Today, Frank Fay is known mostly for seeing invisible rabbits and for being the first Mr. Barbara Stanwyck, actually the man who helped jump-start her career in Hollywood before taking a Norman Maine nosedive himself. But way before all that, he was one of the most popular actors in the theater. Unfortunately, like John Barrymore and the fictional Mr. Norman Maine, his career was downsized by an overindulgence with alcohol and an egotistical self image that made Al Jolson apparently seem tame by comparison. By 1943, his ex-wife was one of the top moneymakers in movies, and he was resigned to starring in this Monogram musical melodrama where the ego is still obviously present, even if he is a bit grizzled and rough around the edges.
This is actually a pretty good programmer, featuring Fay and Billy Gilbert as a vaudeville team working together quite by accident. The opening scene is very funny of Fay basically ripping Gilbert off for $10 which he owes him, but ends up getting a check from Gilbert himself. The light-hearted manner in which the scam happens endears Gilbert to Fay and they have a good laugh over it. The good sport that he is, Gilbert ends up being stooge to Fay's leading comic, and this leads them into headlining a popular nightclub act. Through this, he gets to meet real life singer Bonnie Baker who warbles "Oh Johnny How You Could Love!" and incurring the wrath of the bombastic Iris Adrian. Ironically, the very same year, Adrian co-starred with Stanwyck in "Lady of Burlesque".
A nasty encounter between Baker and Adrian (with Fay present) leads to Adrian confronting Fay in his apartment, a move that leads to disaster. This destroys Fay's career, and he can only get horrible gigs in really bad vaudeville acts in the worst possible locations. Will Gilbert, who has retired from show business, step up to help his old buddy? The answer to this is pretty obvious, but back to where they were before, will World War II audiences take to their shtick the way they had before burlesque joined the unicorn in extinction heaven? The Radio Rogues provide some genuinely funny impressions of W.C. Fields, Jimmy Durante, Lou Costello and others, while "The Restless Age" stands out as a great nightclub production number.
Baker's voice is hard to take at times, and while I can understand the blowzy Adrian not winning Fay's affections, I can't imagine him making a play for the somewhat annoying Baker. Adrian actually wins the acting honors, and Gilbert gets the bulk of the laughs. A skit with Gilbert and some kids discussing Gilbert's pie cart may seem dated to some but I found it very funny. This is more a dated curio with some great moments than a really memorable film, but classic movie fans should find it mildly entertaining.
This is actually a pretty good programmer, featuring Fay and Billy Gilbert as a vaudeville team working together quite by accident. The opening scene is very funny of Fay basically ripping Gilbert off for $10 which he owes him, but ends up getting a check from Gilbert himself. The light-hearted manner in which the scam happens endears Gilbert to Fay and they have a good laugh over it. The good sport that he is, Gilbert ends up being stooge to Fay's leading comic, and this leads them into headlining a popular nightclub act. Through this, he gets to meet real life singer Bonnie Baker who warbles "Oh Johnny How You Could Love!" and incurring the wrath of the bombastic Iris Adrian. Ironically, the very same year, Adrian co-starred with Stanwyck in "Lady of Burlesque".
A nasty encounter between Baker and Adrian (with Fay present) leads to Adrian confronting Fay in his apartment, a move that leads to disaster. This destroys Fay's career, and he can only get horrible gigs in really bad vaudeville acts in the worst possible locations. Will Gilbert, who has retired from show business, step up to help his old buddy? The answer to this is pretty obvious, but back to where they were before, will World War II audiences take to their shtick the way they had before burlesque joined the unicorn in extinction heaven? The Radio Rogues provide some genuinely funny impressions of W.C. Fields, Jimmy Durante, Lou Costello and others, while "The Restless Age" stands out as a great nightclub production number.
Baker's voice is hard to take at times, and while I can understand the blowzy Adrian not winning Fay's affections, I can't imagine him making a play for the somewhat annoying Baker. Adrian actually wins the acting honors, and Gilbert gets the bulk of the laughs. A skit with Gilbert and some kids discussing Gilbert's pie cart may seem dated to some but I found it very funny. This is more a dated curio with some great moments than a really memorable film, but classic movie fans should find it mildly entertaining.