Behind the Lens of Al Herman: Decoding The Kick in High Life

Lotta Sherry the belle of Volstead, is strong for parties, and is about to celebrate the birthday of her baby sister with a blow-out which bids fair to be a staggering success. Invited by Lotta to attend the forth-coming affair, Bud Weiser is greatly elated. At the moment the guests are assembling they receive a thrill from the unexpected appearance in the offing of Smokey Johnny Walker, on his trusty charger. Hearing the shout, "Milk here!" the charger halts. Johnny detaches himself from the lawn and contrives to worm into the party. Troubles at once begin for Johnny. Slapped on the back by peevish Bud, he coughs his store molars on to the turf, where Lotta's pet bull dog seizes them and makes mean faces at Johnny. Mr. Walker, looking as though he had been aged in the wood, mumbles something with a hair lip accent in reply to Bud's designing, damaging question, and his reply sounding gummy to Lotta, she and Bud leave him flat. At the party, a mysterious gentleman proves to be none other than Knockout Clancy, Johnny Walker's old pal, sent by him to avenge the insult of the straying teeth. An attempt by Clancy to steal Lotta Sherry from Bud Weiser starts things popping, and after a more than 2.75 wallop from Bud. Clancy, starting with the butler, wipes out the entire party. Meanwhile, Gaston, the Bolshevik chief, returning by the kitchen route with enough dynamite and light artillery to get even with everybody, ingeniously tests the explosive by filling his assistant's pipe with a stick of it. Enraged, the latter feeds the rest of the dynamite to the family mice. Enters then the cat, who chases the mice into the birthday cake, and- then things begin to happen.