Playwright Gaylord Esterbrook scores a hit with his first Broadway play, both with the critics and with leading lady Linda Paige. He and Linda are happily married until a patroness of the ...
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Title: No Time for Comedy (1940)
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Cast
| Complete credited cast: | |||
| James Stewart | ... | Gaylord Esterbrook | |
| Rosalind Russell | ... | Linda Paige Esterbrook | |
| Genevieve Tobin | ... | Amanda Swift | |
| Charles Ruggles | ... | Philo Swift (as Charlie Ruggles) | |
| Allyn Joslyn | ... | Morgan Carrell | |
| Clarence Kolb | ... | Richard Benson | |
| Louise Beavers | ... | Clementine | |
| J.M. Kerrigan | ... | Jim | |
 |
Lawrence Grossmith | ... | Frank (as Lawrence Grosmith) |
| Robert Greig | ... | Robert | |
| Frank Faylen | ... | Cab Driver | |
| Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
|
|
Bonnie Gaye Cowen | ||
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Storyline
Playwright Gaylord Esterbrook scores a hit with his first Broadway play, both with the critics and with leading lady Linda Paige. He and Linda are happily married until a patroness of the arts convinces Esterbrook to forget about comedy and concentrate on writing a tragedy. The end result nearly destroys his career and his marriage. Written by Daniel Bubbeo <dbubbeo@cmp.com>
Plot Keywords:
screwball comedy | playwright | writing | manhattan new york city | male female relationship |Taglines:
Mr Smith Goes to town ! See more »Parents Guide:
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Philo Swift: They know at city hall.
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(1885) (uncredited)
Music by Johannes Brahms
Played on a phonograph at Amanda's house
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Did You Know?
Trivia
Although Genevieve Tobin and Charlie Ruggles are billed third and fourth, they do not appear until the 44- and 42-minute marks, respectively and it was Genevieve Tobin last movie. See more »Goofs
An extreme close-up of a newspaper article trumpets Gaylord's fourth hit play in four years. However, in the preceding montage, there were three other play titles shown as following "Dilemma at Dinner." Thus, the play mentioned in the article would have to be Gaylord's fifth hit in four years. This counting error continues in the dialog for the rest of the film. See more »Quotes
Amanda Swift: Philo and I have been married for... how long is it now, dear?Philo Swift: They know at city hall.
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Soundtracks
Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Opus 98: 1st movement(1885) (uncredited)
Music by Johannes Brahms
Played on a phonograph at Amanda's house
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
14 September 1940 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
Guy with a Grin See more »Filming Locations:
Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USACompany Credits
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I stuck with this movie because I have a head cold and didn't have the energy to do much of anything else. But if I had had the energy, I hope I would have given up on it early on, when Stewart's character becomes thoroughly disagreeable.
This is the story, often told, of an artist who becomes a success and then is led astray by a woman who promises to bring out his "potential." But the script is not well-written. None of the changes are prepared in advance. We don't ever really see why/how Amanda can seduce Stewart away from Rosalind Russell.
And then there are all sorts of gratuitous slams at the Black maid, played by Louise Beavers.
In short, this movie did nothing for me. I can't imagine that S.N. Behrman's play, on which it was based, could have been this uninvolving.