He Married His Wife (1940)

Race horse owner pays so much attention to business he winds up divorced from his wife. His alimony payments are so steep he plots with his lawyer to get her married off.

Director:

Roy Del Ruth

Writers:

Sam Hellman (screen play), Darrell Ware (screen play),

Stars:

Joel McCrea, Nancy Kelly, Roland Young

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Joel McCrea	...	T.H. Randall
Nancy Kelly	...	Valerie
Roland Young	...	Bill Carter
Mary Boland	...	Ethel
Cesar Romero	...	Freddie
Mary Healy	...	Doris
Lyle Talbot	...	Paul Hunter
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Dicky Brown
Barnett Parker	...	Huggins
Harry Hayden	...	Prisoner
Charles C. Wilson	...	Warden (as Charles Wilson)
Charles D. Brown	...	Detective
Spencer Charters	...	Mayer
Leyland Hodgson	...	Waiter
William Edmunds	...	Waiter

Storyline

T.H."Randy" Randall and Valerie Randall are divorced but friendly, but not to the extent she doesn't have him jailed for non-payment of alimony. His attorney, Bill Carter, suggests that the only way out of his financial strain is for him to get Valerie married off to someone else. Dizzy matron Ethel thinks that is a good idea and arranges a week-end party at which Valerie is to be paired off with likely-prospect Paul Hunter. Plans are disrupted when free-loading Freddie crashes the party and makes a heavy move on Valerie, and she likes it, mostly because Randy doesn't. Carter can't see any problem - a husband is a husband - but Randy is so certain that Freddie is bad news that he decides to win her back and remarry her himself, since he has also decided that he still loves her.

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Plot Keywords:

alimony | lawyer | marriage | playboy | romantic rivalry | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

19 January 1940 (USA)

Also Known As:

Casou com o Seu Marido

Filming Locations:

Hoover Ranch, Calabasas, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The current print shown on the Fox Movie Channel (FMC) has no end credits. The AFI Catalogue lists additional credited cast, indicating they viewed a print with end credits. Added, in the following order, were Harry Hayden, Charles C. Wilson (as Charles Wilson), Charles D. Brown, Spencer Charters, Leyland Hodgson and William Edmunds.

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Quotes

Bill Carter: If you never saw him before, why'd you let him kiss you?
Ethel Hillary: Well, after all, Bill, there is such a thing as hospitality.

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Connections

Remade as Meet Me After the Show (1951)

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Soundtracks

"Bridal Chorus (Here Comes the Bride)"
(1850) (uncredited)
from "Lohengrin"
Written by Richard Wagner
Played on a record at the wedding

User Reviews

Pleasant cast in weak screwball comedy...

Not all screwball comedies of the '40s are worth bothering about and this one goes to the top of the list in that category.

Poor JOEL McCREA and NANCY KELLY head a pleasant enough cast, but they have their work cut out for them. The silly script is something about a broad-minded man who's unable to pay alimony to his wife but foolishly goes along on a week-end trip to the country where he tries to play Cupid in getting her together with two men (LYLE TALBOT and CESAR ROMERO) who are crazy about her. If that makes sense, give me a clue.

MARY BOLAND is the country hostess who flutters around like an imitation of her character in THE WOMEN. ROLAND YOUNG has a few wry remarks to make, but NANCY KELLY is almost insufferably coy and arch as the exasperated heroine.

This is supposed to be wildly funny but the situations are all very artificial and most of the punch lines fall flat. The only compensation is seeing the attractive JOEL McCREA at his handsome best, playing it straight and not seeming to mind the hopelessly contrived script he's caught up in. He and CESAR ROMERO have the most luck with their hapless roles.

Only for fans of '40s screwball comedies that are easily amused.