The character of the single mother Marie Wilson is dim, not dumb. That description would go to frustrated movie producer Ralph Bellamy who makes the viewer wonder how he got in that position, and that's the playwright and screenwriter's joke on the viewer, as this screwball comedy insinuates that a position of power doesn't mean the possession of brains. Realizing that working under dimwitted Bellamy has turned him into a hack, frustrated writer James Cagney decides to fight back.
"Sometimes I wonder if working in this industry is worth the sacrifice", Bellamy ponders, and having a stronger role than Cagney gives him the edge even though he's billed below the title. It's by accident that Cagney finds Wilson and her baby "Happy" who becomes a star even though he really does nothing remarkable on screen. Jealous western star Dick Foran wants to marry Wilson so he can control Happy's future and get rid of him as a co-star, but a British extra worker (Bruce Lester) decides to get involved by posing as Happy's father.
The comedy comes from the state of perpetual havoc around the corner, with Pat O'Brien (as Cagney's collaberator), Frank McHugh and Penny Singleton also thrown in to the confusion, and Ronald Reagan very funny as the radio show host at a premiere, absolutely frustrated by Wilson going on and on, trying unsuccessfully to interrupt her. It's always very amusing when the movies go after their own industry, and while this doesn't go onto the set, it is a pretty scathing look at movie making and how absurd some of the personalities are. The play is probably too dated to revive as a 70's attempt flopped. More nostalgic than classic, but some sequences like the trumpeteers in Bellamy's office are iconic.
"Sometimes I wonder if working in this industry is worth the sacrifice", Bellamy ponders, and having a stronger role than Cagney gives him the edge even though he's billed below the title. It's by accident that Cagney finds Wilson and her baby "Happy" who becomes a star even though he really does nothing remarkable on screen. Jealous western star Dick Foran wants to marry Wilson so he can control Happy's future and get rid of him as a co-star, but a British extra worker (Bruce Lester) decides to get involved by posing as Happy's father.
The comedy comes from the state of perpetual havoc around the corner, with Pat O'Brien (as Cagney's collaberator), Frank McHugh and Penny Singleton also thrown in to the confusion, and Ronald Reagan very funny as the radio show host at a premiere, absolutely frustrated by Wilson going on and on, trying unsuccessfully to interrupt her. It's always very amusing when the movies go after their own industry, and while this doesn't go onto the set, it is a pretty scathing look at movie making and how absurd some of the personalities are. The play is probably too dated to revive as a 70's attempt flopped. More nostalgic than classic, but some sequences like the trumpeteers in Bellamy's office are iconic.