''Model Wife'' is a 1941 American

comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by Leigh Jason and written by Charles Kaufman, Horace Jackson and Grant Garett. The film stars

Joan Blondell Rose Joan Blondell (August 30, 1906 – December 25, 1979) was an American actress who performed in film and television for 50 years. Blondell began her career in vaudeville. After winning a beauty pageant, she embarked on a film career, estab ...

, Dick Powell, Charlie Ruggles, Lee Bowman,

Lucile Watson Lucile Watson (May 27, 1879 – June 24, 1962) was a Canadian actress, long based in the United States. She was "famous for her roles of formidable dowagers." Early years Watson was born in Quebec and raised in Ottawa, the daughter of an offi ...

, Ruth Donnelly and

Billy Gilbert William Gilbert Barron (September 12, 1894 – September 23, 1971), known professionally as Billy Gilbert, was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his comic sneeze routines. He appeared in over 200 feature films, short subjects a ...

. The film was released on April 18, 1941, by

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

Synopsis

Joan and Fred Chambers are a married couple, struggling financially, who both work at Bensons

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

. Company policy forbids the employment of married people and so they both pretend to be single. Things take a complicated turn when the wastrel son of the owner gets Joan as his

secretary A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalu ...

and decides she would make the perfect wife for him.

Cast

as Joan Keating Chambers * Dick Powell as Fred Chambers * Charlie Ruggles as Milo Everett * Lee Bowman as Ralph Benson *

as J.J. Benson * Ruth Donnelly as Mrs. Milo Everett *

as Dominic * John Qualen as The Janitor * Lorraine Krueger as Jitterbug *Glen Turnbull as Jitterbug

References

Bibliography

* Fetrow, Alan G. ''Feature Films, 1940-1949: a United States Filmography''. McFarland, 1994.

External links

* {{Leigh Jason 1941 films American comedy films 1941 comedy films Universal Pictures films Films directed by Leigh Jason American black-and-white films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films