''Design for Scandal'' is a 1941 American romantic comedy film directed by

Norman Taurog Norman Rae Taurog (February 23, 1899 – April 7, 1981) was an American film director and screenwriter. From 1920 to 1968, Taurog directed 180 films. At the age of 32, he received the Academy Award for Best Director for '' Skippy'' (1931). He i ...

Rosalind Russell Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...

stars as a judge targeted by a newspaper tycoon unhappy with her decision in his divorce case. Mary Beth Hughes in Design for Scandal trailer

Plot

When wealthy newspaper publisher Judson M. Blair divorces his wife Adele, judge Cornelia C. Porter awards Adele

alimony Alimony, also called aliment (Scotland), maintenance (England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Canada, New Zealand), spousal support (U.S., Canada) and spouse maintenance (Australia), is a legal obligation on a person to provide financial sup ...

of $4,000 per month for five years or until she remarries. After learning from his lawyer Northcott that Porter refuses to hear an appeal, Blair is furious and unsuccessfully tries to wield his influence with Porter's boss Judge Graham to have Porter transferred. Reporter Jeff Sherman, recently fired by Blair, offers a solution in exchange for a promotion, a raise, a bonus and an unlimited

expense account An expense account is the right to reimbursement of money spent by employees for work-related purposes. Some common expense accounts are: Cost of sales, utilities expense, discount allowed, cleaning expense, depreciation expense, delivery expense ...

. Blair accedes to all of his demands. Sherman convinces his

manicurist A manicurist or nail technician is a person whose occupation is to style and shape a person's nails. This is achieved using a combination of decorating nails with coloured varnish, transfers, gems or glitter. Basic treatments include manicures a ...

girlfriend Dotty to pretend to agree to marry him in the near future. He then tries to romance Porter, intending to threaten her with an alienation-of-affections scandal to force her to reduce Blair's alimony burden. When Porter takes a two-month vacation, Sherman follows her. Having researched Porter's interests, Sherman pretends to be a sculptor. To obtain an artist's studio in the fully booked resort town, Sherman persuades sculptor Alexander Raoul that Blair has offered him a commission to decorate his building. Sherman then begins to woo Porter. She considers him a nuisance, but he is eventually able to win her love. To his dismay, he finds that he has fallen for her as well. Porter learns about the scheme before Sherman can confess, and has both Blair and Sherman arrested. At their trial, Sherman acts as his own lawyer and calls Porter to the witness stand, where he asks her to marry him. Under oath, she is forced to admit that she did love him at one point, and she runs out in tears. When Sherman chases after her, he is knocked down. Believing that he has been hurt, Porter rushes back to him, and they are reconciled. Blair becomes irate when he discovers that after he had convinced his ex-wife to agree to a lump-sum settlement, she promptly married another wealthy magnate.

Cast

Box office

According to MGM records, the film earned $659,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $398,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $139,000.

References

External links

* * * * {{Norman Taurog 1941 films 1941 comedy-drama films 1941 romantic comedy films 1941 romantic drama films 1940s romantic comedy-drama films American black-and-white films American romantic comedy-drama films 1940s English-language films Films directed by Norman Taurog Films scored by Franz Waxman Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1940s American films