Sweepstakes Winner (Warner Bros.) (1939)

CURRENT PUBLICITY — “SWEEPSTAKES WINNER” HORSE SENSE is at a premium, between Marie Wilson and Johnnie Davis, playing the leads in the Warner Bros. turf comedy, "Sweepstakes Winner," now playing at the Strand Theatre. (Opening Day) Marie Wilson At Strand In “Sweepstakes Winner’’ Marie Wilson, a waitress who wins $150,000, Johnnie Davis, her timorous suitor, Allen Jenkins and Charley Foy, two conscienceless touts who have a real ‘‘good thing’’ in Marie — these are the main ingredients that make a tasty comedy dish of ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the Warner Bros. picture which opens at the Strand Theatre today. When Marie’s grandfather dies, he wills her $1,000 and a racehorse named Firefly. After she mocets Jenkins and Foy, she soon has neither the money nor the horse. Going back to her old trade in a restaurant owned by Johnnie, Marie is pursued there by the two touts, who get free meals by continuing to trade upon her gullibility. They even get her to give them change for $10 by turning over to her a sweepstakes ticket which they represent as costing that much and which they assure her will surely win $150,000. And that is just what it does do, much to the consternation of the two touts. They determine, however, to continue to mine a vein which has always brought them gold, so they arrange a deal for her to repurchase Firefly. Under their guiding hands, the horse is entered in a race which they think they have safely fixed. But the horse double-crosses them by winning the race, and Marie also finally escapes from their clutches by marrying Johnnie who is shy but not dumb. Other members of an_ expert comedy cast include Jerry Colonna, Frankie Burke, Vera Lewis, Granville Bates, Eddie Kane, Bert Hanlon and Sidney Bracy. The screen play, written by: John Krafft, and Albert DeMond, was based on an original story by DeMond and Hugh Cummings. The production was directed by William McGann. Johnnie Davis Goes Rural, Has Plows And Petunias Although his hat was kicked off his head by the racehorse in the picture, he strained his back in trying to throw broad-shouldered Allen Jenkins out of Marie Wilson’s boarding house on the set, and he got elbowed on the nose by Reid Kilpatrick, 200-pound announcer, Johnnie ‘Scat’ Davis regards his latest Warner Bros. picture, ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ now showing at the Strand Theatre, as a happy milestone in his career. For the scat singer whose voice and shrill trumpet help heat the films and radio so full of quarter notes and crinkly comedy has gone rural. Johnnie’s new home in his San Fernando Valley tract of field orchard land was being completed while Johnnie was trying to save Marie Wilson’s lucky $150,000 horse race ticket for her in ‘“Sweepstakes Winner.’’ Now the new place is ready. Eighteen Rhode Island Reds have already been installed there. They will be followed by 100 more. Johnnie’s book shelves are loaded with pamphlets about aphis control and red rust remover. His shed already houses a shiny steel plow which was 4 Johnnie’s birthday present to himself last May 11. The tractor to pull the plow will be Johnnie’s next birthday present to his wife, the former ; Martha Lou Garber. Besides the Mat 102—15¢ Rhode Island Reds, the petunia beds, and the garden patch, which are already receiving careful daily supervision by Squire Davis, Johnnie’s acreage includes orchards of orange, lemon, walnut, apricot and fig trees, with a few avocado and tangerine trees thrown in extra, in case Mrs. Davis might want to serve fruit salad. Johnnie Davis Weighted For Role Frankie Burke, the juvenile copy of Jimmy Cagney, dieted and took off six pounds in order to fit his role as a jockey in ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the Warner Bros. picture now at the Strand Theatre. Siren Blows Siren Johnnie Davis taught Marie Wilson to do a loud imitation of a fire engine siren with her lips, for one of the big laughs in their Warner Bros. comedy, ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ at the; Strand Theatre. Davis Can “Scat” Higher Up Scale An operation that may extend the scat singing range of Johnnie Davis’ voice for half an octave or more, and which the comedian also expects to let him blow higher, longer and louder notes on his cornet, was performed on the actor recently. The operation was performed for the purpose of straightening the partition of Johnnie’s nose, which had been broken while he was a youth in Brazil, Indiana, High School. The nose injury was a trace of Johnnie’s football playing days as a kid. It began troubling Johnnie again when he was bounced around in a couple of his scenes in ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the Warner Bros. comedy now playing at the Strand Theatre. Johnnie experienced one push on the nose in a scene in which he ejected 185-pound Allen Jenkins from the presence of Marie Wilson; and went through another rough, tough, scuffle with Reid Kilpatrick, 200pound radio announcer, in a broadeast booth. JOHNNIE DAVIS IS UKAY WITHOUT HORN Since coming to Hollywood about two years ago, Johnnie ““Seat’’? Davis has appeared in ten motion pictures. Fetched to the film colony on a Warner Bros. contract because of renown as a scat singer and hot trumpet player, Johnnie has neither sung nor blown a note in his last two films, having slid almost unnoticed into the status of featured comedian. Johnnie plays a restaurant owner who has fallen in love with Marie Wilson and is always trying to protect her and her small inheritance from racetrack touts in ‘*‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the Warner Bros. picture now at the Strand Theatre, and prior to that he was a noisy and good-natured cadet in ‘‘ Brother Rat.’’ Davis says he is not only willing but pleased to accept his new status as a non-musical comedian, but that it works a sort of hardship on him because he has to go home and practice his singing and cornet playing in the evenings, after a hard day at the studio, in order to be ready for any orders that may suddenly reach him to resume horn-blowing and singing. Johnnie reasons that, after all, he got his first movie break because of his hot-tootin’ cornet and seat crooning and it seems like a good idea to be ready to meet such an assignment again. Marie Knows Self Marie Wilson’s own description of herself to an inquirer one day on the set of ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the Warner Bros. comedy now playing at the Strand Theatre, was: ‘‘Just a hook and eye girl in a zipper world.’’ All ‘Round Gal Marie Wilson, shopping in a Hollywood Boulevard store, heeded a salesgirl’s request to ‘‘waten the counter a minute while I see if we have one in the storeroom.’’ The star went behind the counter and when a customer appeared, sold her a pair of silk stockings! ““T’ll have to ask someone about the price,’’?’ Marie told the astcnished customer. ‘‘You see, I’m not the regular girl here, I’m just helping her.’? The ‘‘regular girl’? returned in time to cinch the sale. Marie’s latest Warner Bros. comedy, ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ is at the Strand Theatre now. [8] (Review ) Merry Pace Keeps Turf Comedy At Strand Racing The comedy team of Marie Wilson and Johnnie Davis in the leading roles of ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’? the Warner Bros. comedy with a racetrack background which opened yesterday at the Strand Theatre, it must be reported, made that house literally rock with laughter. In parts perfectly suited to their distinctive types of comedy, Marie and Johnnie set a high, hilarious pace for a group of comedians including Allen . Jenkins, Charley Foy, Jerry Colonna, and Eddie Kane. Others in the cast are Vera Lewis, Granville Bates, Bert Hanlon and Sidney Braey. Marie is a small-town waitress whose grandfather has bequeathed her $1,000 and a racehorse. After meeting a couple of touts at a big city racetrack, she is soon without both money and_ horse, and she has to go to work as a waitress again, in a_ restaurant run by Johnnie Davis. The touts, Jenkins and Foy, continue plagueing Marie, even getting her to give them cash for a sweepstakes ticket which they represent as costing $10. And when her ticket is the lucky one, winning $150,000 she isn’t even surprised. After all, didn’t they tell her she was going to win? She goes on a spending spree, clothes, furs, a car, even buying back her old horse, Firefly. The slicks talk Marie into running the horse in a race they have ‘fixed.’ But Firefly crosses them up and wins! Marie is jubilant. She does the really smart thing then — marries Johnnie Davis, who would have asked her before, only all her money made him nervous. The screen play was written by John Krafft and Albert DeMond from an original story by DeMond and Hugh Cummings. The production was directed by William MeGann. I Want To Do Something For Wednesday & Saturday says Marie Wilson (Miss Wilson, who first came into real prominence as the waitress in ‘“Boy Meets Girl,’’ is again a waitress and just about the same kind of girl as the heroine of ‘‘Sweepstakes Winner,’’ the new Warner Bros. comedy now playing at the Strand Theatre.) Ever since I was a tiny little girl I have felt sorry for Wednesday and Saturday. For a long time I thought there was nothing I could do about it, Mat 103—15e Marie Wilson no matter how miserable it made me feel. But when I heard the radio tell how we should all throw our guns and ships away to encourage the Germans and the Italians and the The Hand Is Quicker Than The Eye Japanese to feel like big brothers and chums with everybody else, I knew that even Wednesday and Saturday would at last have a chance. I have looked at calendars, year after year, until I feel dizzy, and as long ago as I ean find out, it has always been the way it is now, nobody doing anything for Wednesday and Saturday. “Monday gets a day off every day on Labor Day. Tuesday gets a day off every year on Election Day. Thursday gets a day off every year on Thanksgiving Day. Friday gets a day off on Good Friday. Sunday gets a day off on Easter Day. Wednesday and Saturday ean not rely on anything like that. They have nothing to fall back on for a steady day off like the others. I have spoken to my friends about it, and everybody is going to write seven letters to everybody else, and ask for seven dimes to rent a holiday for Wednesday and Saturday also. And if that doesn’t work, I have a great idea. I’ll keep the dimes, and we will all walk on a picket line against Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Mat 203—30c Johnnie Davis, Marie Wilson, Allen Jenkins, Jerry Colonna, and Charley Foy, in a scene from "Sweepstakes Winner,"’ Warner Bros.' comedy at the Strand.