This is a totally unbelievable political comedy/drama with Frank Fay as a hotel elevator operator well known by everybody around who becomes town hero by aiding aging mayor Berton Churchill against the big political machine with a ruthless businessman (Hale Hamilton) out to stop Fay with the help of thug Nat Pendleton. He aids the inventor of a phonograph machine and finds out they both love the same girl. Fay has an absurd confrontation scene with Hamilton where all of a sudden he starts acting like a big city tough guy that totally goes out of character. Pendleton adds a few laughs as the typical dumb lug who just wants one sock at Fay. Instead of his fist meeting Fay's face, it meets an elevator door in one scene instead.
Then married to rising star Barbara Stanwyck, Fay was seeing his career hit the skids, and weak screenplays like this helped do him in, proving the rumors that the original story of "A Star is Born" (titled "What Price Hollywood?") was based on their relationship. This far fetched script has Fay striving to be younger than he really was, and he looks even sillier than Franklin Pangborn does in his ridiculous looking toupee. The fact that thus gives me impression that Day is the one who will end up running for mayor makes it completely deceptive. As Stanwyck said about Fay when asked if she would see him in his big comeback of "Harvey" on Broadway, "I've seen all the invisible rabbits of his that I want to see."
Then married to rising star Barbara Stanwyck, Fay was seeing his career hit the skids, and weak screenplays like this helped do him in, proving the rumors that the original story of "A Star is Born" (titled "What Price Hollywood?") was based on their relationship. This far fetched script has Fay striving to be younger than he really was, and he looks even sillier than Franklin Pangborn does in his ridiculous looking toupee. The fact that thus gives me impression that Day is the one who will end up running for mayor makes it completely deceptive. As Stanwyck said about Fay when asked if she would see him in his big comeback of "Harvey" on Broadway, "I've seen all the invisible rabbits of his that I want to see."