Help me remember this detective comedy film from my childhood!

March 22, 2008 7:18 AM

I am trying to find the title of this film I remember scantily from my childhood. I do remember belly-laughing at this film when I was a kid, but can't remember for the life of me more than just a few details. Here's what I know (or think I remember)...

I don't know the year, but probably the film I remember is from the very late 70s through perhaps the first couple of years of the 90s. It was a movie about a guy who was enrolling in some sort of "detective school" which was actually a scam being run by what I think was a con artist in a run down building. I think in the end it led to the main character actually solving a crime or mystery of some sort and, of course, figuring out that the detective training he attended was a scam.

I'm not very sure about any of the details except that I remember that it was really funny to me (at the time), oh and I remember a scene toward the beginning where the Lead is first brought into the detective training program and he is offered "hor douvres" of peanut butter on crackers by a very intimidating black woman who then charges him for the one he takes - something like six dollars. Then, she offers him a soft drink for which she demands additional money.

I think the word "Tourist" may have been in the title, but I'm just grabbing at straws there from what my fragmented mind remembers.

Any help anyone could give me on indentifying this childhood favorite would be greatly appreciated!

posted by jspierre to media & arts (5 answers total)

Are you sure it was a movie? There was a sitcom called Detective School on TV briefly in the late '70s. There was an indie film called Detective School Dropouts as well, but that sounds even less like your description than the sitcom does.
posted by cerebus19 at 8:26 AM on March 22, 2008

I think Detective School Drop-Outs is probably it, based on this description which mentions a "huge black secretary" among other things.
posted by tomcooke at 9:05 AM on March 22, 2008

(I think the poster knows how to put "detective school" into Google)
posted by mkultra at 9:06 AM on March 22, 2008

I've seen this movie too. Oh its on the tip of my tongue. There were multiple classes held. I thought it was to become a private eye. The first class had a bunch of hoodlum looking people in it. I remember him running because he was late for class. Definitely big black woman taking the money. The main character was a bit slow but ths is what he wanted to do for a living and did solve a crime.
posted by bleucube at 3:16 PM on March 22, 2008

The film was, indeed, Detective School Dropouts. Thanks for the help!
posted by jspierre at 6:45 PM on March 31, 2008