Million Dollar Legs (1932) starring W. C. Fields, Jackie Oakley, Susan Fleming
Synopsis of Million Dollar Legs
In Million Dollar Legs, W. C. Fields is the president of the bankrupt nation of Klopstokia. He needs 8,000,000 dollars, his daughter falls in love with a brush salesman, and his cabinet wants to overthrow him. How can he solve all of these problems at once? By having Klopstokia win the 1932 Olympics!
Review of Million Dollar Legs
Million Dollar Legs is a zany, madcap comedy that’s absolutely hilarious, with many of the great clowns of the time. It’s fast-paced, funny, zany, and strongly recommended. Million Dollar Legs is one of those rare comedies that gets funnier with repeated viewing. It’s a madcap movie that you’d associate with the Marx Brothers. In fact, it was written for them, but they turned it down. Another connection with them is that star Rhonda Fleming later married Harpo.
Cast of characters in Million Dollar Legs
- Migg Tweeny (Jack Oakie, The Great Dictator). A brush salesman, trying to sell brushes in the fictional country of Klopstokia. He’s late meeting the president of his company at a boat. But it’s because he’s met (and fallen in love with) a beautiful girl. In about 2 seconds. The girl is …
- Angela (Susan Fleming, Gold Diggers of 1937). She’s named Angela. All of the girls in this country are Angela, all the men are George. Why? … Why not? She’s also the daughter of the president:
- The President (W. C. Fields, It’s A Gift). The president, who earned his office by … beating the other contenders in wrestling. Seriously. And he’s faced with an 8,000,000 dollar debt. But Tweeny (“Sweetheart” to him) has a plan. The country’s overflowing with Olympic-caliber athletes. – let them win the Olympics, and Tweeny’s boss with shower them with money.
Mata Machree (Lyda Roberti, Nobody’s Baby). The fly in the ointment. Hired by the President’s “loyal” cabinet to make sure they don’t win. The “woman no man can resist” gets the entire team to fight over her. Until Angela proves herself her father’s daughter …- In addition, numerous film clowns appeared, such as spy Ben Turpin, cabinet members Vernon Dent and Billy Gilbert, athlete Charlie Hall.
Editorial review of Million Dollar Legs courtesy of Amazon.com
W.C. Fields plays the President of Klopstokia, a bankrupt European country that makes a bid for fame and fortune by entering its top athletes in the 1932 Summer Games in Los Angeles. Directed by Edward Cline (The Bank Dick, 1940) and co-written by Joseph L. Mankiewicz (All About Eve, 1950), this madcap, Pre-Code comedy is one of W.C. Fields’s most anarchic satires and includes scene-stealing performances by comic character actors Jack Oakie, Billy Gilbert, Hugh Herbert and Ben Turpin.