The title of the film is a little misleading. There was only one port to speak of, and only two girls of any consequence in the story, and both of them had eyes on Bert Sedgwick (Don DeFore), who wasn't a principal in the story. On paper, the teaming of Grouch Marx and William Bendix would suggest a laugh riot, but they were merely humorous as Navy buddies confined to a ship's brig until Tim Dunnovan (Bendix) inherited fourteen hundred fifty dollars. At which point Benny Linn (Groucho) smothered his pal with all kinds of ideas to grow it all out of proportion. On that score, the theme was somewhat typical of a Marx Brothers flick. Which in a way it was, hearkening back to their 1937 film, "A Day at the Races".
Caught between two opposing forces, Benny and Tim find themselves in a no-win situation, now the owners of a crippled horse with a twin (how does that work?) who's proved a winner. Stealing Little Shamrock to fill in for the lame Little Aaron, the boys find themselves in a quandary. If Shamrock loses, the boys could make a quick buck from Millicent Temple (Dee Hartford), whose continuing romance with Bert Sedgwick depends on his giving up gambling on the ponies. But if Shamrock loses, mobster High Life (Teddy Hart), who muscled his way into a partnership with Benny and Tim, will most likely have them both eliminated!
Not to worry. With Tim aboard Little Shamrock, and Benny astride Little Aaron, somehow they finish first in a dead heat, but because of the questionable finish, and with race announcers curiously unable to distinguish between the two horses, both are disqualified! And to top things off, the former brig mates are now credited for saving their ship when they threw a concealed bomb overboard without even realizing it! How any of this related to the title of the movie is anyone's guess, so my advice is not to think about it too much.
Caught between two opposing forces, Benny and Tim find themselves in a no-win situation, now the owners of a crippled horse with a twin (how does that work?) who's proved a winner. Stealing Little Shamrock to fill in for the lame Little Aaron, the boys find themselves in a quandary. If Shamrock loses, the boys could make a quick buck from Millicent Temple (Dee Hartford), whose continuing romance with Bert Sedgwick depends on his giving up gambling on the ponies. But if Shamrock loses, mobster High Life (Teddy Hart), who muscled his way into a partnership with Benny and Tim, will most likely have them both eliminated!
Not to worry. With Tim aboard Little Shamrock, and Benny astride Little Aaron, somehow they finish first in a dead heat, but because of the questionable finish, and with race announcers curiously unable to distinguish between the two horses, both are disqualified! And to top things off, the former brig mates are now credited for saving their ship when they threw a concealed bomb overboard without even realizing it! How any of this related to the title of the movie is anyone's guess, so my advice is not to think about it too much.