TODAY'S NUGGET: The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (1979) - Making the Daffy Disaster of Whizzing Bullets Count for Character

[Quick Summary: Two farmhands, who want to be the infamous Apple Dumpling Gang, bumble their way into another gang's bank heist, payroll robbery.]

I've always thought the scripts of Don Tait really showcased the physical comedy of actors Don Knotts and Tim Conway. 

But it was not just choosing unusual locations or situations, but how Tait used them to show more of Knotts and Conway's characters.

For example, in this script, Tait used props (whizzing bullets) to emphasize how these guys are clueless and do not think about the consequences of their actions.

Also notice the writing is so economical (summarized in brackets below):

INT. BANK

as Woolly Bill charges IN, Buntline Specials drawn, he comes face to face with Amos and Theodore!

WOOLLY BILL: All right -- hold it right there! Turn around! Now remove your guns easy and drop them.

Amos and Theodore are too frightened to speak, but they obey Woolly Bill's orders. Cautiously, they turn around, reach for their antiquated firearms, and drop them to the marble floor.

INSERT

Both guns DISCHARGE when they hit the floor. [Unthinking actions]

CLOSE - WOOLLY BILL

as one gun is shot from his hand. [Unintended reaction, which makes it funny]

SERIES OF FAST CUTS

as the bullet from Amos' gun SPANGS OFF various metal objects about the bank: a teller's cage bar, a spittoon, a chandelier, a corner of the vault, etc. This all is done to the SOUND OF RICOCHETING BULLETS. [This is a paragraph of actions.]

ANOTHER ANGLE

TO FAVOR Woolly Bill as his eyes try to follow the trajectory of the ricocheting bullet. Suddenly the other Buntline Special is knocked from his hands and Woolly Bill bends over, clutching both hands in pain. [This is Bill's reaction.]

ANOTHER ANGLE

as Theodore glances back over his shoulder and is surprised to find Woolly Bill a victim of their gunfire. Both his white-handled guns are on the floor at his feet. [More reactions]

THEODORE: Maybe we better go.

He grabs up their guns and shoves Amos' revolver at him. He has to shake Amos out of his posture of cringing terror.

WHAT I'VE LEARNED: This scene is funny because the bullets hitting Bill is unexpected.

However, it's funnier because it's about the characters' cluelessness.

The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (1979)(shooting draft, 3/28/78 w/revisions)
by Don Tait