A Lady's Profession

Prohibition era, society comedy starring the irrepressible Allison Skipworth!

I saw this years ago at a film festival and it was fun, not great but a good time killer. Allison Skipworth was a character actor that reminds me of a female W.C. Fields. Not that she drank but instead she believably made witty observations on society and usually won in the end no matter what the plot contrivances or misunderstandings.

Skipworth is the grand dame of a titled European family down on their luck. Roland Young is bumbling and stuttering father, Sari Maritza is pretty daughter who loves rich and handsome boyfriend Kent Taylor whose blowhard American father George Barbier does not trust anyone.

In the subplot we have conman Roscoe Karns talking fast and double dealing, Warren Hymer as a strong armed bootlegger, Billy Bletcher as a whittling sidekick and bully Dewey Robinson trying to avoid the coppers.

It is light weight but has it's own charm and is better with an audience of classic film fans than watching it by yourself. But as I always say, it's best to see a film any way you can than to wait until you can see a mint print on the big screen! A friend sent me a DVD from a company called Vintage Film Buff, I guess you can find them on the web. It was watchable and reminded me how much I liked it at the film festival… almost always the best way to discover these early films—in a dark room filled with like minded buffs!