The good news is that this is the type of role that Bob Hope usually excelled in playing. It's not exactly his "coward" role, with which he could run away with a picture. But it's close -- in this case a British actor portraying a British servant, playing a British earl...this time a somewhat cowardly braggart. There's nothing wrong with Hope's performance here.And then there's Lucy, playing an American Western woman looking for a husband. As with Hope, it's a good performance.And, Bob and Lucy always were good together...and were here.So what's the problem? Well, many stories need a set up to get going. But the set up for this story lasts about 40 minutes, and that set up is only moderately entertaining. Once the Westerners mistake Hope's character for an earl, things pick up and the film gets relatively entertaining.It's also a rather lush production with high production values.The supporting cast here does okay...with the emphasis on "okay". Bruce Cabot wants to be Lucy's love interest, but of course Hope is in the way; Cabot was, in my view, a marginal supporting actor, although he often looked right for his parts. Jack Kirkwood plays Lucy's father; again, he does "okay". Lea Penman does fairly well as Lucy's overbearing mother. Clearly the studio wanted to save money here -- the supporting actors are largely unknown to the American audience.What I find interesting here is the wide division between reviews here. People either love this film or hate it. I'm more in the middle.BTW, this is somewhat of a musical. The songs sorta work, but it's pretty clear that Lucy is lip-syncing (to Annette Warren singing).Chase scenes can be funny...but 3 chase scenes in a row is a bit much.I'll give this film a weak "7"

Fancy Pants is directed by George Marshall and adapted from the Harry Leon Wilson story by Edmund L. Hartmann & Robert O'Brien. It stars Bob Hope, Lucille Ball, Bruce Cabot, Jack Kirkwood and Lea Penman. A Technicolor production, it's scored by Van Cleave and cinematography is by Charles Lang. Plot is a reworking of Ruggles of Red Gap, which was made into a successful film in 1935, directed by Leo McCarey and starring Charles Laughton. This take finds Bob Hope as a low grade American stage actor who gets hired by a Western family in the hope that his refined manner will rub off on the more rough and tumble members of the family. Finds start to spiral out of control when the town mistake him for a noble lord, bringing the attention of one president Teddy Roosevelt, who plans a visit to the family home. Not only that, but Hope has to contend with town bully Bruce Cabot, who is convinced that Hope is trying to steal his girl, Lucille Ball.Bright and bubbly comedy musical fare, played purely for laughs and given a good quality production. Hope and Ball featured together in a total of five film's, their chemistry a winning formula, even if the material wasn't always that beneficial to their respective comedy leanings. Fancy Pants is one of the better ones, but it's bookended by indifference. The start is laborious, and not really setting the standard for what is to come, but once we land in the Wild West it not only lets Hope shine, but also it brings into play Kirkwood and Cabot (excellent). Then it's a case of letting Hope ponce about as a noble butler/Lord, while Ball and Kirkwood plot to have his nuisance self sent packing back to England. It's during this meaty middle section that we get some genuine laugh out loud moments, briskly constructed by Marshall and scripted as sharp as a razor. We even have time for a couple of tunes, with the quite wonderful "Home Cookin" the stand out. Sadly the ending lacks impact and comes all too quickly, which is doubly disappointing since the big build up was great fun.A good but not great Bob Hope film as a whole, but when it's good it's very good and therefore easily recommended to the comedy classic fan. 6.5/10

Lucy was one of the most gifted comedians to live: her gift was physical skits that ridiculed herself. Bob was similarly gifted, but his gift was the spoken joke. Neither was particularly well suited for the long form farce, which is what this is. It is part western, part musical (three numbers) and part romantic comedy. No element of it works. In its day, it was considered a stinker and it still is. Hope's one enjoyable bit was a hide and seek dance with someone who is chasing him. They are back to back but no matter where they look, it is not the right place. I first saw Hope do this in "Star Spangled Rhythm," and I suppose it became something of a trademark over the years.Lucy at this time was in negotiations for her TeeVee show, which WAS well suited for her talents — and became the most popular show in history. I'll advise you to stay away from this if you are a Lucy fan. I knew it would be bad, but it is on my list to watch because of the plot device. Bob, an actor, plays a guy who is an actor playing a butler who pretends to be an English lord. All this playing is set in a clearly faux western, and needs to be seen in the context of "Annie Get your Gun" of the same year, which is a western show about a western show.Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

Made over fifty years ago and still a treat to watch. A wonderful campy performance by Bob Hope,posing an an english Lord and Lucille Ball as a real tough western cowgirl really make this movie a lot of fun. Not to be missed is Bob as the english Lord describing his army exploits at a party.Bruce Cabot playing his usual bad tough guy keeps the movie on an even keel,but the laughs still come thick and fast mainly through Hope's attempt at an english accent. The one disappointing aspect was the finale,which seemed flat and made me wonder if the writers just couldn't be bothered with coming up with any more good lines. The late'40's and '50's were good film years for Hope and this movie shows why audiences kept coming back for more.