Fandango: Escape Artist

Last night my wife and I were watching the 1958 Roger Corman cult film "Machine Gun Kelly" starring Charles Bronson. Morey Amsterdam, who is probably best known for his classic role as Buddy Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show, was one of the co-stars. Amsterdam played a swishy, one-armed weasel named Fandango who eventually brings about Machine Gun Kelly's downfall, but before he does there's a scene that's so unintentionally funny that I've got to tell you about it.

Okay. So the police have brought Fandango into the station. Fandango is a small, wimpy wanna-be bad guy that everyone pushes around. The cops have been sweating him in order to find Machine Gun Kelly. Despite their best efforts they're unable to get Fandango to break so they turn him loose. After Fandango leaves the room the head detective tells his partner not to worry, he's put his best man on trailing the one-armed weasel. Less than five seconds later the door opens and a cop says, "He got away. I lost him. He slipped into the ladies room and got away."

My wife and I both burst out laughing. Their best cop lost a small, one-armed man named Fandango before he could even get out of the police station! The next scene showed Fandango arriving at the hideout and he was still wearing his huge overcoat with the sleeve pinned up. He didn't even have to try to disguise himself or lose his overcoat.

There's a lesson here. If you really need a quick get away, hit the women's room and don't look back. Not even the best cop will be able to track you through there.