The Apple Dumpling Gang
They were Dumb and Dumber decades before JimCarrey and Jeff Daniels, and to a kid growing up in the 1970’s, theywere comedy gods: Don Knotts and Tim Conway, the bumbling comic teamthat starred together in several 70’s and early 80’s comedies (andbuilt successful solo careers as well). The Apple Dumpling Gang marked the first time the two had worked together on the big screen, a live-action comedy for then-struggling Dinsey.
Old West gambler Russell Donovan wins more than he bargained forwhen he’s forced to care for three rambunctious kids. Looking for help,he arranges a convenience marriage to spunky stage driver MagnoliaDusty Clydesdale. The kids prove they may be worth more than it firstseemed when gold is discovered in a mine they inherited. A discoverylike this can’t go unnoticed for long, and soon the gold-crazytownspeople are converging on the site.
Knotts and Conway play Theodore Ogelvie and Amos Tucker,incompetent outlaws with eyes on the gold but soft spots in theirhearts for the kids. When rotten-to-the-core bandit Frank Stillwell andhis gang show up, Theodore and Amos side with the kids, leading to aslapstick showdown.
The antics hit big with audiences, leading to a 1979 sequel, The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again, and more Knotts/Conway team-ups.
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