OAKIE LOVES LUCY
THE AFFAIRS OF ANNABEL/ANNABEL TAKES A TOUR DOUBLE FEATURE (1938)
Lucille Ball and Jack Oakie team up for a pair of comedies covering the calamitous career of the glamorous actress, Annabel Allison (Ball) and her publicity stunt crazed agent, Lanny Morgan (Oakie). The first feature sees Annabel doing a stretch of hard time in order to research prison life when the picture she's doing it for gets placed into permanent turnaround. Finally sprung, Lanny lands Annabel a stint in safe domestic service to prepare her for a new movie, "A Maid and A Man". Said service entails a precocious love struck teens, eccentric inventors, desperate gangsters along with both real and faux police shoot-outs. The second feature sees Annabel taking a well-deserved publicity victory tour for her most recent picture, but thanks to Lanny, she ends up engaged to the already married novelist nobleman Viscount Ronald River-Clyde. Hey - it's good PR! Directed by Ben Stoloff and Lew Landers.
A VERY FUN YEARHER MAJESTY, LOVE (1931)
Broadway royalty Marilyn Miller makes one of her welcome forays into film for this star-crossed romance that pits the houses of industry and against the habitués of the notorious Berlin Cabaret. Ball bearing magnate scion Fred von Wellingen pops the question to barmistress Lia Toerrek in a mood comprised of equal parts infatuation and youthful rebellion. When his family puts the kibosh on the engagement, easily swayed Ben has already had his way (pre-Code!). By the time sensibility returns, Lia is otherwise engaged. With Chester Conklin, Leon Errol, Ford Sterling and a naturally scene-stealing W.C. Fields.
FIFTY MILLION FRENCHMEN (1931)Cole Porter's musical comedy comes to the silver screen san musical numbers (but still peppered with some Porter on the score). As the City of Lights is swept up in post-war ardor, two wealthy ex-pats (William Gaxton and John Halliday make a wager for the heart of the fair Looloo Carroll (Claudia Dell). Jack Forbes' (Gaxton) condition is simple - said wooing must be done sans cash or connections. Never one to not hedge his bets, Michael Cummings (Halliday) hires a pair of bumbling detectives (Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson) to keep the pair apart. Will it work? Directed by Lloyd Bacon.
GOLD DUST GERTIE (1931)Olsen and Johnson star in this romp of alimony without acrimony. Love 'em and litigate 'em Gertie (Winnie Lightner) counts both Elmer Guthrie (Ole Olsen) and George Harlan (Chic Jonson) among her ex-husbands, and the pair are in a bit of arrears on their alimony due to hard times at the bathing suit company. Ever one to be part of the solution, gold-digging Gertie sets her eyes on their boss and proposes a risqué plan of business with bathing suits.