Evenings for Sale

Count Herbert Marshall, former captain of His Imperial Majesty's Guards, is broke and unable to pay any of the bills of his family castle in Vienna. He plans to shoot himself tomorrow, but tonight he has a costume ball to attend. There he meets Sari Maritza incognito, and they fall in love. There he also meets his former batman, Charlie Ruggles, who arranges a job for him as a gigolo at the popular cafe he works at. Into this mix comes Mary Boland, a wealthy, unworldly widow from Maryville USA. She has come to Vienna and wants to go the Moulin Rouge. She winds up the cafe where Marshall works and is impressed with his demeanor and his sad story, when Miss Maritza, her father George Barbier and her loutish would-be fiancee come in for the express purpose of humiliating Marshall. He refuses to be humiliated. Indeed, he picks up the bill for Miss Boland, who doesn't realize he is a gigolo.

Director Stuart Walker wasn't up to the Lubitschian standards this movies sounds like it calls for, but that's not the purpose. Marshall is a realist with a stubborn streak of romantic pride; Miss Boland is a kind, generous woman who only regret is that none of these things happened to her when she was young. Ruggles keeps spreading misinformation, hoping to land Miss Boland and her ten million dollars -- not schillings! -- for Marshall, with a good job for himself. These four people are quite nice (except for Miss Maritza, who is upset and angry) in this very pleasant movie.