Although it's part of the Roan Group's "Pre-code Hollywood - the Risque Years" DVD series, this RKO second feature is bereft of any racy material or dialogue. It's just a simpleminded, routine morality play championing humility and hard work, with the occasional funny line at the expense of the idle rich. The primary benefit is seeing the ever-wry Ned Sparks rather unusually cast as a steelworker, the platitude-spouting "jiminy cricket" of the lead character. When he tests a cigar left behind in a posh business office, he comments "Connecticut wrapper -- asafetida filling". As all Indian food buffs know, asafetida (aka devil's dung) is a foul-smelling resin that must be stored in isolation lest it contaminate other foodstuffs with its rancor. Apparently, in the 30s, it was used as a folk medicine among the lower classes. Never underestimate the educational value of old movies!
Review of Kept Husbands
