''Palmy Days'' is a 1931 American

Pre-Code Pre-Code Hollywood was an era in the Cinema of the United States, American film industry that occurred between the widespread adoption of sound in film in the late 1920s and the enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code censorship gui ...

musical comedy film written by

Eddie Cantor Eddie Cantor (born Isidore Itzkowitz; January 31, 1892 – October 10, 1964) was an American comedian, actor, dancer, singer, songwriter, film producer, screenwriter and author. Cantor was one of the prominent entertainers of his era. Some of h ...

, Morrie Ryskind, and David Freedman, directed by A. Edward Sutherland, and choreographed by Busby Berkeley (who makes a cameo appearance as a fortune teller). The film stars Eddie Cantor. The famed Goldwyn Girls make appearances during elaborate production numbers set in a gymnasium and a bakery ("Glorifying the American Doughnut"). Betty Grable, Paulette Goddard, Virginia Grey, and Toby Wing are among the bevy of chorines.

George Raft George Raft (né Ranft; September 26, 1901 – November 24, 1980) was an American film actor and dancer identified with portrayals of gangsters in crime melodramas of the 1930s and 1940s. A stylish leading man in dozens of movies, Raft is remembe ...

had an early role.

Plot

Eddie Simpson is an assistant to a phony psychic, Dr. Yolando. Yolando tries to install one of his henchmen as an efficiency expert in a large bakery in order to swindle money out of its owner, Mr. Clark. However, bumbling but honest Eddie accidentally gets the job instead and tries to protect Mr. Clark from Dr. Yolando. Eddie falls in love with Mr. Clark's daughter, but she's already in love with another man. Meanwhile, the bakery's awkward but well-meaning fitness instructor, Helen Martin, falls in love with Eddie. Eddie performs song and dance routines for the bakery's customers that drive sales through the roof, and Mr. Clark plans to pay his employees a generous cash bonus. Eddie is entrusted with the cash overnight, but Yolando finds out about the bonus and sends his goons after Eddie. Helen helps Eddie in his frantic struggle to protect the money. Eventually, Dr. Yolando incriminates himself. The money is saved, securing Eddie's position as Mr. Clark's trusted right-hand man, and Eddie realizes he actually loves Helen instead of Mr. Clark's daughter. The smitten Helen already had a minister on standby, so she and Eddie get married on the spot.

Cast (in credits order)

* Charlotte Greenwood as Helen Martin * Barbara Weeks as Joan Clark * Spencer Charters as Mr Clark *Paul Page as Steve * Charles Middleton as Yolando *

as Joe – Yolando's Henchman * Harry Woods as Yolando's Henchman *

as Eddie Simpson

Music

Cantor's major musical numbers are "My Baby Said Yes, Yes" and "There's Nothing Too Good For My Baby".

Reception

The film was one of the most popular movies of the year.Everett Aaker, ''The Films of George Raft'', McFarland & Company, 2013 p 18 ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' movie critic Mordaunt Hall, described ''Palmy Days'' as "a more or less funny diatribe" with "two or three inconsequential melodies and a great deal to gaze, including pretty damsels from the Pacific Coast and effectively photographed groups of dancers."

Product placement

Brand-name products rarely appeared in movies of this period, partly because of the campaign against that practice by the motion picture trade periodical '' Harrison's Reports''. In an editorial, that publication reported the on-screen appearance of an Underwood Typewriter and product of Continental Baking Company.'' Harrison's Reports'' November 28, 1931, page 189

References

External links

* * 1931 films 1931 musical comedy films 1931 romantic comedy films American musical comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic musical films American black-and-white films Films directed by A. Edward Sutherland Samuel Goldwyn Productions films United Artists films 1930s romantic musical films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films Goldwyn Girls English-language musical comedy films English-language romantic comedy films English-language romantic musical films {{romantic-musical-film-stub