Fifty Million Frenchmen (Warner Bros.) (1931)

LENGTH (Vitaphone) 6488 Feet RUNNING TIME. 71 Minutes / SYNOPSIS (Not For Publication) Copyright 1931 Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. All Rights Reserved Jack Forbes, a wealthy young American is arriving in Paris with Marcelle, whom he has met on the voyage when he sees Looloo. a pretty countrywoman of his own, “hailing someone on the boat. At the Ritz, during cocktail hour, | ck meets) his A ™sricagn=t* VUMinwis0 ai — —_———— taken by the infuriated Maa. who cracks a bottle over his heau before she is mollified by ten thous-| and francs. Here enter two fake detectives, Simon and Peter. It develops that Cummings already loves Looloo, and, in friendly rivalry, he wagers Jack that he cannot live in Paris and get himself engaged to Looloo in two weeks, if he goes about it dead broke. Jack accepts the challenge ond Baxter holds the stakes, fifty thousand dollars. Jack starts without a penny. Cummings and Baxter hire Simon and Peter to trail him. Jack takes a job with the American Express Company as a guide, and the fake sleuths get jobs at the same place as baggage-smashers. In his new work Jack again meets Looloo, but their delightful tet-a-tete is interrupted by Violet, a through-going tourist, whom he has promised to take sight-seeing. Looloo misinterprets Violet’s presence. Looloo writes Jack later asking him to help her out of the coming Ritz party at which her ambitious mama means to announce her en-| gagement to Cummings. Jack hires a dress suit to go to the party, meets Simon and Peter, who are pursued by two French girls, and by offering to help them, he gets their aid, in breaking up the Cummings party. By doing “magic” tricks at the party Jack promotes a few thousand francs and uses it to entertain Looloo. He takes her to the horse races where Cummings sees them and for vengeance phones Jack a wrong tip on a horse. Jack, Looloo, Simon and Peter put all their money on the horse which, accidentally wins. Jack, before the winning, however, has thrown away his wager tickets. Violet informs him that the horse won and he is cashing her checks for her, when Looloo sees, misunderstands and again leaves in a huff. Cummings tries to get Simon and Peter to kidnap Jack. They refuse and he hires thugs to pursue him. There is a hair-raising chase but Jack escapes. Two minutes only, are left before the end of the two weeks. Jack and Looloo are married on the dot-—-and the groom presents PRINTED IN U.S. A. } i A i f ¥ Release it several days “Fifty Million Frenchmen,” Warner Bros. natural color screen version of the whirlwind comedy which lately took Broadway by storm, comes to Theatre next. nt Dha. “way tein ae. ne Paree—they are a glorious melange of dancing sweeties, wise-cracking kidders, skidding taxis, sleight-ofhand performers, pussyfooting detectives, gorgeously gowned girls and speeding race horses—a perfect setting for the astonishing love story of a young American millionaire who wagers fifty thousand dollars that, without a cent in his pocket, he can in two weeks woo and marry the stunning girl he has seen, but never met. peewee The girl in question is played by Claudia Dell. William Gaxton is the adventurous lover. John Halliday and Lester Crawford are the two friends of the hero (one of them his rival) who challenge him. Olsen and Johnson, the craziest team in talkies, are cast as fake detectives, who impersonate many other odd WARNER BROS. ROUTINE STORY (This story contains all the important facts about the picture. before i Vera Gordon_do a, delightful bit-as 4 VITAPHON al sO Stepping Fast! the engagement begins.) people before the play runs its riotous course. Helen Broderick plays a strong-minded tourist. Carmelita Geraghty does a flighty French girl and Charles Judels again excels as a comical boulevardier. Nat Carr and ““wish tourists in Fans. “Fifty Million Frenchmen” is based on the Herbert Fields play. The up-to-the-minute adaptation was done by Joseph Jackson, Al Boasberg and Eddie Welch. “Fifty Million Frenchmen” is filmed entirely in Technicolor. Lloyd Bacon directed. Though “Fifty Million French. men” was a musical play, there are no choruses in the picture—which is, when all is said, just the last word in peppy love stories with a comedy angle. It is interesting to note that William Gaxton was for a time on the screen as the typical villain; that he returned to the Broadway stage as the hero in “Fifty Million | Frenchmen” and that he is now seen in the screen version as an ingratiating happy-go-lucky youth. Helen Broderick was also in the Broadway production. Cut No. 22 Cut 15c Mat 5c Claudia Dell, one of the new Warner Bros. players who is speeding towards stardom in record strides. She is now appearing in “Fifty Million Frenchmen” at the Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson in “Fifty Million Frenchmen.” PARR ARR In Cut No. 24 Cut 15c Mat 5c the fifty thousand reward to Simon and Peter, who decide to stay in Paris. Since, in the words of Simon, “Fifty Million Frenchmen can’t be wrong!’ SIMON AND PETER, American comedy detectives OLSEN AND JOHNSON JACK FORBES, Rich American youth in Paris *WILLIAM GAXTON MICHAEL CUMMINGS, Friendly rival of Jack JOHN HALLIDAY VIOLET, Strong-minded tourist from U. 8. A *HELEN BRODERICK LOOLOO CARROLL, American Beauty loved by Jack CLAUDIA DELL BILLY BAXTER, Young pal of Cummings *LESTER CRAWFORD PERNASSE, Comedy character CHARLES JUDELS MARCELLE DUBREY, Vivacious French Girl CARMELITA GERAGHTY NAT CARR VERA GORDON NORMAN PHILLIPS, Jr. *Played same parts in stage production SUMMARY An all-natural color hurricane of hilarity, with young lovers, wise-cracking kidders, skidding taxis, sleight-of-hand performers, pussyfooting detectives, racing horses, all in the glittering haunts of gay Paree—personally conducting the delighted public over the rocky road traveled by a young American millionaire in his pursuit of “the one girl in the world.” Permission is granted licensed exhibitors to reproduce with proper notice of copyright all matter contained herein. WHO’S WHO OLSEN and JOHNSON—Comedy team known as the nuttiest nuts of nutland—famous on musical comedy and vaudeville stage, in their original faree, “Monkey Business” and on the sereen in Warner Bros. “Oh, Sailor Rehave.” oa AM GAXTON—Fs Peasy WVAlsas others and in his original che ization in the New York stage production of “Fifty Million Frenchmen,” on which the pieture is based. JOHN HALLIDAY — Broadway stage suecess in “The Spider,” “Jealousy,” “The Whip” and “The Humbug”; seen on sereen in First National’s “Scarlet Pages” and Warner Bros. “Recaptured Love” and “Captain Applejack.” ° HELEN BRODERICK — Comedienne who convulsed Broadway in such stage plays as “Oh, Please,” “As You Were” and “Mama Love Papa,” and in the stage version of “Fifty Million Frenchmen.” She plays the same role in the screen version. CLAUDIA DELL—Former Follies beauty seen in Warner Bros. “Sweet Kitty Bellairs,” “Big Boy” and “Sit Tight.” Miss Dell appeared in London as the lead in “Marry Mary.” Her part in “Fifty Million Frenchmen” is rarely suited to her striking personality. LESTER CRAWFORD — Favorite Broadway playboy seen on the stage there, in such successes as “As You Were” and “Vogues and Vanities.” He plays the same role in the screen version as in the stage presentation of “Fifty Million Frenchmen.” NAT CARR—Character actor in Jewish roles seen in “Cohens and Kellys,” “Jazz Singer,” “Kosher Kitty Kelly” and “The Talk of Hollywood.” VERA GORDON — Character actress in Jewish roles, famous as heroine of “Humoresque,” ‘Kosher Kitty Kelly,” “Cohens and Kellys,” and “Four Walls.” CHARLES JUDELS — Unique comedian seen with Olsen and Johnson in Warner Bros. “Oh Sailor Behave” and in “The Life of the Party” and “Captain Thunder.” LLOYD BACON—Brilliantly suecessful director, among his pictures being John Barrymore’s “Moby Dick,” “The Office Wife” and “Sit Tight.” Page Or — ————— — -_ Wee