A refurnished Preston Sturgis' 'Palm Beach Story' is out on DVD. An occasion to celebrate. This screwball comedy touches on a problem that affects young working families: how to make ends meet. The joke is given away at the beginning for the attentive eye. Of course this is Hollywood, so the the Jeffers (Claudette Colbert and Joel McCrea) down on their luck live on Park Avenue. Colbert decides to leave McCrea whom she loves deeply, to find her way with her looks to bankroll his dreams but ... A fairy godfather 'the weenie king', played with a straight faced by the excellent Robert Y. Dudley steps in. Debts paid with Dudley's $700 (several thousands in today's dollars), McCrea takes it the wrong way. So Colbert takes off to find her fortune and new life. But the fairy godfather steps in again by paying McCrea's way to win back his bride. And so it goes: there's the hilarious Quail and Ale Club of raucous inebriated millions come to her rescue with gun shots, hounds and barber shop singing. And on the train she steps on Rudy Valle's 19-century style pince nez eyeglasses, and she steps into the world of super wealth. And so it goes. Valle is a charm and a great second banana. And then there's Mary Astor as his oft married sister who sets her eyes on Mcrea. But the bond of love cannot break Colbert from McCrea.And then the film's kicker comes in. But you've got to see this delicious comedy to find out the happy ending and everyone lives happily ever after!
Review of The Palm Beach Story
