A Ferguson-Brown tractor with a Ferguson-designed hydraulic hitch. In 1938 Ferguson entered into a collaboration with Henry Ford to produce the Ford-Ferguson 9N tractor. The three-point hitch soon became the favorite hitch attachment system among farmers around the world. This tractor model also included a rear Power Take Off (PTO) shaft that could be used to power three point hitch mounted implements such as sickle-bar mowers. This PTO location set the standard for future tractor developments.
Farm tractor design, power and transmission[edit]
Tractor configurations[edit]
Tractors can be generally classified by number of axles or wheels, with main categories of two-wheel tractors (single-axle tractors) and four-wheel tractors (two-axle tractors); more axles are possible but uncommon. Among four-wheel tractors (two-axle tractors), most are two-wheel drive (usually at the rear); but many are two-wheel drive with front wheel assist, four-wheel drive (often with articulated steering), or track tractors (with steel or rubber tracks).
Volvo T25, 1956, gasoline tractor
The classic farm tractor is a simple open vehicle, with two very large driving wheels on an axle below and slightly behind a single seat (the seat and steering wheel consequently are in the center), and the engine in front of the driver, with two steerable wheels below the engine compartment. This basic design has remained unchanged for a number of years, but enclosed cabs are fitted on almost all modern models, for reasons of operator safety and comfort.
In some localities with heavy or wet soils, notably in the Central Valley of California, the 'Caterpillar' or 'crawler' type of tracked tractor became popular in the 1930s, due to superior traction and flotation. These were usually maneuvered through the use of turning brake pedals and separate track clutches operated by levers rather than a steering wheel.
A modern 4-wheel drive farm tractor in Faizabad in India
Four-wheel drive tractors began to appear in the 1960s. Some four-wheel drive tractors have the standard 'two large, two small' configuration typical of smaller tractors, while some have four large, powered wheels. The larger tractors are typically an articulated, center-hinged design steered by hydraulic cylinders that move the forward power unit while the trailing unit is not steered separately.
A modern steerable all-tracked power unit planting wheat in North Dakota
In the early 21st century, articulated or non-articulated, steerable multitrack tractors have largely supplanted the Caterpillar type for farm use. Larger types of modern farm tractors include articulated four-wheel or eight-wheel drive units with one or two power units which are hinged in the middle and steered by hydraulic clutches or pumps. A relatively recent development is the replacement of wheels or steel crawler-type tracks with flexible, steel-reinforced rubber tracks, usually powered by hydrostatic or completely hydraulic driving mechanisms. The configuration of these tractors bears little resemblance to the classic farm tractor design.
Engine and fuels[edit]
The predecessors of modern tractors, traction engines, used steam engines for power.
Gasoline and kerosene[edit]
Since the turn of the 20th century, internal combustion engines have been the power source of choice. Between 1900 and 1960, gasoline was the predominant fuel, with kerosene (the Rumely Oil Pull was the most notable of this kind) and ethanol being common alternatives. Generally, one engine could burn any of those, although cold starting was easiest on gasoline. Often, a small auxiliary fuel tank was available to hold gasoline for cold starting and warm-up, while the main fuel tank held whatever fuel was most convenient or least expensive for the particular farmer. In the United Kingdom, a gasoline-kerosene engine is known as a petrol-paraffin engine.
Diesel[edit]
Dieselisation gained momentum starting in the 1960s, and modern farm tractors usually employ diesel engines, which range in power output from 18 to 575 horsepower (15 to 480 kW). Size and output are dependent on application, with smaller tractors used for lawn mowing, landscaping, orchard work, and truck farming, and larger tractors for vast fields of wheat, maize, soy, and other bulk crops.
Liquified petroleum gas[edit]
Liquified petroleum gas (LPG) or propane also have been used as tractor fuels, but require special pressurized fuel tanks and filling equipment, so are less prevalent in most markets.
Biodiesel[edit]
In some countries such as Germany, biodiesel is often used.[22][23] Some other biofuels such as straight vegetable oil are also being used by some farmers.[24][25]
![Cotton Cotton](http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/50/24/32/10569357/163/920x920.jpg)
Transmission[edit]
Most older farm tractors use a manual transmission with several gearratios, typically three to six, sometimes multiplied into two or three ranges. This arrangement provides a set of discrete ratios that, combined with the varying of the throttle, allow final-drive speeds from less than one up to about 25 miles per hour (40 km/h), with the lower speeds used for working the land and the highest speed used on the road.
Slow, controllable speeds are necessary for most of the operations performed with a tractor. They help give the farmer a larger degree of control in certain situations, such as field work. However, when travelling on public roads, the slow operating speeds can cause problems, such as long queues or tailbacks, which can delay or annoy motorists in cars and trucks. These motorists are responsible for being duly careful around farm tractors and sharing the road with them, but many shirk this responsibility, so various ways to minimize the interaction or minimize the speed differential are employed where feasible. Some countries (for example the Netherlands) employ a road sign on some roads that means 'no farm tractors'. Some modern tractors, such as the JCB Fastrac, are now capable of much higher road speeds of around 50 mph (80 km/h).
An older model European farm tractor, of the type still common in Eastern Europe
Older tractors usually have unsynchronized transmission designs, which often require the operator stop the tractor to shift between gears. This mode of use is inherently unsuited to some of the work tractors do, and has been circumvented in various ways over the years. For existing unsynchronized tractors, the methods of circumvention are double clutching or power-shifting, both of which require the operator to rely on skill to speed-match the gears while shifting, and are undesirable from a risk-mitigation standpoint because of what can go wrong if the operator makes a mistake – transmission damage is possible, and loss of vehicle control can occur if the tractor is towing a heavy load either uphill or downhill – something that tractors often do. Therefore, operator's manuals for most of these tractors state one must always stop the tractor before shifting, and they do not even mention the alternatives. As already said, that mode of use is inherently unsuited to some of the work tractors do, so better options were pursued for newer tractor designs.
Cutaway of modern tractor
In these, unsynchronized transmission designs were replaced with synchronization or with continuously variable transmissions (CVTs). Either a synchronized manual transmission with enough available gear ratios (often achieved with dual ranges, high and low) or a CVT allow the engine speed to be matched to the desired final-drive speed, while keeping engine speed within the appropriate speed (as measured in rotations per minute or rpm) range for power generation (the working range) (whereas throttling back to achieve the desired final-drive speed is a trade-off that leaves the working range). The problems, solutions, and developments described here also describe the history of transmission evolution in semi-trailer trucks. The biggest difference is fleet turnover; whereas most of the old road tractors have long since been scrapped, many of the old farm tractors are still in use. Therefore, old transmission design and operation is primarily just of historical interest in trucking, whereas in farming it still often affects daily life.
Hitches and power applications[edit]
The power produced by the engine must be transmitted to the implement or equipment to do the actual work intended for the equipment. This may be accomplished via a drawbar or hitch system if the implement is to be towed or otherwise pulled through the tractive power of the engine, or via a pulley or power takeoff system if the implement is stationary, or a combination of the two.
Drawbars[edit]
Until the 1940s, plows and other tillage equipment usually were connected to the tractor via a drawbar. The classic drawbar is simply a steel bar attached to the tractor (or in some cases, as in the early Fordsons, cast as part of the rear transmission housing) to which the hitch of the implement was attached with a pin or by a loop and clevis. The implement could be readily attached and removed, allowing the tractor to be used for other purposes on a daily basis. If the tractor was equipped with a swinging drawbar, then it could be set at the center or offset from center to allow the tractor to run outside the path of the implement.
The drawbar system necessitated the implement having its own running gear (usually wheels) and in the case of a plow, chisel cultivator or harrow, some sort of lift mechanism to raise it out of the ground at turns or for transport. Drawbars necessarily posed a rollover risk depending on how the tractive torque was applied.[26] The Fordson tractors (of which more units were produced and placed in service than any other farm tractor) was extremely prone to roll over backwards due to an excessively short wheelbase. The linkage between the implement and the tractor usually had some slack which could lead to jerky starts and greater wear and tear on the tractor and the equipment.
A large, modern John Deere model 9400 four-wheel drive tractor with tripled wheels and a drawbar-towed tool chain, including one-pass tillage equipment, planter and fertilizer applicator with tanks
Drawbars were appropriate to the dawn of mechanization, because they were very simple in concept and because as the tractor replaced the horse, existing horse-drawn implements usually already had running gear. As the history of mechanization progressed, however, the advantages of other hitching systems became apparent, leading to new developments (see below). Depending on the function for which a tractor is used, though, the drawbar is still one of the usual means of attaching an implement to a tractor (see photo at left).
Fixed mounts[edit]
Some tractor manufacturers produced matching equipment that could be directly mounted on the tractor. Examples included front-end loaders, belly mowers, row crop cultivators, corn pickers and corn planters. In most cases, these fixed mounts were proprietary and unique to each make of tractor, so an implement produced by John Deere, for example, could not be attached to a Minneapolis Moline tractor. Another disadvantage was mounting usually required some time and labor, resulting in the implement being semi-permanently attached with bolts or other mounting hardware. Usually, it was impractical to remove the implement and reinstall it on a day-to-day basis. As a result, the tractor was unavailable for other uses and dedicated to a single use for an appreciable period of time. An implement generally would be mounted at the beginning of its season of use (such as tillage, planting or harvesting) and removed only when the likely use season had ended.
Three-point hitches and quick hitches[edit]
The drawbar system was virtually the exclusive method of attaching implements (other than direct attachment to the tractor) before Harry Ferguson developed the three-point hitch. Equipment attached to the three-point hitch can be raised or lowered hydraulically with a control lever. The equipment attached to the three-point hitch is usually completely supported by the tractor. Another way to attach an implement is via a quick hitch, which is attached to the three-point hitch. This enables a single person to attach an implement quicker and put the person in less danger when attaching the implement.
A modern three-point hitch
The three-point hitch revolutionized farm tractors and their implements. While the Ferguson system was still under patent, other manufacturers developed new hitching systems to try to fend off some of Ferguson's competitive advantage. For example, International Harvestor's Farmall tractors gained a two-point 'Fast Hitch', and John Deere had a power lift that was similar to, but not as flexible as, the Ferguson invention. Once the patent protection expired on the three-point hitch, it became an industry standard.
Almost every tractor today features Ferguson's three-point linkage or a derivative of it. This hitch allows for easy attachment and detachment of implements while allowing the implement to function as a part of the tractor, almost as if it were attached by a fixed mount. Previously, when the implement hit an obstacle, the towing link would break or the tractor could flip over. Ferguson's genius was to combine a connection via two lower and one upper lift arms that were connected to a hydraulic lifting ram. The ram was, in turn, connected to the upper of the three links so the increased drag (as when a plough hits a rock) caused the hydraulics to lift the implement until the obstacle was passed.
Recently, Bobcat's patent on its front loader connection (inspired by these earlier systems) has expired, and compact tractors are now being outfitted with quick-connect attachments for their front-end loaders.
Power take-off systems and hydraulics[edit]
In addition to towing an implement or supplying tractive power through the wheels, most tractors have a means to transfer power to another machine such as a baler, swather, or mower. Unless it functions solely by pulling it through or over the ground, a towed implement needs its own power source (such as a baler or combine with a separate engine) or else a means of transmitting power from the tractor to the mechanical operations of the equipment.
Early tractors used belts or cables wrapped around the flywheel or a separate belt pulley to power stationary equipment, such as a threshing machine, buzz saw, silage blower, or stationary baler. In most cases, it was not practical for the tractor and equipment to move with a flexible belt or cable between them, so this system required the tractor to remain in one location, with the work brought to the equipment, or the tractor to be relocated at each turn and the power set-up reapplied (as in cable-drawn plowing systems used in early steam tractor operations).
A PTO shaft connected to a tractor
Modern tractors use a power take-off (PTO) shaft to provide rotary power to machinery that may be stationary or pulled. The PTO shaft generally is at the rear of the tractor, and can be connected to an implement that is either towed by a drawbar or a three-point hitch. This eliminates the need for a separate, implement-mounted power source, which is almost never seen in modern farm equipment. It is also optional to get a front PTO as well when buying a new tractor.
Virtually all modern tractors can also provide external hydraulic fluid and electrical power to the equipment they are towing, either by hoses or wires.
Operation[edit]
A garden tractor towing a cargo cart
Modern tractors have many electrical switches and levers in the cab for controlling the multitude of different functions available on the tractor.
Pedals[edit]
Modern farm tractors usually have four or five foot-pedals for the operator on the floor of the tractor.
The pedal on the left is the clutch. The operator presses on this pedal to disengage the transmission for either shifting gears or stopping the tractor. Some modern tractors have (or as optional equipment) a button on the gear stick for controlling the clutch, in addition to the standard pedal.
Two of the pedals on the right are the brakes. The left brake pedal stops the left rear wheel and the right brake pedal does the same with the right side. This independent left and right wheel-braking augments the steering of the tractor when only the two rear wheels are driven. This is usually done when it is necessary to make a sharp turn. The split brake pedal is also used in mud or soft soil to control a tire spinning due to loss of traction. The operator presses both pedals together to stop the tractor. Usually a swinging or sliding bolt is provided to lock the two together when desired.
The pedal furthest to the right is the foot throttle. Unlike in automobiles, it can also be controlled from a hand-operated lever ('hand throttle'). This helps provide a constant speed in field work. It also helps provide continuous power for stationary tractors that are operating an implement by shaft or belt. The foot throttle gives the operator more automobile-like control over the speed of the tractor for road work. This is a feature of more recent tractors; older tractors often did not have it. In the UK, foot pedal use to control engine speed while travelling on the road is mandatory. Some tractors, especially those designed for row-crop work, have a 'de-accelerator' pedal, which operates in the reverse fashion to an automobile throttle, in that the pedal is pushed down to slow the engine. This allows fine control over the speed of the tractor when maneuvering at the end of crop rows in fields- the operating speed of the engine is set using the hand throttle, and to slow the tractor to turn, the operator simply has to press the pedal, and turn and release it once the turn is completed, rather than having to alter the setting of the hand throttle twice during the maneuver.
A fifth pedal is traditionally included just in front of the driver's seat (often pressed with the operator's heel) to operate the rear differential lock (diff-lock), which prevents wheel slip. The differential normally allows the outside wheel to travel faster than the inside wheel during a turn. However, in low-traction conditions on a soft surface, the same mechanism could allow one wheel to slip, further reducing traction. The diff-lock overrides this, forcing both wheels to turn at the same speed, reducing wheel slip and improving traction. Care must be taken to unlock the differential before turning, usually by hitting the pedal a second time, since the tractor with good traction cannot perform a turn with the diff-lock engaged. In modern tractors, this pedal is replaced with an electrical switch.
Levers and switches[edit]
Many functions once controlled with levers have been replaced with some model of electrical switch with the rise of indirect computer controlling of functions in modern tractors.
Until the beginning of the 1960s, tractors had a single register of gears, hence one gear stick, often with three to five forward gears and 1 reverse. Then, group gears were introduced, and another gear stick was added. Later, control of the forward-reverse direction was moved to a special stick attached at the side of the steering wheel, which allowed forward or reverse travel in any gear. Nowadays, with CVTs or other clutch-free gear types, fewer sticks control the transmission, and some are replaced with electrical switches or are totally computer-controlled.
The three-point hitch was controlled with a lever for adjusting the position, or as with the earliest ones, just the function for raising or lowering the hitch. With modern electrical systems, it is often replaced with a potentiometer for the lower bound position and another one for the upper bound, and a switch allowing automatic adjustment of the hitch between these settings.
The external hydraulics also originally had levers, but now are often replaced with some form of electrical switch; the same is true for the power take-off shaft.
Safety[edit]
Farm tractor rear turnover
The classic row crop tractor (an Allis-Chalmers WD). Note the absence of any rollover protection system.
Agriculture in the United States is one of the most hazardous industries, only surpassedby mining and construction. No other farm machine is so identified with the hazards of production agriculture as the tractor.[27] Tractor-related injuries account for approximately 32% of the fatalities and 6% of the nonfatal injuries in agriculture. Over 50% is attributed to tractor overturns.[28]
The roll-over protection structure (ROPS) and seat belt, when worn[29], are the most important safety devices to protect operators from death during tractor overturns.[30][31]
Modern tractors have a ROPS to prevent an operator from being crushed if the tractor turns over. The ROPS does not prevent tractor overturns; rather, it prevents the operator from being crushed during an overturn.[32] This is especially important in open-air tractors, where the ROPS is a steel beam that extends above the operator's seat. For tractors with operator cabs, the ROPS is partof the frame of the cab. A ROPS with enclosed cab further reduces the likelihood of serious injury because the operator is protected by the sides and windows of the cab.
These structures were first required by legislation in Sweden in 1959. Before they were required, some farmers died when their tractors rolled on top of them. Row-crop tractors, before ROPS, were particularly dangerous because of their 'tricycle' design with the two front wheels spaced close together and angled inward toward the ground. Some farmers were killed by rollovers while operating tractors along steepslopes. Others have been killed while attempting to tow or pull an excessive load from above axle height, or when cold weather caused the tires to freeze to the ground, in both cases causing the tractor to pivot around the rear axle.[citation needed] ROPS were first required in the United States in 1986, but this requirement did not retroactively apply to tractors produced before this year; therefore, adoption of ROPS has been incomplete in the farming community. To combat this problem, CROPS (cost-effective roll-over protection structures) have been developed to encourage farmers to retrofit older tractors.[31]
For the ROPS to work as designed, the operator must stay within its protective frame. This means the operator must wear the seat belt; not wearing it may defeat the primary purpose of the ROPS.
Applications and variations[edit]
Farm tractor applications[edit]
A modern John Deere 8110 Farm Tractor plowing a field using a chisel plow
A tractor pulling a tiller
The most common use of the term 'tractor' is for the vehicles used on farms. The farm tractor is used for pulling or pushing agricultural machinery or trailers, for plowing, tilling, disking, harrowing, planting, and similar tasks.
A farm tractor used to power a pump for irrigating a plot of land
A variety of specialty farm tractors have been developed for particular uses. These include 'row crop' tractors with adjustable tread width to allow the tractor to pass down rows of corn, tomatoes or other crops without crushing the plants, 'wheatland' or 'standard' tractors with fixed wheels and a lower center of gravity for plowing and other heavy field work for broadcast crops, and 'high crop' tractors with adjustable tread and increased ground clearance, often used in the cultivation of cotton and other high-growing row crop plant operations, and 'utility tractors', typically smaller tractors with a low center of gravity and short turning radius, used for general purposes around the farmstead. Many utility tractors are used for nonfarm grading, landscape maintenance and excavation purposes, particularly with loaders, backhoes, pallet forks and similar devices. Small garden or lawn tractors designed for suburban and semirural gardening and landscape maintenance also exist in a variety of configurations.
A tractor with a chaser bin
Some farm-type tractors are found elsewhere than on farms: with large universities' gardening departments, in public parks, or for highway workman use with blowtorch cylinders strapped to the sides and a pneumatic drillair compressor permanently fastened over the power take-off. These are often fitted with grass (turf) tyres which are less damaging to soft surfaces than agricultural tires.
Precision agriculture[edit]
Space technology has been incorporated into agriculture in the form of GPS devices, and robust on-board computers installed as optional features on farm tractors. These technologies are used in modern, precision farming techniques. The spin-offs from the space race have actually facilitated automation in plowing and the use of autosteer systems (drone on tractors that are manned but only steered at the end of a row), the idea being to neither overlap and use more fuel nor leave streaks when performing jobs such as cultivating. Several tractor companies have also been working on producing a driverless tractor.
Engineering tractors[edit]
A tractor factory in Chelyabinsk in the Soviet Union circa 1930
Ebro farm tractor with steel wheel extensions. This arrangement is often used in muddy conditions that are found in paddy farming of rice.
The durability and engine power of tractors made them very suitable for engineering tasks. Tractors can be fitted with engineering tools such as dozer blades, buckets, hoes, rippers, etc. The most common attachments for the front of a tractor are dozer blades or buckets. When attached to engineering tools, the tractor is called an engineering vehicle.
A bulldozer is a track-type tractor with a blade attached in the front and a rope-winch behind. Bulldozers are very powerful tractors and have excellent ground-hold, as their main tasks are to push or drag.
Bulldozers have been further modified over time to evolve into new machines which are capable of working in ways that the original bulldozer can not. One example is that loader tractors were created by removing the blade and substituting a large volume bucket and hydraulic arms which can raise and lower the bucket, thus making it useful for scooping up earth, rock and similar loose material to load it into trucks.
A front-loader or loader is a tractor with an engineering tool which consists of two hydraulic powered arms on either side of the front engine compartment and a tilting implement. This is usually a wide-open box called a bucket, but other common attachments are a pallet fork and a bale grappler.
Other modifications to the original bulldozer include making the machine smaller to let it operate in small work areas where movement is limited. Also, tiny wheeled loaders, officially called skid-steer loaders, but nicknamed 'Bobcat' after the original manufacturer, are particularly suited for small excavation projects in confined areas.
Backhoe loader[edit]
A common backhoe-loader – the backhoe is on the left, the bucket/blade on the right.
The most common variation of the classic farm tractor is the hoe, also called a hoe-loader. As the name implies, it has a loader assembly on the front and a backhoe on the back. Backhoes attach to a three-point hitch on farm or industrial tractors. Industrial tractors are often heavier in construction, particularly with regards to the use of steel grill for protection from rocks and the use of construction tires. When the backhoe is permanently attached, the machine usually has a seat that can swivel to the rear to face the hoe controls. Removable backhoe attachments almost always have a separate seat on the attachment.
Backhoe-loaders are very common and can be used for a wide variety of tasks: construction, small demolitions, light transportation of building materials, powering building equipment, digging holes, loading trucks, breaking asphalt and paving roads. Some buckets have retractable bottoms, enabling them to empty their loads more quickly and efficiently. Buckets with retractable bottoms are also often used for grading and scratching off sand. The front assembly may be a removable attachment or permanently mounted. Often the bucket can be replaced with other devices or tools.
Their relatively small frames and precise controls make backhoe-loaders very useful and common in urban engineering projects, such as construction and repairs in areas too small for larger equipment. Their versatility and compact size makes them one of the most popular urban construction vehicles.
In the UK and Ireland, the word 'JCB' is used colloquially as a genericized trademark for any such type of engineering vehicle. The term JCB now appears in the Oxford English Dictionary, although it is still legally a trademark of J. C. Bamford Ltd. The term 'digger' is also commonly used.
Compact utility tractor[edit]
In the middle is a 24 hp (18 kW) diesel CUT illustrating the size difference between a small 40 hp farm tractor and a garden tractor
A compact utility tractor (CUT) is a smaller version of an agricultural tractor, but designed primarily for landscaping and estate management tasks rather than for planting and harvesting on a commercial scale. Typical CUTs range from 20 to 50 horsepower (15–37 kW) with available power take-off (PTO) horsepower ranging from 15 to 45 hp (11–34 kW). CUTs are often equipped with both a mid-mounted and a standard rear PTO, especially those below 40 horsepower (30 kW). The mid-mount PTO shaft typically rotates at/near 2000 rpm and is typically used to power mid-mount finish mowers, front-mounted snow blowers or front-mounted rotary brooms. The rear PTO is standardized at 540 rpms for the North American markets, but in some parts of the world, a dual 540/1000 rpm PTO is standard, and implements are available for either standard in those markets.
Howse brand modular subsoiler mounted to a tractor
Broadcast seeder mounted to a Kubota CUT
One of the most common attachment for a CUT is the front-end loader or FEL. Like the larger agricultural tractors, a CUT will have an adjustable, hydraulically controlled three-point hitch. Typically, a CUT will have four-wheel drive, or more correctly four-wheel assist. Modern CUTs often feature hydrostatic transmissions, but many variants of gear-drive transmissions are also offered from low priced, simple gear transmissions to synchronized transmissions to advanced glide-shift transmissions. All modern CUTs feature government-mandated roll over protection structures just like agricultural tractors. The most well-known brands in North America include Kubota, John Deere Tractor, New Holland Ag, Case-Farmall and Massey-Ferguson. Although less common, compact backhoes are often attached to compact utility tractors.
JD 71 Flexi Planter for tractors 20 to 35 horsepower
Compact utility tractors require special, smaller implements than full-sized agricultural tractors. Very common implements include the box blade, the grader blade, the landscape rake, the post hole digger (or post hole auger), the rotary cutter (slasher or a brush hog), a mid- or rear-mount finish mower, a broadcast seeder, a subsoiler and the rototiller (rotary tiller). In northern climates, a rear-mounted snow blower is very common; some smaller CUT models are available with front-mounted snow blowers powered by mid-PTO shafts. Implement brands outnumbere tractor brands, so CUT owners have a wide selection of implements.
For small-scale farming or large-scale gardening, some planting and harvesting implements are sized for CUTs. One- and two-row planting units are commonly available, as are cultivators, sprayers and different types of seeders (slit, rotary and drop). One of the first CUTs offered for small farms of three to 30 acres and for small jobs on larger farms was a three-wheeled unit, with the rear wheel being the drive wheel, offered by Sears & Roebuck in 1954 and priced at $598 for the basic model.[33]
Standard tractor[edit]
The earliest tractors were called 'standard' tractors, and were intended almost solely for plowing and harrowing before planting, which were difficult tasks for humans and draft animals. They were characterized by a low, rearward seating position, fixed-width tread, and low ground clearance. These early tractors were cumbersome, and were not well-suited to getting into a field of already-planted row crops to do weed control. The 'standard' tractor definition is no longer in current use.
Row-crop tractor[edit]
A general-purpose or row-crop tractor is tailored specifically to the growing of crops grown in rows, and most especially to cultivating these crops. These tractors are universal machines, capable of both primary tillage and cultivation of a crop. The 'row-crop' or 'general-purpose' designation is no longer in current use.
Row-crop tractor history[edit]
A Farmall 'Regular'
The row-crop tractor category evolved rather than appearing overnight, but the International Harvester (IH) Farmall is often considered the 'first' tractor of the category. Some earlier tractors of the 1910s and 1920s approached the form factor from the heavier side, as did motorized cultivators from the lighter side, but the Farmall brought all of the salient features together into one package, with a capable distribution network to ensure its commercial success. In the new form factor that the Farmall popularized, the cultivator was mounted in the front so it was easily visible. Additionally, the tractor had a narrow front end; the front tires were spaced very closely and angled in towards the bottom. The back wheels straddled two rows, and the unit could cultivate four rows at once.
From 1924 until 1963, Farmalls were the largest selling row-crop tractors.
To compete, John Deere designed the Model C, which had a wide front and could cultivate three rows at once. Only 112 prototypes were made, as Deere realized sales would be lost to Farmall if their model did less. In 1928, Deere released the Model C anyway, only as the Model GP (General Purpose) to avoid confusion with the Model D when ordered over the then unclear telephone.[34]
Oliver refined its 'Row Crop' model early in 1930.[35] Until 1935, the 18–27 was Oliver–Hart-Parr's only row-crop tractor.[36]Many Oliver row-crop models are referred to as 'Oliver Row Crop 77', 'Oliver Row Crop 88', etc.
Row-crop tractor safety[edit]
Many early row-crop tractors had a tricycle design with two closely spaced front tires, and some even had a single front tire. This made it dangerous to operate on the side of a steep hill; as a result, many farmers died from tractor rollovers. Also, early row-crop tractors had no rollover protection system (ROPS), meaning if the tractor flipped back, the operator could be crushed. Sweden was the first country which passed legislation requiring ROPS, in 1959.
Over 50% of tractor related injuries and deaths are attributed to tractor rollover.[28]
Modern row-crop tractors[edit]
Canadian agricultural equipment manufacturer Versatile makes row-crop tractors that are 265 to 365 horsepower (198 to 272 kW); powered by an 8.9 liter Cummins Diesel engine[37].[38]
Case IH and New Holland of CNH Industrial both produce high horsepower front-wheel-assist row crop tractors with available rear tracks.[39] Case IH also has a 500 hp (373 kW) four-wheel drive track system called Rowtrac.[40]
John Deere has an extensive line of available row crop tractors ranging from 140 to 400 horsepower (104 to 298 kW).[41]
Modern row crop tractors have rollover protection systems in the form of a reinforced cab or a roll bar.
Garden tractors[edit]
Garden tractors (mini tractors) are small, light tractors designed for use in domestic gardens and small estates. Garden tractors are designed for cutting grass, snow removal, and small property cultivation. In the U.S., the term riding lawn mower today often is used to refer to mid- or rear-engined machines. Front-engined tractor layout machines designed primarily for cutting grass and light towing are called lawn tractors; heavier-duty tractors of similar size are garden tractors. Garden tractors are capable of mounting a wider array of attachments than lawn tractors. Unlike lawn tractors and rear-engined riding mowers, garden tractors are powered by horizontal-crankshaft engines with a belt-drive to transaxle-type transmissions (usually of four- or five-speeds, although some may also have two-speed reduction gearboxes, drive-shafts, or hydrostatic or hydraulic drives). Garden tractors from Wheel Horse, Cub Cadet, Economy (Power King), John Deere, Massey Ferguson and Case Ingersoll are built in this manner. The engines are generally a one- or two-cylinder petrol (gasoline) engines, although diesel engine models are also available, especially in Europe. Typically, diesel-powered garden tractors are larger and heavier-duty than gasoline-powered units and compare more similarly to compact utility tractors.
Visually, the distinction between a garden tractor and a lawn tractor is often hard to make – generally, garden tractors are more sturdily built, with stronger frames, 12-inch or larger wheels mounted with multiple lugs (most lawn tractors have a single bolt or clip on the hub), heavier transaxles, and ability to accommodate a wide range of front, belly, and rear mounted attachments.
Two-wheel tractors[edit]
Although most people think first of four-wheel vehicles when they think of tractors, a tractor may have one or more axles. The key benefit is the power itself, which only takes one axle to provide. Single-axle tractors, more often called two-wheel tractors or walk-behind tractors, have had many users since the beginning of internal combustion engine tractors. They tend to be small and affordable. This was especially true before the 1960s, when a walk-behind tractor could often be more affordable than a two-axle tractor of comparable power. Today's compact utility tractors and advanced garden tractors may negate most of that market advantage, but two-wheel tractors still enjoy a loyal following, especially where an already-paid-for two-wheel tractor is financially superior to a compact or garden tractor that would have to be purchased. Countries where two-wheel tractors are especially prevalent today include, Thailand, China, Bangladesh, India, and other Southeast Asia countries.
Orchard tractors[edit]
Tractors tailored to use in fruit orchards typically have features suited to passing under tree branches with impunity. These include a lower overall profile; reduced tree-branch-snagging risk (via underslung exhaust pipes rather than smoke-stack-style exhaust, and large sheetmetal cowlings and fairings that allow branches to deflect and slide off rather than catch); spark arrestors on the exhaust tips; and often wire cages to protect the operator from snags.
Automobile-conversion tractors and other homemade versions[edit]
A Model T tractor pulling a plow.
An advertisement for auto-to-tractor conversion kits, 1918.
A Ford rebuilt to an EPA tractor
A Volvo Duett rebuilt to an EPA tractor, obviously the intended use is no longer as a farm vehicle.
An 'A tractor' based on Volvo 760 – notice the slow-vehicle triangle and the longer boot.
The ingenuity of farm mechanics, coupled in some cases with OEM or aftermarket assistance, has often resulted in the conversion of automobiles for use as farm tractors. In the United States, this trend was especially strong from the 1910s through 1950s. It began early in the development of vehicles powered by internal combustion engines, with blacksmiths and amateur mechanics tinkering in their shops. Especially during the interwar period, dozens of manufacturers (Montgomery Ward among them) marketed aftermarket kits for converting Ford Model Ts for use as tractors.[42] (These were sometimes called 'Hoover wagons' during the Great Depression, although this term was usually reserved for automobiles converted to horse-drawn buggy use when gasoline was unavailable or unaffordable. During the same period, another common name was 'Doodlebug'). Ford even considered producing an 'official' optional kit.[43] Many Model A Fords also were converted for this purpose. In later years, some farm mechanics have been known to convert more modern trucks or cars for use as tractors, more often as curiosities or for recreational purposes (rather than out of the earlier motives of pure necessity or frugality).
During World War II, a shortage of tractors in Sweden led to the development of the so-called 'EPA' tractor (EPA was a chain of discount stores and it was often used to signify something lacking in quality). An EPA tractor was simply an automobile, truck or lorry, with the passenger space cut off behind the front seats, equipped with two gearboxes in a row. When done to an older car with a ladder frame, the result was not dissimilar to a tractor and could be used as one. After the war it remained popular, now not as a farm vehicle, but as a way for young people without a driver's license to own something similar to a car. Since it was legally seen as a tractor, it could be driven from 16 years of age and only required a tractor license. Eventually, the legal loophole was closed and no new EPA tractors were allowed to be made, but the remaining ones were still legal, which led to inflated prices and many protests from people who preferred EPA tractors to ordinary cars.
The German occupation of Italy during World War II resulted in a severe shortage of mechanized farm equipment. The destruction of tractors was a sort of scorched-earth strategy used to reduce the independence of the conquered. The shortage of tractors in that area of Europe was the origin of Lamborghini. The war was also the inspiration for dual-purpose vehicles such as the Land Rover. Based on the Jeep, the company made a vehicle that combined PTO, tillage, and transportation.
In March 1975, a similar type of vehicle was introduced in Sweden, the A tractor [from arbetstraktor (work tractor)]; the main difference is an A tractor has a top speed of 30 km/h. This is usually done by fitting two gearboxes in a row and not using one of them. The Volvo Duett was, for a long time, the primary choice for conversion to an EPA or A tractor, but since supplies have dried up, other cars have been used, in most cases another Volvo. The SFRO is a Swedish organization advocating homebuilt and modified vehicles.
Another type of homemade tractors are ones that are fabricated from scratch. The 'from scratch' description is relative, as often individual components will be repurposed from earlier vehicles or machinery (e.g., engines, gearboxes, axle housings), but the tractor's overall chassis is essentially designed and built by the owner (e.g., a frame is welded from bar stock—channel stock, angle stock, flat stock, etc.). As with automobile conversions, the heyday of this type of tractor, at least in developed economies, lies in the past, when there were large populations of blue-collar workers for whom metalworking and farming were prevalent parts of their lives. (For example, many 19th- and 20th-century New England and Midwestern machinists and factory workers had grown up on farms.) Backyard fabrication was a natural activity to them (whereas it might seem daunting to most people today).
Alternative machine types called tractors[edit]
The term 'tractor' (US and Canada) or 'tractor unit' (UK) is also applied to:
- Road tractors, tractor units or traction heads, familiar as the front end of an articulated lorry / semi-trailer truck. They are heavy-duty vehicles with large engines and several axles.
- The majority of these tractors are designed to pull long semi-trailers, most often to transport freight over a significant distance, and is connected to the trailer with a fifth wheel coupling. In England, this type of 'tractor' is often called an 'artic cab' (short for 'articulated' cab).
- A minority is the ballast tractor, whose load is hauled from a drawbar.
- Pushback tractors are used on airports to move aircraft on the ground, most commonly pushing aircraft away from their parking stands.
- Locomotive tractors (engines) or Rail car movers – the amalgamation of machines, electrical generators, controls and devices that comprise the traction component of railwayvehicles
- Artillery tractors – vehicles used to tow artillery pieces of varying weights.
- NASA and other space agencies use very large tractors to move large launch vehicles and space shuttles between their hangars and launch pads.
- A pipe-tractor is a device used for conveying advanced instruments into pipes for measurement and data logging, and the purging of well holes, sewer pipes and other inaccessible tubes.
- Diesel-electric locomotive at work
- A Trackmobile 4150
- Aircraft pushback tractor
- Road tractor pulling a flatbed trailer
Glossary of tractor-related terms not explained elsewhere[edit]
- Nebraska tractor tests: Tests, mandated by the Nebraska Tractor Test Law and administered by the University of Nebraska, that objectively test the performance of all brands of tractors, 40 horsepower or more, sold in Nebraska. In the 1910s and 1920s, an era of snake oil sales and advertising tactics, the Nebraska tests helped farmers throughout North America to see through marketing claims and make informed buying decisions. The tests continue today, making sure tractors fulfill the manufacturer's advertised claims.[44]
- Tractor war(s), Great tractor war(s): A period of ruinous competition and price warring between tractor manufacturers in the 1920s, which led to a consolidation in the industry.[citation needed]
Manufacturers[edit]
Some of the many tractor manufacturers and brands worldwide include:
In addition to commercial manufacturers, the Open Source Ecology group has developed several working prototypes of an open source hardware tractor called the LifeTrac as part of its Global Village Construction Set.
Gallery[edit]
- An unusual application − road roller powered by a tractor-drive
- The First Tractor, a painting by Vladimir Krikhatsky.
- A single tractor in Brazil
- Tractor that is used for self-sufficiency purposes in Germany
See also[edit]
- Big Bud 747, the world's largest farm tractor
References[edit]
- ^Houghton Mifflin (2000). The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin. p. 1829. ISBN978-0-395-82517-4.
- ^Merriam-Webster Unabridged (MWU). (Online subscription-based reference service of Merriam-Webster, based on Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. Merriam-Webster, 2002.) Headword tractor. Accessed 2007-09-22.
- ^'Tractor'. (etymology). Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved 2017-08-20.
- ^Hodge, James (1973). Richard Trevithick (Lifelines 6). Shire Publications. p. 30. ISBN978-0-85263-177-5.
- ^Lane, Michael R. Pride of the Road. p. 56.
- ^Bonnett, Harold (1975). Discovering Traction Engines. Shire Publications Ltd. p. 5. ISBN978-0-85263-318-2.
- ^'Tractors in the 1930s'.
- ^The John Deere Tractor Legacy. Voyageur Press. p. 45. ISBN9781610605298.
- ^Vintage Farm Tractors. Voyageur Press. p. 14. ISBN9781610605649.
- ^Xulon Press. Xulon Press. June 2002. ISBN978-1-59160-134-0.
- ^Ultimate John Deere: The History of the Big Green Machines. Voyageur Press. 2001. p. 52. ISBN9781610605588.
- ^'Froelich Tractor'. Froelich Foundation.
- ^'Gasoline Tractor'. Iowa Pathways. 2016-08-17.
- ^'From Steam to Gasoline…'. Inspired Media. 2009-08-21. Archived from the original on 2012-02-24. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
- ^Miller 2003.
- ^The Ivel Story. John Moffitt. ISBN0-9540222-6-2
- ^'Dan Albone, English inventor, 1902'. The Science and Society Picture Library. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
- ^'Dan Albone'. Biggleswade History Society. Archived from the original on 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
- ^'Smithsonian Museum of American History'. Hart Parr #3. Retrieved 2010-11-29.
- ^Oliver Hart-Parr - C.H. Wendel, Krause Publications, November 29, 2011
- ^Rumely 1910.
- ^Use of biodiesel in tractors in Germany
- ^BE energy promoting biodiesel for use in tractors
- ^Jatropha being used to run a tractorArchived 2010-12-04 at the Wayback Machine
- ^SVO from canola being used in tractors
- ^Irwin, Amy; Poots, Jill (12 Apr 2018). 'Investigation of UK Farmer Go/No-Go Decisions in Response to Tractor-Based Risk Scenarios'. Journal of Agromedicine. 23 (2): 154–165. doi:10.1080/1059924X.2017.1423000. PMID29648955.
- ^NASD: Tractor Overturn HazardsArchived 2009-04-23 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ abDonham, K., D. Osterberg, M.L/ Meyers, and C. Lehtola. 1999. Final report tractor risk abatement and control: the policy conference, September 10–12, 1997. The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa.
- ^Rudolphi, Josie M.; Campo, Shelly; Gerr, Fred; Rohlman, Diane S. (2018-05-01). 'Social and Individual Influences on Tractor Operating Practices of Young Adult Agricultural Workers'. Journal of Adolescent Health. 62 (5): 605–611. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.11.300. ISSN1054-139X. PMID29478719.
- ^General Tractor Safety
- ^ abKeane, Paul R.; McKenzie, Tony (30 April 2013). 'Cost-effective Rollover Protective Structure (CROPS)'. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^'Tragedy averted: 90-second video speaks to Wisconsin farmers'. Wisconsin State Farmer. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
- ^'Three Wheeled Tractor With Implements Handles Small-Farm Work.'Popular Mechanics, June 1954, p. 96.
- ^Klancher et al. 2003.
- ^'Tractors Advance during the Depression'. Livinghistoryfarm.org. Retrieved 2010-07-29.
- ^Ertel 2001, p. 72.
- ^'QSL9 for Agriculture (Tier 4 Interim)'. Cummins Engines. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^'Versatile - MFWD Tractors'. www.versatile-ag.com. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^'GENESIS® T8 Series – Tier 4B - Overview | Tractors & Telehandlers | New Holland (US)'. agriculture1.newholland.com. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^'Track Technology | Quadtrac and Rowtrac Tractors | Case IH'. Case IH. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^'John Deere Tractors | Row Crop Tractors | John Deere US'. www.deere.com. Retrieved 2018-06-11.
- ^Pripps & Morland 1993, p. 28.
- ^Leffingwell 2004, pp. 43–53.
- ^Splinter, William (January 2012). 'THE BIOL OGICAL SYSTEMS ENGI NEER ING PR OGRAM IN NEBRA SKA 1895–2011'. Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
Bibliography[edit]
- Ertel, Patrick W. (2001). The American Tractor: A Century of Legendary Machines. Osceola, WI, US: MBI. ISBN978-0-7603-0863-9.
- Klancher, Lee; Leffingwell, Randy; Morland, Andrew; Pripps, Robert N. (2003). Farm Tractors. Crestline [Imprint of MBI]. ISBN978-0-7603-1776-1.
- Leffingwell, Randy (2004). Ford Farm Tractors. Motorbooks Classics Series. Osceola, WI, US: MBI. ISBN978-0-7603-1919-2.
- Miller, Orrin E. (2003). 'John Froelich: The Story of a Man and a Tractor'. In Macmillian, Don (ed.). The John Deere Tractor Legacy. Voyaguer Press. ISBN978-0-89658-619-2.
- Pripps, Robert N.; Morland, Andrew (photographer) (1993). Farmall Tractors: History of International McCormick-Deering Farmall Tractors. Farm Tractor Color History Series. Osceola, WI, US: MBI. ISBN978-0-87938-763-1.
- Rumeley, Edward A. (August 1910). 'The Passing Of The Man With The Hoe'. The World's Work: A History of Our Time. XX: 13246–13258. Retrieved 2009-07-10
External links[edit]
Look up tractor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
Tractor information[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Tractors. |
- Agricultural Tractors and Machinery at Curlie
- Historical Tractor Test Reports and Manufacturers' Literature Reports on 400+ models 1903–2006
- A History of Tractors at the Canada Agriculture Museum
Tractor safety[edit]
- EU Directives on tractor design: (Mapped Index), or (Numerical Index)
- Tractor Safety (National Agricultural Safety Database)
- Tractor Safety (National Safety Council)
- ACC: Farm safety: Vehicles, machinery and equipment.
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tractor&oldid=901746809'
Plot and structure wise it is light but it produces plenty of memorable and hilarious scenesLaurel and Hardy are shopping for ingredients for their next get rich scheme making and selling liquor during prohibition. Of course when Laurel sells a bottle of beer to a policeman, there is only ever going to be one outcome and the two finds themselves on the way to the big house. Locked up with a mean spirited collection of fellas, Stan and Oliver take their chance to escape and find themselves wanted men on the run.
Having just watched the very structured 'Our Relations' it was noticeable when I stepped back into the much looser Pardon Us. The basic plot is no more than a nail on which to hang a series of comic scenarios and, as such, it works because it is pretty funny for the majority. The story is pretty weak but it does allow for a solid spoof of jail clichés as well as a pretty un-PC but funny scene where the boys try to pass themselves off as cotton pickers. Despite not having this flow to it, the film does have a couple of good stand out scenes that will please everyone with their typical silliness and mix of looks and double-takes.
Laurel and Hardy are both on form and are served to their strengths well. Finlayson is wonderful in a great classroom scene and he got the biggest laughs from me with a master class in slow burns and double takes. Long is enjoyably tough as The Tiger while Lucas is a good warden. The support cast are roundly good even if they are mainly there to carry the scenes rather than the comedy. The musical numbers are obvious but still good with Hardy getting a good chance to show off his baritone talents.
Overall a thinly plotted affair but one that delivers quite a few memorable and hilarious scenes, connected with generally amusing moments.
Having just watched the very structured 'Our Relations' it was noticeable when I stepped back into the much looser Pardon Us. The basic plot is no more than a nail on which to hang a series of comic scenarios and, as such, it works because it is pretty funny for the majority. The story is pretty weak but it does allow for a solid spoof of jail clichés as well as a pretty un-PC but funny scene where the boys try to pass themselves off as cotton pickers. Despite not having this flow to it, the film does have a couple of good stand out scenes that will please everyone with their typical silliness and mix of looks and double-takes.
Laurel and Hardy are both on form and are served to their strengths well. Finlayson is wonderful in a great classroom scene and he got the biggest laughs from me with a master class in slow burns and double takes. Long is enjoyably tough as The Tiger while Lucas is a good warden. The support cast are roundly good even if they are mainly there to carry the scenes rather than the comedy. The musical numbers are obvious but still good with Hardy getting a good chance to show off his baritone talents.
Overall a thinly plotted affair but one that delivers quite a few memorable and hilarious scenes, connected with generally amusing moments.
11 out of 12 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Comedy On The LamPermalink
Ron Oliver21 June 2003
In & out of prison, Stan & Ollie just can't seem to stay out of trouble.
'PARDON US' was the Boys' first starring feature film. Rather disjointed and poorly edited, it plays more like a few of their short subjects strung together. However, the Boys never falter and they deliver a film whose parts are greater than its whole.
The film was meant to be a spoof of MGM's popular THE BIG HOUSE (1930) and it helps to have seen that earlier movie to fully appreciate this one. Many of the standard conventions of the typical prison film are mocked here: the understanding' warden, the dangerous convict cell mate, the confinement in Solitary, the escape chased by bloodhounds, the prison riot.
A few comedy pieces in particular stand out: Stan's loose tooth; Ollie in the dentist's chair; the Boys trying to settle into the constricted confines of an upper bunk. James Finlayson, Stan & Ollie's old nemesis, makes the most of his one scene as the prison schoolteacher driven to despair by the Boys' good-natured idiocy.
Walter Long is lots of fun as the Tiger, the meanest convict in the prison (Boris Karloff played the part for the French language version). Movie mavens will spot an uncredited Charlie Hall as the dental assistant.
An added delight is Babe Hardy's rendition of Lazy Moon,' one of the decade's finest film songs. Ollie had a warm, evocative voice, full of feeling and emotion. Here, backed by the magnificent Hall Johnson Choir, his song reaches out of the screen and down the decades to touch the hearts of the audience.
'PARDON US' was the Boys' first starring feature film. Rather disjointed and poorly edited, it plays more like a few of their short subjects strung together. However, the Boys never falter and they deliver a film whose parts are greater than its whole.
The film was meant to be a spoof of MGM's popular THE BIG HOUSE (1930) and it helps to have seen that earlier movie to fully appreciate this one. Many of the standard conventions of the typical prison film are mocked here: the understanding' warden, the dangerous convict cell mate, the confinement in Solitary, the escape chased by bloodhounds, the prison riot.
A few comedy pieces in particular stand out: Stan's loose tooth; Ollie in the dentist's chair; the Boys trying to settle into the constricted confines of an upper bunk. James Finlayson, Stan & Ollie's old nemesis, makes the most of his one scene as the prison schoolteacher driven to despair by the Boys' good-natured idiocy.
Walter Long is lots of fun as the Tiger, the meanest convict in the prison (Boris Karloff played the part for the French language version). Movie mavens will spot an uncredited Charlie Hall as the dental assistant.
An added delight is Babe Hardy's rendition of Lazy Moon,' one of the decade's finest film songs. Ollie had a warm, evocative voice, full of feeling and emotion. Here, backed by the magnificent Hall Johnson Choir, his song reaches out of the screen and down the decades to touch the hearts of the audience.
12 out of 14 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
The Boys In The Big HousePermalink
Spikeopath4 March 2008
Being the lads first full length feature it's not surprising that much of it feels like filler, certainly the jokes are not quick fire and the culminating outcome doesn't quite leave the viewer fully satisfied. However it should be noted that Laurel & Hardy's average output is still better than most other duos who would follow in their slipstream, and Pardon Us does have those moments that ooze comedy class. Witness both Stan & Ollie trying to control a machine gun with typical riotous results, enjoy Stanley's tooth problem that becomes a running gag, and of course enjoy Oliver's incredulous looks at the camera. It's solid if unspectacular, but certainly worth a watch now and then, 6/10.
Footnote: Other user comments allude to certain aspects being un PC for the modern age, who cares is what I say, this is after all Laurel & Hardy in the 30s, it worked then and really it still works now, harmless and enjoyable fun.
Footnote: Other user comments allude to certain aspects being un PC for the modern age, who cares is what I say, this is after all Laurel & Hardy in the 30s, it worked then and really it still works now, harmless and enjoyable fun.
17 out of 21 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Bronx Cheer in the Big HousePermalink
bkoganbing4 August 2014
Laurel And Hardy made their first starring feature film for Hal Roach with Pardon Us. It's a prison picture, but this correctional facility will never be the same now that Stan and Ollie have served time there.
They were not very good as bootleggers selling some of their illegal stock to an undercover policeman and got sent to the big house. Where Stan makes an inexplicable friend in the toughest con in the joint Walter Long. Ollie is not so similarly fortunate, but Long tolerates him as long as he's with Stan.
Stan has an additional problem. A loose tooth has him make the noises of a Bronx Cheer at the most inopportune moment.
This film has a large black cast of extras because part of the plot involves the boys escaping and eluding their captors while in blackface pretending to be field hands. Unlike a lot of films the black people here are portrayed with dignity. The sequences show the singing talents of Ollie and Stan does a nice patter with a dance. Since the blackface is integral to the plot I've not heard any objections raised to it here.
It was a good beginning for Stan and Ollie in sound feature films.
They were not very good as bootleggers selling some of their illegal stock to an undercover policeman and got sent to the big house. Where Stan makes an inexplicable friend in the toughest con in the joint Walter Long. Ollie is not so similarly fortunate, but Long tolerates him as long as he's with Stan.
Stan has an additional problem. A loose tooth has him make the noises of a Bronx Cheer at the most inopportune moment.
This film has a large black cast of extras because part of the plot involves the boys escaping and eluding their captors while in blackface pretending to be field hands. Unlike a lot of films the black people here are portrayed with dignity. The sequences show the singing talents of Ollie and Stan does a nice patter with a dance. Since the blackface is integral to the plot I've not heard any objections raised to it here.
It was a good beginning for Stan and Ollie in sound feature films.
3 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Laurel's and Hardy's first full lengthPermalink
In Laurel's and Hardy's first full length talking picture the boys go behind bars.And Stan's loose tooth gets the boys in trouble many times, when it starts making a funny noise every time he speaks.Pardon Us offers you many funny moments with Laurel and Hardy.
8 out of 11 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Their first full-length feature is one to remember!Permalink
Boba_Fett113815 February 2006
This was the first full-length movie from Laurel & Hardy, that last over 1 hour long. Their first effort is definitely one of their better ones.
Difference with most other Laurel & Hardy movies is that this one actually has a story and continuity in it. It's more than just one slapstick and comical moment after another and it's obvious that they definitely put lots of effort in the story. The movie is constantly funny although the movie could had done without those musical numbers in my opinion. It's extremely old fashioned and takes the pace right out of the movie.
Besides the two boys the movie also has some other memorable characters in it such as Wilfred Lucas as the jail warden, James Finlayson as the jail schoolteacher and Walter Long as fellow prisoner The Tiger. Especially Walter Long stands out in his role and he plays an extremely fun character who of course gives the two an hard time.
The movie is very fine constructed and build up to the memorable ending in which one big jail break is attempted. It's pretty violent stuff for Laurel & Hardy standards and I had never thought that I would ever see the two of them holding a gun. The ending is almost action movie like but it of course is also extremely hilarious at the same time.
There are quite some returning running gags in the movie that all help to make this movie a very memorable one. Also enough slapstick humor is present so fans of that will also be delighted with this movie.
9/10
http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/
Difference with most other Laurel & Hardy movies is that this one actually has a story and continuity in it. It's more than just one slapstick and comical moment after another and it's obvious that they definitely put lots of effort in the story. The movie is constantly funny although the movie could had done without those musical numbers in my opinion. It's extremely old fashioned and takes the pace right out of the movie.
Besides the two boys the movie also has some other memorable characters in it such as Wilfred Lucas as the jail warden, James Finlayson as the jail schoolteacher and Walter Long as fellow prisoner The Tiger. Especially Walter Long stands out in his role and he plays an extremely fun character who of course gives the two an hard time.
The movie is very fine constructed and build up to the memorable ending in which one big jail break is attempted. It's pretty violent stuff for Laurel & Hardy standards and I had never thought that I would ever see the two of them holding a gun. The ending is almost action movie like but it of course is also extremely hilarious at the same time.
There are quite some returning running gags in the movie that all help to make this movie a very memorable one. Also enough slapstick humor is present so fans of that will also be delighted with this movie.
9/10
http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/
6 out of 8 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
'They'll never recognise us in a hundred years!'Permalink
The_Movie_Cat5 February 2001
So says Ollie at the start of a sustained eleven-minute sequence where he and Stan paint their hands and faces to hide amongst a black community. On two occasions the paint gets washed off and has to be replaced; Stan with dirt from a puddle, Ollie with oil. Like the stereotypical black people that occupy the piece, it's one of those 'would never be allowed nowadays' moments that marks Pardon Us out as an unusual curio. The boundaries between innocence and unintentional risk-taking occur throughout. Set largely in a prison, there's a later scene where Stan is threatened by a knife, and an inmate is shown to be a potential rapist when coming face to face with the warden's daughter. Although Stan's sharing a bed with Hardy and the same inmate promising that he and Stan will be 'great pals' is played without any form of sexual connotation.
This sort of politically incorrect humour is not only common to Pardon Us, however. In the following year's Pack Up Your Troubles the duo would pretend to have only one arm in order to escape being drafted into the army. Stan would pour boiling hot water over three men, while the two would steal $2000 from a bank. The 1932 film would also tackle the theme of wife battery and feature another race joke, which takes us back to Pardon us. In a curious scene, Stan mistakes two prisoners one black, one Asian as the radio 'blackface' double-act, Amos and Andy. It's impossible to condemn the film on such matters, and I wouldn't even try, as that sort of thing was commonplace for the time it was made. But it's notable, and slightly alarming, even so. Whoever would have thought such naive humour still had the ability to shock seventy years on?
Laurel and Hardy perhaps never had wide ambitions, though did some pretty groundbreaking stuff in terms of stunts and special effects. More intelligent than The Three Stooges, they nevertheless didn't aspire to the same terms of art and film as, say, Chaplin. But while they may not be as admired as Charlie, Keaton or even Lloyd, they are doubtless more loved. Even though most of the jokes are clearly set-up, their assured execution, by Laurel, particularly, means they never fall flat. It must be said that the interplay between the two stars isn't as good as it would be, and that as their first full-length talkie, the pace is notably slower than what was to follow. The age of the silent movie is still felt throughout, with a lone damsel in distress in a burning building, and some overstated body language from the bit players. The film opens with a caption, and incidental music is almost omnipresent both now redundant, and slightly distracting. Though while the rapport between the two would be stronger - only their 24th talkie, they would appear in another 52 together after this - Pardon Us is still a fine example of their work. Stan's gormless, inane smile, dopey eyes and sticky ears are a delight, while his mastery of physical comedy is exceptional. Those who wish to build an argument that Stan was the talented one will be served here by a Hardy who gets to be second fiddle all the way, and is encouraged to double-take to camera a few too many times.
Lastly, two points come to mind. One is a dentist calling Stan 'Rosebud' was Orson Welles inspired? And Ollie here says 'another nice mess', not the oft-quoted 'fine'.
This sort of politically incorrect humour is not only common to Pardon Us, however. In the following year's Pack Up Your Troubles the duo would pretend to have only one arm in order to escape being drafted into the army. Stan would pour boiling hot water over three men, while the two would steal $2000 from a bank. The 1932 film would also tackle the theme of wife battery and feature another race joke, which takes us back to Pardon us. In a curious scene, Stan mistakes two prisoners one black, one Asian as the radio 'blackface' double-act, Amos and Andy. It's impossible to condemn the film on such matters, and I wouldn't even try, as that sort of thing was commonplace for the time it was made. But it's notable, and slightly alarming, even so. Whoever would have thought such naive humour still had the ability to shock seventy years on?
Laurel and Hardy perhaps never had wide ambitions, though did some pretty groundbreaking stuff in terms of stunts and special effects. More intelligent than The Three Stooges, they nevertheless didn't aspire to the same terms of art and film as, say, Chaplin. But while they may not be as admired as Charlie, Keaton or even Lloyd, they are doubtless more loved. Even though most of the jokes are clearly set-up, their assured execution, by Laurel, particularly, means they never fall flat. It must be said that the interplay between the two stars isn't as good as it would be, and that as their first full-length talkie, the pace is notably slower than what was to follow. The age of the silent movie is still felt throughout, with a lone damsel in distress in a burning building, and some overstated body language from the bit players. The film opens with a caption, and incidental music is almost omnipresent both now redundant, and slightly distracting. Though while the rapport between the two would be stronger - only their 24th talkie, they would appear in another 52 together after this - Pardon Us is still a fine example of their work. Stan's gormless, inane smile, dopey eyes and sticky ears are a delight, while his mastery of physical comedy is exceptional. Those who wish to build an argument that Stan was the talented one will be served here by a Hardy who gets to be second fiddle all the way, and is encouraged to double-take to camera a few too many times.
Lastly, two points come to mind. One is a dentist calling Stan 'Rosebud' was Orson Welles inspired? And Ollie here says 'another nice mess', not the oft-quoted 'fine'.
14 out of 25 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Laurel and Hardy's First Full-Length FeaturePermalink
PARDON US, filmed in 1930 then edited down and released in 1931, is Laurel and Hardy's first feature-length comedy. In it, they are set to jail after Stan sells some illegal brew to a policeman ('Well, I couldn't help it-I thought he was a streetcar conductor!'). The whole film is pretty funny. There isn't much story, but a series of funny things that happen to the boys in jail. The finale has Stan and Ollie foiling a jailbreak. Highlights of the film include a great 'welcoming' scene with extremely tolerant warden Wilfred Lucas, Laurel and Hardy posing as African American sharecroppers (with Stan shoving entire plants of cotton into his bag while Hardy daintily picks each piece of cotton with care), and a hilarious schoolroom scene with teacher James Finlayson! Not up to the standard of SONS OF THE DESERT or WAY OUT WEST, but still very funny. Try and get the complete 65-minute version that was on video in the early 1980s.
2 out of 2 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
not exactly perfect and too many lulls, but wow what fun!Permalink
MartinHafer21 February 2006
This was Laurel and Hardy's first full-length movie, though it is admittedly a short full-length film. And, apart from a few somewhat slow moments (particularly in the very politically incorrect and portion where the team pose as Black sharecroppers) as well as a running gag that isn't funny (the tooth), it is great fun overall. Part of the reason it is so much fun is that their foil is Walter Long--one of the absolutely scariest looking bad guys in movie history! I loved him in this movie and he is just terrifying. Well, the boys being very stupid, find a way to get on Long's bad side and they know their days are numbered unless some miracle happens--and that's exactly what happens at the film's conclusion. I won't give away the details because I don't want to spoil the fun, but this is a wonderful little film--minus all the songs that seemed to be added as padding.
5 out of 8 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Laurel and Hardy Behind BarsPermalink
PARDON US (Hal Roach/MGM, 1931), directed by James Parrott, introduces the team of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy to feature length comedy. Having been paired in comedy shorts since their initial teaming in 1927, and continuing through 1935, Laurel and Hardy's participation in features began with guest spots in musicals 'The Hollywood Revue' (1929) and 'The Rogue Song' (1930). Working in shorts with a feature per year before promoted directly to features by 1936, for PARDON US, a parody on prison films that were the stir of the time, was in fact a spoof on MGM's own success of THE BIG HOUSE (1930) starring Chester Morris and Wallace Beery. Although a drama, Fox Studios accomplishment in prison films followed with UP THE RIVER (1930) featuring Spencer Tracy, Warren Hymer and a very young Humphrey Bogart. Being a comedy, it lacked the humor PARDON US provided, mainly because the teaming of Tracy and Hymer an attempt of copying the friendly rivals chemistry of Victor McLaglen and Edmund Lowe of WHAT PRICE GLORY? (1926) fame, can't compare to them nor Laurel and Hardy, nor did they ever try to be. Such as it is, Laurel and Hardy's PARDON US is another fine mess they've gotten themselves into, with fine results.
Opening title: 'Mr. Hardy is a man of wonderful ideas ... so is Mr. Laurel, as long as he doesn't try to think.' Set during the Prohibition era, Oliver has a get-rich-quick scheme about brewing beer. He tells his partner, Stanley, 'whatever we can't drink, we can sell.' Next scene finds the Laurel and Hardy handcuffed and escorted to prison after Stanley sells their home made beer to a policeman he mistakes for a streetcar conductor. After meeting with their warden (Wilfred Lucas) who gives them a lecture on prison life, they are then placed in a cell with four other convicts, with The Tiger (Walter Long) the leader and toughest of the bunch. Because Stanley's loose molar causes him to make a buzzing sound mistaken for what's commonly known as a 'raspberry,' which gets him into trouble, The Tiger takes it as a sign of courage, making Stanley his immediate pal. With Ollie wanting to get in good with the Tiger by doing the same thing, he isn't so fortunate. Going through the daily routine of prison life, attending school and placed into solitary confinement for unwittingly disrupting the class, Stan and Ollie later take part in a prison break, and hide themselves from the law by taking refuge in a Negro community disguised as black cotton pickers.
PARDON US may not be the best in the filmography of Laurel and Hardy, but delivers with its full quota of laughs. The classroom sequence with James Finlayson as the schoolmaster is a true highlight. School was never like this, especially with prisoners beginning their school day singing, 'Good morning, dear teacher,' along with the teacher asking students questions and getting the answers not found in text books. For the ten minute cotton field sequence where fugitives Stan and Ollie appear in black-face, they, along with the other Negro workers, do some singing while working in the fields to such tunes as 'Hand Me Down,' 'Way Down in the Old Camp Ground,' 'Swing Along,' 'From Birmingham' and 'Down at the Farm.' Oliver Hardy, a gifted singer in his own right, solos during the evening's recreation period with 'Lazy Moon.' While there's no secondary love interest to bog down the plot, June Marlowe, as the warden's daughter, is the only female in the cast, with very little to do, probably a victim of heavy film editing. Other Laurel and Hardy stock players, aside from Walter Long's parody of Wallace Beery from THE BIG HOUSE, and the hilarious Jimmy Finlayson, include Charles Hall as The Dentist; and Stanley 'Tiny' Sanford as one of the prison guards. It should be noted that in the French language version of PARDON US, Boris Karloff appears in place of Walter Long. Not that's something to see!
A neglected comedy gem that would have been virtually forgotten had it not been for television where Laurel and Hardy comedies were rediscovered by a new generation with each passing decade since the 1950s. By the 1980s, home video such as Nostalgia Merchant, and cable TV guaranteed further popularity for Stan and Ollie, where this and their short subjects and features were presented, including American Movie Classics (1994-1996), and Turner Classic Movies where PARDON US premiered April 1, 2005 as part of its April Fools festival.
While prints of PARDON US were shown in years past in slightly choppy 55 minute format, the TCM print offers better picture quality at 64 minutes. Regardless of its pros and cons, PARDON US demonstrated further that Laurel and hardy are capable of carrying on successfully in feature length comedies, especially with such masterpieces as SONS OF THE DESERT (1933), BABES IN TOYLAND (1934) and WAY OUT WEST (1937) into their not so distant future. (**1/2)
Opening title: 'Mr. Hardy is a man of wonderful ideas ... so is Mr. Laurel, as long as he doesn't try to think.' Set during the Prohibition era, Oliver has a get-rich-quick scheme about brewing beer. He tells his partner, Stanley, 'whatever we can't drink, we can sell.' Next scene finds the Laurel and Hardy handcuffed and escorted to prison after Stanley sells their home made beer to a policeman he mistakes for a streetcar conductor. After meeting with their warden (Wilfred Lucas) who gives them a lecture on prison life, they are then placed in a cell with four other convicts, with The Tiger (Walter Long) the leader and toughest of the bunch. Because Stanley's loose molar causes him to make a buzzing sound mistaken for what's commonly known as a 'raspberry,' which gets him into trouble, The Tiger takes it as a sign of courage, making Stanley his immediate pal. With Ollie wanting to get in good with the Tiger by doing the same thing, he isn't so fortunate. Going through the daily routine of prison life, attending school and placed into solitary confinement for unwittingly disrupting the class, Stan and Ollie later take part in a prison break, and hide themselves from the law by taking refuge in a Negro community disguised as black cotton pickers.
PARDON US may not be the best in the filmography of Laurel and Hardy, but delivers with its full quota of laughs. The classroom sequence with James Finlayson as the schoolmaster is a true highlight. School was never like this, especially with prisoners beginning their school day singing, 'Good morning, dear teacher,' along with the teacher asking students questions and getting the answers not found in text books. For the ten minute cotton field sequence where fugitives Stan and Ollie appear in black-face, they, along with the other Negro workers, do some singing while working in the fields to such tunes as 'Hand Me Down,' 'Way Down in the Old Camp Ground,' 'Swing Along,' 'From Birmingham' and 'Down at the Farm.' Oliver Hardy, a gifted singer in his own right, solos during the evening's recreation period with 'Lazy Moon.' While there's no secondary love interest to bog down the plot, June Marlowe, as the warden's daughter, is the only female in the cast, with very little to do, probably a victim of heavy film editing. Other Laurel and Hardy stock players, aside from Walter Long's parody of Wallace Beery from THE BIG HOUSE, and the hilarious Jimmy Finlayson, include Charles Hall as The Dentist; and Stanley 'Tiny' Sanford as one of the prison guards. It should be noted that in the French language version of PARDON US, Boris Karloff appears in place of Walter Long. Not that's something to see!
A neglected comedy gem that would have been virtually forgotten had it not been for television where Laurel and Hardy comedies were rediscovered by a new generation with each passing decade since the 1950s. By the 1980s, home video such as Nostalgia Merchant, and cable TV guaranteed further popularity for Stan and Ollie, where this and their short subjects and features were presented, including American Movie Classics (1994-1996), and Turner Classic Movies where PARDON US premiered April 1, 2005 as part of its April Fools festival.
While prints of PARDON US were shown in years past in slightly choppy 55 minute format, the TCM print offers better picture quality at 64 minutes. Regardless of its pros and cons, PARDON US demonstrated further that Laurel and hardy are capable of carrying on successfully in feature length comedies, especially with such masterpieces as SONS OF THE DESERT (1933), BABES IN TOYLAND (1934) and WAY OUT WEST (1937) into their not so distant future. (**1/2)
3 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
JailbirdsPermalink
Prismark1023 December 2017
Laurel and Hardy's first feature film is a rather uneven affair with a disjointed story that sees Laurel and Hardy are sent to prison for selling home brew to a policeman during prohibition.
In hail they end up on the wrong side of their cellmate, The Tiger who is mean bad one. Stan's loose tooth which makes a raspberry noise constantly lands the duo in trouble.
They end up in solitary, then escape to a cotton plantation and once recaptured they inadvertently break up a prison riot.
The film is rather overlong and padded, like a couple of shorts cobbled together with some songs.
In hail they end up on the wrong side of their cellmate, The Tiger who is mean bad one. Stan's loose tooth which makes a raspberry noise constantly lands the duo in trouble.
They end up in solitary, then escape to a cotton plantation and once recaptured they inadvertently break up a prison riot.
The film is rather overlong and padded, like a couple of shorts cobbled together with some songs.
1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
First feature for Stan and Ollie, slightly padded but fun.Permalink
![4020 4020](/uploads/1/2/5/8/125866848/777608785.jpg)
Prichards1234527 November 2015
Warning: SpoilersThe story goes that Hal Roach had to build his own prison set after negotiations with M.G.M. fell through to rent one of theirs, and finding the cost prohibitive for a short he ordered the movie expanded to feature length.
I don't know if this story has been confirmed, but if true it would explain the lack of continuity in certain scenes, and the musical numbers used to pad out the running time.
But for all that there's some wonderful stuff in here. Great gag of Stan and Ollie planning to sell bootleg hooch; the next cut has them being marched straight into prison. Wonderful check-in gags and the mugshot scene is hysterical 'If they come out good can I have a copy?' says Stan.
But the best scene for me is the classroom set piece with Jimmy Finn. This had me convulsed with laughter. Asked to name a comet, which has previously been described as a star with a tail on it, Stan answers Rin Tin Tin! In the second half the standard slips slightly, and Stan and Ollie in black-face is not exactly PC these days. However it was not meant to be racist, and Ollie gets to sing 'Lazy Moon', which is fine.
Pardon Us is perhaps lacking the cohesive plots of some of the boys' later films - compare this to Sons of The Desert, for example. But for the most part it's an enjoyable film, and worth seeing.
I don't know if this story has been confirmed, but if true it would explain the lack of continuity in certain scenes, and the musical numbers used to pad out the running time.
But for all that there's some wonderful stuff in here. Great gag of Stan and Ollie planning to sell bootleg hooch; the next cut has them being marched straight into prison. Wonderful check-in gags and the mugshot scene is hysterical 'If they come out good can I have a copy?' says Stan.
But the best scene for me is the classroom set piece with Jimmy Finn. This had me convulsed with laughter. Asked to name a comet, which has previously been described as a star with a tail on it, Stan answers Rin Tin Tin! In the second half the standard slips slightly, and Stan and Ollie in black-face is not exactly PC these days. However it was not meant to be racist, and Ollie gets to sing 'Lazy Moon', which is fine.
Pardon Us is perhaps lacking the cohesive plots of some of the boys' later films - compare this to Sons of The Desert, for example. But for the most part it's an enjoyable film, and worth seeing.
1 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Mediocre L&H comedyPermalink
This was Laurel & Hardy's first feature-length film, and it's clear they're not too comfortable with the format: too much padding, not enough laughs. They play a couple of would-be beer barons who find themselves in the slammer after trying to sell beer to a cop, and they look like veritable lambs to the slaughter as they fall foul of Walter Long, the evil-eyed Tiger. The best thing about this film – apart from the boys themselves, who rise effortlessly above their rather mediocre material – is the great array of weather-beaten punch-drunk faces of the character actors chosen to flesh out the parts of the other inmates. They all look like they spend most of their time loitering in dark alleyways waiting for some poor soul to come wandering past.
There's a lot of content that would be considered politically incorrect in these wonderfully enlightened times, and for once the film would probably be no worse off if it wasn't there. There are a few laugh-out-loud moments, but for the most part this one falls far short of the boy's usual high standard. The editing, in particular, is shockingly bad – even for 1931.
There's a lot of content that would be considered politically incorrect in these wonderfully enlightened times, and for once the film would probably be no worse off if it wasn't there. There are a few laugh-out-loud moments, but for the most part this one falls far short of the boy's usual high standard. The editing, in particular, is shockingly bad – even for 1931.
3 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Old, but still funnyPermalink
Not their best, but still very, very funny in places.
Worth seeing just for the gag about the bloodhounds. If you're scratching your head, watch it again.
This film used to be on all the time when I was a kid. Happy days.
Worth seeing just for the gag about the bloodhounds. If you're scratching your head, watch it again.
This film used to be on all the time when I was a kid. Happy days.
3 out of 6 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
humor, old stylePermalink
1931 was a very different time in this country. 'pardon us' reflects the modes and mores of the time; remember, that was seventy-three years ago. the attitude toward blacks at that time was of one to a second-class people. so, we have laurel pointing at two black inmates and saying 'look, amos 'n andy'. happy, singing sharecroppers (i'd like to know if the singing sharecroppers were the crinoline choir seen in bing's 'mississippi' and the marx bros 'day at the races')...stan and ollie coloring themselves with grease and mud. as another reviewer remarked, they couldn't get away with that today, and rightly so. withal,pardon us is not a 'great' film, but it is a great l&h film. the accompanying music is straight out of the silents. listen to it...savor it...worth the admission. hardy exhibits his fine tenor voice in 'lazy moon'..the various l&h skits throughout. my favorite is when l&h declare a hunger strike but the guard tempts them with visions of a roast turkey dinner replete with all the trimmings including hot biscuits and a big, black cigar. how could hardy turn that down! laurel pipes up after all that and asks, 'any nuts?' 'all you can eat of them!' comes the stentorian answer from the guard. wilfred lucas (the warden), walter long (the 'tiger') and jimmy finlayson (the school tutor) lend yeoman support to l&h. all three supported them in other vehicles. wilfred lucas was the dean in 'chumps at oxford'; walter long appeared in 'saps at sea' and, of course, finlayson appeared in all l&h films. listen to the warden's welcoming talk at the start and his congratulatory talk at the end. poor l&h...they are mesmerized by the pomposity. fine l&h film, creaky in spots, but recommended for the film buff and the l&h fan.
3 out of 7 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Arrest them...Permalink
AAdaSC4 February 2019
...for not being very funny. Scenes drag on with slapstick and pratfalls which must have been tired and dated even in 1931. It is quite anxiety-inducing to watch as you just want it to stop. I quite liked the idea of Stan blowing raspberries at the prison's 'Top Dog' Walter Long (The Tiger). However, it's funny once, maybe twice but please stop it there. In this offering, I'm afraid the repetition of this joke falls flat and becomes an irritation. Sort of what Abbott & Costello were to do in the 1940s - you know, milk a joke to death so that it is no longer funny.
I'd watched 'The Big House' (1930) the day before I saw this and the inspiration from that film is obvious in both storyline and set. That film is better than this Laurel & Hardy offering and I just felt slightly let-down because I never really got a good laugh from this film.
I'd watched 'The Big House' (1930) the day before I saw this and the inspiration from that film is obvious in both storyline and set. That film is better than this Laurel & Hardy offering and I just felt slightly let-down because I never really got a good laugh from this film.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Comedy heaven!Permalink
ed32126 January 2019
There are no words to describe the genius of Laurel and Hardy. I've watched all kinds of comedy all my life, from all over the world, and to me Laurel and Hardy is still the best. I watched this morning and literally laughed all the way through. When Stan's 'pfft' noise comes from his loose tooth when he talks makes you cry with laughter just on it's own. Amazing. Just amazing. Perfection!
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
It's Jail Time.Permalink
Laurel And Hardy
Infamous for their witty sense of humor that whips you around for both, their verbal sparrings and physical sequences, this comedy duo has managed to entertain and inspire millions of viewers and comedians for their own personality and nothing else. The type of characters that they have shined their lights on, may not resonate on terms of their characteristics with you, but can easily be communicated by their deeds. And performing such simplistic persona, Laurel and Hardy has spoken a lot of the society that they resided at that era and the betterment that they seek at the end of it. Laurel using his body language often has the torch in his hand, he is a type-of-bully natured towards Hardy but in a brotherly way, he also plays the smarter cookie between them, the one who is more is touch with practicality. Hardy, on the other hand, has its own rhythm to beat, he lives on his own imagination, he is more emotionally fueled and often the butt of the joke. Teaming up for ensuing chaos for themselves, the writing has always explored the nature of a being, to its best and is its primary armor to draw in the dramatic impact on their audience. Their knack of animating themselves on the gags; something that comes up when they are deep into it and have been exaggerating for a while, doesn't come off as they anticipate every time.
Pardon Us
A classic perspective change over the personality as a new world surround them, Laurel is suddenly more street than Hardy, these layered jokes are what you have to seek. As far as physical comedy is concerned, Laurel trying to sleep is the only one and boy is it stretched by him and the more he stretches that sequence the more funnier it gets. The storytelling is decent in fact it has much more to offer than any other one hour films of theirs, since t explores their one and only track throughout the course.
Infamous for their witty sense of humor that whips you around for both, their verbal sparrings and physical sequences, this comedy duo has managed to entertain and inspire millions of viewers and comedians for their own personality and nothing else. The type of characters that they have shined their lights on, may not resonate on terms of their characteristics with you, but can easily be communicated by their deeds. And performing such simplistic persona, Laurel and Hardy has spoken a lot of the society that they resided at that era and the betterment that they seek at the end of it. Laurel using his body language often has the torch in his hand, he is a type-of-bully natured towards Hardy but in a brotherly way, he also plays the smarter cookie between them, the one who is more is touch with practicality. Hardy, on the other hand, has its own rhythm to beat, he lives on his own imagination, he is more emotionally fueled and often the butt of the joke. Teaming up for ensuing chaos for themselves, the writing has always explored the nature of a being, to its best and is its primary armor to draw in the dramatic impact on their audience. Their knack of animating themselves on the gags; something that comes up when they are deep into it and have been exaggerating for a while, doesn't come off as they anticipate every time.
Pardon Us
A classic perspective change over the personality as a new world surround them, Laurel is suddenly more street than Hardy, these layered jokes are what you have to seek. As far as physical comedy is concerned, Laurel trying to sleep is the only one and boy is it stretched by him and the more he stretches that sequence the more funnier it gets. The storytelling is decent in fact it has much more to offer than any other one hour films of theirs, since t explores their one and only track throughout the course.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
A couple of beer barons, giving out free raspberries.Permalink
weezeralfalfa17 November 2018
Warning: SpoilersI don't care what the detractors say, this is one of my favorite L&H feature-length films, , as well as their first such film. Not bad for a picture that originally was conceived as just another comedy short. Part of the reason I like it so much is the occasional presence of 2 charismatic supporting actors. One is Walter Long, cast as 'The Tiger': leader of attempts to break out of prison and stage a prison riot. He certainly had a distinctive 'tough guy' face and demeanor. However, he wasn't always as tough in his behavior. Of course, Walter played tough guys in several other L&H shorts and features. .......The second charismatic supporting actor is Jimmy Finlayson, also frequently seen in other L&H comedy shorts and features. Here he plays the prison schoolmaster, and is hysterically funny, with his signature squinty-eye double takes. Stan gives imaginative answers to some of his questions. For example, Jim asks what a blizzard is. Stan answers 'The insides of a buzzard'. Jim asks what a comet is. Stan says 'a star with a tail on it'. Jim : 'Can you give an example?' Stan says 'Rin Tin Tin'! ........Periodically, Stan gets in big trouble for making a raspberry-like sound, supposedly with a loose tooth. At one point, a prison guard takes him to the dentist(Otto Fries) to cure the problem. But, initially, the dentist gets confused, when Ollie sits in the dentist's chair to demonstrate how simple it will be, to the fearful Stan. Yes, the dentist asks no questions, and pulls Ollie's tooth. Stan then gets his turn, but the raspberries continue, as most dramatically illustrated when responding to the pardon the boys received for(accidentally) aiding in foiling the prison riot. The warden went ballistic, as he did when that happened at their first meeting..........Incidentally, the boys were sent to prison for illegally selling home brew.(This was still the Prohibition Era). Stan tried to sell some to a policemen, whom he thought was a streetcar conductor! After the warden's pardon speech, stupid Stan invited him to try some of their brew!..........Things get very hectic when Stan doesn't understand why a Thompson submachine gun was passed to him under the dining table. He pulls it out, and, pointing at Ollie, asks 'What is this for?' Ollie's shocked response resulted in it being fired in the air, causing the inmates to run for their lives. This also alerted the authorities that a prison riot was imminent. Later, when The Tiger-led rioters wanted to get through a prison gate, first Stan, and then Ollie, fired the gun into the floor or walls, causing the rioters to retreat from the gate. Eventually, when they ran out of bullets, the state militia was at the gate, to save them and quell the riot...........Although some reviews don't like the inclusion of musical numbers, as interruptions of the action, as a fan of musical comedies, I saw this as a welcomed break in the harshness of the prison scene...........While picking cotton, the Etude Ethiopian Chorus sang several spirituals that are not included in the 'Soundtracks' section at this site. This was followed by a rendition of 'Lazy Moon', by a blackfaced Ollie, backed up by the Hall Johnson choir. Stan did a bit of dancing to it. ........Later, after the boys were back in prison, the Avalon Boys, while in the exercise yard, sang Irving Berlin's 'Wish I Was in Michigan Again', a keeper song for me. Judy Garland sang it in the musical 'Easter Parade'. Again, this song is not listed under 'Soundtracks' at this site, apparently, because neither Stan nor Ollie was involved. Incidentally, the boys were wearing rather light blackface, so that they fit in with the other cotton pickers, and hopefully avoided notice by the overseer(I noticed that Stan was putting whole branches in his bag, whereas Ollie only put in the bolls.) Unfortunately, they were called upon to try to fix the warden's car, which stopped near them. While Ollie was under the car, looking for a problem, a dog came along and licked some of the blackface off. He redistributed some from other areas, and Stan got some more from inside the hood. However, their cover was blown when Stan's tooth made a raspberry. Incidentally, the warden's daughter(Played by June Marlowe) discovered the problem with the car. It was out of gas!........See it in B&W or the colorized version,(I saw the latter) at YouTube.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Patchy feature film debut for Laurel and Hardy.Permalink
alexanderdavies-9938231 July 2017
I think it was the natural and successful career move for Laurel and Hardy to make feature length movies. They proved during the 1930s that they could adapt to making films of approximately an hour in length by working with a fuller storyline. Several of their feature length films remain classics and rightly so. It would take a couple of films before Stan and Ollie felt at home in this particular format but their debut feature, 'Pardon Us' shows a lot of promise. It is a patchy film in that the story is a bit drawn out but the comedy is very good. Our hapless heroes attempt to cash in on the bootlegging racket but don't realise they have sold some of their product to an undercover police officer - until it's too late. Sent to prison, they find it hard to cope with incarceration. Stan suffering from toothache doesn't exactly help! He manages to incur the wrath of everyone as a result. I don't usually care for music numbers being included in comedy films. In fairness though, it doesn't harm this film. I enjoyed the cast of African/American performers as they sang and harmonise together. Great singing all round, not least from Ollie who was truly blessed with a superb voice. The best Laurel and Hardy feature films were to follow but 'Pardon Us' has some effective scenes.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Behind the Walls.Permalink
rmax30482317 April 2017
I wonder if some of the younger viewers will get the initial premise. A Constitutional amendment, whose number I don't want to bother looking up, made almost all forms of alcoholic beverages illegal during the 1920s until the amendment was repealed in 1933. It was a curious law. The targets seemed to be not so much booze as immigrants who drank for recreation (Irish) or as part of a meal (Italians). It was particularly bad for most of the breweries. They were run by Germans, who had just been demonized in World War I. (Think Schlitz, Blatz, Anheuser-Busch, Budweiser, Gablinger, etc.) When Laurel and Hardy are first seen, they're planning to buy enough ingredients to make 25 gallons of illegal beer. Presumably they get caught. That's why they're taken to jail.
It's their first talkie but some of the verbal gags are unexpectedly cute. So the dynamic duo are being booked. 'What's your name?', the gruff desk sergeant demands of Laurel. 'Stanley Laurel,' is the obedient answer. 'Say SIR when you speak to me!' 'Sir Stanley Laurel.' More are routine puns but still amusing. What's a comet? A star with a tail on it. Correct -- name one. 'Rin-tin-tin.' For you young uns, Rin-tin-tin was a famous dog in the early movies. Hardy seems to break the fourth wall more often than usual but not enough to turn the viewer off.
There are scenes that some might find irritating or offensive because they are echt-non-PC. Laurel and Hardy escape from prison, don blackface, and join a small community of black who pick cotton and live in tumbledown houses. But so what? A lot of blacks in the South DID pick cotton. They're presented as positively as any other group -- singing and enjoying themselves after a hard day's work -- and Laurel and Hardy are perfectly comfortable in their company. Hardy sings 'Lazy Moon,' totally forgettable, while the banjo and guitar back him up, and Laurel does a little dance. Later, when they're back behind the walls, a quintet of inmates sings the more successful 'I Want To Go Back to Michigan,' written by Irving Berlin in 1914. From a materialist point of view, disregarding ethics, this was 1931 and all of the actors in this movie -- stars and extras alike, black or white -- were collecting pay checks that might be otherwise hard to come by.
One of the more notable scenes: Laurel and Hardy in the waiting room, about to have the dentist pull one of Laurel's teeth. There's no slapstick at all. One by one, the waiting prisoners are ushered into the dentist's office and shortly afterwards we hear screams of pain and fear, the crashing of pots and pans, while Laurel quivers in fright. Maybe I responded the way I did because one of the phrases I most dread hearing is a dentist saying, 'Now just open wide and turn this way a little.' The direction is pretty crude -- lots of close ups of faces registering one or another intense emotion. But the story has continuity and leads to a properly kinetic climax with some imaginatively choreographed slapstick.
It's their first talkie but some of the verbal gags are unexpectedly cute. So the dynamic duo are being booked. 'What's your name?', the gruff desk sergeant demands of Laurel. 'Stanley Laurel,' is the obedient answer. 'Say SIR when you speak to me!' 'Sir Stanley Laurel.' More are routine puns but still amusing. What's a comet? A star with a tail on it. Correct -- name one. 'Rin-tin-tin.' For you young uns, Rin-tin-tin was a famous dog in the early movies. Hardy seems to break the fourth wall more often than usual but not enough to turn the viewer off.
There are scenes that some might find irritating or offensive because they are echt-non-PC. Laurel and Hardy escape from prison, don blackface, and join a small community of black who pick cotton and live in tumbledown houses. But so what? A lot of blacks in the South DID pick cotton. They're presented as positively as any other group -- singing and enjoying themselves after a hard day's work -- and Laurel and Hardy are perfectly comfortable in their company. Hardy sings 'Lazy Moon,' totally forgettable, while the banjo and guitar back him up, and Laurel does a little dance. Later, when they're back behind the walls, a quintet of inmates sings the more successful 'I Want To Go Back to Michigan,' written by Irving Berlin in 1914. From a materialist point of view, disregarding ethics, this was 1931 and all of the actors in this movie -- stars and extras alike, black or white -- were collecting pay checks that might be otherwise hard to come by.
One of the more notable scenes: Laurel and Hardy in the waiting room, about to have the dentist pull one of Laurel's teeth. There's no slapstick at all. One by one, the waiting prisoners are ushered into the dentist's office and shortly afterwards we hear screams of pain and fear, the crashing of pots and pans, while Laurel quivers in fright. Maybe I responded the way I did because one of the phrases I most dread hearing is a dentist saying, 'Now just open wide and turn this way a little.' The direction is pretty crude -- lots of close ups of faces registering one or another intense emotion. But the story has continuity and leads to a properly kinetic climax with some imaginatively choreographed slapstick.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
First full-length 'talkie' a mere 70 minutes!Permalink
mike4812821 January 2017
Warning: SpoilersOnly 64 minutes in the TCM version, as some of the minor extended scenes are missing. The boys sell beer to 2 cops during Prohibition and are sent to prison. Slightly racist with an 'Amos and Andy' remark and the boys in blackface while picking crops in the field. The makeup wears off, the warden recognizes them, and then back to prison. The 'Negro Spiritual' is first-rate and sung by a gospel group. Reminiscent of later L & H short features, such as 'Saps at Sea' and 'Flying Deuces'. (Basically all 4 reelers.) Typical routines include: A goofy classroom lesson by the prison's teacher. The prison dentist pulls the wrong teeth. Hi-jinks with machine guns and slapstick but nobody actually gets hurt. Two prison breaks. Neither one proves successful. The running gag is Stan's loose tooth, which involuntarily causes him to give everyone 'the raspberries' sound. Most enjoyable for what it was. A primitive first feature by Hal Roach Studios. Some will say that the 3 musical numbers slow it down and 'pad' it, but this was typical of movies of that era.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Life in the SlammerPermalink
Hitchcoc12 January 2017
Stan and Ollie are sent to jail for making home brew which they decide to sell during the Depression (and, of course, Prohibition). Stan insults the Warden because he has a vibrating tooth which makes it sound like he is giving the guy the raspberries. They are put in prison with the worst of the worst, who respects them because Stan does his vibrating tooth thing (he is seen as courageous). When the boys get caught up in a jailbreak, they manage to escape and go on to hide in cotton fields in the South with a bunch of black people. Unfortunately, the Warden and his daughter come along, and now they are back in prison. What happens after this involves another effort to escape. This is a cute movie. Stan even sings in this one.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
not one of their finest momentsPermalink
mortenwebstar216 March 2006
Stan & Ollie's 'Pardon Us' is not one of their most memorable films, and not one of their funniest. Stan and Ollie are send to jail for selling beer, they later escape but are recaptured. The plot seems pretty thick compared to comedy films of that day, and there seems to be less attention paid among the scriptwriters on jokes and funny moments. The running gag through the movie is Stan's loose tooth, which makes him sound like he insults everyone. It's not very funny, and gets extremely repetitive and thus predictable. And if you look past that joke, then there isn't much left to laugh about about.
And that is pretty much the problem. Not once during the movie did I laugh. Just a halfway grin on occasion. So it remains just a little film, that you watch, and then forget. There are of course a few half funny moments, Stan trying to get comfortable to sleep in his and Ollie's bed at the prison. The scene at the dentist, the scene at the prison school (with Finlayson, who makes his usual - but still great - mimics) and the ending of the film are all OK moments, but not that much more. There's an extremely huge amount of singing in the movie. Singing at the prison, and while Stan and Ollie escapes, they hide as black workers on a cotton farm, leading to classic 'negro-spirituals' and similar. It's not bad at all, but it drags on a bit too much.
So all in all, too much regular movie'ish plot, and too little solid comedy. It's not a bad film at all, but far from being a Stan 6 Ollie classic.
A few years later, the boys would make 'Sons Of The Desert', a master example on a classic Stan & Ollie movie. And it success 'Pardon Us' in every way possible.
And that is pretty much the problem. Not once during the movie did I laugh. Just a halfway grin on occasion. So it remains just a little film, that you watch, and then forget. There are of course a few half funny moments, Stan trying to get comfortable to sleep in his and Ollie's bed at the prison. The scene at the dentist, the scene at the prison school (with Finlayson, who makes his usual - but still great - mimics) and the ending of the film are all OK moments, but not that much more. There's an extremely huge amount of singing in the movie. Singing at the prison, and while Stan and Ollie escapes, they hide as black workers on a cotton farm, leading to classic 'negro-spirituals' and similar. It's not bad at all, but it drags on a bit too much.
So all in all, too much regular movie'ish plot, and too little solid comedy. It's not a bad film at all, but far from being a Stan 6 Ollie classic.
A few years later, the boys would make 'Sons Of The Desert', a master example on a classic Stan & Ollie movie. And it success 'Pardon Us' in every way possible.
2 out of 5 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
Permalink
An error has occured. Please try again.