Preston Sturges made several comedies in the 1940s that were both zany and edgy, perhaps even dark. He started out as a successful playwright, which led to screen-writing and winning an Original Screenplay Academy Award for ‘The Great McGinty’. His brand of off-beat gritty comedy made him a Maverick and his frequent clashes with the studios made him unpopular in Hollywood. Here are four to whet your appetite.
The Lady Eve (1941)
Abroad a luxury ocean liner, grifter Jean (Barbara Stanwyck) sincerely falls hard for snobby explorer Charlie (Henry Fonda), but they're abruptly parted when Charlie’s snooping valet Mugsy (William Demarest) discovers she and her party are wanted con-artists. Intending to seek revenge, Jean shows up in his wealthy circle, posing as English aristocrat, Lady Eve. Charlie is completely (and happily) duped, Mugsy's adamant Eve is Jean, and Charlie’s father Horace (the marvellous Eugene Pallette, who gets no respect - and no breakfast!) wants his son to marry nobility. Chaos ensues.
Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
Joel McCrea plays a spoilt movie director of what he calls ‘fluff’, who decides to go incognito across the country, to research a ‘serious’ film about the suffering poor. Despite his studio bosses trying to stop him, he swaps clothes with a street bum, puts a dime in his pocket and takes off. Along the way he teams up with an out-of-work actress (Veronica Lake). Sullivan, a victim of his own naivety, he gets a lot more than he bargained for.
The Palm Beach Story (1942)
Geraldine (Claudette Colbert), impatient wife of struggling inventor Tom (Joel McCrea) hatches a plan to escape to Palm Beach and find a millionaire to marry, to get Tom the money he needs to finance his new invention. When Tom finally tracks her down, she's already in the company of millionaire John (Rudy Vallee) so she introduces Tom as her brother Mac. Geraldine then finds herself torn between securing John and keeping ‘Mac’ out of the hands of other women.
Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)
Woodrow (Eddie Bracken) comes from a long line of military men, but he’s 4F - medically unsuitable for military duty – a fact he’s hidden from his family. His big-city civilian war work ends and he’s too scared to go back to his home town. In a bar he meets a group of sympathetic Marines, one of whom (William Demarest) fought with his father in WW1. The Marines hatch a plan for him to return home as a uniformed decorated hero – dragging the hapless Woodrow in their wake.
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